Football fans yet to book their accommodation for the World Cup in Qatar could face paying thousands of pounds a night for somewhere to sleep.
Standard hotel rooms and one-bedroom flats in and around Doha are going for up to £6,000 a night on the date that England plays its first match as part of the month-long tournament.
Demand has driven up prices as the vast majority of hotel rooms and private flats have already been booked for the early fixtures – less than two months before the first kick-off.
The England v Iran game is set for Monday 21 November in the city of Al Rayyan, on the outskirts of Doha.
The Independent investigated prices of accommodation suitable for one person for one night on this date to find the best available deals.
The cheapest accommodation available for a one-night stay in a room in a shared house or apartment could be booked for a few hundred pounds, according to listings on Airbnb.
But, for those wanting privacy, there are a handful of studio flats being listed for around £500 a night.
There are also “fan villages” offering budget rooms in specially built cabins for hundreds of pounds a night for a minimum three-night stay, and the website says there’s already low availability.
Those opting for a Doha hotel stay instead would have to fork out at least £1,300, according to Google’s aggregation of listings of places still available at the time of writing.
The next cheapest hotel room is £1,600, checking in on the day of the match and checking out the following morning.
On accommodation platform Airbnb, some people are looking to cash in on the increased demand by offering their homes for nearly £6,000 a night for a mid-range, one-bedroom flat.
The most expensive is a whopping £5,606, which includes a hefty “service fee” of £812, for a one-bedroom flat listed as suitable for one person, on the Pearl-Qatar man-made peninsula in Doha’s suburbs.
It’s difficult for guests to make out the size of the prospective apartment, as the host has only posted photos showing the building’s exterior and close-up shots of furniture and knick-knacks.
The World Cup is being held in five cities close to Doha from 20 November to 18 December.
Qatar expects 1.5 million visitors to arrive in the country during the tournament. The peak dates for travelling are expected to be 27 and 28 November, towards the end of the group stage.
