Sheraton Park (Hotel Park), West Bay

Overview

Sheraton Park sits at the very top of the Doha Corniche, wedged between the pyramid-shaped Sheraton Grand hotel, the Doha Exhibition and Convention Center and the glass towers of West Bay. Its official name these days is Hotel Park, and Visit Qatar notes that it was formerly known as Sheraton Hotel Park, so you will see both names on maps, signs and taxi apps. Locals still mostly call it Sheraton Park.

It is a free, landscaped park of about 7 hectares, and the clever part is underneath: the whole thing is a roof garden laid over a multi-storey underground car park. On top you get lawns, palm-lined paths, shallow water channels, fountains, playgrounds, an outdoor gym and a grassy, pyramid-shaped mound that gives you one of the best low-level views of the West Bay skyline in the city.

Go if you want an easy green space in the middle of the business district, a good start or finish point for a Corniche walk or run, somewhere to let children burn off energy in the evening, or a skyline photograph without paying for a rooftop bar. It suits families, runners, office workers on a break and anyone staying in a West Bay hotel without a garden of its own. It is not a wild or quiet place: expect traffic noise from Corniche Street and busy lawns on winter weekends.

History and background

The Sheraton came first. The hotel, designed by the American architect William Pereira, opened in 1982 on reclaimed land at the northern tip of Doha Bay and for years stood almost alone at that end of the Corniche. The towers of West Bay grew up around it mostly in the 2000s and 2010s, and the open ground in front of the hotel became a construction site for a different kind of project.

The park was built by QDVC (Qatari Diar Vinci Construction) together with a large underground car park beneath it. Doha News reported that construction ran for more than four years and that the park looked finished in time for the GCC leaders’ summit in Doha in December 2014, but it was not opened to the public then. People started using it around the turn of 2016: Doha News described visitors already strolling the lawns and water features in early January 2016, while cafés, toilets and the car park were still waiting to open. The Peninsula reported its official opening as Hotel Park in May 2016, owned by Katara Hospitality, with the underground parking operated separately.

The figures quoted for the park vary slightly between sources, from about 7 hectares (Visit Qatar and Doha News) to 73,000 square metres (Qatari Diar). The car park below is a serious piece of infrastructure: Visit Qatar gives more than 2,500 spaces across four underground levels, and Qatari Diar describes a pedestrian tunnel linking it to the Doha Exhibition and Convention Center. Today the park’s own website lists a 24-hour contact line and a Mawaqif Qatar email address, Mawaqif being the company that manages much of Doha’s public parking.

Since opening, the park has been used for concerts, food festivals, Eid and Ramadan gatherings and sports events. Before it had even officially opened, the car park was briefly used for a Stereophonics concert in November 2015.

What to see and do

1. Climb the pyramid mound for the skyline

   The park’s signature feature is a large grassy mound shaped like a stepped pyramid, a nod to the Sheraton next door. From the top you look across the water features to the West Bay towers on one side and along the curve of the Corniche on the other. It is only a gentle climb, so it works for small children and older visitors, and it is the best spot in the park for a wide skyline shot. Go up around sunset and stay into the blue hour, when the towers light up one by one.

2. Walk the water channels and fountains

   Water runs through the whole design. There are long rectangular pools that mirror the towers, ground-level fountains, and a series of small streams, waterfalls and mini-fountains laid out like dry riverbeds, or wadis, near the West Bay side. When the park first opened, Doha News described water jets striking raised metal cymbals to make music. Visit Qatar also lists a tidal pool and dancing fountains. Not every fountain runs at every hour, but on a calm evening the reflecting pools are the reason photographers come here.

3. Let children loose in the playgrounds

   There are children’s play areas with equipment aimed at younger children, and the early reports mention sand pits as well. Add the open lawns, the paths for scooters and bikes and the mound to run up and down, and it is one of the easiest places in central Doha to spend an hour with toddlers or primary-age children. Bring a ball; there is room on the grass when it is not too busy.

4. Use the outdoor fitness zone

   Visit Qatar describes an outdoor fitness area with 12 workout stations. It is popular with people who run the Corniche and then stop here for pull-ups, step-ups and stretching. The flat, well-lit paths are also good for a few slow laps if you are building up to longer runs along the bay.

