Doha International Airport review by Philip Williams

30 June 2007   Customer Rating :

Bangkok to Madrid via Doha. Only had a couple of hours there but Doha is a nice enough experience. There's plenty of room to sit down and plenty of monitors to check your flight time on. That's all I really ask of an airport during a short transit. The airport was small and quite busy but it's got everything you need - smoking rooms, cafeteria, large duty-free shop. Two hours passed pretty painlessly.

Doha International Airport review by R Clarke

20 June 2007   Customer Rating :

Staid at the new Premium Terminal and its a huge improvement. Very relaxing with good food and attentive staff. Business Class Lounge does become crowded late at night when most flights leave but other than that very nice. It does lack number of toilets.

Doha International Airport review by Giannis Liberopoulos

13 May 2007   Customer Rating :

Transit in Doha from Athens to Cape Town. Small airport but clean and easy. Food courts really crowded but staff always polite and smily. Loved the "quiet rooms" where you can actually take a nap if you have a long transit time, with no lights and absolute respect to silence! Smoking rooms reminded me of the turkish baths, but that was also very unique! Spacey departure gates, buses are used from gates to the aircraft, everything OK !

Doha International Airport review by Ahmed Alzuhairi

13 May 2007   Customer Rating :

Had a transit in Doha airport twice during my flights from LHR-AUH-LGW. Buses are used to take passengers to and from planes to the terminal and less than an hour connection will mean you will not get to see the terminal as gates close 10mins before departure to allow passengers to get to the plane on time. The airport is very spacious with plenty of seats. There are 2 free internet zones sponsored by Samsung, each with 10 computers. There is no time limit for using the computer so expect to wait 10-15 minutes until someone feels considerate. Duty free is quite small but will do the job for the short connecting flight. Will use Doha airport and Qatar airways again.

Doha International Airport review by Kurt Müller

9 May 2007   Customer Rating :

Considering this is a temporary terminal (there is an entirely new international airport being built adjacent to the current site), it cannot really be faulted, except for the all visible food outlets being bunched together. They get very crowded early in the morning with pax from numerous incoming flights - the problem is you have to get a prepaid coupon from a central cash desk, irrespective from which outlet you want to buy. Go beyond the food court towards the south end of the terminal building upstairs and opposite the Oryx Lounge you'll find a much quieter "Costa" coffee shop with a good view of the runway. If you have an extended waiting period between flights, try the "Quiet Rooms" upstairs. Reasonably comfortable and no interior lighting, so you can get a few hours of sleep. Again, this is a temporary solution - I wish permanent airports in India were half as good.

Doha International Airport review by David Leston

10 March 2007   Customer Rating :

Transited DOH 4 times over the past month and all the comments about it being clean, efficient, spacious, accommodating etc are true, however if you have a long transit time between flights (which can easily be the case with Qatar waves of flight departures), you can soon get bored. There is little to keep you occupied (especially at night, when you can't even look out onto the apron), other than the food outlets and a couple of computer terminals with internet access (about 14 for the whole airport). I found staff to be relatively helpful, though cheerless.

Doha International Airport review by Gavin Stewart

3 March 2007   Customer Rating :

Ignore the gripes, Doha is fine. The one thing it's not short of is space. Big, very bright, clean, immaculately tidy. Endless rows of well-proportioned seats. Rather short on facilities and a long layover could be tedious. Just a small Costa coffee and a rather poky food hall. Outlets very flexible on taking different currencies, don't worry if you don't have riyals you'll be fine. Shopping is nice enough. Couple of downsides -transit desk is disorganised, it wasn't all that busy yet felt chaotic and intimidating with queue jumping and upsetting behaviour. Make sure you get your boarding pass through to destination. Downstairs gates are on the congested side, upstairs better. All boarding via buses which is well organised but makes for slow boarding. Infrastructure getting better and better though.

Doha International Airport review by John Hassett

3 March 2007   Customer Rating :

Transited DOH on flights to and from Male. Very easy airport to negotiate, even when it's busy. Very open and spacious upstairs, with view of the runway and plenty of seating. Nice Duty Free shops and prices lower than Europe. There are no jetways, so you are transferred between terminal and aircraft on buses. We were there in Jan/Feb, so not a problem, but it may be a different situation in the heat of summer. This will no longer be an issue when the new terminal is built.

