São Paulo – Bruna Bardavid Gobbo had already been living in Qatar for four years when she had the idea to establish a travel agency to cater to Brazilians who wanted to visit the Arab country. When the pandemic hit in 2020, the Brazilian woman, who had previous experience in the tourism industry, decided to invest time and money in developing her own business.
“A few years into living in Qatar, I started working in a tourism company. When the borders closed off, I left the company to start my own business, looking ahead at the Qatar World Cup that would take place in 2022. During that time, I started and patented the Conexão Qatar brand and built up my entire company,” said Gobbo (pictured above).
The idea to establish a business for Brazilians came when Gobbo, 36, noticed there was a gap in local tourism as there was no travel service in Qatar that was both professional and entirely customizable for those who came from Brazil.
“We know that Brazilians are tourists that really like to travel and enjoy premium services. They like to have a more personalized service, with a staff that is available on WhatsApp during the trip to answer questions – that’s something that was missing here,” she says.
In October 2021, as Qatar reopened to tourists, the business manager started welcoming Brazilians that would like to get to know Qatar as an intermediate or final destination.
“Most people I welcome are on their honeymoon. There are some who stay here for a few days before heading to the Maldives, for example. There are others who visit Qatar before moving on to other destinations like the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia. The demand for Qatar as a final destination for couples has increased, though.”
The services offered by Conexão Qatar include custom itineraries, transfers from the airport to the hotel, from the hotel to the airport, and during tours, tour guide, management of reservations in hotels, restaurants and other businesses. Apart from a few services catered to Argentine, French and Australians tourists, nearly 100% of the company’s customers are now Brazilians.
Besides couples, Gobbo has catered to groups of Brazilians families of 15 to 20 members. Looking ahead, she plans on expanding business and starting to offer tours in English and Spanish, too.
Life in Qatar
Even before she changed country, traveling was already part of Gobbo’s routine. Born in Niterói, Rio de Janeiro, she moved to São Paulo at the age of 18 do go to business school.
Upon graduation, she had the opportunity to visit different countries when she worked as a flight attendant. During the seven years in the profession, she visited countries like the United States, Italy, Spain, and Germany.
Although she traveled a lot, the idea of changing country wasn’t on her mind until 2015. That’s when her husband, Andre Gobbo, an airline pilot, was offered a job at a carrier based in Turkey.
The life abroad turned out auspicious, so the next year, instead of moving back to Brazil, the couple decided to move on to another country, Qatar.
“In 2016, my husband received another job offer, this time to work in Qatar. We have lived here since. Now we have three children, and we love to live in this country. Security is the leading reason that led us to move out from Brazil. Crime here is so low that I can go out at night without worrying about whether someone will steal my phone, for example,” Bruna Gobbo said.
Besides security, the above-average education received by their children and the opportunities to do business are some of the other reasons that have kept the family in Qatar. “Despite being a foreigner, I’ve never suffered any prejudice, embarrassment or harassment when I started working in tourism in the country.”
The adaptation to Qatar was smoother than in Turkey, the Brazilian says. “This is a multicultural country, and 80% of the population here consists of foreigners. That’s why I adapted more quickly. Language was a barrier in Turkey, while here everyone speaks English, so it’s easier to communicate,” Gobbo points out.
Report by Rebecca Vettore, especially for ANBA
Translation by Guilherme Miranda
