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Wales Online
Wales Online
Sport
Sion Morgan

Inside the Wales team's plush Qatar hotel which comes with its own virtual golf simulator for Gareth Bale

Wales players have been enjoying a virtual reality golf course at their plush World Cup hotel in Doha.

Boasting five-star restaurants and bars, including the speciality Spanish restaurant Medios, the Delta Hotels Center Doha by Marriott City is sat in the bustling West Bay area on the Qatar capital's waterfront. In fact, there is even a private beach a stone's throw away from the entrance.

The Football Association of Wales took time to choose the 320-room hotel, which offers magnificent views of the Doha skyline, and relatively easy access to their nearby training ground facilities at the Al Sadd Sports Club.

Read more: Today's World Cup headlines as players defend Bale and Ramsey and four England changes called

Members of the public cannot get anywhere near the hotel, which has had a 24/7 guarded metal perimeter installed around it.

But players have given an insight of what life has been like inside.

Harry Wilson said: "The hotel has a good set-up. We have our games room — pool, table tennis. Gaz [Gareth Bale] has had a golf simulator put up there so there have been a few competitions on that. All the lads together, chilling in between sessions and in between games. The camp is in good spirits."

He added: "Ethan Ampadu fancies himself as a good table tennis player. Him and Sorba Thomas are always playing. Because they play a lot, they are up there. On the golf, Gaz is very good. He has not played as much closer to the games as I think his back might feel it a bit. Locks [Tom Lockyer] has been good at that and Matty Smith has been top dog."

Striker Mark Harris said the hotel was perfect for the squad's needs. "It's great, it's a really nice hotel," he said. "We've got that pool for recovery after games and training. Even the training facilities, we've got the gym and the changing rooms, they're unbelievable as well and the pitches are great."

Gareth Bale outside the Wales team hotel (Football Association of Wales)
The most popular attraction before the football started was the golf simulator (Football Association of Wales)
Tom Lockyer, Jonny Williams, Kieffer Moore, Chris Mepham, Adam Davies, Jordan James, Dylan Levitt, and Brennan Johnson during a recovery session at the hotel pool (Football Association of Wales)

For normal paying customers during the rest of the year, the hotel has a standard rate of around £160 per night for its cheapest rooms. Each room comes equipped with mini bar, coffee and tea set, wardrobe and 55-inch flat-screen TV. The hotel's listed facilities include a gym with steam rooms.

As well as its celebrated Spanish restaurant, the site's Babylonia dining experience also offers authentic Persian-Iranian dishes on an a la carte menu for lunch and dinner. The hotel also has two coffee shops.

The games room also has a pool table (Football Association of Wales)
Dylan Levitt and Brennan Johnson ride an inflatable dragon during a recovery session at the hotel (Football Association of Wales)
There's also table tennis (Football Association of Wales)

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