Seasonal campaigns
Qatar National Day Ads: Ideas, Timeline and Captions for 18 December 2026
Gulf Ad StudioUpdated
Qatar National Day is 18 December, which falls on a Friday in 2026, and the Amiri Diwan announces the holiday days, so check before you schedule anything. Keep the tone respectful and proud, build the look around maroon and white, start posting around 7 December and finish with a thank-you. Four campaigns (greeting, offer, opening hours, thank-you) cost 104 QAR on Budget or 176 QAR on High-end with Gulf Ad Studio.
What date is Qatar National Day 2026, and what will be open?
Qatar National Day is 18 December. It marks the founding of the state by Sheikh Jassim bin Mohammed bin Thani, may God rest his soul, in 1878, and a decree in 2007 made the day a public holiday (Gulf News). In 2026 it falls on a Friday, which is already part of Qatar's weekend, so the days off may be extended or moved.
The Amiri Diwan announces the holiday days. In 2025 it announced on 16 December that Thursday 18 December was a holiday and that staff would return on Sunday 21 December (Qatar Tribune). We found no announcement for 2026 as of 25 October 2026, so check with the Amiri Diwan before you promise opening hours, deliveries or bookings.
The celebrations run for days, not one. In 2025 the Ministry of Culture hosted its National Day events at Darb Al Saai in Umm Salal from 10 to 20 December (QNA). The 2026 programme had not been announced when this guide was written, so check the Ministry of Culture's channels. Content that works across a 10 to 20 December window is a safe plan.
Tone, colours and what to avoid
Lead with respect and pride, not a hard sell. Maroon and white, the colours of Qatar's flag, are the natural palette: use them for backgrounds, type and props rather than putting the flag itself on your product.
Treat national symbols with care. The Peninsula reported that Law No. 14 of 2012 bans using the national flag as a trademark or in advertisements without formal permission from the authorities concerned. Check the current rules on national symbols, including the flag and the national emblem, and on any official National Day logo or slogan, before you use them in advertising.
- Safest approach: keep the flag and the national emblem off products and packaging and out of your logo unless you have formal permission from the authorities concerned.
- Do not copy an official National Day logo or slogan without permission.
- Skip jokes and memes about national symbols, and keep sale pressure from overshadowing the occasion.
- A National Day sale is still a sale. The Ministry of Commerce and Industry licenses discounts and fined a delivery company QAR 10,000 in April 2026 for announcing promotions without prior approval, so read the licensing note in our White Friday guide.
National Day content ideas by business type
Pick one idea that is true to your business and make it look like the occasion. These ideas fit most small Qatar businesses.
| Business | Idea | What to make |
|---|---|---|
| Restaurants and cafes | A maroon-and-white family set menu, a heritage-dish story, or a booking reminder for 17 and 18 December. | A 9:16 dish video and a 1:1 menu graphic. |
| Retail | A National Day gift edit or a maroon colourway, with the end date on the graphic. | A 9:16 product video and a 1:1 price graphic. |
| Services such as cleaning, repairs or tutoring | A thank-you to the community and your holiday opening hours. | A short 9:16 video and a 1:1 hours graphic. |
| Car dealers | A family-SUV showcase or a test-drive weekend. See the car dealer video ads guide. | A 9:16 walk-around video and a 1:1 booking graphic. |
| Salons and barbers | Ready-for-the-celebrations looks and booking slots before the holiday. | A 9:16 service video and a 1:1 booking graphic. |
Whatever the sector, tell one true story: how long you have served Qatar (only if it is accurate), a local product, or a thank-you to your customers.
A National Day posting timeline
Produce in the first week of December, start posting around 7 December, announce your holiday hours as soon as the Amiri Diwan does, and keep the day itself free of hard selling.
| When | What to publish | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 30 November to 6 December | Plan and produce | Brief the idea, check any offer licence and produce the pack. |
| 7 to 13 December | Warm-up | A heritage or greeting video and a maroon-and-white graphic. Celebrations began around 10 December in 2025. |
| 14 to 17 December | Practical | Opening hours, booking reminders and delivery cut-offs, once the holiday is announced. |
| 18 December (Friday) | The day | One short greeting in the morning, with no prices. |
| 19 and 20 December | Thank you | A thank-you post, and any licensed offer you want to run. |
Example captions in English and Gulf Arabic
Use these example captions as starting points, not finished copy. Replace XX with your real details. The Arabic uses Gulf (Khaleeji) wording, which suits informal social captions.