Doha International Airport review by Gordon Sadler

26 February 2007   Customer Rating : n/a

Currently sitting out a 7 hour stop over in our journey from Bangkok to London Gatwick in the Oryx Lounge in Doha airport using the free wifi, enjoying free drink and food and a decent sized smoking area and feeling smug at having paid $25 per person to use the lounge as the airport is very busy and public areas are crowded. That said, when we passed through the airport on our outward journey, we had no problems at the airport (it wasn't so busy). Public areas are large and clean, information provided as a transfer passenger was quite good - so found the right gate ok. Duty free is good, although not on a par with Dubai for size - but prices are very good for perfumes and tobaccos. On this leg of the journey, our plane was parked a fair way from the terminal, so it was a 15 min bus journey, but on previous leg bus transfer took only a couple of minutes. I would have no qualms about using Doha again.

Doha International Airport review by John Charlesworth

26 February 2007   Customer Rating : n/a

Doha airport is not a bad place to be whilst in transit even as an economy passenger. My only complaint it the time spent queuing for x- ray inspection upon arrival and then when your flight is called for the security inspection before boarding.

Doha International Airport review by Neels Kriek
13 February 2007

I had reservations about my decision to fly via Doha on Qatar Airways over the '06 Christmas period. Now I can only speak of a great, welcoming, friendly and efficient experience. The facilities were first class (clean, new, customer friendly, etc), the efficiency of the people on par with the best and the general experience I would rate at least 7/10.

Doha International Airport review by P Maddison
26 January 2007

Having worried about this airport as we had a 5 hour stopover, we had no problems at all. We were there in the evening when the airport was quite busy. There was plenty of very comfortable seating. The food provided by the airline was nothing special but quite OK, toilets were plentiful and clean and duty free massive. There was a new Costa coffee which was good though expensive. There was a last minute change of gate as others have said but it was announced on the screens and caused no problems. Would happily use the airport again. Incidentally economy class on Qatar Airlines is very good indeed.

Doha International Airport review by James Bowen
26 January 2007

Airport is much better then expected. Plenty of seating though armrests make it impossible to sleep. Well lit (perhaps overbright for night time stop-over) and very clean. Bit of a queue to pass security despite only transiting, but good duty free shop to look around. The best thing about this very simple airport for economy pax has to be the Oryx Lounge. $30 gets you use of the lounge for 6 hours complete with comfy leather sofas, free wireless net, food and drink, newspapers and a relaxing smokers section. One quarm was the way in which boarding passes were checked rather officiously by female lounge staff. Otherwise a great experience.

Doha International Airport review by Frank Holl
19 January 2007

Passed through Doha Airport and was very pleasantly surprised - it was very bright, clean, and plenty of seats, and staff were pleasant and helpful.

Doha International Airport review by Joaquin Gonzalez
9 January 2007

DOH is a pleasant airport for Economy passengers. There are no sky bridges: you are bussed to/fro the plane, so try not to take too much hand luggage. This system is generally efficient, but becomes messy when several long-haul flights board at the same, resulting in snaking lines. Immigration can be a bit crowded if several flights arrive together. Departing Doha, the new upper level is a great contrast to the crowded lower level. However, the toilets aren't the nicest (though cleaned very regularly) and not large enough for the number of passengers. F&B options are pretty basic and dire. I have a feeling that only the Business/First passengers are being taken care off. Given the large numbers of migrant workers in the region (and their economic/social status compared to the locals), I would not expect the local authorities to do much more.

Doha International Airport review by L Pilakuta
3 January 2007

Transited Doha twice in December 2006, and was pleased to see the results of the long awaited transformation. Even for Ecomony passengers who can't access the five star First/Business Terminal, the extensions made to the old terminal provide the desperately needed space for tired transit passengers. Now, there is enough seating space in the brightly lit terminal, well above the hustle of the somewhat crowded tax free shops on ground floor. Toilets (western) style have been added. Unfortunately, the food outlets are still very basic and uninspiring, and obviously no alcohol. Therefore, do enjoy the food and wine service on QR, well above the standards you'd get on any European airline. Even if transfers to/from the plane are by bus, the service is efficient and quite hassle-free.

