A barren island, Al Safliya is only a stone throw away from Doha Dhow Harbaour at Corniche. This manta ray-shaped island probably doesn’t offer you anything interesting from the island itself. But, the view towards Doha West Bay and its skyline, especially during sunset, is just stunning.
Located just south of The Pearl, Al Safliya can be reached by taking a boat or dhow. If by the latter, it is approximately 30-40 minutes sailing. Go to tour agent, or hire a dhow from Dhow Harbour near Oyster monument at Doha Corniche. When we (Institut Teknologi Bandung Alumnus Association Chapter Qatar) went to the island last weekend, each person paid QR70 for a dhow with full capacity of 35 people (so total per dhow QR2450). A full dhow hire will normally include bottled water and BBQ facilities on top deck for the duration of 5 hours. Toilet, safety vest, AC-ed room, audio-video entertainment are available on dhow.
The dhow couldn’t go very close to Al Safliya Island. They would anchor 50-100m away and transfer you to the island by boat (rental fee QR1000/5hours), or you may swim as you wish.
A wooden umbrella-shaped shade are provided along southern beach. Trash bins are there but no toilet facilities are available. The area is like a dumpsite for excavated/building materials, except few meters strip of beach. The water is clear and suitable for water sports. The northern part is a bit muddy and shallow that boat and dhow may keep off from the area. You can walk westwardly along the tail to see West Bay towers quite closely.
CGK-DOH 