Qatar plans for US$5.5 billion tourism development with Disney-size theme park

Qatar is starting work on a new US $5.5 billion tourism development - the Simaisma project - that will be situated north of Doha and centred around a large amusement park – anticipated to be bigger than Walt Disney’s iconic Magic Kingdom.

Gulf News reports that the Simaisma project will be located about 40 minutes north of Doha, Qatar's capital, and ultimately span eight million square meters (1,976 acres) along seven kilometres of beachfront land. The development is also set to include an 18-hole golf course surrounded by 300 villas, luxury resorts, a marina and beach club, as well as homes and shops.

Qatari Diar Real Estate Investment Company, a unit of the state's sovereign wealth fund, has been appointed by the government to manage the development of the project.

Qatari Diar Chief Executive Ali Mohamed Al-Ali told Gulf News "the anchor is the theme park and that phase will be coming first to attract more people to come and invest. It's part of the government strategy to diversify the economy and invest in the tourism pillar."

The development is part of Qatar's efforts to transform itself into a vacation destination. Qatari officials have said they want the tourism industry to ultimately contribute 12% to the country's gross domestic product by 2030.

More than 45 million travellers passed through Doha's airport last year with Gulf News reporting that “the nation of about 2.5 million is beginning to wield outsize influence in the global sporting arena. For instance, it recently hosted the AFC Asian Cup soccer tournament and landed a permanent spot on the Formula 1 racing calendar under a 10-year deal that started last year. Doha will also host the FIFA Arab Cup next year and the FIBA Basketball World Cup in 2027.”

Al-Ali advised Qatari Diar is currently in talks with several international park operators to manage the amusement park and expects to make a decision on who will run it in the coming months. At 650,000 square meters (160 acres), the new park is expected to be even bigger than the likes of Magic Kingdom, which is a little over 100 acres.

16 plots will be sold to private developers and investors to build hotels, homes and other facilities on the land and current discussions are underway with developers from Saudi Arabia, UAE, Turkey, US and Europe that have shown interest in the project.

The Simaisma development will also expand Qatar's beachfront resorts. Qatar has 39,000 hotel rooms but only 10% of that is beachfront.

"We're not competing with anybody in the region," he told Gulf News adding “we are introducing a new product that's not available elsewhere, along with all its amenities and services all together in one location."

Image. A digital rendering of the Simaisma Project Credit: Simaisma Project