Doha International Airport review by May Loong
20 December 2006

Flew on business class in early Dec. The airport and Qatar Airways treats its transit passengers with onward First/Business class tickets very well - coach takes you from plane steps directly to the Lounge! Lounge has business centre for internet/email and English Language newspapers & magazines, Playstation games room, a clinic (not sure what the charges are), and the lounge includes a waitress service dining area. You could be in an urban cafe with espressos being made and served at your table while you read or eat a light meal! Very civilised. PS don't carry a lot of heavy luggage without wheels as it's a HUGE area to walk back and forth, and there are no trolleys. There are plenty of staff, and the toilets and showers are very clean and well-maintained.

Doha International Airport review by Marc Schoell
17 December 2006

Had a very stress-free 2 hour stopover in the new premium terminal. A very airy, pleasant facility it's anything but crowded, serves nice food (excellent vegetables) and has some nice touches such as a Playstation room for those travelling with children. Duty free is a bit sparse, though, but worth a browse. The only (potential) drawback is that the terminal is quite compact so not the best for stretching one's legs during a longer stopover.

Doha International Airport review by Pasindu Karunaratne
10 December 2006

I am currently waiting for my flight to Colombo at the new Premium Terminal of Qatar Airways in Doha. I have to say that they have done an amazing job. The service is great, in fact its better than any of the five star hotels I have been in here in Doha. The lounges are immaculate, the refreshments are superb, and the staff is extremely friendly.

Doha International Airport review by N Lindsay
23 November 2006

Passed through Doha on 1st November with a stop over of 5 hours. After reading all previous feedback, we were not looking forward to it. The airport facilities are fine. Toilets were clean, with attendants there most of the time keeping them this way. There were plenty of seats, the small food court upstairs is adequate and it was not too crowded. The information boards were easy to read, and the gate specified was the one used without any confusion ( both ways on our trip ). The only thing that we missed was the fact that there is no bar facilities but you have to respect the Muslim way of life when visiting one of these countries. Overall, we would not think twice of using Qatar Airways again, using Doha as the transfer hub. As it is more than adequate at present, we look forward to using Doha again when the new extension is completed.

Doha International Airport review by Richard Clarke
27 September 2006

This Airport is more bearable now that they have expanded the 1st floor area with the addition of some extra gates. Seating upstairs is a plenty now even during the late hours when its peak time for departures. However the chaos is still there when no one tells you of gate changes & the annoy system is woefully inadequate to hear messages. At least the airport is improving - as it has to with the Asian Games approaching. Good to see additional toilets & recommend you use the ones upstairs which are cleaner - if you are lucky enough the new Business Class lounge has a couple of toilets now which is a huge improvement.

Doha International Airport review by Liam Doyle
12 August 2006

I am sitting n Doha airport waiting for my connection to Manila at 22.20hrs, and there is plenty of seating upstairs. Eating options are not great. No hassle arriving here. It will be interesting to see if there are any hiccups departing. I am using the free wireless internet which is a bonus of this airport. They are expanding this airport. I guess the success and growth of Qatar Airways has taken them by surprise.

Doha International Airport review by Eric Kirkpatrick
12 August 2006

Transited fairly easily in both directions including one 5 hour gap between flights. To be fair these were late evening arrivals and departures. Tip - upstairs move away from the restaurant to what appears to have been a fairly recently opened area around Gates 12 -14. Not only are there plenty of seats available but also new toilets with working soap dispensers and towels.

