Expat, Qatar, Travel

Relocating to Qatar – What to Pack

January 23, 2018

Relocating to Qatar - What to PackWhat everyone brings when moving abroad is going to differ from person to person and family to family. Many factors come into play when deciding what to bring. Will you be provided furnished housing? Does that include household goods such as sheets and towels? How much furniture will be included? Here is a link to what my first apartment looked like. When I relocated to Qatar, I failed to ask most of the questions and more. Most of these things are small items as most furniture items are available in Qatar. While I had done some research, I wish there had been more information on what was available in Doha. (The photo above is my stash pre-Christmas stock up.)

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This post may not be helpful for all my readers, but I hope my advice for expats will help you. Also, that you find it interesting to get an insight into what moving abroad entails and if you are thinking about it, that this will help you ask the right questions wherever you are going. I will point out that all things listed here are American focused since I am American. The list would be huge if I tried to include all nationalities. I asked lots of Qatar Expats for their opinions, and this is a collection of their responses. One person only said she wishes she had brought less!

Clothing/Shoes

Seems a bit ridiculous as Qatar has clothing stores! However, I have struggled with this one more than I thought I would. This is due to a lack of familiar options, lack of sizing and the prices.

– Unusual sizes – I am petite, and while there are petite sizes, they are not a lot of petite options. Almost all the pants I have bought here have had to be altered. Also, there are few plus size options, and a friend told me the clothes were not pretty.

– Familiar brands – We do have stores like Gap and a Banana Republic, but the selection is less than half of what you would find in the U.S. There is no Macy’s or Dillards here. However, we did get an Old Navy last year! This also applies to underwear. Only once have I bought underwear here and I didn’t like it.

– Shoes – There are familiar brands of shoes, but they tend to cater to local tastes. I have a hard time finding flats and shoes that aren’t covered in bling. Larger women sizes are also difficult to find.

– Prices – Clothes and shoes are more expensive here than in the U.S. There are also fewer sales because they are heavily regulated. This applies to children’s clothes and shoes as well.

Health/Medical

The orientation material I was given for my job gave me some sense that medicine availability would be different, but I didn’t expect it would apply to over the counter medication. Many of the things I use needed a prescription for such as Neosporin. Bring a couple of months supply of your prescriptions, so you don’t have to worry about that right away.  You also may have to wait a bit for your health insurance to start. Since the list is long, I will just give you the list of what is unavailable or hard to find. (This photo is what I bought at Christmas, not including clothes!)

Relocating to Qatar - What to Pack

  • Tylenol – available but in blister packages of small quantity
  • Advil – same as Tylenol
  • Excedrin
  • Pepto Bismol
  • Alka Seltzer
  • Neosporin
  • Cortisone
  • NyQuil
  • Sudafed
  • Contact Solution – usually available, but frequently runs out, and brands are different
  • Ear/Eye Drops
  • After bite
  • Sleep medication (have only seen Panadol PM)
  • Tampons – rarely find them and not the brands we have in the U.S.
  • Monistat
  • Limited birth control brands – over the counter, though!
  • Benedryl
  • Mucinex
  • Heating pad – order one from the UK
  • Secret deodorant – we have it, but it is double the price
  • Diaper Genie refills

Beauty

Fortunately, this not as much as an issue. However, some brands and things are hard to find.

  • Origins brand
  • Dry Shampoo
  • Non-drug store brands of shampoo and conditioner
  • Quality hair spray
  • Hair color
  • Travel sized toiletries
  • We have Sephora, but the product selection is limited

Food/Household Items

Items marked with an * are available here but are much more costly or are only sold in small sizes. Also be aware that sometimes you find an item, and it disappears for a while, or it never returns.

  • Tortillas – made without lard here and taste a bit like chemicals
  • Vanilla extract – not made with alcohol here
  • Arm and Hammer baking soda*
  • Chocolate chips
  • Crystal Light
  • French’s Fried Onions
  • Pumpkin Spice
  • White gravy mix
  • Pecans*
  • Hidden Valley Ranch
  • Decaf black tea bags
  • Frosted Shredded Wheat cereal
  • Chili Powder – what you see here is not what we are used to
  • Kitchen tools you prefer – I brought measuring cups since Qatar is on the metric system.
  • Dryer sheets*
  • Magic Erasers
  • Swiffers
  • Christmas decorations*
  • Foam mattress toppers – I bought mine here at IKEA, but it costs a fortune. One person said they brought them one-by-one on trips home.
  • School supplies

Entertainment/Crafts

Finding DVDs that work here or finding a DVD player that works here is difficult. Bring what you really want to watch and us the DVD reader in your laptop to connect it to your TV. Bring the connector as well as the one I bought here cost an arm and a leg! Sign up for Netflix, Amazon or Hulu. If you have kids, this is especially important as many of the kid’s tv shows are in Arabic.

If you are a crafter, you will find limited supplies here. The quality is also not great. Although, you can find fabric here at the fabric souq. Be prepared to order what you need or bring a healthy supply. One person said you needed to bring a whole Michael’s with you and that is not an understatement. Art supplies are also limited and are really meant for the hobbyist and not serious the artist.

Books are another thing we are lacking. There are not many bookstores and the selection is limited. There is now a public library at Education City which is quite large.

As you can see the list is long and there are probably tons of things I have forgotten. A friend of mine here also wished she had brought 3-4 months of all of these things, so she didn’t spend so much time, in the beginning looking for them. If you have space, I would recommend it. Also, I cannot stress enough to ask for specifics on what is being provided to you. I arrived to find two of the smallest towels on earth in my apartment!

