Originally Posted by mecabq

After many years as a consultant, I am now a businessperson based in Qatar. It works because I travel a lot, and Qatar is an unusual environment in that five-star hotels with corporate negotiated rates cost not much more than apartments, especially if one checks out of the hotel when one travels.

Qatar is really a buyer's market for hotels, with a saturated supply and decent rates (though low standards). I spend most of my time at the Hyatt, W, Sheraton, InterCon, and Four Seasons, but there is a proliferation of four- and five-star properties, all of which I've tried (two Ritz-Carltons, Marriott, Renaissance, Ramada, Courtyard, Kempinski residences, two Movenpicks), with more opening all the time (St. Regis opening on 02/29; Hilton soon after; another InterCon and Crowne Plaza in about a year; another Four Seasons, Kempinski, and Shangri-La under construction; Sol Melia, Mandarin Oriental, and Park Hyatt planned), plus a few upscale boutique hotels and local chains, in addition to a shortage of three-star-type places.