Last edit by: CPH-Flyer
READ BEFORE COMMENTING IF YOU ARE NEW,
Hamad International Airport (HIA) offers passengers a number of different lounges.
This thread, is specifically for the Al Safwa First Class Lounge. Information on the other Lounge options at HIA, can be found here.
Does Al Safwa have a web page?
Yes: http://www.qatarairways.com/global/e...-al-safwa.page
Dining Menu
https://www.qatarairways.com/content...-dining-en.pdf
Where can I find Al Safwa Lounge?
The Lounge is located on Level 3 of the airport.
Can I use the Qatar Airways Al Safwa Lounge?
Access is based on your underlying fare bucket. This means that upgraded tickets, maybe except upgrades with QPoints (see post 2735), are not granted access.
Access is thus restricted to Qatar Airways First Class, and OneWorld First Class passengers :
- either holding a First Class boarding pass* for their next flight
- or holding a First Class boarding pass from their previous flight.
Additionally, Privilege Club platinum club travelling on any business-class fare are welcomed into the lounge. This is a facility introduced recently and one that could just as easily disappear.
- Guests are not permitted.
* Operational Upgrades to First do not give access. Upgrades with Qpoints may do give acces (see post 2735 - Sept 2022)
Arrival access on mid and long haul? (eg. coming from LHR in F)
YES
Ex. CAI-DOH-HEL
Arrival access regional F? (eg. coming from CAI in F)
Yes.
Caveat, if your underlying J fare is P, then the no lounge access for business light kicks in. And there is no access.
Privilege Club Platinum members are currently allowed in the lounge when travelling on any QR business-class fare: that could change. Other Oneworld Emerald members are directed to the Platinum lounge(s) when travelling in any class, and the Al Mourjan lounge when travelling on relevant business-class fares. Yup, it gets complicated.
What does the lounge look like?
Reports on the Lounge, can be found here and here. Photographs of the lounge, can be found here.
Is there a Spa?
Yes, there is a full Spa, but you will have to pay for treatments. A full list of treatments available can be found here
What about the sleeping rooms?
Stargold in http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/28199729-post1177.html suggests that access to sleeping rooms is as follows:
'* No reservations allowed - always first-come first-served
* Only available if the remaining time until the flight departure is more than 4 hours
* Passengers are allowed maximum six hours' usage - for any further usage, a fee of QAR 450 is payable for a second block of six hours.
* No F&B of any kind except bottled water in the sleeping rooms.'
What changes can I expect during Ramadan?
Ramadan affects QR and you in many ways so please look at ramadan to see how you are affected.
Updated: 19/11/2023
Hamad International Airport (HIA) offers passengers a number of different lounges.
This thread, is specifically for the Al Safwa First Class Lounge. Information on the other Lounge options at HIA, can be found here.
Does Al Safwa have a web page?
Yes: http://www.qatarairways.com/global/e...-al-safwa.page
Dining Menu
https://www.qatarairways.com/content...-dining-en.pdf
Where can I find Al Safwa Lounge?
The Lounge is located on Level 3 of the airport.
Can I use the Qatar Airways Al Safwa Lounge?
Access is based on your underlying fare bucket. This means that upgraded tickets, maybe except upgrades with QPoints (see post 2735), are not granted access.
Access is thus restricted to Qatar Airways First Class, and OneWorld First Class passengers :
- either holding a First Class boarding pass* for their next flight
- or holding a First Class boarding pass from their previous flight.
Additionally, Privilege Club platinum club travelling on any business-class fare are welcomed into the lounge. This is a facility introduced recently and one that could just as easily disappear.
- Guests are not permitted.
* Operational Upgrades to First do not give access. Upgrades with Qpoints may do give acces (see post 2735 - Sept 2022)
Arrival access on mid and long haul? (eg. coming from LHR in F)
YES
Ex. CAI-DOH-HEL
Arrival access regional F? (eg. coming from CAI in F)
Yes.
Caveat, if your underlying J fare is P, then the no lounge access for business light kicks in. And there is no access.
Privilege Club Platinum members are currently allowed in the lounge when travelling on any QR business-class fare: that could change. Other Oneworld Emerald members are directed to the Platinum lounge(s) when travelling in any class, and the Al Mourjan lounge when travelling on relevant business-class fares. Yup, it gets complicated.
What does the lounge look like?