Have you relocated to Qatar? What do you suggest bringing? Share with us in the comments.

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15 Comments

  • Reply Camila @ AdventitiousViolet January 23, 2017 at 8:01 pm

    I’ve not relocated to Qatar but to the UK from Canada, so it’s not much of an issue, but I learned really quickly regarding the over the counter medicine. I couldn’t believe tylenols (or paracetamol) come in packs of 10 only. So I brought a far of like 200 from home lol.

    • Reply Tiffany January 23, 2017 at 8:04 pm

      It is a bit odd the small quantities. I have tons of Tylenol brought from the US.

  • Reply Sarah January 27, 2017 at 5:27 am

    Hi! I’m so glad you posted about this!! I’m relocating to Qatar next week from the States and have been dreading the packing. Your list is so helpful! On a previous visit, I couldn’t find my favorite makeup brand here- Tarte. I checked in all the Sephora’s and even the airport, but was only met with blank stares. I’ll make sure I stock up on all the Tarte products I’m obsessed with and Hidden Valley dip- that’s all I need to survive.

    • Reply Tiffany January 27, 2017 at 10:20 am

      Hi, Sarah. Thanks for stopping by. I am so glad you found this helpful. I hadn’t thought about it but you are right that I have never seen Tarte here! Welcome to Qatar. Let me know if you have more questions.

      • Reply Sarah January 27, 2017 at 11:48 pm

        Thank you for your kind words and welcome! I’d love to hear more about what clothing to bring- I can’t tell if I’m being a hoarder, as I’m going back and forth wondering how many boots to pack? I’d also love to hear more about any socializing and how your experience has been meeting new people and making friends. Thanks Tiffany 🙂

        • Reply Tiffany January 29, 2017 at 3:43 pm

          Bring more underwear than you think you will need and keep it till the current stuff wears out. I have never found any I like here. I always wish I had more 3/4 sleeve and long sleeve tops. It will be more comfortable for you culturally that way. Scarves also help that. Bring the boots! It never gets too cold, but you will adjust and anything below 70 and you will be wanting a jacket. Shoes are difficult here. To meet new people join Meetup.com and Internations. They have lots of activities and it a great way to meet people. When do you arrive? Maybe we can meet when you do!

          • Sarah January 31, 2017 at 6:32 am

            Thanks for the feedback, Tiffany! And the encouragement to bring the boots- great minds think alike!! I’ll be arriving Saturday evening, just in the time for the work week. It would be a pleasure to meet you sometime, lets keep in touch!

          • Tiffany January 31, 2017 at 8:07 am

            You’re welcome! I am going to Sri Lanka on Thursday but will reach out when I get back. Have a safe flight and I hope the jet lag isn’t too bad.

  • Reply Jamla September 25, 2017 at 8:20 pm

    This is the BEST list and information I have read on the internet, thank you! MOST important question is…how do you bring it all there? Do I just pack 4 suitcases with me and bring it all at once? Also, is there a post office for mailing items or for having a mailbox?

    • Reply Tiffany September 26, 2017 at 3:01 am

      Thank you! I did just bring all my stuff in my suitcases. It’s too expensive to ship things in my opinion. Yes, there is a post office where you can rent a P.O.Box. I had an Aramex account for ordering things like from Amazon. I hope that helps. Happy to answer any questions.

  • Reply Alexandra September 3, 2020 at 6:03 pm

    Hey Tiffany! I came across your blog after participating in the collab about teaching abroad with Monica from This Rare Earth! I loved hearing your story about working as a librarian in Qatar. My sister is a librarian, and I’ll show this to her for inspiration! 🙂 I work in China and I definitely prioritize packing books – physical ones – even though they are so heavy! It’s comforting to see a small pile of books in your apartment, like a little piece of home!

  • Reply safna March 22, 2021 at 8:57 pm

    hey Tiffany! this is a really helpful checklist for moving, especially for girls. Am with my parents in Qatar, want to move to Doha for my studies and all. Now we are in Alkhor, it really consuming a lot of time daily. So it’s easier for me to move on there. By thinking about the move, I just go through google then I got you. it’s really helping me to pack my things. For my move, I called a freight forwarding company in Qatar. Which is also really best for me. http://friendscargoservice.com/ this is their site. Am giving it here because if someone got help from this, they can also use these movers. Once again thank you tiffany for this wonderful informations.

  • Reply FD Cargo Services April 1, 2021 at 1:20 am

    Really informative !! Good Luck … Loved hearing your story . All the Best .

  • Reply Kevin Dilhan June 27, 2022 at 12:37 am

    Hi, thank you for your valuable advice! I was wondering if there is an option to shop online? Do they allow delivery of such things into the country and is the shipping reasonable? Like books, other utensils, clothes maybe?

    Also, with the world cup around the corner, I hear that they are moving towards being more like Dubai – more open and international; do you think that is actually something that is in motion? Or is it more like an ambitious overstatement?

    Sorry about all the questions! Your articles is very thoughtful and insightful.

    • Reply Tiffany June 30, 2022 at 3:12 am

      Hi, You’re welcome. You can definitely get things shipped in. But you will find a lot of what you need in terms of clothes and books now in Qatar as much as changed since I lived there.

      They always were open and very international. You can drink in bars there and there is pork available at the liquor store. There is even a rumor they will be opening a second liquor store location soon. Hope that helps!

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