People gathering at the Gondolania Entertainment Center on its opening day yesterday.

DOHA: Doha wore a very festive look yesterday as it observed the first day of Eid Al Adha, with a slew of events to celebrate the festival of sacrifice.

Thousands of people, many of whom were youngsters, were enthusiastic to try new thrill rides, turned up during the opening of the largest entertainment centre in Qatar at the Villaggio Mall.

“We are expecting from 8,000 to 10,000 visitors today though the number is expected to double by tomorrow and the following Eid days,” said Ronaldo Del Mundo, Operations Manager at the Gondolania Entertainment Centre.

During ordinary days, 3,000 to 6,000 people, which is 10 percent of mall visitors, are expected not to miss the excitement of the new rides, said Del Mundo.

The $50m entertainment park was filled with Eid revellers sampling the different family and thrill rides, the most popular of which were Rollercoaster, Tap Dancer and Sky Loop Thrill Ride. Other rides included Carousel, Bumper Cars, Kiddie Train, Air Plane Fly Around Giant Ferris Wheel, and Drop Tower.

Character Show, Adha Workshops, Play With Us Games, Sing and Dance and Puppet Show also entertained the visitors at the mall as part of an Eid Show which runs during the holidays from 5pm to 6.30pm and 8pm to 9.30pm.

The City Centre Mall and Hyatt Plaza Mall also attracted thousands of people with their special Eid shows featuring magic, acrobatic, puppet, comedy and clown shows for the young and young at heart.

Face painting and henna hand designs were also in high demand in malls with children trooping to stalls to have their faces painted with colourful designs of their favourite characters and women to get henna done on their hands with very intricate designs showing the skill of henna artists.

With lights adorning kilometre-long rows of date palm, the Corniche drew myriad people who treaded along the famous leisure spot in the city. But the Aspire Park, an emerging tourist destination in the city was not left behind with people in hordes coming to enjoy the sights and cool breeze as they walked along the tracks with friends and loved ones.

Another big attraction was a huge stage erected at Souq Waqif, one of the cultural hubs in Doha, showing animations and acrobatic shows, which are set to entertain visitors until December 1.

Souqs also witnessed a rush of shoppers buying various items to gift their friends and family members to celebrate Eid. Food outlets as well saw a big number of diners celebrating ‘Greater Eid’ with good food in the company of family and friends.

the peninsula