Reports on the Lounge, can be found here and here. Photographs of the lounge, can be found here.
Is there a Spa?
Yes, there is a full Spa, but you will have to pay for treatments. A full list of treatments available can be found here
What about the sleeping rooms?
Stargold in http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/28199729-post1177.html suggests that access to sleeping rooms is as follows:
'* No reservations allowed - always first-come first-served
* Only available if the remaining time until the flight departure is more than 4 hours
* Passengers are allowed maximum six hours' usage - for any further usage, a fee of QAR 450 is payable for a second block of six hours.
* No F&B of any kind except bottled water in the sleeping rooms.'
What changes can I expect during Ramadan?
Ramadan affects QR and you in many ways so please look at ramadan to see how you are affected.
Updated: 19/11/2023
QR Al Safwa First Class Lounge
#2207
Join Date: Oct 2012
Location: SEA
Programs: Alaska MVP Gold
Posts: 539
We have been denied admittance to the Al Safwa lounge saying that our fare does not qualify nor does our OneWorld Emerald status allow us to access it. We were taken to the Al Mourjan lounge.
Details:
We have an outbound ticket that is an P fare with an A class on to our final destination. I had checked and understood that A class was entitled to the lounge. However, I was told that the underlying fare is P, thus it is irrelevant that we are flying First onward.
I was also told that OneWorld Emeralds are not allowed in the lounge. Rather, there is a closed lounge for OneWorld Emeralds. As it is closed, they are sending folks to the Al Mourjan lounge. I believe we have only been allowed to use this lounge based on our OneWorld status; that our ticket did not entitle us to it.
We have a lengthy layover and were looking forward to use of a sleeping room. We were given a family room in the Al Mourjan lounge that has several chairs and a sofa but no recliners.
Details:
We have an outbound ticket that is an P fare with an A class on to our final destination. I had checked and understood that A class was entitled to the lounge. However, I was told that the underlying fare is P, thus it is irrelevant that we are flying First onward.
I was also told that OneWorld Emeralds are not allowed in the lounge. Rather, there is a closed lounge for OneWorld Emeralds. As it is closed, they are sending folks to the Al Mourjan lounge. I believe we have only been allowed to use this lounge based on our OneWorld status; that our ticket did not entitle us to it.
We have a lengthy layover and were looking forward to use of a sleeping room. We were given a family room in the Al Mourjan lounge that has several chairs and a sofa but no recliners.
#2209
Community Director Emerita
Join Date: Oct 2000
Location: Anywhere warm
Posts: 33,682
#2210
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Aug 2000
Location: London
Programs: Hilton, IHG - BA, GA, LH, QR, SV, TK
Posts: 16,971
We have been denied admittance to the Al Safwa lounge saying that our fare does not qualify nor does our OneWorld Emerald status allow us to access it. We were taken to the Al Mourjan lounge.
Details:
We have an outbound ticket that is an P fare with an A class on to our final destination. I had checked and understood that A class was entitled to the lounge. However, I was told that the underlying fare is P, thus it is irrelevant that we are flying First onward.
Details:
We have an outbound ticket that is an P fare with an A class on to our final destination. I had checked and understood that A class was entitled to the lounge. However, I was told that the underlying fare is P, thus it is irrelevant that we are flying First onward.
So, QR continues its dysfunctional marketing by upsetting premium-class passengers, this time a passenger also holding top status with a OneWorld partner. Now we're waiting for confirmation of how they'd treat a Privilege Club Plat customer travelling in P+F.
It seemed hopeful that a sector ticketed in F was going to trump the restrictions of P. After all, the F-ness of that final hop outclasses all other business-class fares on preceding sectors - and the airline recently had a re-think of its tortured logic about how to apply the rule when the F-sector precedes the rest of a trip in business-class.
Given that the only distinguishing aspects of regional first, apart from eye-watering fares, are the check-in and lounge access, the next thing to uncover is whether a break of journey in Doha will get you thrown out of the first-class check-in for an onward flight ticketed in first-class.
#2211
Join Date: Oct 2012
Location: SEA
Programs: Alaska MVP Gold
Posts: 539
Ok, good. Yeah around midnight on Saturday I saw a family of three (son and two parents) trying to get access to the Al Safwa lounge and were debating the attendant as to whether they had access, and I heard them mention fare codes. The dad was getting really riled up and was straight up yelling at the desk attendant and getting in her face, to the point that the son had to tell him to back off and go sit back down. Felt really bad for the desk attendant, who maintained her professionalism the entire time.
