Hamad Doha Airport

✅ Verified Review | Doha Hamad airport is a modern airport to transfer in - everytime I go, I am never disappointed by the cleanliness of the facilities and the friendliness of the staff. The food choices are not very large, however, the food court was lovely and the view of the planes is a nice touch. The centre of the terminal was well decorated with plenty to do for children. Good, speedy WiFi and plenty of places to shop.

✅ Verified Review | Maybe I just got lucky with my transfer times (late afternoon eastbound, early morning westbound, with a 3hr interval between flights), but I had quick and hassle-free transfers both ways IAD/DOH/SIN return. Connecting to Singapore I went through a central security facility with no queue, while returning to the USA we were processed at a security point at the departure gate (like they used to have in Amsterdam), in both cases I made my connecting flights with time to spare. The airport terminal itself is squeaky-clean, fully air-conditioned and well lit, with moving belts for travelling down the various departure concourses, and plenty of places to sit, signage was good and clear. Again maybe I was just lucky with my flights and my transfers, but on this showing Hamad International Airport and Qatar Airways proved a winning combination.

Nice, new and sparkly clean but really does suffer under the slightest load. Peak times can be disorganised. Expect long waits to get through security, even fast track. The number of toilets they put in is also totally inadequate. They are kept clean but you'll be queuing even at moderately busy times / lounges or economy no different.

Chaotic and disappointing transit experience We arrived around 6am in the morning for transit from Australia to Europe, with 1.5 hours of transit time allowed by Qatar Airways. The line at the Transfer Security was shockingly long. Passengers asking for help due to approaching gate closing time were advised to continue lining up, while staff walked around to direct traffic instead of attempting to open up new security check points (only 2 out of about 8 were open). Halfway through the queue, a large number of passengers understandably became anxious and formed new lines, pushing through and creating almost a riot like situation. At this point our gate was closing in 15 minutes and, having been pushed back even further, we pleaded for help and were directed by staff to the already crowded 'Express Lane' - only to then be shouted at by a different staff member there that only Business Class passengers were allowed, and that despite the gate closing in 15 minutes and the fact that we had been advised to present there we needed to go back to the original line, "go back, you are not allowed here". While we understand the importance of security checks for transit passengers and the high volume of passengers at this time of the day, we found the unhelpful and rude demeanour highly unprofessional and disappointing for a new airport with supposedly good reputation. .

In my opinion, Doha airport really lacks for transit passengers. Yes there is the quiet room and showers but the "quiet room" is too brightly lit and some people don't understand what quiet is. We had a 6 hour transit and spent 3 hours in the quiet room where we were constantly disturbed with people talking, mobile phones ringing etc. The room was also quite dirty with rubbish on the ground. It would make a huge difference if occasionally a staff member came through and cleaned the room and also made sure people were respecting the fact that it was a quiet room. We had just transited through Kuala Lumpur where we also had 6 hours and used their very reasonably priced transit hotel. We enquired at the transit hotel, "The Airport Hotel" at Hamad airport and told that it was only possible to book rooms for 8 hours and it was $235 USD. How ridiculous. We paid $50 USD for 6 hours in Kuala Lumpur. They really need to include a reasonably priced transit hotel for passengers, especially since there seems to be a lot of long transit times with Qatar airways. My experience there will really influence my decision to fly Qatar airways in the future if it includes a long transit time. Very uncomfortable experience for a new airport.

Doha Hamad is much better than the old airport and is now better than when the new facility first brought into service. However, the security queues for transit are really bad. Not quite sure why such a level of security is required when passengers are airside, having already passed scrutiny at the departing airport? It took us about 40 mins to get through and into the duty free area. A strange dearth of casual seating in the duty free area. A few benches or small sofas with a table would have been nice. The only seating in this area are those that are attached to the restaurants/cafes. Other than that, the airport authority has done a good job for passenger comfort. There are showers available, very clean toilets, quiet rooms with loungers - however, some are not so quiet if situated near an employee area. Visited one 'quiet room' where we were treated to employees laughing and talking outside in a passage with an exit door noisily swinging open and shut. Big variety of duty free, which we used. Check prices of chocolate in departure airport and compare with Doha prices as not all offers are good deals. Travelators now been brought online which makes it easier for passengers. Free wifi is useful to keep in touch with family. For boarding I like the concept of seating and loading by zones, it's just too bad not all passengers adhere to it. Ground staff could do with a microphone as their instructions were not easy to hear.

Much better than the old airport, no long bus transfers to terminal. Terminal is very comfortable with lots of seating, many with power points for recharging phones etc. Toilets were clean. Didnt really go in any of the shops, but most were high end with probably prices to match

This should be one of the best airports in the world. The facility is beautiful, well-designed, and logical. Instead, the arrival and departure experience is ruined by systemic and staff-wide incompetence and overblown security measures. Upon arrival, we were greeted with very few open passport control kiosks, staffed by lazy, indifferent personnel. Departure is worse. The additional security check at the gate is useless and creates very dangerous traffic jams, especially with young children underfoot. Additionally, we received conflicting information at every turn. "Go to this line" / "No, go to this one", "keep your laptop in your bag" / "take your laptop out of the bag". To make matters even worse, the additional passport check by the gate attendant was not only useless, it added to an already dangerous queuing situation, especially with the Dallas flight passing through the same security measures at the exact same time.

I wasn't massively impressed with this airport. It is big and sleek, yes, but it's not a very 'comfortable' place for a long transit (mine was 6 hours). The AC is too cold in my opinion, I was shivering around 3 hours in. The 'quiet rooms' are hard to find, are not actually rooms (just cordoned off areas), and only have a handful of hard plastic loungers in (more uncomfortable the normal individual seats at the departure gates). Having lots of time on my hands, I thought I would go for a little shop. The vast majority of the shops are extremely expensive designer brands. The wifi is quite poor, it took me ages to get it to connect at first and thereafter it frequently disconnected whilst using it. On the plus side, the toilets are clean.

Doha's Hamad International Airport is quite a place but the chaos one can experience as a transit passenger does not leave a wish to come back. It would appear at Doha you may need more than an hour to get through. Doha has a very good shopping and dining area once you get there but the queing to get to the goodies is inefficient.