On January 15, 2023, Costa Cruises ship Costa Toscana, arrived in Doha, Qatar as part of the first cruise tour in the Arabian Gulf. 

The cruise ship will offer 3 to 7-day voyages, and can accommodate about 6,500 passengers. They feature water parks, swimming pools, hot tubs, restaurants, and lounges. 

Costa Toscana's first visit comes to Qatar in the 2022-2023 cruise season, which began last December with the arrival of the French cruise ship Le Bougainville and will run until next April. 

During the current season, 58 international cruise ships will arrive in Doha, and 4 tour companies will launch their first trips to Qatar. 

Qatar Tourism's head of travel product support, Mariam Saoud, said the cruise season had gotten off to a strong start, attracting more cruise ships and increasing the growth and diversification of the tourism sector. 

Saoud added that Costa Toscana is one of the natural gas-powered cruise ships, demonstrating the commitment to sustainability in the development of the cruise industry. 

For his part, the Director of Shared Services at Qatar Tourism, Omar Abdulrahman Aljaber, said that Qatar Tourism's active partners from the private sector provide bookings for cruise ships. 

In addition, they provide cruise passengers with a range of tour and entertainment options ranging from safari tours to the seafront and Khor Al Adaid, as well as tours around Doha to explore its tourist attractions and heritage markets such as Souk Waqif, as well as cultural and artistic attractions such as the Qatar Cultural Village and the Museum of Islamic Art. 

The new Doha Grand Cruise Terminal can accommodate up to 12,000 passengers per day, strategically located in the heart of Doha, minutes away from some of the city's most popular attractions.