Postcards from Qatar, Bahrain and UAE

[travellingsheep]

I have just returned from a cruise to Qatar, Bahrain and UAE and wanted to share my experience of trying to find postcards and stamps in these countries. We had only one day in each port so time was limited and also we were on guided tours so didnt have much flexibility on places we visited.

Firstly Doha in Qatar
We found postcards in the Souk however the price was 15 Riyal each(approx £3.25 each.) Despite attempts to haggle, which I admit I am not good at, the lowest price I could get was 2 cards for 20 Riyal(approx £4.30) so I walked away. At the only other shop I could find selling cards, I manged to get 2 cards for a more reasonable 10 Riyal(approx £1.10 each). The cards were standard cards.

I was unable to find any stamps and even our guide who lived locally did not know where these could be purchased. We also visited the Museum of Islamic Art and they had some art cards for 7 Riyal each(approx £1.50)

There was a shop in the souk selling world cup stamps in a presentation pack for about £150 and they had a postbox outside, although I’m not sure if it was just for display.

I bought these in a shop near the port. At first I thought they were stamps but then realised they were magnets😁 but I thought they were a nice World Cup souvenir and bought them anyway.

Bahrain

We had slightly more success in Manama . Again postcards were available in the Souk for a reasonable 300 fils each(approx £0.60 each.) The cards were good quality and some had a glossy effect.

Our tour bus stopped right outside the post office opposite the Souk. Unfortunately it closed at 2.00pm and we arrived at 2.05pm🙃 so we had to make do with taking some photos of the outside of the building.

I believe there was also a postal museum nearby but unfortunately as part of a tour we didn’t have enough time to look for this.

We also visited the Bahrain International Circuit Formula 1 track and I hoped they might have cards but unfortunately not.

UAE
As expected it was much easier to buy cards and stamps in both Abu Dhabi and Dubai.

Abu Dhabi
There was a good selection of cards in the Souk across from World Trade Centre mall and they also sold stamps. Cards were 3 Dirham each and 4 Dirham for 3d cards. (approx £0.60/£0.80).Cards were good quality and had a gold foil/glossy effect.

We also visted the beautiful Qasr Al Watan, Presidental Palace and bought the box of 50 postcards for 50 Dirham (approx £10.50)

This was a fun chocolate postbox we found in The WTC mall.

Dubai
We managed to find a post office/postbox in old Dubai and posted a few cards here. Hopefully they will arrive.

There was a small display of stamps inside the post office and staff were very helpful.

We couldnt find any cards in the Bur Dubai old Souk and eventually ended up buying some cards in the cruise terminal priced 3/5 dirhams each.(approx £0.60/ £1.00)

We located the Philately House in Old Dubai but again it was closed.

I hope this is helpful to anyone visiting these countries.

[mooseontheloose]

This is really useful. I had been planning a trip to these countries in March but had to postpone it…when I get the chance to actually visit I’ll keep this information in mind.

[Robin67]

Very interesting to read, thank you! !

[travellingsheep]

Card posted in Dubai has arrived after 7 days travelling time ,with a nice clear postmark😊

[hola_olaaa]

Thank you for sharing your experience with a quest for cards and stamps. The UAE selection of postcards is lovely! I am glad to hear the cards from the UAE did finally reach their destinations.

[Wolfsmondfee]

I have used the post office in Old Dubai for many years and it is very reliable.
There is another one in the World Trade Center which is also very good.

The philately house is not really much to look at.

There was a very interesting exhibition on the development of postal routes in UAE in the Etihad museum:
https://etihadmuseum.dubaiculture.gov.ae/en/Collections/Pages/Emirates-to-the-World.aspx

[travellingsheep]

What an interesting exhibition😊

[Angelthepup22]

Very interesting, thank you for sharing!
@Seracker Could you add a link to this post in the rare places thread please? I think it would be helpful to others looking for information later on!

[Seracker]

@Angelthepup22
Hi Trevor, it has been previously added, thanks for tagging me

[lunarrv15]

You profile has you location private. What country are you from for postcard to travel 7 days. USA here and have cards travel that many days from east or midwest to west coast

[Angelthepup22]

Their Forum public profile is hidden but you can click the little Postcrossing logo to visit their public profile on the Postcrossing site, which shows that they are a member in United Kingdom.

[dwellster]

Hello! I’ve just been to Qatar and there is a shop that sells postcards for a bit more of a reasonable price at 4 riyals each. They’re just a few shops down from ‘Doha Exchange’ in Souq Waqif and it’s the same one that has the yellow postbox in your photo (which they assured me was functional!)

They also sell stamps for 8 riyals (if I recall correctly), which is the same price you get from the general post office. Not sure how likely they are to show up though, and I’ll update if any of my postcards reach their destinations!

[travellingsheep]

Thanks for sharing. We had very limited time in the Souk, just around 45 mins, so didn’t look any further into the shop with the postbox, once I saw how expensive the World Cup stamps were. Hopefully your cards will arrive safely with a nice clear postmark, please post a photo if they do😊.