Umbricius

With apologies if I have missed the thread, has anyone reviewed (or would anyone be kind enough to review) the QR Arrivals Lounge (for J, in particular) at DOH?

I have 17 hours on the ground in Doha (06.30 to 01.30) and would like to understand what the arrivals lounge facilities are, so that I can plan my day accordingly? QR and DOH websites aren't very informative.

Thanks in advance for any replies.

(I see that this question has also been asked in the past few days in the HIA lounge thread, but I wonder whether it warrants a separate thread as a different sort of product.)

wavery83

OUCH...I'd say 4 hours would be the max time you could spend without getting frustrated. Take a look at the reviews but safe to say they are very mixed from people thinking it's a Four Seasons to school canteen.

My wife and I really didn't enjoy it especially compared to the tranquillity of LHR. It is massive and it's not the easiest to find your way around. If you around at peak time it is very difficult to find a nice quiet space. There are several dining facilities but I don't think the food is anything special. Plenty of champagne no doubt but wasn't really feeling that at 1 am. There was such a massive queue to the toilet and showers that I didn't bother. The quiet room was men only when we went. But this was nearly a year ago and it's probably much improved.

My advice would be to go on a tour - not sure there is anything to see in Doha apart from glass and steel but you might as well? The other option would be the day hotel/spa. I think it costs c. £25 for the day for the leisure facility and c. £150 for the room so that would be a nice way to go.

All that said, QR may be able to offer you some transit accomm but this entirely depends on your ticket and where you're transiting from. I haven't explored this option with the LHR connection as there are 6 flights a day and I can only guess the answer!

Sorry to not be more positive but I'm sure my views will conflict with others. Any lounge can't be worth a 17 hr wait unless it has a cinema and pool maybe?

zehbra

I think you might be describing Al-Mourjan. wavery83?

The Arrivals Lounge is decidedly smaller. Sadly I can't really tell you much in terms of facilities (i.e. showers..). I would hope there are some, however I only spent about 30 minutes there each time while waiting for hotel transfer and didn't really look around much.

There is a bit of food, but very limited choice... Nice for a short nibble if hunger is killing you, but nothing more.

If you do have ample time to spend there, I would appreciate a thorough review :=)

wavery83

Yes I think I am but I'm confused with the threads on the different lounges though...I thought there was basically one lounge for QR business?

Apologies for the misunderstanding though....Guessing you will at least be getting out of the airport and not a transfer like I was?

remdk

Wavery83 it is hardly surprising you are confused.

There are TWO arrival lounges, one airside and one landside. Since Oneworld specifically excludes arrival lounges (http://www.oneworld.com/ffp/lounge-access) it is generally thought that access is for premium passengers only.

You are correct that there is only one Business class lounge, but it is NOT Al Mourjan. Al Mourjan is a premium lounge for QR and Oneworld passengers departing Doha in first and Business Class. When Al Safwa finally opens First Class passengers will go there. Just to confuse you even more the Business Class lounge is currently closed for maintenance and its guests are being admitted to Al Mourjan.

All very confusing but please don't blame Ftérs trying to make sense of it all, Blame QR for their total lack of communication.

Umbricius

I'm glad that it's not just me who's confused - but thank you all for your help so far.

I'll be travelling QR J so I think that I can use whatever lounges they have. However, I don't know whether the (presumably landside?) arrivals lounge is going to be a sufficiently comfortable alternative to a downtown hotel room for a few hours with my feet up before hitting the sights of Doha.

It is curious that neither QR nor HIA says anything at all on their websites about the arrivals lounge, other than that it exists.

zehbra

Yes. Someone said there's an arrivals lounge before immigration too? The Al-Maha lounge I guess?

This is based, again, on my very short time there: It doesn't seem particularly "relaxing". Maybe they have hidden rooms somewhere to take a relaxing break though, or at least take a shower.. It seems to me a shower is almost the defining feature of a good arrivals lounge, so I'd be really surprised if there wasn't one.

