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Qatar Will Begin Reopening Museums and Heritage Sites From July

Qatar Museums is set to re-open museums and heritage sites starting July, in accordance with the new health and safety guidelines.

Posted on

23 June 2020

Last updated on 23 June 2020
Qatar Will Begin Reopening Museums and Heritage Sites From July

A number of museums and cultural sites will be open to the public next month.

Qatar Museums (QM) announced that they will be reopening museums and heritage sites across Qatar from Wednesday, 1 July, with health and safety rcommendations from the Health Protection and Communicable Disease Control office of the Ministry of Public Health (MoPH).

The first sites that will reopen will include the Museum of Islamic Art, Mathaf - Arab Museum of Modern Art, Al Zubarah, and the Barzan Towers.

"Picasso's Studios", a special exhibition organised in partnership with the Musée national Picasso-Paris, will also be unveiled for public viewing at the Garage Gallery at the Doha Fire Station.

The decision is part of the Qatar Ministry’s second phase in resuming public activity in country, thanks to preventative measures put in place against the COVID-19 pandemic.

Over time, QM will reopen the remainder of its museums while rolling out the new health and safety protocols, in accordance with global standards and carefully monitoring progress to ensure the well-being of museum employees and visitors.

Qatar Will Begin Reopening Museums and Heritage Sites From July

Pictured: "The Guardian of the Fertile Crescent" by Iraqi artist Ismail Fatah Al Turk at the Mathaf: Arab Museum of Modern Art in Doha, Qatar.

"With gratitude toward the Ministry of Public Health for its guidance, we are excited to gradually begin to welcome back the public to a number of our museums and heritage sites from 1 July. To create a safe and comfortable environment for staff and visitors, we have put in place a robust set of health and safety measures," said Ahmad al-Namla, Qatar Museums CEO.

"While the team at QM has done extraordinary work during the pandemic to engage the public through digital initiatives, we look forward to beginning to reopen our doors. Our audiences are proud of these cultural institutions that offer not only inspiration and knowledge, but also provide gathering places for the community and space for respite, which is needed now more than ever," he added.

What museum facilities are available

Visitors can purchase items at museum gift shops, and cafes will offer limited service during operating hours.

From Saturday to Thursday, IDAM restaurant at MIA will be open at limited capacity for dinner service.

JIWAN at the National Museum of Qatar (NMoQ) will be open at limited seating capacity for lunch and afternoon tea.

The NMoQ gift shops will also be open, however the NMoQ galleries will remain closed as the museum undergoes maintenance work.

In the initial reopening phase, public programmes, group tours and special events will remain suspended, and QM’s playgrounds, libraries, and parks (including MIA Park) will remain closed.

Cloakrooms will be unavailable during this time. Interactive features at each museum, such as touchscreens will be temporarily unavailable, and gallery guides are online only.

All reopened museums and cultural sites will be open from Sunday through Thursday, between 9 am to 3 pm.

Qatar Will Begin Reopening Museums and Heritage Sites From July

Pictured: Barzan Towers in Umm Salal Mohammed near Doha, Qatar

Health and safety protocols for museum and cultural site visitors

A limited number of visitors and employees will be allowed inside each museum. All visitors (12 years of age and above) are required to wear a face mask.

Visitors are required to book tickets in advance on the QM website. Upon arrival at the museum, all ticket holders must present a "green: health status on the Ehteraz virus-tracing app.

Each person will also be checked for a normal temperature reading at the entrance.

Hand sanitiser stations will be found throughout the facilities, and visitors are encouraged use these sanitisers and keep their hands clean. Visitors will also be reminded to maintain a safe distance from other visitors.

For more information on QM’s new safety guidelines and ticketing information, visit: https://visit.qm.org.qa/.