Education City

Education City is a vast campus of universities and cultural institutions on the western edge of Doha, the flagship project of the Qatar Foundation. Spread across some fourteen square kilometres of landscaped grounds, it gathers branch campuses of leading world universities alongside libraries, museums, sports venues, mosques and research centres.

Its purpose is to build a knowledge economy. Since the late 1990s, institutions including Georgetown, Cornell, Carnegie Mellon, Texas A&M and Northwestern have opened Qatar campuses here, teaching medicine, engineering, journalism and international affairs to students from across the region. A national university and specialist research bodies complete a hub intended to outlast the country's reliance on oil and gas.

The campus is also an architectural showcase. The monumental Qatar National Library, the striking Ceremonial Court, the twin-minaret Education City Mosque and the green Oxygen Park draw designers and photographers, while the Education City Stadium, built for the 2022 World Cup, sits within the grounds. Public art and generous stretches of greenery soften the sheer scale of the buildings.

Visitors are welcome to explore much of it. The library, the Mathaf art museum, the mosque and the parks are open to the public, and a driverless tram links the main nodes across the site. It lies a short drive or Metro ride from central Doha and is entirely modern and accessible. Go for the architecture and the spectacular library in particular, allow a half day, and enjoy the greenery of Oxygen Park in the cooler hours of morning or evening; most of the cultural attractions are free to enter. Guided architecture tours of the library and the wider campus can be arranged in advance and bring the ambitious project to life.