Shopping during your Qatar holidays
Qatar Shopping Centers offer a wide range of world renowned shopping experiences. Here is some info to help with shopping during your visit to Qatar.
Shopping is serious fun in Qatar. Your holiday in Qatar would not be complete without a visit to Souqh Waqif. The traditional labyrinth of narrow streets has been renovated honouring the traditional Qatari architecture. Here you can find all the ancient handicrafts, haggle over the price of a carpet or buy anything form incense to gold jewellery. In addition, this is the perfect place to taste some of the local dishes in one of the many cafés and restaurants.
Qatar’s shopping malls have achieved international fame and for many visitors a day spent at one of the spacious malls is a must have feature of their holiday in Qatar. Many famous Western department stores have a branch in Doha, such as Debenhams, Marks & Spencers and Virgin, while every mall hosts a large number of luxury and designer brand stores.
List of Qatar Shopping Center:
- Villagio
- Souq Waqif
- Royal Plaza
- City Center Doha
Villaggio Mall
Villaggio Mall is a shopping mall located in the Aspire Zone in the west end of Doha, the capital city of Qatar. It is located on Al Waab street between the Hyatt Plaza and Sports City and has over 200 stores, including many famous brands in the U.S., U.K., Italian and German markets.
Inside, the interiors are Italianate-themed both as an Italian hill town, but also with a 150-meter long indoor canal with gondolas.
The mall contains the Gondolania Theme Park, an indoor theme park which includes the Gondolania Ice Rink, one of two ice hockey rinks in Qatar, which is the home of the Qatar Ice Hockey League and the regional Desert Cup tournament. It is the only Olympic-size rink in Qatar. Also included are a ten pin bowling center and a rollercoaster.
Souq Waqif
Souq Waqif is an important souq in Doha, in the state of Qatar. Literally translated to “the standing market,” this shopping destination is renowned for selling traditional garments, spices, handicrafts, and souvenirs. It is also home to dozens of restaurants serving cuisines from all over the world, as well as Shisha lounges. Although this market dates back at least a hundred years, it was recently torn down and rebuilt in traditional architectural styles. It is now considered one of the top tourist destinations within Doha.
Thousands of people from across the region frequent this market to purchase traditional goods.
Lately Souq Waqif became a hot spot for art galleries and workshops, hosting several art galleries and events. It also hosts local concerts during the holiday seasons.
Souq Waqif is within easy reach of major parts of Doha.
Royal Plaza Shopping Mall
Royal plaza is an attraction where the most discerning can shop, chill out and enjoy their time in glittering surroundings. The three-storey mall provides a relaxed shopping experience with retail outlets offering a rich and diverse selection of renowned brands with the design of the mall that would shape a facility with a sense of elegance and comfort. With its enduring expansion of the consumer experience, attention to detail and the pursuit of entertainment excellence, The Royal plaza Mall has transformed the face of shopping in Doha and continues to exceed the expectations of visitors.
Royal Plaza is located along the Al Saad Street and comprises of nearly 105 boutiques. This elegant three-storey shopping mall has been designed using crucial elements that provide chic and comfort to the facility.
Royal Plaza mall provides a relaxed shopping experience as it has been designed to present two distinct moods. The sunlight flicker through a main central skylight during the day and eight secondary skylights; also, the simulated illumination renders a warm and serene experience in the evening hours. The mall has two basement parking levels to ensure that visitor’s vehicles are kept cool during their visit. Royal plaza was created for the discerning shopper and offers a rich and diverse selection of well-known brands; Royal plaza is the perfect destination for some serious retail therapy.
The architectural excellence presented with a modern and sophisticated environment with broad boulevards as well as open, relaxed spaces combine with an astonishing range of shopping dining and entertainment venues make it a unique and unforgettable attraction in Qatar; one that no visitor can afford to miss.
City Centre Doha
A veritable pantheon of the shopping world. With its 350 shops, from Debenhams to the Family Development Centre (top floor, selling local crafts); its tented architecture, marble flooring and glass-fronted lifts; its ice-skating rink, bowling alleys and climbing walls; its congregations of juice-sipping Qataris and huddles of homesick expatriates; and trolleys laden with eggs, packets of khobz (Arabian flat bread) and Egyptian olives, it’s more an event than an errand.
