Qatar National Convention Centre (QNCC)
About Qatar
The State of Qatar comprises a peninsula stretching about 100 miles northwards from the northeasterly coast of the larger Arabian pensinsula. Under the leadership of His Highness Sheikh Hamad bin-Khalifa al-Thani, The Emir of Qatar, the country has evolved into the world's largest exporter of liquefied natural gas and undergone an unparalleled growth. A key initiative to secure a future beyond natural resources was the establishment of Qatar Foundation for Education, Science, and Community Development in 1995, providing the framework for investing in the human potential. A significant drive to advance science was the creation of Education City, a 15 km2 campus on the outskirts of Qatar's capital city Doha, hosting branches of several international elite institutions.
The city of Doha stretches around a bay, and enjoys pleasantly warm temperatures during the winter (while the summers are very hot). Rainfall is almost negligible, and one can see children dancing outside when it occurs.
Travelling to Qatar
Your likely hub for entering Qatar will be Doha International Airport (DOH), which is internationally well connected not only through Qatar Airways, the national airline of Qatar, but also other major airlines, such as British Airways, EgyptAir, Emirates, Etihad, Gulf Air, IranAir, Jet Airways, KLM, Lufthansa, PIA, Royal Jordanian, Saudia, SriLankan Airlines, and Turkish Airlines.
Many foreign nationals are eligible for entering Qatar without pre-arranged
visa. You are encouraged to check the requirements
with the IATA Travel Centre, which contains accurate up-to-date information, and of course the Qatari embassy in your country
or your home country is the definitive authority on this.
In
particular, nationals of Andorra, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brunei,
Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hong Kong, Iceland,
Ireland, Italy, Japan, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Malaysia, Monaca, the
Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland (since 12 Sep), Portugal, San
Marino, Singapore, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, United Kingdom,
United States of America, and the Vatican are issued with a visa on arrival
in an unbureaucratic fashion on payment of QAR 100 by credit card (Note:
cash payments are NOT accepted). Nationals of other GCC countries (Bahrain,
Kuwait, Oman, Saudi Arabia, and United Arab Emirates) are exempt from visa.
Should you require a visa to be arranged prior to arrival in Qatar, please complete the relevant section of the registration/accommodation form, and we will send you an invitation letter.
You are unlikely to run into any problems in Qatar, but you are expected to respect local traditions, customs, laws, and religions, and ensure that you do not offend other cultures or religious beliefs. This includes dressing modestly when in public, not taking photographs of other people, and not shouting at anyone. Women should cover their shoulders and avoid wearing short skirts, but are not required to cover their hair. If you take care of this, you are essentially guaranteed to have a great time.
Please note that the importation of narcotics, alcohol, pornography, pork products and religious books and material into Qatar is illegal. For further information you might want to consult the travel advice of the UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office or equivalent services.
The conference venue
The conference sessions will take place at the Qatar National Convention Centre (QNCC), the leading conference venue in the Middle East, located in Education City. Its landmark building was designed by the world-renowned Japanese architect Arata Isozaki, and represents the Sidra Tree, an icon in Qatari culture and part of the logo of Qatar Foundation. Our registration fee of £300 (for students: £170) includes catering during two coffee breaks and lunch,
as well as bus tranfers between the conference hotel (see below) and the QNCC. The registration fee does not apply to participants affiliated with Qatari institutions.
Accommodation
We have reserved rooms at the (4-star) Best Western hotel in the Doha city centre (Al Meena Street, 22920 Doha; phone: +974-4422-1111), which is within walking distance of the Souq and the Corniche waterfront (favourite areas to be for the evening). We are offering these rooms at a nightly rate of £80 (single occupancy) or £90 (twin or double), including buffet breakfast, free WiFi access, complimentary access to the swimming pool and fitness centre, and transport between the hotel and the airport. We are therefore requesting your flight details on the registration/accommodation form. A free bus transfer will be provided in the morning and afternoon between the Best Western hotel and the Qatar National Convention Centre (QNCC) – the distance is about 12 km.
Conference dinner / Tours
We will arrange for a conference dinner on Tuesday, 12 Feb. Moreover, we will offer a variety of tour/sightseeing options for the afternoon of Wednesday, 13 Feb, as well as the whole day of Thursday, 14 Feb. Details are to follow.
Logistics
Public transport in Qatar has not managed to keep track with the rapid growth over the recent years, so that it can be difficult to get a taxi at peak times. Just for that reason, we have reserved rooms at a city centre hotel with major attractions within walking distance, and will organise transport to/from the conference venue.
The electricity supply in Qatar is on 240 V, 50 Hz, and modern installations use the British system with 3 flat pins. Rarely, one might find the older British system with 3 round pins that is used in India.
The local currency is the Qatari Riyal (QAR), which is coupled to the US Dollar at 1 USD = 3.64 QAR, and divided into 100 Dirhams. There are banknotes at 1, 5, 10, 50, 100, and 500 Riyals, as well as coins at 1, 5, 10, 25, and 50 Dirhams.
Book your place
If you are affiliated with an institution based in Qatar,
you are kindly requested to complete the
Qatar-participant registration form by 31 Jan 2013.
Otherwise, the non-negotiable registration deadline of 20 Jan 2013 has now passed.
Local Organising Committee
Khalid Alsubai (Qatar Foundation) — co-chair
Martin Dominik (University of St Andrews, UK) — co-chair
