Uncover the beauty of Qatar

After hosting last year's World Cup, this Middle Eastern gem continues to go from strength to strength

 

On the northernmost tip of the peninsula of Qatar, where the Arabian Gulf laps the golden sands of Fuwairit Beach, kitesurfers from all over the world gather to somersault and whoosh over calm, warm waters.

Though locals long knew that Qatar - with its endless blue-sky weather and reliable breezes offers some of the best kitesurfing conditions on the planet, it was only when Fuwairit Kite Beach resort opened here last year that holidaymakers started to follow.

Daubed in colourful graffiti and with airy, glass-walled rooms and terraces that offer unimpeded sea views, the hotel also includes everything any prospective kite surfer might need to give the sport a go. The setting is now so successfully embedded in the global kitesurfing circuit that it'll host the Visit Qatar GKA Freestyle Kite World Cup Finals this December.

That championship, of course, follows on the heels of another sporting extravaganza. Prior to hosting football's biggest competition last year, Qatar invested billions to improve its infrastructure and hospitality offering. Visitors can still reap the benefits of a diverse (and surprisingly affordable) hotel portfolio, high-tech attractions and seamless connectivity throughout the capital Doha aboard an immaculate new metro system where single journeys cost about 40p.

But we'll get back to all that, because to really understand present-day Qatar, you need to venture beyond its main city. Ringed by a 350-mile coastline and a seemingly endless parade of pristine beaches, this is a surprisingly compact country where it takes an hour or so to drive from the eastern seaboard to the western coast, and less than three hours to venture from kite surfing at Fuwairit to exploring the majestyIT HAS taken me about three years to find a trench coat that didn’t make me feel slightly tense. of the Inland Sea at Qatar's southern border.