London (9 November 2009)- Doha has won the award for the World’s Leading Emerging Business Destination at the 16^th Annual World Travel Awards Gala Ceremony held last night at the Grosvenor House in London. The award ceremony was held on the eve of the opening day for World Travel Market, one of the largest global business-to-business events for the travel and tourism industries. 

On winning the award, Mr. Ahmed Al Nuaimi, Chairman of Qatar Tourism Authority, said: “We are delighted to have been nominated and are honored to be recognized as the world’s leading emerging business destination. Winning this award recognizes Doha’s committment to shape Qatar as a world-class destination offering only high-quality services, combing business with upscale leisure.”

The World’s Leading Emerging Business Destination award is given to the country which has best positioned itself as the new outstanding business destination worldwide, through development, marketing, promotion, positioning and planning. Other nominees in the category included Abu Dhabi; Dubai; Astana, Kazakhstan; Kiev, Ukraine; Santiago, Chile; Sao Paolo, Brazil and Zagreb, Croatia. The winner is determined based on votes by travel agents worldwide.

World Travel Awards is an organization that has taken the global lead on one of the most important aspects of travel and tourism – the quality of customer experience. The aim of World Travel Awards is to encourage world-class competition, stimulate innovation and creativity as well as ensure that travellers receive exceptional value and service. To be presented with a World Travel Award is a considerable achievement considering the competitive landscape, and helps to reassure travellers of the quality of service they will experience.