GIVEAWAY: Free Ritz-Carlton Stay, Sharq Village & Spa with Breakfast

by Gary Leff

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Ritz-Carlton Rewards® Credit Card

Earlier in the year I arranged a brief stopover in Doha. I’ve always wanted to visit the Museum of Islamic Art but never took the opportunity.

Doha is a really convenient stopover, as the home airport for Qatar Airways, a top world carrier and member of oneworld. Their first class lounge in Doha is amazing, and even features pieces from the Museum of Islamic Art’s collection.

I found just two days in Doha to be perfect, but if I had it to do over again I’d do four nights… two dedicated to a museum visit and two for The Ritz-Carlton Sharq Village & Spa.

Follow my lead, and stat two nights here, because I’m giving away a 2 night stay with breakfast to a blog reader.

A TripAdvisor ‘Certificate of Excellence’ hotel, it’s one of the top rated properties in Doha. It’s conveniently located but a retreat on the Gulf. And it garners comments like “Best anniversary ever!” “Magic” and “Awesome architecture.” The resort looks fantastic.

Here’s how they describe the property:

A luxury Doha resort that exemplifies the perfect fusion of contemporary and traditional, Sharq Village & Spa places guests in the heart of the Qatar capital, yet within the tranquil confines of an idyllic coastal retreat on the Gulf Bay. Featuring an exceptional spa, world-class dining, including the only Persian fine dining restaurant in Qatar, and 300 meters of private beach, our luxury resort in Doha Qatar is perfect for families of all ages, and envelops guests in a world of time-honored hospitality in surroundings that embrace Doha’s newer opulent vision.

This is a very special giveaway, thanks to my good friends at Luxury Travel Diary. Regular readers know them as a high-end travel blog with great reviews. They’re based in the UK and run travel auctions with real bargains.

As I’ve said before, folks who already know about these auctions don’t like this added attention, because there don’t seem to be enough bidders for many of their best offerings relative to the value available. Some of their items go way too cheap.

Let me just underscore this. Current bidding on 3 nights in a beachfront villa for 8 people in Turks and Caicos is running just over $900. And 2 nights at the Washington Duke Inn — a lovely property, I stayed there last year when visiting a Duke law school class to talk about DOT regulation of mistake fares, is going for about $80 total.

This Ritz-Carlton prize is being given away by the hotel and Luxury Travel Diary, I’m just helping to highlight it and randomly select the winner.

To enter: leave a comment on this post with your favorite item up for auction at Luxury Travel Diary, or why you would choose to stay at The Ritz-Carlton Sharq Village & Spa. You may enter two times if you wish and answer those two questions one time each in separate comments.

Contest deadline and drawing winner: Entries close Sunday, October 16 at Noon eastern. I will draw winner with the assistance of random.org.

The fine print: Advance booking is required and it’s subject to availability. Terms and conditions apply. Winner will have one week to respond to email notifying of the prize, otherwise the prize will be forfeit and made available to another reader. Free stay certificate expires March 26, 2017.

For avoidance of doubt, I have no affiliation with Luxury Travel Diary or The Ritz-Carlton Sharq Village & Spa. I am not getting anything in exchange for running this giveaway other than an opportunity to share the place with readers.

Of course you know I’m loving the benefits of the new Ritz-Carlton Rewards® Credit Card Visa Infinite, including a signup bonus of 3 complimentary nights and elite status in Ritz-Carlton’s frequent guest program (that’s honored as Marriott status as well).

The hotel is solely responsible for providing prize to winner. All decisions made in the course of running this giveaway are final and unappealable and your entry signifies your acceptance. The goal here is to make readers aware of a pretty cool auction opportunity, and to give away a stay. So please don’t make it hard on me for doing so!

Ritz-Carlton Rewards® Credit Card

About Gary Leff

Gary Leff is one of the foremost experts in the field of miles, points, and frequent business travel - a topic he has covered since 2002. Co-founder of frequent flyer community InsideFlyer.com, emcee of the Freddie Awards, and named one of the "World's Top Travel Experts" by Conde' Nast Traveler (2010-Present) Gary has been a guest on most major news media, profiled in several top print publications, and published broadly on the topic of consumer loyalty. More About Gary »

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Editorial note: any opinions, analyses, reviews or recommendations expressed in this article are those of the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any card issuer. Comments made in response to this post are not provided or commissioned nor have they been reviewed, approved, or otherwise endorsed by any bank. It is not the responsibility of advertisers Citibank, Chase, American Express, Barclays, Capital One or any other advertiser to ensure that questions are answered, either. Terms and limitations apply to all offers.

Comments

  5. Doha is a place on my to go list. if can stay at The Ritz-Carlton Sharq Village & Spa would be great!

  8. I would love to be able to explore Doha and even better to have such a beautiful hotel serve as my home for the trip!

  11. I suspect that, among the current crop of offerings, I’d opt for the Fort Rajwada hotel in India. At a ridiculously low price, it would make for a great jumping-off point for a long overdue exploration of India.

  12. Sharq Village is a lovely property, and I’d love for my wife to have the opportunity to experience it. Doha makes for a great base of operations in the Gulf, too — close to everything yet a great place to explore on its on and in which to relax in between regional trips.

  16. I would choose 2 Nights At Makakatana Bay Lodge In South Africa, I have always wanted to go on Safari!

  17. I would choose the Ritz Carlton in Doha because I happen to be stopping in Doha so a beautiful hotel like that would be perfect!

  22. I would love to get a chance to eat at the Alain Ducasse restaurant in Doha during a stay at the Ritz-Carlton!

  23. Hands down, its a three night stay at the Oke Beach House in NZ. Bring the family or invite your “Mates”” or Sheilas” to enjoy this very special offer “Down Under”.

  28. My favorite item up for auction at Luxury Travel Diary is 5 Nights In The Guest House At Manor Cottage, Cotswolds. Thanks.

  29. I’m currently serving in Baghdad, and Doha is one of the most convenient airports to transit through on my way almost anywhere. I would love to leave the airport for a few days and explore Qatar.

  32. I would choose to stay at the Ritz Carlton hotel Sharq Village because it’s FREE! Great place/great property. Any questions?

  35. I’ve got a trip in the near future going through Doha and that pool alone is reason to stay at the Sharq Village and Spa!!

  36. I checked out the auctions and the one that jumped out at my was the stay at Ft. Rajwada in Rajasthan. I’ve been to southern India several times, but never to the north. …Looks like I need to go check out that hotel when I’m I am able to visit!

  39. I would love to stay at the Ritz-Carlton Sharq Village & Spa because hands down, it would be the most luxurious stay of my life.

  40. My favorite item up for auction at Luxury Travel Diary is the Travel Plus 1 year of global insurance, a must have for any traveler.

  41. I would stay at The Ritz-Carlton Sharq Village & Spa for just that kind of extreme royal luxury that is found only in Gulf countries.

  48. I like the auction of ONE YEAR OF FAMILY COVERAGE ASSISTANCE UNDER GLOBAL TRAVEL PLUS.

Comments are closed.