If you need a drink and a small bite to eat, go for it.. If you really need a few hours to relax and rest, a hotel room for a few hours might be the better option. But hopefully someone here has more experience with the arrivals lounge..

wavery83

Certainly no blame intended! I'm even more confused now though...I'm pretty sure I went to the Al Mourjan one as it was vast and very impersonal?? I see there is another business lounge for FFs? I suppose the real question is where am I more likely to have peace and quiet + no queue for the shower? My flight will be arriving c. 4am. Is the Al Safwa opening soon?

zehbra

Even if al-Mourjan is vast and impersonal, it's definitely a safer bet for shower and some "quiet" time than the normal business lounge.

The confusion here probably comes from the term arrival lounge which is usually landside, and only for people arriving (as opposed to transferring and departing). So al-Mourjan and the business lounge are transfer/departure lounges (and discussed in the HIA Lounges thread).

In anyway, the lounge situation IS confusing as we can see from the huge HIA Lounges thread, and will be for a while until all lounges are open

RUN4FUN

I would opt for skipping the arrivals lounge and go straight to Al Mourjan, the airside F&J lounge wavery83 is describing, get a shower and enjoy breakfast there. Far better option than the arrivals lounge. Then you head for immigration and enjoy your day in Doha.

Just to give you a picture of how QR give priority to informing - the Al Mourjan lounge dont even exist on the HIA website. Last time i checked only the Oryx lounge was mentioned.

wavery83

Thanks...yes it's part teething problems that you get with any completely new airport/terminal and I think a genuine design mistake in making it so open. The other thing that frustrated me was the only place we could find to rest was open to the rest of the terminal noise. Very interested to experience it again in October. To me a business lounge is somewhere quiet and personal. But then I'm not a big fan of 500 bed 5* hotels so maybe I'm in the minority!?

bedelman

I too have been wondering about the arrivals lounge. I found this brief November 2014 report. Yesterday I asked (Umbricius, sounds like you noticed this in the main QR lounge thread) and was advised by HB7 that the arrivals lounge is open and has snacks and is "comfortable". Neither post tells us much more about amenities -- clearly there's an issue with where to leave a bag, and it seems there's no certainty about showers even as most folks think showers are the key amenity for an arrivals lounge.

Just found this loungebuddy page which does indicate that the QR arrivals lounge includes showers.

Umbricius

I have been looking harder on the HIA website.

By clicking on "Arrive" and then "Premium Services" and then going to "5. Shop, Change Money, Relax, Enjoy a Snack", I discovered the following text:

"Relax in the Qatar Airways Arrival Lounge.
Before leaving the airport you can relax in the exclusive arrival lounge for Qatar Airways First and Business Class passengers. Facilities include televisions, showers, toilets, a smoking room and complimentary buffet. - See more at: http://dohahamadairport.com/#sthash.KeJpD45i.dpuf"

Unless I am being even less technologically competent than normal, there isn't a specific hyperlink that I can offer which will take anyone else straight to the relevant page and the "see more" link doesn't go anywhere helpful. I'd happily be corrected (and have my incompetence publicised) though!

Perhaps the lack of fanfare (or adequate information) lies in the fact that it's a hub rather than a destination and because those arriving home in Doha probably don't want to linger at the airport...

Is there an Expertflyer with better internet research skills or first hand experience?

Rivarix

Yes, there are two arrival 'lounges'. On the airside one it's right before immigration. So when you go down the escalator, make a left (if you go straight you'll see the general immigration counter). They'll check your boarding pass before they let you in.

I wouldn't really call it a 'lounge'. Yes, you can sit and relax and enjoy a cup of tea, cookies, etc. but that's about it. No shower or other amenities that one would expect from an arrival lounge. I think a better description is a nice fast track immigration facility as it has its own immigration line from inside this 'lounge' that bring you straight to the baggage claim area.

After customs make a left turn and you'll find the arrival lounge (on the landside). It has all the amenities one would expect from an arrival lounge. Similar to CX arrival lounge in HK but nicer (and bigger). Shower, food, etc. I was there in the morning and food was decent (the usual breakfast stuffs). It was pretty quiet as I believe only QR J and F are allowed in. Size-wise it is pretty big. If the 'main' area is crowded, I suggest go to the other section of the lounge via a 'sky' bridge.

17 hrs? Err ... I don't think I would want to be there that long. Then again, I'm not the type who would do lounge hopping or spend an eternity at a lounge.

QR arrival lounge and yes, it is landside

impeymac

From your description this sounds like the Al Maha waiting area, where pax taking advantage of the Doha arrivals service are held whilst their passports are checked.