| Use | English example | Gulf Arabic example |
|---|---|---|
| Greeting | Happy Qatar National Day. Proud to serve this community, today and every day. | كل عام وقطر بخير! مبارك علينا اليوم الوطني، وفخورين نخدمكم كل يوم. |
| Restaurant | Gather the family this National Day. Book your table for 17 or 18 December. | لمّة العائلة في اليوم الوطني أحلى. احجزوا طاولتكم ليوم ١٧ أو ١٨ ديسمبر. |
| Retail | Maroon and white, made for the occasion. Our National Day edit is in store and online. | العنابي والأبيض بأجمل طلّة. مجموعة اليوم الوطني متوفرة في المتجر وأونلاين. |
| Opening hours | Our opening hours over the National Day holiday: XX. Thank you for being part of our story. | دوامنا خلال إجازة اليوم الوطني: XX. شكراً لأنكم جزء من قصتنا. |
| Thank you | Thank you for celebrating with us. See you soon. | شكراً لكل من احتفل معنا. نشوفكم على خير. |
More wording that reads naturally in the Gulf is in the Gulf Arabic ad copy guide.
Make the National Day pack with Gulf Ad Studio
Four campaigns cover the timeline: a greeting, your offer or product, opening hours and bookings, and a thank-you. Give Gulf Ad Studio your website address or product photos and a one-line goal. Generation is typically a few minutes (in our October 2026 tests about 2.5 minutes for a Budget campaign and about 5 to 7 minutes for High-end; extra formats take longer). Each campaign includes strategy, English and Arabic copy, a narrated vertical video and an optional 1080 x 1080 graphic.
| What you make | Budget | High-end |
|---|---|---|
| One campaign: vertical video + square graphic | 26 QAR | 44 QAR |
| 4 campaigns, video + graphic each | 104 QAR | 176 QAR |
| Strategy and copy only, 4 campaigns | 20 QAR | 36 QAR |
You see an itemised quote before anything is generated, you are charged only when every requested output passes the automatic checks, and downloads are free. The minimum top-up is 50 QAR. Free trial: 2 campaigns, each with a strategy, English + Arabic post text and one vertical HD video with voiceover. No card needed. The trial covers up to 2 companies. Square and Wide videos, the square image and extra AI scenes are not part of the trial. See pricing for the full rate card and examples for a real sample campaign.
Know the limits. The visuals are made from your website and photos, not filmed at a celebration, and the voiceover is an AI voice checked for completeness rather than a native Qatari human voice. Do not ask any tool to redraw the flag or national emblem; keep to the colours. If you want footage of an event or a brand film with real people, hire a crew; our video ad cost guide shows the price range. Nothing is posted for you, and no tool can promise sales.
Try Gulf Ad Studio free
Make your greeting campaign first. Free trial: 2 campaigns, each with a strategy, English + Arabic post text and one vertical HD video with voiceover. No card needed. The trial covers up to 2 companies. Square and Wide videos, the square image and extra AI scenes are not part of the trial.
See a real campaign made from photos only
Frequently asked questions
When is Qatar National Day 2026 and will it be a public holiday?
Qatar National Day is 18 December, a Friday in 2026. It has been a public holiday since a 2007 decree, and the Amiri Diwan announces the holiday days each year. In 2025 it announced the holiday on 16 December. We found no 2026 announcement as of 25 October 2026, so check before you schedule.
What colours should a Qatar National Day ad use?
Maroon and white, the colours of Qatar's flag. Use them for backgrounds, type and props, and keep the flag and national emblem themselves out of your design unless you have checked the rules and have permission.
Can I put the Qatari flag in my business's National Day ad?
Check first. The Peninsula reported in 2012 that Law No. 14 of 2012 bans using the national flag in advertisements without formal permission from the authorities concerned. Confirm the current rules and get permission before using the flag or national emblem in advertising. This is general information, not legal advice.
What should I post on National Day itself?
One short, respectful greeting in the morning, without prices, plus your holiday opening hours if they matter to customers. Save offers for the days before and after, and make sure any sale is licensed.
How much do National Day ads cost with Gulf Ad Studio?
Four campaigns with one vertical video and one square graphic each cost 104 QAR on Budget or 176 QAR on High-end. You see the exact quote before anything is generated and are charged only when every output passes the checks.
Sources
Third-party figures in this guide, as read on the dates shown. Vendor prices change, so check the source before you buy.
- Gulf News: Qatar celebrates its National Daygulfnews.comAccessed
- The Qatar Tribune: Amiri Diwan announces National Day holiday (16 December 2025)qatar-tribune.comAccessed
- QNA: National Day events launch at Darb Al Saai (10 December 2025)qna.org.qaAccessed
- The Peninsula: Law prescribes strict terms for handling flag (18 December 2012)thepeninsulaqatar.comAccessed
- Marhaba: MoCI fines a delivery company QAR 10,000 for unlicensed discounts (22 April 2026)marhaba.qaAccessed
Editorial note: Gulf Ad Studio publishes this guide and sells one of the tools it mentions, so we say where another option is the better fit. Other vendors' prices are the figures they published, not a price made for you. Nothing here promises sales, leads or search rankings.