Qatar says World Cup fans seeking rooms have ‘a lot of options’

Doha, Qatar – (AFP)

Qatar has said that World Cup fans have “a lot of options” with more than 100,000 rooms currently available and tens of thousands more expected by the tournament’s kickoff.

Some football supporters have expressed concern that they have been unable to find accommodation in line with their budget for the World Cup, which runs from November 21 to December 18.

Prices range from 300 Qatari rials (just over $80) to several thousand dollars per night.

Qatar has so far taken more than 25,000 bookings, said Omar al-Jaber, the official in charge of accommodation for the tournament’s organizing committee, specifying that he was talking about “bookings, not rooms or nights”.

Supporters normally find accommodation themselves for such tournaments.

But Qatar — set to host the most geographically concentrated World Cup in history and with limited hotel capacity — is seeking to channel supporters through an official platform that is reserved for ticket holders and managed by the tournament’s organizers.

Eighty-five percent of accommodation — whether permanent or temporary — is now complete and the remainder will be finished by a “deadline” of end-August, according to Jaber.