(MENAFN- The Peninsula) By Mohammad Shoeb
DOHA: With British pound plummeting after the Brexit vote, the UK has become one of the most preferred holiday destinations of Qatari citizens this season.
Holidaying in the UK has not only become cheaper, for the first time, the cost of living in the UK for visitors and tourists is now less compared to the US, say some frequent Qatari travellers.
The pound has declined nearly 14 percent against the US dollar to which the Qatari riyal is pegged due to selling pressure after Britons voted to leave the European Union in a referendum held on June 23.
A weaker pound means every traveller to the UK from Doha will now be required to pay fewer riyals for expenses such as accommodation, transport and food in the UK.
'The recent fall in the value of British currency will definitely have a positive impact on the cost of living in the UK as travellers will get extra pounds in exchange of dollars or riyals compared to what they used to pre-Brexit. In fact, a few people who had booked for Turkey recently came back and changed their bookings to the UK. But those who travel to the UK frequently do not care much about their expenses,” said a senior official of Kanoo Travel Agency.
Ali Sabri, Director of Milano Travel Agency, said: 'In Europe, the UK (London) and Switzerland are the most preferred destinations for Qataris every year, especially during summer. But in the region, Dubai, Makkah, Muscat and Salalah are preferred destinations of Qatari citizens and residents throughout the year.
'Hotel tariffs this year are more or less the same compared to last year, but ticket fares are relatively cheaper (except during Eid holidays), understandably due to lower fuel prices and economic slowdown.”
'The UK has always been the most favourite destination for travel, business and investment for Qataris. But with the fall of the pound sterling, people are travelling more frequently and staying there for longer periods,” said Khalifa Saleh Haroon, a prominent Qatari citizen.
Education in UK becomes affordable for Qataris
The Qatari joined hands with the promoters of the 'Visit Britain” campaign in Qatar.
He added: 'For the first time, holidaying in the UK has become relatively cheaper than the US. A lot of my friends are opting to go to London instead of other places in Europe. And some are even buying properties in the UK, while others are expecting the pound to fall further if the government finally decides to exit the EU.”
Khalifa also said that with the fall of the currency, education in the UK has also become more affordable for Qatari nationals.
'The UK is one of the most preferred destinations of Gulf nationals, including Qataris. They travel to the country every year, and some even visit twice or thrice a year,” said a senior executive of a UAE-based airline, who didn";t want to be named.
He added: 'Many people from the GCC have their own houses and apartments in the UK and many, especially those who prefer to stay there for 2-3 months, prefer to negotiate for special tariffs with hotels. We have 10 daily flights from the UAE to the UK (each with a capacity of over 600 passengers) and all of them operate at full capacity during this season.”
With a rising number of tourists visiting the UK, Qatar Airways (QA) recently expanded its services to the UK adding Birmingham as the fourth gateway of the Qatar";s national carrier to the UK (in addition to London, Manchester and Edinburgh) taking the total weekly frequencies to the UK to about 74.
According to a senior official of QA, London has been the focal point of its concentrations, and it has been consistently increasing frequencies and investing more resources to enhance the services.
It operates over six daily flights to London with state-of-the-art aircraft.
Given the pleasant weather conditions between April and September, it is the peak season to travel to the UK. During this season, the country has a lineup of events, like the London Marathon, Chelsea Flower Show, Royal Ascot, Grand Prix Silverstone, Wimbledon Tennis Championship and London Fashion Week, among others.
The Peninsula