Souq Waqif Boutique Hotels by Tivoli

Souq Waqif Boutique Hotels by Tivoli is an unusual concept: eight small hotels scattered through the lanes of Souq Waqif, Doha's traditional market, run together as a single group. The hotels are Al Bidda, Al Jasra, Al Jomrok, Al Mirqab, Arumaila, Bismillah, Musheireb and Najd. Each one is small, with Arumaila at 19 rooms and Musheireb at 14, and Al Jasra offering 26 designer spaces, so the atmosphere is very different from the large tower hotels of West Bay.

Each hotel draws on local culture in its design, with Arabian and Qatari motifs, traditional geometric patterns, wooden interiors and local art; Najd, for example, has a stained-glass skylight and hanging carpets. The Bismillah, also part of the group, is known as the first hotel to have opened in Qatar, in the early twentieth century. Facilities are shared across the group. The spa is at Al Jasra and offers a Moroccan hammam and a signature water ceremony, and there are outdoor pools, including a temperature-controlled pool and a sheltered open-air pool at Al Mirqab.

Dining is easy, as the souq's many restaurants and cafés are on your doorstep, and the group's own restaurants include Argan, the Moroccan restaurant in the Al Jasra Boutique Hotel, which holds a Michelin Bib Gourmand. Check-in is at 3pm and check-out at noon. For reservations, contact the group's reservations line.

These hotels suit couples and culture-focused travellers who want to wake up inside the souq, wander the lanes before the crowds arrive and come back late at night after dinner. Families may prefer one of the larger hotels in the group with a pool, and it is worth checking which property your room is in when booking, as facilities differ. The souq can be lively in the evenings, so light sleepers should ask for a quieter room.

Book early for the cooler months, when the souq is at its busiest.

The location could not be more central. The Falcon Souq, the Msheireb Museums and the Corniche are all within walking distance, Msheireb station on the Doha Metro is close by, and the Museum of Islamic Art is a short walk or taxi ride along the waterfront.