BACKGROUND

The five-star and 232-room Four Seasons Hotel Doha opened in 2005 on the edge of the diplomatic district overlooking the Arabian Gulf (see news, April 2005).

WHAT’S IT LIKE?

In a word, and as you’d expect, opulent. Immediately on entering the property it exudes a grandeur, with plenty of armchairs, sofas and even a grand piano, dotted around a very spacious entry lobby.

Four Seasons Hotel Doha

Four Seasons Doha lies at the north end of the Corniche

At the back of the lobby area are two lounges, one to the left and the other to the right, while a pair of curved staircases descend to a lower level that accesses the beach. Two restaurants can also be found on this level.

The interior is both classical, with much wooden panelling and marble pillars, and grand.

WHERE IS IT?

The 17-storey hotel lies on Doha’s waterfront West Bay at the northern end of the Corniche. It is close to the International Exhibition Centre and a 15-minute drive from the airport.

ROOM FACILITIES

All 175 guestrooms and 47 suites were renovated in 2011 at a cost of $10 million (see news, October 2011).

I was staying in a Premier Room on the fifth floor. All Premier Rooms are 44 sqm and located at the back of the hotel and come with a view of the Arabian Gulf. All Deluxe Rooms, also 44 sqm and the only other non-suite option, are at the front of the property and, as such, have a city view.

Four Seasons Hotel Doha room

Premier Room

The view from my fifth floor Premier Room

The view from my fifth floor Premier Room

The room was large with lots of space to move around and a balcony overlooking the hotel beach. It contained a king-size bed, a huge chest of drawers, two bed-side tables, a full-size desk with a reading lamp and a chair, an armchair and a foot stool. The furniture was all wooden and had an antique feel to it.

The double wardrobe was similarly vast and contained a lot of storage space, including a safe. There was, however, no iron/ironing board, but a quick phone call to reception and these were delivered within ten minutes.

Other facilities included a lamp on each side of the bed, an alarm clock, a Bose iPhone dock, a side-table with a selection of fruit in a bowl on top, two telephones (one beside the bed, the other next to the desk), a Sony high-definition television and a Nespresso machine.

A fridge filled with soft drinks (no alcohol) and a large selection of chocolates and crisps were also available, but these had to be paid for.

The bathroom was also very large with an entrance comprising a two-piece sliding door. It contained a deep bathtub, a traditional walk-in shower (no rain shower) and a vast sink space area with Crabtree & Evelyn bathroom products.

Four Seasons Doha Premier Room bathroom

Bathroom: This image only shows a shade over half of the room

A small adjoining room contained a toilet, foot basin and foot shower.

The bedroom was very comfortable. Although it was refurbished just three years prior to my stay, the green carpet and cream wallpaper felt a little old-fashioned.

The only real negative was that the instant I entered the room I noticed the smell of stale cigarettes. There was a clean ashtray on the table, so clearly it was a smoking room.

I didn’t book this room, however, so the hotel cannot be criticised for a smoking room smelling of cigarette smoke. And it didn’t bother me enough to ask to be moved, although I am sure that request would have been accommodated, space permitting.

RESTAURANTS AND BARS

The hotel has seven restaurants and bars — all-day dining at Nusantao: Sea Kitchens; Italian fine-dining at Il Teatro; the alfresco Pool Grill; the Apres Spa Café; the Seasons Tea Lounge; the Arabica Oriental Lounge; and the Library Bar & Cigar Lounge.

To the left of the lobby, the wood-panelled Library Bar & Cigar Lounge has a relaxed atmosphere, providing you don’t object to cigar smoke. Opposite, to the right of the lobby, the non-smoking Seasons Tea Lounge is a laid-back venue with the air of a giant drawing room about it.

A new restaurant, Nobu Doha, will open in the hotel by the end of the year.

BUSINESS AND MEETING FACILITIES

There is 2,311 sqm of function space available for groups of between 15 and 750 people.

The largest facility is the 758 sqm Al Mirqab ballroom that is located a short walk down a corridor from the lobby. It can accommodate up to 750 people and opens onto an outdoor terrace with sea views of roughly the same size.

Elsewhere, most of the second floor is dedicated to meeting rooms, including the Al Daibel Room, which can hold receptions for up to 245 people. Next door are four “residential-style” meeting rooms with sea views.

The 24-hour Business Centre, also on the second floor, includes two boardrooms that can each hold eight people.

LEISURE FACILTIES

There are many leisure facilities including, most impressively, a health centre and spa that is housed in a three-storey building separate to the main hotel structure. A salon is on the second floor.

By the beach is a three-level swimming pool — actually a series of pools, whirlpools, hot tubs and a children’s pool — surrounded by palm trees.

Elsewhere, there are two tennis courts that can be floodlit for night-time play.

On the Thursday night of my stay, which of course due to Qatar’s Sunday-to-Thursday working week is like our Friday, a lady was playing a grand piano in the entrance lobby, while the place was packed with locals and a disco throbbed out back.

It was a little noisy, but the hotel had offered to move me hours before and I had declined. Still, it didn’t affect my sleep.

VERDICT

An extremely comfortable hotel that covers all the bases for both business and leisure travellers and is located in an ideal spot on the Corniche.

FACT FILE

  • HOW MANY ROOMS? 232, including 57 suites. The room options are: Standard, Superior, Deluxe, Premier, Ambassador Suites, Four Seasons Suites and Four Seasons Executive Suites.
  • HIGHLIGHTS The three-storey spa centre and the choice of restaurants.
  • PRICE Internet rates for a midweek stay in January started at QAR1,300 (£228) per night.
  • CONTACT The Corniche, Doha, Qatar; +974 4494 8888, fourseasons.com/doha.

Graham Smith