2 yıl önce

Qatar unveils 6,000-cabin football fan village ahead of World Cup

The brightly coloured cabins are designed to hold one or two people with twin beds, a nightstand, a small table and chair, air conditioning, a toilet and a shower inside.

AP

Some 60 percent of the cabins are already booked for the tournament, an official said.

Qatar unveils a 6,000-cabin fan village in an isolated lot near its airports, providing a housing option for low-income visitors of the upcoming World Cup, which is just days away from starting.

As journalists toured the cabins on Wednesday, desert winds kicked up sand at the 3.1 square-kilometre site, which housed a metro station, a bus stop, and a planned temporary restaurant and convenience store.

The area could in theory hold as many as 12,000 people if booked at capacity, officials said.

Artificial green grass covered the walkways outside, with common areas filled with large bean-bag style chairs under a gray sky.

Competing nations' flags flapped in the strong desert wind, a large screen also present at the site for fans to watch matches. Workers milled about the site, checking on its final touches.

The brightly coloured cabins, each with thin walls, are designed to hold one or two people with twin beds, a nightstand, a small table and chair, air conditioning, a toilet and a shower inside.

Each will go for around $200 a night — $270 with board — as the tournament goes on. Some 60 percent of the cabins are already booked for the tournament, said Omar al Jaber, the head of accommodation at Qatar's Supreme Committee for Delivery and Legacy for the tournament.

Budget accommodation

There will be other rooms offered at $80 a night farther out than this site near Doha International Airport and Hamad International Airport, both of which will be seeing flights at all hours during the tournament. Planes rumbled overhead during Wednesday's visit.

Those staying at the Fan Village can expect a 40-minute commute to stadium sites.

“Most of the fan(s) they prefer if it’s not a hotel, they prefer the apartment and villa,” al Jaber said, noting those options are managed by French hospitality company Accor.

However, those wanting budget accommodation will come to this site and the other for cheaper options, he said.

Qatar has estimated it will have 130,000 rooms per day for the tournament.

He added: “If they would like to come and stay, they are more than welcome, of course, and there is a many, many options for them."

There are still multiple options available for fans in Qatar available to rent, ranging from hotels, cruise ship rooms, traditional dhow sailing vessels and tents, the fan village, porta cabins and caravans, al Jaber said.

“We have enough accommodation and people still they can come and enjoy the tournament and of course they can choose what they are looking for from the accommodation," he said.

SOURCE: AP