Qatar Airways

IAD-DOH-CMB-DOH-IAD, Business Class in B777-300ER. Check-in excellent at IAD, followed-by the use of the Virgin Clubhouse. Virgin reception staff rather uptight, but the dining area staff was outstanding. All four flight segments were not full, so I had an empty seat next to me at all times. This is a huge benefit, as although the seat has an outstanding pitch, is wide and very comfortable, it dates back to business class seating of a decade ago, with zero privacy between seats if you are travelling alone. A small bottle of water and a nice Georgio Amani amenity kit was awaiting my arrival, with a blanket, pillow and noise-cancelling headphones. Pyjamas and slippers were given out later on the segments to/from IAD. Staff service was very good on all segments and dine when you want service was good, though cutbacks are very evident in their menus. Of the four flight segments, QR 707 from DOH to IAD on 01 June had excellent crew serving the rear business class cabin where I was. Transit time was short at DOH, but the airport does not function logically, despite its showy architecture. Certainly no match for SIN and HKG. Check-in at CMB was efficient, and I used the UL Serendib Lounge due to my OW Emerald Tier status. Mid-week QR fare was very competitive, and provided very good value for money. Baggage delivery at IAD was much delayed, though probably not QR's fault. Will definitely use them again, especially as they are a OW member airline.

Flew LHR to AUH via DOH return. Outbound on the 787,flight was full. Very claustrophobic, tiny seats, the service took forever. Flight left at 2130, it was nearly 3 hours later that I finally got a drink and something to eat. The meal was cold and when I pressed the call bell to try and get someone to heat my meal, I was ignored. Cannot believe on this evidence they are a 5 star airline. However coming back on QR5, it was like flying a completely different airline - friendly cabin crew, nice food, good service. Maybe it helped that the flight was half empty but what a difference. A330 a much nicer experience than the Dreamliner, wider seats, more legroom and just more comfortable. Doha airport in the afternoon was practically deserted, this is obviously a good time to depart.

Milan-Doha on Airbus A330-300 and Doha-Guangzhou on B777-300. In my opinion, this is the best business class product out there on the market. Everything was perfect on both flights: tasty food (excellent presentation), excellent champagne. The dine anytime service is much appreciated. The seat, especially on the B777, is comfy. Very good amenity kit from Armani, the best noise cancelling headphones I have experienced on a plane. Entertainment system is good, even tho the choice of movies on the Milan-Doha segment was maybe too limited. What makes QR a 5-star airline is the cabin crew: extremely polite, friendly, smiling, very well groomed. As a Privilege club member, I was recognized by name on both sectors. Hamad International airport business lounge, huge but still crowded, is quite impressive. I do look forward to flying the A350 business product on my way back.

This review is based on the B787 Singapore-Doha-Johannesburg vv flights and I suspect would be better with different aircraft. As others have commented, the B787 as fitted by QR is a major problem because of hard, narrow and just plain uncomfortable seats, which really is unacceptable for flights of seven to eight hours. This is such an issue as to overshadow other generally satisfactory aspects. I might fly QR again but not on their 787s.

MEL-DOH-LHR-DOH-MEL, 777-300ER and A380. 4 flights and a mix of experiences. Qantas lounge in Melbourne is a dark dungeon and not particularly worth the visit. Boarding was pain free although cabin crew were not well versed when it came to assisting parents with two young children. In most cases on all flights I found all cabin crew friendly but unable to take the initiative to offer services. in most cases if you wanted something you had to ask instead of being offered. These were not lazy crew, they worked hard but they were just not polished crew used to premium service. First of the two business class cabins is the better of the cabins as it feels more spacious and open. Seats are lay flat and comfortable. Inflight entertainment is lacking with random titles from the 80's and not much more if you select the Hollywood option. Hamad Intl is great and the lounge is huge and fantastic. No one explains the options available to you and your left wondering what's on offer. Great flights and great lounges in Doha and London. Food is exceptional bit staff need more training though not because they disgruntled. One incident did concern me though. The A380 has a inflight bar which on one flight was serving up excessive amounts of alcohol to two passengers who subsequently were almost restrained in their seats by crew. Cabin crew really should have stopped serving the two passengers hours before. The only major issue on an otherwise great trip.

For someone who has become used to the standard European business class long haul (BA/Lufthansa etc), these middle eastern airlines are quite a revelation. Much like the Cathay Pacific's of the worlds, these guys put the staid overpriced tiredness of the European airlines in perspective. Business class on Qatar is, for example, certainly more than the equivalence of BA's first class. And at significant cost reductions. Part of it is the staff, you just don't get the level of service orientation on European airlines like BA and Lufthansa. Its like there is no motivation to go beyond the standard, drummed in training they've done a hundred times. You know those adverts where you see the service crew gently put a blanket on a sleeping guest? I had assumed that was rubbish, it had never happened to me. Well it did with Qatar! One of the staff even made a personal plan to get an out of stock duty free item to me! Unreal stuff. Or maybe this is how it should be? And long may it last, I hope these guys continue to put pressure on the old hens of the sky like BA and Lufthansa - the competition can only be good for the passengers. Now if the transit times weren't there these guys would be the only ones I'd fly.