#2212
Join Date: Jun 2007
Programs: DL Plat, BA Silver
Posts: 232
LOL I was wondering if this would come up on Flyertalk. First will start with some useful info:
Can confirm that "P" class is kiss of death - anything that touches it is not allowed in regardless of any A class or other class on your ticket.
P class cannot purchase into the first lounge, only business. As an aside, business lounge was sending P fare customers over to the first lounge to purchase access and the first lounge was pissed at the other lounge and radioed them about it.
Lounge manager said that the inward flight access (F connecting to J) is a temporary arrangement. My read is because of the overcrowding in the business lounge and some of the lounges remaining closed, they put this into place and the policy will revert to whatever it was.
Now - putting on flame proof suit as I've been around on FT long enough to know how this goes. But here goes... rant on...
Main issue I have with the airline is that if they have obscure policies that are not published, they should probably stick to what they say. By this I mean - when we came through DOH 2-3 days prior on the way over, we were allowed in no problem (came in on I and R class fares) and I asked about our return flight - they said that it goes by the incoming flight class only, and I asked if A class is fine and they said yes, you will have no problem. I decided against booking a transfer hotel due to this and counted on the lounge for my parents' 8 hour layover. When we arrived at the lounge, we were then told that's not the case. I would have access with an ongoing I class fare, but they would not in P class. I even offered to pay for access and the initial agent said yes, but then the lounge supervisor stepped in and said no. I explained the situation with the simple rationale that given the lack of published guidelines, all we can do as consumers is listen to what the lounge representatives tell us. The supervisor then asked me to prove that we have an "A" class on the incoming flight - which I did. Then she claimed this is not a fare class, it's a class of service. This is when the proverbial stuff hit the fan, at this point she kept retracting her statements as she said it would be ok with the A class, which is what the previous rep said. There were some other lies and retractions slipped in but it's not important. In the end, we left but my point is that if the airline declines to publish clear access rules, they should stick by their stated policies. The company culture does not seem to empower people to do much either. It would have been completely fine if they were just upfront and consistent about their policies, I probably would have either booked the hotel or went to the priority pass lounge straightaway rather than bother trying to get in. Also, if it were just me - whatever - but this was for my older parents and I felt bad that I booked the flight for them (aside: the OTA's should really tell customers what class they're being booked in, they don't even tell us at booking or thereafter - and I tried to upbook into R class and it wasn't allowed). As it happened, I completely lost any time in the lounge as I had to board my flight so I "paid" for the argument with my own time too!
Can confirm that "P" class is kiss of death - anything that touches it is not allowed in regardless of any A class or other class on your ticket.
P class cannot purchase into the first lounge, only business. As an aside, business lounge was sending P fare customers over to the first lounge to purchase access and the first lounge was pissed at the other lounge and radioed them about it.
Lounge manager said that the inward flight access (F connecting to J) is a temporary arrangement. My read is because of the overcrowding in the business lounge and some of the lounges remaining closed, they put this into place and the policy will revert to whatever it was.
Now - putting on flame proof suit as I've been around on FT long enough to know how this goes. But here goes... rant on...
Main issue I have with the airline is that if they have obscure policies that are not published, they should probably stick to what they say. By this I mean - when we came through DOH 2-3 days prior on the way over, we were allowed in no problem (came in on I and R class fares) and I asked about our return flight - they said that it goes by the incoming flight class only, and I asked if A class is fine and they said yes, you will have no problem. I decided against booking a transfer hotel due to this and counted on the lounge for my parents' 8 hour layover. When we arrived at the lounge, we were then told that's not the case. I would have access with an ongoing I class fare, but they would not in P class. I even offered to pay for access and the initial agent said yes, but then the lounge supervisor stepped in and said no. I explained the situation with the simple rationale that given the lack of published guidelines, all we can do as consumers is listen to what the lounge representatives tell us. The supervisor then asked me to prove that we have an "A" class on the incoming flight - which I did. Then she claimed this is not a fare class, it's a class of service. This is when the proverbial stuff hit the fan, at this point she kept retracting her statements as she said it would be ok with the A class, which is what the previous rep said. There were some other lies and retractions slipped in but it's not important. In the end, we left but my point is that if the airline declines to publish clear access rules, they should stick by their stated policies. The company culture does not seem to empower people to do much either. It would have been completely fine if they were just upfront and consistent about their policies, I probably would have either booked the hotel or went to the priority pass lounge straightaway rather than bother trying to get in. Also, if it were just me - whatever - but this was for my older parents and I felt bad that I booked the flight for them (aside: the OTA's should really tell customers what class they're being booked in, they don't even tell us at booking or thereafter - and I tried to upbook into R class and it wasn't allowed). As it happened, I completely lost any time in the lounge as I had to board my flight so I "paid" for the argument with my own time too!