5. Start or finish a Corniche walk or run

   Sheraton Park is the northern anchor of the Doha Corniche. From here the promenade runs south-west and then east around the bay for roughly 7 km to the Museum of Islamic Art and the dhow harbour. Many people start here, walk or run as far as they feel like, and come back. Our Doha Corniche guide breaks the route into sections, with metro stations, toilets and shade.

6. Bring a bike or picnic

   The winding paths suit bikes, scooters and roller skates, and Visit Qatar lists bike hire. Picnic lawns are spread around the park, and on winter evenings you will see families set up with rugs and flasks of karak. Food outlets operate on site, though which brands are open changes, so do not rely on a specific café being there.

7. Catch an event

   The park is used for festivals, concerts, sports events and seasonal gatherings during Ramadan and Eid. The park’s website also offers venue hire. If you want a quiet visit, check what is on before you go, because big events change parking and crowd levels completely.

How to get there

The park is on Al Corniche Street at the northern tip of Doha Bay, between the Sheraton Grand and the Doha Exhibition and Convention Center (DECC), in the Al Dafna area of West Bay. Visit Qatar gives the address as 1 Al Corniche Street.

By metro: Visit Qatar names DECC on the Red Line as the closest station. West Bay station (also Red Line) is a slightly longer walk. Both are useful if you plan to walk the Corniche south and come back by metro from another station.

By bus: Visit Qatar lists Karwa bus routes 538 and T610. Routes change, so check the Karwa app before relying on them.

By taxi or ride-hailing: Ask for Hotel Park, Sheraton Park or simply the Sheraton Grand. Corniche Street is fast and busy, so get dropped in the hotel or car park access road rather than on the carriageway.

By car: The underground car park beneath the park is the obvious choice, with lifts up into the gardens. It is paid parking; the rates published when it opened in 2016 are long out of date, so check the signs at the entrance. On festival nights and winter weekends it can be busy, and access roads around West Bay jam at office rush hours. No 4×4 is needed for anything here.

Best time to visit

November to March is the comfortable season, when afternoons are warm rather than hot and evenings are pleasant enough to sit on the grass. Late afternoon to a couple of hours after sunset is the sweet spot: the light is soft, the towers start to glow and the park fills with families.

From April to October, go early in the morning or after dark. There is shade under the palms and trees, but the lawns and paved areas are very exposed in the middle of the day, and summer heat in Doha is not something to take lightly. In winter, early mornings are lovely and quiet, with runners and walkers rather than crowds.

Friday and Saturday evenings are the busiest times, along with public holidays such as National Day on 18 December, when the Corniche area gets very crowded and roads may close. During Ramadan the park comes to life after iftar.

Tips for your visit

• Entry is free, and the park’s website lists it as open around the clock with 24-hour security, but cafés, toilets and play equipment may keep their own hours.
• Bring water; kiosks and fountains are not something to count on, especially in the morning.
• Dress modestly as you would anywhere in public in Doha: shoulders and knees covered is a safe rule.
• Keep children away from the edges of the deeper water features and the road side of the park.
• If you plan to walk the Corniche, start here in the afternoon and finish near Souq Waqif for dinner, then take the Gold Line back.
• Drones are not a good idea here: you are close to government buildings along the Corniche and busy airspace over the city.
• Check for events before a weekend visit, as festivals can fill the car park and change access.
• For the cleanest reflections in the pools, go on a still evening rather than a windy one.

What to bring

• Water and a hat for daytime visits
• A picnic rug for the lawns
• Bikes, scooters or skates for children
• Comfortable shoes if you plan to continue along the Corniche
• A light layer for winter evenings, when the breeze off the bay can feel cool

Combine it with nearby places

The Doha Corniche. The promenade starts at the park’s edge. Walk as far as the National Theatre curve and back, or carry on all the way to MIA. See our full Corniche guide.

Al Bidda Park. A much bigger park on the western curve of the Corniche, with separate walking and cycling tracks and more shade. Good if your children want more space. Read our Al Bidda Park guide.

The dhow harbour. At the southern end of the Corniche, the moored wooden dhows and evening boat rides are a classic Doha scene. See our dhow harbour guide.

Museum of Islamic Art. Across the bay, MIA is the cultural highlight of the Corniche, and from its park you see the West Bay skyline from the opposite side. Read our MIA guide.

Katara Cultural Village. A short taxi ride north, with its beach, amphitheatre and pigeon towers. Start with our guide to the Katara pigeon towers.

Frequently asked questions

Last checked October 2026. Hours, fees and access can change, so confirm with the official source before you go.