Qatar plans to revisit its idea to use cruise ships as floating hotels for guests visiting during World Cup 2022, according to Doha News.
The idea of commissioning “floating hotels” for the upcoming tournament was first raised in May 2013 but plans haven’t been solidified. Previously, an incredible floating hotel had been designed by Finnish architecture firm Sigge Architects, piquing Qatar's interest as a solution for their growing need for hotels by 2022. The design is space-saving and energy-efficient. All has gone quiet on the Qatar floating hotel front since.
Now, however, Qatar Tourism Authority (QTA) has announced plans to contract at least 6000 cruise ship rooms for the winter tournament, according to Doha News, which reported that the QTA revealed the plans during an international cruise ship show in the US.
The 6000 rooms figure equates to about five average-sized cruise ships, and would represent approximately one-third of the 16,000 hotel and apartment hotel rooms currently available in Qatar, it added. It hasn’t been revealed whether these rooms would be affordable for the average World Cup football fan.
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When the idea was first proposed, authorities discussed transforming the port near the Museum of Islamic Art into a dedicated cruise ship terminal, though the berthing location of the floating hotels hasn’t been confirmed.
Qatar must have a minimum of 60,000 rooms available by 2022 for fans, players and officials but its bid document in 2010 pledged 100,000 rooms by the time the tournament begins.
Qatar unveiled plans to build a $5.5 billion Oryx Island, which would feature luxury villas, a water park, and five floating hotels using cruise ships.
Developer Barwa Real Estate, part-owned by Qatar's sovereign wealth fund, said the hotels would be able to house as many as 25,000 soccer fans.
In the GCC, Bahrain has a floating hotel, which opened in October and is docked in Coral Bay.
Follow this link for photos of some of the designs for the proposed floating hotels.
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