Besides Soccer, Qatar Is Packed With Activities Around the World Cup

DOHA, Qatar — All eyes are on this tiny Gulf nation as the soccer-obsessed start descending this month on the eight stadiums for the FIFA World Cup, but Qatar’s emergence as a major player in arts and culture make it one of the most vibrant places to explore, either between games for the about 1.5 million people expected to visit over the coming weeks or for the millions of tourists Qatar hopes to lure after the stadiums are emptied.

With two of the most prominent museums in the Middle East, the National Museum of Qatar and the Museum of Islamic Art, Qatar has dominated the cultural headlines about the Gulf region, competing mostly with Abu Dhabi, where the Louvre opened in 2017 and the long-delayed Guggenheim is scheduled to open in 2025.

But the smaller arts scene in and around Doha, including the Richard Serra-designed monoliths in the desert outside the city, have attracted tourists to this country long before the World Cup.

In addition to its position as a cultural destination, Qatar also offers boundless sunshine, overnight outings in the desert under a canopy of stars, beaches (however undeveloped and rocky) on three sides of its teardrop shaped peninsula and dozens of luxury resorts that rival its neighbors Dubai and Abu Dhabi in excess and elegance.

But for now, Qatar is all about the festivities, the culture, the weather as the infamous heat abates and a sigh of relief as years of preparation are about to be unveiled to the world.