World Travel Awards (WTA), “the Oscars of the travel industry”, will host its Grand Final Gala Ceremony in Doha, Qatar, in partnership with Qatar Tourism Authority (QTA) on 11 January 2012.

The most important decision-makers in global travel and tourism are set to attend the glittering ceremony, which will be staged at Katara Cultural Village, Qatar’s ground-breaking new arts and exhibitions complex.

Created under the leadership of HH Sheikh Hamad Bin Khalifa Al Thani, Emir of the State of Qatar, Katara Cultural Village was born out of a vision to position the State of Qatar as an international cultural lighthouse through theatre, literature, art, music, conventions and exhibitions. Katara features a remarkable array of attractions, from an opera house and art galleries to world-class restaurants and a beach.

Qatar Tourism Authority (QTA) Chairman, Mr. Ahmed Al Nuaimi, said the choice of Doha to host WTA’s Grand Final reflects the country’s growing importance and stature in the industry and that QTA was lending as much support as possible to make the awards the best ever.

“The staging of the ceremony in Doha is an illustration of the confidence the travel and tourism industry has in Qatar as well as the potential it has to develop further,” said Mr. Al. Nuaimi.

“Qatar has allocated more the US$25 billion for the development of tourism infrastructure in preparation for the 2022 World Cup. WTA’s Grand Final forms part of our country’s growing roster of world-class events, ranging from art and music to sport and travel.”

The evening marks the culmination of a year-long search for the very best travel and tourism brands in the world, and will feature the winners from WTA’s regional heats competing head to head.

The regional ceremonies included Middle East (Dubai, UAE), Europe (Antalya, Turkey), Africa  and Indian Ocean (Sharm el Sheikh, Egypt), Asia and Australasia (Bangkok, Thailand), and Caribbean and The Americas (Montego Bay, Jamaica).

Graham E. Cooke, President and Founder, World Travel Awards, said: “We are delighted to host our Grand Final Gala Ceremony in Qatar as it is such an exciting place to be right now.”

“Our Grand Final will see the winners of our five regional heats, who represent the cream of the global travel and tourism industry, compete head to head for the ultimate travel accolade.”

WTA has partnered with tourism marketing firm Phenomena to bring the ceremony to Qatar.