The QTA is keen to make Qatar an exclusive and unique destination

Mr de Boer came to Qatar more than three years ago and he has an impressive background in hotel operation and the tour business. He is now charged with the task of attracting more tourists to the Gulf state and, with the number of visitors doubling in the past three years alone, it seems he is getting results.

'Last year we had around 800,000 visitors and we are looking at 1.4 million by 2010. Just three years ago we had 400,000, so we are aiming to triple the figures within six years. One of the major problems we had was a lack of hotel facilities but we currently have 7,000 hotel rooms being developed and we should have an overall total of 10-11,000 three years from now. Most of the new properties will be upper end options and all of the major hotel operators will be offering their facilities.'

The Switzerland of the Gulf

The fact that the majority of the new hotels will be top-end properties will certainly fit comfortably with Mr de Boer's hopes for how Qatar will be perceived in the international market.

'We want to be seen as the Switzerland of the Middle East. We want to be perceived as safe and reliable, offering high quality and high levels of service. As a result, we'd like our visitor profile to change from 90 per cent business travellers presently to around 60 per cent coming on business and about 40 per cent being tourists.

'But we do not want to become a package holiday destination. We want to be the dominant player in the Middle East for cultural related travel, educational related travel and medical related travel, while the MICE sector is also important for us. We are currently building the products for those particular market niches. So it is not just about the marketing strategy but also the capital investment strategy which the government is facilitating.'

Looking long-term

Indeed, combined convention and exhibition centres are being built in Doha in order to attract a large slice of the MICE market in the region, while several museums and the National Library are also under construction, with the Museum of Islamic Art set to open by the end of this year. Mr de Boer sees the development of such projects as supporting the 'sustainable future of the travel sector in Qatar' and is aware that the country cannot simply replicate the development taking place elsewhere in the region.

'If we really want to grow, we have to do it in the right way and in the segments where we believe we can make a difference and not look to take on the likes of Dubai, Oman or Bahrain. We are still at an early stage in our development and the QTA was only founded six years ago. We will go in a different direction and that will then be good for our own long-term sustainability and also for the likes of Dubai too. But with Qatar Airways targeting the upper end of the market so successfully and emphasising quality, that is a great help to what we are trying to achieve in Qatar.'

For Mr de Boer the continued aggressive expansion of the flag carrier is intrinsic to the development of the hospitality industry in the country.

'The success of Qatar Airways is key to the tourism sector and, indeed, key to the whole economy. You get into a Qatar Airways plane and that's the first way you meet the product that is Qatar. The continued addition of routes to its network will provide more feeder markets for tourism to the country.'

Retaining culture and identity

But while Qatar is undoubtedly set on ramping up its tourism sector in a major way in the next few years, Mr de Boer is keen to make sure that the country itself, and its heritage, is not compromised in any way.

'As we develop Qatar's tourism sector we want to make sure that the locals, the nationals, are able to keep track of the pace of the development and that they do not feel left out or that they are losing their identity. We will do it in a fashion that suits, facilitates and enhances the culture.'