Doha: A total of 7,901,250 people visited Cultural Village Foundation ‑ Katara ‑ last year based on the 2018 cultural index released yesterday reaffirming its strong position as one of the country’s most preferred destinations.

Underlining Katara’s many achievements in the field of culture and the arts, Katara General Manager Dr. Khalid bin Ibrahim Al Sulaiti said these important and distinguished achievements Katara has accomplished in the past year reflect the pioneering position that it has reached, making Doha a beacon of thought and a forum for arts, culture and creativity.

The index also revealed that 2, 807,989 vehicles entered Katara last year. Katara Beach witnessed 135,777, while  5,734 students from various schools visited Katara within the “Our Culture is School” campaign which Katara launched last year to enhance education and raise awareness among students with cultural knowledge.

Besides, Katara witnessed hundreds of visits organised by destination management companies with the number of tourists from all over the world reaching 76, 058. Katara further strengthened cultural ties with different countries around the world with 294 visits of diplomats, VIPs and international delegations.

With regard to events, Katara hosted and organised 34 festivals, 14 National Day celebrations of various missions and 183 art exhibitions that showcased 5, 490 artworks by 875 artists. It screened 112 movies, hosted 76 concerts and 95 ceremonies and gatherings. It also hosted 77 lectures and 63 Islamic activities, organised 55 competitions, played host and organiser to 16 sports activities, presented 263 workshops with 711 sessions, and conducted 12 auctions and 18 bazaars.

Year 2018 was a fecund and successful year for Katara receiving five accolades and giving out 26 awards. The year also saw 71 publications and 11 agreements signed.

Katara has also created a lot of buzz online with 834,038 visitors to its website during the year. Social media platforms also generated a lot of activity; its Facebook followers has a staggering 1, 170, 612 followers with 9, 879 posts, 30,220 comments and 116, 214 likes. Katara’s Instagram account generated 146, 817 followers, liked 527, 828, commented 6, 520 times and witnessed 7, 560 posts. Its followers via Twitter reached 390, 726 and saw 12, 906 tweets, 22, 775 re-tweets and 68, 237 likes last year.