4 flight sectors altogether: SIN-DOH-LHR on 5 May CDG-DOH-SIN on 21/22 May. SIN-DOH-SIN were on 787 DOH-LHR and CDG-DOH were on A380. A journey of contrasts between the excellent A380 and nightmare 787 which led to an average rating. For all 4 flights the in-flight entertainment were new advanced and top-notch though slightly laggy. USB ports were available for charging of equipment. The food was decent though the main meal servings were small. For snacks what they called sandwiches were actually (very oily) wraps with a small slice of cake. Service was also average (not as friendly as I'd expect though I must pity them because they sometimes had to deal with a tough crowd of fliers) and can be inconsistent across flights and even within a flight. For instance different kinds of snacks served sometimes a paper menu is used while other times it isn't. That said I appreciate the free amenity kit for the red-eye flights. The booking website was also a pain to use sometimes with outdated information or links that failed to work. New Doha airport which serves as QR's hub - looks new but unfortunately isn't customer-oriented. Now to the specific flight sectors / planes. The A380 is newer and very spacious with comfortable seat pitch and seat width. I will definitely fly their A380 again. The 787 "Dreamliner however belies its "dream" qualities: I did not feel the narrower seat width until I had a man next to me poke his elbows into my ribs for hours while using a laptop on the DOH-SIN leg. I never felt this uncomfortable on a long-haul flight before. For the DOH-LHR leg I was "upgraded" to upper deck economy class due to a full flight and as I was a (rival) BA Avios member. Such seats are unavailable for normal reservation except for QR FFP members. That said I was a little unhappy with being "upgraded" to a seat without a window which I had originally reserved and requested. Overall I might fly QR again if the price and timing is right for in general they have performed above-average. Potential deterrent factors would include their 787 their buggy website and Doha airport (woe betide anyone with a long layover).

I flew to Thailand for my honeymoon with Qatar from Manchester to Doha and then on to Bangkok with the same transfer coming home. I have always dreaded long haul flights and never expected what I got with Qatar. It was excellent. Staff were lovely the plane was stunning and the flight was an enjoyable part of our holiday. I can't thank them enough. Due to the previous days wedding and traffic we were 15 minutes late for check in but they took care of us and rushed us on to the plane. I can't thank the staff enough but I will endeavour to make sure our next holiday destination is on a Qatar Plane.

24 May LHR-DOH (010) DOH-DXB (1014). 29 May DXB-DOH (1023) DOH-LHR(005). Will keep this simple and say the 4 flights we had with Qatar Airways last week were the best 4 I've had or at least right near the very top (the first one LHR-DOH was unquestionably our best). All 4 flights left on time on the 2 long ones we got constant service on drinks and as well as the meal got 3 other food portions all of which were very nice. On the short 45 mins flight from Doha to Dubai we got a nice sandwich and cake with drinks was very satisfactory and wouldn't have wanted more. The service from the staff was excellent not just on the plane but at the airport all of them were very polite. The inflight entertainment was brilliant with a huge choice of recent releases TV shows etc. The toilets were clean and well kept. The only bug bear would probably be the box below the window seat which limits legroom I had no problem with it but I would imagine that some people might. Overall I enjoyed all the flights and would opt to choose them again next time.

LHR-DOH-CPT-DOH-LHR QR004/QR1369/QR1370/QR009. My first time on Qatar however I've flown on average once a month over the previous 15 years mainly on the same 5 or 6 airlines premium or business with a few economy and first flights in between. I no longer travel for work longer interested in frequent flier miles or status either so looking forward to trying different airlines on my 3 or 4 holiday trips each year. Check in at T4 quick with seats honoured was able to use the sky team lounge through my FFP status - nice lounge. Boarding the new A380 was quick and organised seated upper deck I was impressed by the space seat and general ambience the best economy I've travelled in. Take off on time a very nice crew kept busy! Drinks and dinner offered. Dinner just ok connection in Doha went fine. Flights between DOH - CPT and return on new 787's I found the 787 noisy and not as comfortable as the A380 both flights on time again pretty good service from nice crews although food not that good. Had a longer connection in Doha on the return trip so gave me a chance to experience the new airport and business lounge which were very nice. Doha back to LHR on an ageing A340-600 which I found comfortable for the 6hr 20min flight!! crew fine food not that good however for the price paid I really cant complain some of the best economy flights I've had I'm looking forward to using Qatar business in around 2 months.