Doha International Airport review by Keith Partington
10 July 2006

This airport must have a script they follow as my experience on 25th June and early on 2nd July was the same as Erich Kertel's below. I missed a tight connection to Seychelles after my flight from LHR was delayed by almost 2 hours but at least the arrivals area was empty as they sorted out a hotel for 36 hours whilst I waited for the next available flight. On my return (SEZ-DOH-LGW) we arrived at DOH 20 minutes early but were directed to the maintenance area and sat on board for an hour and 30 minutes as there were insufficient parking bays on the terminal side of the runway. Once inside I discovered my flight to LGW was delayed by almost 2 hours with no clue as to which gate we would depart through until about 20 minutes before the new departure time. Two tiny cafes, no bar and insufficient seating was unbearable particularly when one could see a cavernous Duty Free area that was somewhat underused. Sort it out Doha - the Asian Games are not that far away! Qatar Airways are very good but they will suffer at the hands of Doha before too long.

Doha International Airport review by Erich Kertels
26 June 2006

Twice I had to change planes at Doha Airport. Qatar Airways is growing fast, but this airport is by far too small. Passengers have to sit on the ground, toilets are unacceptably dirty the restaurant upstairs is crowded people are already waiting to catch a seat. Organization is chaotic. On the flight from Shanghai to Munich we had about 11 hrs in Doha, but Qatar Airways put us in a fine hotel. So we had to wait only 2 hrs at Doha airport. About 30 min before departure the screen showed LAST CALL for our flight but still the GATE OPEN. So we asked and were told that it must be gate number 7 where already the passengers for ROME are queuing. There was a little confusion at gate 7 and some told this side to ROME and this side to MUNICH. But nothing happened until 15 minutes before scheduled departure someone cried MUNICH NOW GATE 10. I am afraid how they can manage the Asian games in December 2006. A lot has to be improved.

Doha International Airport review by Peter Wright
26 April 2006

I came through Doha airport on Saturday night from Cape Town to London. Thankfully Qatar airways has wonderful planes and good staff onboard because the experience at the airport was comical. The overcrowding and toilet queues have been mentioned by others but what annoyed me was that no-one seemed to know what was going on, or if they did they weren't telling passengers. Originally our flight was called for Gate 2, this then became Gate 6. The confusion outside Gate 6 was increased when it suddenly became the flight to Moscow. Then it was to Gate 7. This then changed to Hong Kong. By this time we should have taken off already. Eventually the Hong Kong flight was boarded, but no one could tell us what gate to use. Eventually the boarding area for Gate 7 was opened to allow people to sit down (no boarding passes taken). About 30 minutes later everyone had to vacate the area in order to come back through and hand in their boarding passes. Even after this we were no closer to boarding the plane. No announcements were made about the delay and eventually one of the passengers made an impromptu announcement after asking one of the ground staff. The ground staff refused to actually make any announcement themselves. After a 2 and a half hour delay we eventually took off. In actual time terms the delay wasn't too bad, but it was the endless standing around waiting as there are not enough seats and the lack of information that rankled.

Doha International Airport review by Eddie Impey
18 April 2006

Doha airport is terrible when its a busy period. I queued for over an hour to get through the transfer desks and I was travelling in Business class. I can't comment on the airport itself because I use the lounge but when its busy its a zoo to say the least.

Doha International Airport review by Alistair Paul
12 March 2006

Recently travelled through Doha on route to Maldives. Previous reviews given us major doubts about this. However, our experience was of a smooth exchange. Admittedly, we travelled at off-peak times (early morning and midnight). The airport is bustling with people even at these times but we were able to locate the transfer desk quite easily and was told our onward departure gate. One piece of advice, especially for ladies, don't even think about trying to get to the toilets, the queue is horrendous. The departure gate areas are very busy but we had no trouble in finding the right gate. Obviously this airport has a long way to go until the building work is complete, but I feel it wasn't as bad as had been portrayed. I wouldn't hesitate in stopping here again, but only if the times were off-peak.

Doha International Airport review by Kevin Chivers
9 March 2006

My wife and I transitted through Doha in mid-February. Having read some of the customer reviews we braced ourselves for a truly horrible experience - especially as we had a 3 hour wait for our outgoing flight to Colombo. However, we were pleasantly surprised - no problems with seating, crowds, food etc. Admittedly our first arrival was at 6.00am when the airport was practically deserted - but our return transit was at 12 noon when there were plenty of planes and passengers. I agree with the comments about the lack of toilet facilities - worse for ladies rather than gents - and the small size of the departure gate seating areas. These comments apart, we would be quite happy to transit via Doha again. We were even able to pay for food and drinks in sterling and get change in sterling!