#2213
Join Date: Jul 2021
Programs: AP AS BA
Posts: 359
LOL I was wondering if this would come up on Flyertalk. First will start with some useful info:
Can confirm that "P" class is kiss of death - anything that touches it is not allowed in regardless of any A class or other class on your ticket.
P class cannot purchase into the first lounge, only business. As an aside, business lounge was sending P fare customers over to the first lounge to purchase access and the first lounge was pissed at the other lounge and radioed them about it.
Lounge manager said that the inward flight access (F connecting to J) is a temporary arrangement. My read is because of the overcrowding in the business lounge and some of the lounges remaining closed, they put this into place and the policy will revert to whatever it was.
Can confirm that "P" class is kiss of death - anything that touches it is not allowed in regardless of any A class or other class on your ticket.
P class cannot purchase into the first lounge, only business. As an aside, business lounge was sending P fare customers over to the first lounge to purchase access and the first lounge was pissed at the other lounge and radioed them about it.
Lounge manager said that the inward flight access (F connecting to J) is a temporary arrangement. My read is because of the overcrowding in the business lounge and some of the lounges remaining closed, they put this into place and the policy will revert to whatever it was.
#2214
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Oct 1999
Location: Juneau, Alaska.
Programs: AS 75K;BA Silver;AA G;HH Dia;HY Glob
Posts: 15,750
As noted earlier in the thread the regular business and first class lounges are still closed and all those that would normally be slumming it in one of those lounges (for example, OW elites flying in Y) are being directed to AM.
#2215
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Nov 2018
Location: Istanbul, Turkey
Programs: TK Elite Plus,QR Platinum,BAEC GGL,ITA Executive, AFKL Gold, HH Diamond,Bonvoy Gold,ALL Gold
Posts: 14,181
Plus, the STPC program is suspended and the Discover Qatar program or a self-arranged transit hotel or visit to the city might not make sense for most people because of testing, SIM card, immigration wait, etc... hassles which could be quite an additional expense.
#2216
Join Date: Oct 2019
Programs: BAEC Silver, Volare Executive / Skyteam Elite+
Posts: 672
Is that still the case? I thought the status lounges reopened
#2217
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Nov 2018
Location: Istanbul, Turkey
Programs: TK Elite Plus,QR Platinum,BAEC GGL,ITA Executive, AFKL Gold, HH Diamond,Bonvoy Gold,ALL Gold
Posts: 14,181
#2219
Join Date: Apr 2015
Location: Doha, Qatar
Programs: BAEC GGL
Posts: 36
One question regarding Al Safwa access. My friend is traveling on the same flight in J as a Platinum and has a guest pass to give for Al Safwa access. Would I be eligible to get into the lounge with this guest pass?
Last edited by Pursh; Dec 3, 2021 at 3:37 am
#2220
Join Date: Jan 2016
Location: South Africa
Programs: QR PC Platinum
Posts: 412
I have two questions regarding Al Safwa access:
1) I'll be flying on a P fare business class ticket (upgraded by cash from Economy to Business). Will I be eligible to pay the QAR 600 entry fee to enter the lounge?
2) My friend is traveling on the same flight in J as a Platinum and has a guest pass to give for Al Safwa access. Would I be eligible to get into the lounge with this guest pass?
1) I'll be flying on a P fare business class ticket (upgraded by cash from Economy to Business). Will I be eligible to pay the QAR 600 entry fee to enter the lounge?
2) My friend is traveling on the same flight in J as a Platinum and has a guest pass to give for Al Safwa access. Would I be eligible to get into the lounge with this guest pass?
QR Platinum members, when travelling business class in R fare or higher, has access to Al Safwa + 2 guests. The guest(s) also has to be travelling in business class however it does not matter which fare class or whether the ticket was upgraded. As long as they are also travelling in business class.