Qatar

Getting there & away

Land

Border crossings

Residents of Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the UAE can drive across the Qatar–Saudi border, providing they have insurance for both countries. Bear in mind that if others want to travel from Qatar, they must have a Saudi visa (or transit visa) in advance. An exciting new project is under way to link Qatar and Bahrain via a causeway.

Bus

From Doha, Saudi Arabian Public Transport Co (Saptco; www.saptco.com) has daily buses to Dammam (QR100), with onward connections to Amman (Jordan) and Damascus (Syria), both SR150; Manama (QR25, approximately five hours); Abu Dhabi (QR21, six hours) and Dubai (QR21, seven hours); and Kuwait (QR26, approximately 10 hours). All routes can be booked online. Departures are from the central bus station in Doha. You must have a valid transit visa for Saudi Arabia in advance, and an onward ticket and visa for your next destination beyond Saudi’s borders.

^ Back to top

Air

DohaInternationalAirport (465 6666; fax 462 2044) is only 2.5km from the city centre. There is a departure tax of QR20.

The national carrier Qatar Airways (449 6666; www.qatarairways.com; Al-Matar St), near the airport, has daily direct services from London to Doha, and several direct flights a week from Paris, Munich, Jakarta, Kuala LumpUr and from most cities in the Middle East. Qatar is also serviced by several major airlines: British Airways flies direct from London to Doha daily, KLM flies direct from Amsterdam, while Emirates flies to Doha from most major hubs via Dubai. There is no airport departure tax.

^ Back to top