Car Rental, Buses and Taxis in Qatar

I’m going back to this topic as someone emailed me about it asking some more information regarding the buses that are to be seen on the roads of Doha this month. First, people are still hoping that they do get the buses running this month. Being used to the Middle East and its ways, launch and deadlines are just that. You’re lucky if the supposed to be launch date gets followed. They already moved it once so I hope they don’t move it again. But since the school buses are already going round town, I’m confident that they would launch this month. However, don’t keep your hopes up. As this is the first time that they’ll have the buses, it might get chaotic. I haven’t seen any bus stops on the road streets yet nor have they given leaflets regarding these stops and so forth. I’ll keep you posted if I get any news. Now, if you’re going to visit Qatar and would like to go around, Taxis are your best bet if you don’t want to rent your own car. 3 months ago, the cheapest day rent would be 130 rials (costs keep rising in Qatar!). Plus, if you want to rent, you need to at least have a Middle East license or an International license. Karwa taxis would cost you between 15-20 rials per trip around Doha. If you are planning to go from one shopping mall to the other, limousine service (I forgot the name of the company) is available for a flat rate of 20 rials, anywhere in Doha. You may have to wait for 5-15 minutes to get a limousine if one is not readily available. But it might be your only option for malls on the outskirts of Doha and even for City Center and The Mall. But let’s say you got a Karwa taxi to pick you up, you may ask the driver to drive you around town for an hour for about 40 rials (that was the rate asked by the driver when we had to go by taxi). Or if you’re new and want to get to work and be picked up everyday, you can ask the driver to do that for you and he’ll charge you with the rate on the meter. That was what I did when I was starting here instead of renting a car. It was just a cheaper choice although you’re not as mobile as when you have a car. We said to ourselves that we have all the time in the world to explore Qatar when we get our own car. For those who are here for a short vacation, consider renting a car or riding a taxi. I’m not to keen about the buses yet. You may also want to consider the worsening traffic when making your decision.

Related posts:

1. Mowasalat Buses in Qatar
2. Buses in Qatar: Mowasalat
3. Qatar Academy losses student to Car Accident
4. Comments on Karwa Service