Treats, fun and fireworks as Qatar celebrates Eid Al Fitr

Children enjoy the Alice in Wonderland show at City Center

Live shows, mall performances and fireworks are among the many attractions residents have been enjoying as part of Eid Al Fitr celebrations this week.

Several malls in particular, including City Center, Landmark, Ezdan and Lagoona, have organized entertainment in conjunction with the Qatar Tourism Authority (QTA).

Crowds could be seen thronging these events, which are part of a larger five-day Eid festival being put on by the QTA under the theme “Capture Joy.”

Laido the wonderful juggler is almost ready at Daralsalam Mall to bring more joy to your Eid! #CaptureJoy pic.twitter.com/Wgpr9OMB2c

— Visit Qatar (@VisitQatar) July 6, 2016

The mall shows run between 5pm and 10pm, and will be on until Sunday. More details of timings and locations can be found here.

Audiences around town were also treated to traditional dances such as arda and dabkah, magic shows and parades.

Katara fireworks

Despite the heat, Katara Cultural Village also turned out to be a hotspot for merry makers.

Families there enjoyed a performance called “A Child’s Dream,” which runs several times a night until Saturday.

The first performance each day is in Arabic at 7:30pm, followed by one in English at 8:30pm. The last Arabic show is at 9:30pm, and the fireworks follow soon after.

Eid gifts are distributed to children before the first and last shows at 6:45pm and 9:10pm.

Following the performances is another Eid celebration mainstay: fireworks at Katara.

They went off shortly after 10:30pm last night – about 15 minutes behind schedule – and will run nightly until Saturday.

مشاهد غاية في الروعة والإبهار والإثارة في فقرة الألعاب النارية لمهرجان #عيد_الفطر المبارك في #كتارا pic.twitter.com/FfaNZpAxvG

— كتارا | Katara (@kataraqatar) July 6, 2016

Tourism push

Thousands of residents leave Qatar in the summer to travel and escape the heat before schools resume in September.

In recent years, the country has been wooing Gulf visitors during these months and particularly during Ramadan and Eid.

Children enjoy a free show at Lagoona Mall

This week’s Eid festival hopes to boost tourism during a typically quiet time of year, Mashal Shahbik, QTA’s director of festivals, said in a statement:

“At QTA, we work with our partners to develop a diverse annual events calendar, which helps further energise the hospitality and retail sectors during a typically off-peak season.”

Regional tourists are very important for Qatar. The QTA said that nationals from GCC nations accounted for 44 percent of overall visitors last year.

Which Eid events have been your favorite so far? Thoughts?