Doha International Airport review by John Doe
8 February 2006

As there's major construction work going on right now at Doha arriving passengers have to enter the airport through some makeshift barracks - not sure if it's already for the new airport (which I thought would be located somewhere else) or just a temporary upgrade of the current facilities. As others have said before, the airport is very small - in fact its basically one single hall. Inside its merely a huge two storey duty free shop with groups of chairs on the side which serve as 'gates'. Usually there's more than one flight scheduled at the same time for a gate which leads to unbelievable congestion - the information displays don't even show any assigned gate numbers for most flights so you'll have to ask around, that is if you manage to fight your way to the counter desk. The only toilet facilities of the whole airport are at the restaurant area on the upper floor. There are also usually free seats available (as opposed to any of the 'departure gates'.) but you might miss your flight over there as the flow of relevant information is rather non existent.

Doha International Airport review by Vincent Meehan
14 January 2006

Doha Intl Airport is currently undergoing total replacement. The new airport is being constructed from reclaimed land to the east of the current site and should be open/part operational by 2007. The current airport, my local getaway point, is woefully small for the number of passengers descending on it as transit passengers. I pity them their time there as I am totally stressed out just using it as a departure point. On the plus side, everything is new and, until hoards of transit passengers descend, reasonably clean. The staff ARE friendly (you try being nice to hundreds of grumpy passengers 24/7) and the food, in comparison with other airports is cheap (I was charged over 8Euro for a sandwich in Schipol). Toilet facilities are something else. Someone else complained of flooded facilities - this is normal as it is the local habit to wash yourself and the cubicle with the hose provided when you have completed your ablutions. There are, however, way too few toilets for the number of passengers.

Doha International Airport review by Ian Gadd
2 January 2006

I agree with previous comments about Doha, it is far too small to handle it's current volume of traffic, the toilet facilities are farcical, there are approximately 6 gents cubicles and 5 urinals in the whole airport, you can imagine the difficulties this causes!! Seating is also inadequate if you arrive at busy times, we were lucky in that we transited (now that was an experience also - cattle market or what??) just about an hour each way - whilst reasonably quiet, so easily able to locate a seat, however, once busy you had no chance of finding a seat. Here's a tip if you are looking for seating try the restaurant - as you can't get near the counter to get food - just use the ample free seating in the cafe area!!

Doha International Airport review by Sandy Ferreira
1 January 2006

A friend and I flew in to Doha International on Saturday 10.12.2005 from Abu Dhabi on route to Johannesburg. We had a five hour delay until the departing flight. On arrival in Doha at 18h55 it was relatively quiet and appeared clean. We had no problems in Duty free or the restaurant upstairs. This quiet period lasted approximately half an hour and then all hell broke loose. The airport is incapable of handling the amount of passengers that goes through it. There was no seating whatsoever and people were queuing for chairs and even floor space to sit. The toilets are unacceptably dirty. The smoking room apparently is also unacceptable and by the time we eventually left, people were smoking in the terminal building. This is also totally unacceptable for Non smokers who are subjected to smoking in the terminal building and for the smokers themselves. As for the advertisement that Doha International "looks after every item of baggage" this is a joke. It has taken 12 days for every item of luggage that we checked in to be delivered to us. I was absolutely horrified by the experience of Doha airport and will in future avoid going through the airport at all costs even if I have to pay more.

Doha International Airport review by Andrew Girdler
13 December 2005

I travelled from Doha to London with BA in the late evening December 8th 2005. At this time there were a lot of full flights to places such as Islamabad, Peshawar and Dhaka and the departures area was unbelievably overcrowded. Trying to shop in the duty free area was almost impossible due to overcrowding. Once through the shop, the tiny lounge (on 2 levels) was so crowded people were sitting on the floors everywhere. In fact there was hardly any space to stand it was so full. Seating areas are totally inadequate. Also it was incredibly hot in the departures area and most passengers were visibly sweating. The catering area on the upper level is so tiny and overcrowded it is impossible to even get near it! The toilets were disgusting and smelly and passengers were queueing to enter them!

