Genius1

DOH-OSL

With a 8h40 overnight layover (the shortest available connection time for the lowest Business Class fare), I had two realistic options; overnight at the Oryx Airport Hotel where rates can regularly be over GBP200 per night, or pay QAR250 (approximately GBP55) to access Qatar Airways’ flagship lounge; the Al Safwa First lounge, which offers private ensuite bedrooms for a maximum time limit of 6 hours.

With the ongoing Qatar diplomatic crisis (since June 2017), many Muslim countries no longer permit Qatar-registered aircraft to fly into their airspace. QR traditionally sell their Business Class cabins as First Class on regional routes and afford passengers travelling in this cabin access to the Al Safwa First lounge. With a vastly reduced number of regional routes operating with a First Class cabin during the so-called ‘blockade’, the Al Safwa First lounge became quiet to the extent it was likely no longer economical for the airline to continue operating it. In an attempt to ensure continued operation (at least for the few A380 First Class passengers still entitled to use it based on their class of travel), QR started selling access to their most exclusive lounge to their own revenue Business Class passengers. Since I travelled in February, QR have increased the cost of admission dramatically from QAR250 to QAR600 (roughly GBP130) which makes the proposition somewhat less attractive, although still places the lounge below the cost of a hotel room.

Although the time limit for paid access is set at 6 hours and passengers are reminded of this at the reception desk with boarding passes stamped to show entry time, at no time was I approached to leave the lounge. On an 8h40 connection, factoring in walk time to/from the lounge and early QR boarding times, the realistic lounge use time was not much more than 7 hours in my case in any event.

The Al Safwa First lounge occupies the same footprint as the Al Mourjan Business lounge, albeit on the opposite side of the terminal. The space is vast and undoubtedly impressive, with something of a museum gallery atmosphere such is the resounding silence of the space, interrupted only by the fall of water from the centrepiece fountain and the occasional chink of glass from one of the dining areas. This silence starts to feel quite disorientating, even disconcerting after any extended period.

For passengers originating their journey in Doha, the lounge features its own entrance direct from a private security area which itself is adjoined directly to first class check-in.

Past a rather colourful art piece and one of two water features, the main lounge corridor (to call it a corridor is almost an insult) extends down to a sort of crossroads, flanked by cabinets showcasing Qatari artefacts.











A side entrance off this corridor leads to the family area, featuring its own self-serve snack station and semi-private ‘living rooms’ beyond an unstaffed reception podium, as well as a nursing room and play area – naturally including replica F1 car – to the right. This area, as with much of the lounge, was totally deserted throughout my stay. The living rooms in particular are a nicely designed feature, being as they are almost mini apartments in their own right. Given how quiet the lounge is, I don’t see the logic for them being reserved for families.











Further along the corridor is the reception to the spa and quiet area. Separate men’s and women’s spas are available (at a fee), whilst the quiet area offers the aforementioned ensuite bedrooms (no separate fee) available on a first-come first-served basis. Note that there are no separate showers (other than those within the spa and bedrooms) in this lounge, which does seem an oddity.





The quiet area was where I headed first; my boarding pass was taken and held for the duration of my stay in the room and I was advised of the 6-hour time limit; the same limit applies for use of the rooms regardless of whether you’ve paid to access the lounge or are a First Class passenger.



I was escorted to Room 7 towards the end of the well-designed corridor, where I found a small but smart space waiting for me, featuring a single bed, desk and open wardrobe. The door to the room doesn’t lock from the inside (a keycard is required for access from the outside) which is a little disconcerting, at least initially. The bedroom features a TV, small bottle of Evian water and tissues, with a bathrobe hanging in the wardrobe. There are no USB charging points although there are plentiful power sockets.









The smart bathroom (behind a super heavy self-closing door) is significantly brighter than the shower rooms within the Al Mourjan Business lounge, and includes individual Rituals amenities, towels, face cloths, bath mat, slippers, hairdryer, dental and shaving kits and various other essentials, which is good as there is no obvious way of summoning someone if you’ve forgotten anything.







Despite being unable to switch off all of the lights in the room from the baffling control panel above the bed (I also couldn’t switch on the desk lamp or either of the reading lamps), I managed a solid five hours’ sleep in the comfy bed.

Back at the crossroads of the lounge, to the left is a small seating area close to the secondary entrance to the lounge from the main departure lounge, with a dedicated duty free store to one side and a business centre to the other. Whilst walking through the duty free store, I was unsurprisingly accosted and encouraged to purchase many exciting and ‘good value’ items, most of which looked like they’d easily consume an entire month’s salary. The same attempts at upselling were also in evidence near the spa.







To the right is the customer service desk, baggage storage room and a larger block of seating beyond which is the smaller of the two dining areas, which I believe is self-service.













Adjacent to this dining area is the entrance to one of the A380 gates including dedicated secondary security screening for flights to the US; direct boarding for First Class passengers is offered here.

Once again at the crossroads, and this time we’re heading straight on to the lounge’s fountain centrepiece. This is the most austere part of the lounge, and where you’ll find the largest seating area with sofas. As is the case throughout the lounge, a number of practical clothes hangers are dotted between the seats, with some tables featuring individual iPad-like flight information displays.













A cinema room and marble-clad washrooms are located on opposite sides of the central space.







Towards the back of the lounge, the main dining area, laid out in a T shape, features full waiter service and a tended bar. Heading here for breakfast, I was escorted to a table and offered a menu; this was disappointingly limited and my eggs royale with sautéed mushrooms and hash brown pretty basic quality. I have no idea why my chosen sides weren’t plated on the same plate as the main course, as is common for breakfast dishes. There was no yogurt listed on the menu, although a small pot was brought on request.



