Doha International Airport review by Roy Blewett
11 December 2005

Facilities here are inadequate. I travelled business class from Bangkok to London with a 150-minute stopover at Doha in the small hours of 4 Dec. The terminal is little more than a duty-free shop with gates attached, and there were people everywhere. Even the business class lounge was packed to capacity and had to sit on the floor. No doubt the facilities cope admirably at quiet times, but the period around midnight is not one of those and the small building quickly becomes swamped with people. Bottom line is that this is a regional airport servicing intercontinental flights.

Doha International Airport review by Ros Constable
13 November 2005

In transit in Doha to and from Colombo. One of us is disabled so that was really fun. Absolutely terrible toilet facilities that could not be wheelchair accessed - I asked in the Business Lounge if we could use their facilities: "no, other passengers would not like it". I suspect most westerners would not have a problem with a disabled person accessing their loos but there you go. Food area overpriced and rude staff - this seems to be a theme - and if you are a smoker then the smoking area is a real treat, I joke of course. This airport is one to avoid until they seriously upgrade the facilities. The person designated to push the wheelchair however was very helpful and polite, unlike most of the other airport staff.

Doha International Airport review by William Agius
9 October 2005

We recently transited through Doha on our way from Dubai to Zurich. The airport is actually very neat and clean but they definitely have a serious issue regarding the distribution of the available space. Basically, since Qatar Airways decided to expand, the airport has become way too small for the passengers it has to handle every day. In the transit area there is only one really small cafe which is rather small and a larger self-service area one floor up but both can never handle all the passengers. As for the rest, roughly three quarters of the terminal area are taken up by a really great tax free shop. As a result, during the early morning and late evening rush, there is not enough seating so people end up sitting on the floor and blocking the ailes. There even aren't enough gates for all the flights. Our flight for example was delayed by 45 minutes simply because the flight at that gate before had to wait for transit passengers who in turn were late because they couldn't make it through all the people standing around in time! Qatar Airways is not a bad airline but having to fly to or via Doha is enough reason to choose not to fly with them.

Doha International Airport review by Richard Polley
29 June 2005

I had a long stopover and went into the city whilst waiting. It is only a couple of miles away. Qatar Immigration issued an entry visa at the passport inspection. Not much to see in Doha but it did kill some time. I don't really recommend the Iranian restaurant. The same taxi driver picked me up at the restaurant, he told me that I would have had trouble finding a taxi to get back to the airport from the city late at night without a mobile phone, as the drivers go home after about 11pm and stop cruising about. Also some unscupulous drivers might try to swindle you. I had seen the previous contributers' comments, so when I got back to the airport I waited outside the entrance to the departure area, where there was plenty of seating, as long as I could. I should have stayed there even longer because the departure lounge was, as anticipated, very crowded and stressful. It would be a nice little airport if there were only a few flights but it cannot cope with the load of Qatar Airways using it as their hub. I noticed signs up saying that there would be a new terminal within the next couple of years, but could not see any evidence of building.

Doha International Airport review by Alex Chandy

4 March 2005

Basically it is neat and clean, but too small for the amount of traffic that passes through it. If you are able to find a place to sit in the airport, you can consider yourself very lucky. The 5 hours I spent standing in transit followed by the 13 hour flight to Seoul can be described as the most stressful hours of my life. Seating capacity in the airport is minimal and so are the food outlets. Long queues are the order of the day. If you have to spend anything more than an hour in transit, I would strongly recommend avoiding Doha airport altogether.

Doha International Airport review by Alan Punter

4 February 2005

I have just read some of the other comment on these pages and find I must agree with the common theme. Nice airport clean and tidy but very poor seating and food facility. Just returned from MNL - no improvement from a year ago. OK if you have a 1 or 2 hr stopover, but over that it is bad. Avoid the flight transfer desk - it does not do anything except give you the gate your flight leaves from - which is on the screens around the airport. They do not open the lounges until they want you on the planes. Having seat on the floor for a hour before waiting for the lounge to open. Do not bother with the food court - messy dirty, untidy and rude staff.