Although the dining area is better presented than that in the Al Mourjan lounge and I appreciate the waiter service that Al Safwa offers, the catering was if anything lower quality and the selection more limited. My breakfast experience wasn’t helped by the lack of Krug champagne; I was told they’d run out and Veuve Clicquot was the substitute available.

A funnel of individual semi-private seating pods takes passengers out to a terrace area where the sounds of the terminal are once again audible; this area features access to the secondary reception and its own coffee station, along with one of several newsstands.











For the remainder of my time in the lounge I took a seat near the fountain; I wasn’t once offered anything to drink or checked upon. There is no excuse for this in a lounge with limited self-serve options, plentiful staff and virtually no other guests.





Qatar Airways’ Al Safwa First lounge is an architectural and interior design marvel, but one that falls short in providing any form of true comfort. The vast empty spaces, deafening quietness and more limited food options combine to make me favour the Al Mourjan Business lounge in almost all areas. The ensuite bedrooms and therefore easy access to showers is the only true reason for me to choose Al Safwa in the future, although if I was only interested in a shower (and not sleep) I’d be heading to the lesser-known (and far less grand) First Class lounge, designed principally for oneworld Emerald members and other oneworld airlines’ first class passengers; I reviewed this lounge here.

Before heading to the gate, I stopped off at the Qatar Airways Travel Boutique to try out the replica A380 First Class seat. Comfy with good width, leg and foot room but lacking in privacy is my unscientific verdict of less than 60 seconds sampling the product.





Whilst Economy Class boarding was in full swing, boarding for Business Class passengers hadn’t yet begun as I arrived at Gate D21 (not D22 as on the app) – you guessed it, another coaching gate! It wasn’t long before I was invited to board, with the dedicated Business Class bus not taking too long on this occasion to move away from the terminal and deposit us at the stairs to Door 2L of A7-ALD, a four-year-old A350-900.



I was welcomed at the door and escorted to Seat 4A by one of the cabin crew who had served me on the outbound OSL-DOH sector; he recognised me and asked how my trip to Singapore had been. Jackets were taken and the Captain announced a flight time of 6h45 cruising at 40,000ft as I settled into my Collins Aerospace Super Diamond seat. I reviewed this excellent non-suite seat fully last year here. This seat is more than adequate for a day flight such as today’s; I even prefer it to the Qsuite for easier access to ports and the side console, and like the more open feeling the non-Qsuite cabin provides, particularly in the Doors 2 area with the wide entryway on the A350.

The usual amenities were scattered around the seat, although the quote-splattered small pillow was mercifully nowhere to be found, unique as it is to the Qsuite product.

I opted for my usual QR signature pre-departure drink of mint and lime, although for some unknown reason was brought a hot mint tea (which vanished before takeoff much quicker than it needed to).



The usual explanation of the seat features and cabin layout, including the location of the washrooms, was provided as menus and wine lists were handed out; I find it strange that this explanation is provided regardless of how many times a passenger has flown with QR before. Whilst a personal welcome from the cabin crew is always welcome, there’s little point if there’s no consistency of that person serving you during the flight.











After takeoff, my apple cooler (apple juice, soda water, lemon juice, sugar, mint leaves and slice of lemon) was quick to arrive as I started to watch the quick to forget Mile 22.







The platter of seasonal cut fruits was first up for breakfast, swiftly followed by the bland Greek yogurt, strawberry compote and toasted granola with nuts. Both Bircher muesli and smoothies have been enhanced from the breakfast menu on all QR flights in the last year; cutbacks are always disappointing to see.







My pre-ordered main course of steel-cut oats served with berries and cream was next; this was tasty with added jam.



How towels and mints did the rounds at the end of the breakfast service, alongside duty free shopping via magazine impressively placed on a tray before being offered to each passenger.

A little over an hour after breakfast I was feeling peckish again and requested a hot chocolate. Offered biscuits, I instead asked for some of the Godiva chocolates that are usually reserved for lunch and dinner services. I watched as an identical order was delivered to Seat 3J much to the surprise of the passenger in that seat; correctly deducing an incorrect delivery address I resolved the issue via the call button, but not before Mr 3J had started to drink his surprise hot chocolate, meaning a fresh one had to be made for me.



I managed to watch the entirety of The 15:17 to Paris without realising that a) the movie is based on a true story and b) the lead actors are not actors at all (which goes some way to explain the questionable performances) and are in fact the actual individuals involved in the situation in 2015. Whilst I can’t recommend a watch as a movie, it does hold together well if you view it from the point of view of a dramatised version of actual events.

Around 2h40 out of Oslo, I ordered lunch starting with the fresh garden salad with chicory, mixed leaves, tomato and cucumber. This was served with a choice of four dressings and was beautifully presented.



Next up was the very pleasant and fragrant chicken tikka masala, pulao rice and baked papadums, accompanied by a glass of the Mantas Creek Winery Alexander Valley 2016.



To conclude, I opted for the always-delicious afternoon tea (minus the fresh finger sandwiches), comprised of warm scones, clotted cream and delicate pastries, served with an oolong tea. A further box of Godiva chocolates was probably unnecessary, but was gladly received nonetheless.



As we approached a snowy Norway, I ended the flight with a few episodes of the US sitcom Superstore before switching to the A350’s tail camera for the scenic landing into Oslo Gardermoen.





Thanks for following along with this report; comments and questions are, as always, welcomed and encouraged.