Nov 5, 2015, 11:11 am
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
Apr 21, 2022, 7:44 am
#2522
Join Date: Jan 2013
Location: London, UK
Programs: QF, TK, VA, SQ
Posts: 695
Is there a collective knowledge of the busiest times at the AS/AM lounge (and I guess HIA in general?)
We'll be transiting there in the next few months, once from 5:30-9pm and the other from about 6am - 9:30am, I'd seen notes that it was super busy in the wee hours of the night, but not a lot for other times of day.
(Sorry if slightly o/t)
We'll be transiting there in the next few months, once from 5:30-9pm and the other from about 6am - 9:30am, I'd seen notes that it was super busy in the wee hours of the night, but not a lot for other times of day.
(Sorry if slightly o/t)
Apr 21, 2022, 7:46 am
#2523
Join Date: Mar 2022
Posts: 23
Yeah it can be very busy - especially in the restaurant!
Here is the current menu:
https://www.qatarairways.com/content...-dining-en.pdf
Since my travel took me all over the Middle East the last few weeks, I spend 36h in total in Al Safwa so I could basically try everything and if your are used to decent US steak, may I suggest to to not waste time on the steak - mediocre at best…
And if you just wanna grab a drink or light bite, go and visit the family room area, there is a small „buffet“ available and quite hidden.
Have fun;-)
Here is the current menu:
https://www.qatarairways.com/content...-dining-en.pdf
Since my travel took me all over the Middle East the last few weeks, I spend 36h in total in Al Safwa so I could basically try everything and if your are used to decent US steak, may I suggest to to not waste time on the steak - mediocre at best…
And if you just wanna grab a drink or light bite, go and visit the family room area, there is a small „buffet“ available and quite hidden.
Have fun;-)
Apr 23, 2022, 3:37 pm
#2524
Join Date: Mar 2009
Location: UK
Programs: BA Gold / Hilton Diamond / IHG Diamond Ambassador / Marriot Bonvoy Gold
Posts: 2,533
If I were in direct transit then I think I would have access as arriving in DOH from LHR on A380 in F and onward in J as that is the highest cabin available on second sector. Fare basis is A/J
However, if arriving in F on A380 from LHR but having a 4 day stopover in DOH, before onward connect in J (9 hr sector), can I checkin at F and use F lounge.?
On my return, I have straight transit at DOH so can use F lounge as sector on A380 in F
i should add, for completeness, that A380 F flights are under BA codeshare, should that make a difference.
However, if arriving in F on A380 from LHR but having a 4 day stopover in DOH, before onward connect in J (9 hr sector), can I checkin at F and use F lounge.?
On my return, I have straight transit at DOH so can use F lounge as sector on A380 in F
i should add, for completeness, that A380 F flights are under BA codeshare, should that make a difference.
Apr 24, 2022, 8:41 am
#2525
Join Date: Nov 2008
Location: Minnesota
Programs: AA EXP; United 1K, Delta, IHG Plat Amb, PE, Marriott/Hilton Gold
Posts: 749
Al Safwa versus Al Mourjan versus Airport Hotel - or some combination of the three?:
We have an itinerary coming up that, with recent flight changes, will put us at DOH for a 13.5 hour overnight layover. about 5:30pm to 7:50 am. STPC not an option due to covid
We will have Al Mourjan access since we are traveling in business. We have done an overnight there several times and not thrilled with the noise in the sleeping room. Not sure if that is even open now with covid?
So one option is to book the airport hotel and have dinner at Al Mourjan before going to the hotel.
Another option would be to buy Al Safwa access for a better dinner. Worth it? Or maybe plan to stay in/sleep in Al Safwa for the duration? From past comments, those sleep areas are hard to come by so my current thought is that the hotel would just be more comfortable and predictable
Thoughts on the best plan/approach? Pros/Cons?
I miss our 3 hour layover that we had originally :-(
We have an itinerary coming up that, with recent flight changes, will put us at DOH for a 13.5 hour overnight layover. about 5:30pm to 7:50 am. STPC not an option due to covid
We will have Al Mourjan access since we are traveling in business. We have done an overnight there several times and not thrilled with the noise in the sleeping room. Not sure if that is even open now with covid?
So one option is to book the airport hotel and have dinner at Al Mourjan before going to the hotel.
Another option would be to buy Al Safwa access for a better dinner. Worth it? Or maybe plan to stay in/sleep in Al Safwa for the duration? From past comments, those sleep areas are hard to come by so my current thought is that the hotel would just be more comfortable and predictable
Thoughts on the best plan/approach? Pros/Cons?
I miss our 3 hour layover that we had originally :-(
Last edited by aj411; Apr 24, 2022 at 8:47 am
Apr 24, 2022, 9:32 am
#2526
Join Date: Aug 2006
Location: In the sticks
Programs: VS FC Gold, BA EC Gold, Amex Centurion, EK Gold, ex-G-ATVK driver
Posts: 1,829
Al Safwa versus Al Mourjan versus Airport Hotel - or some combination of the three?:
We have an itinerary coming up that, with recent flight changes, will put us at DOH for a 13.5 hour overnight layover. about 5:30pm to 7:50 am. STPC not an option due to covid
We will have Al Mourjan access since we are traveling in business. We have done an overnight there several times and not thrilled with the noise in the sleeping room. Not sure if that is even open now with covid?
So one option is to book the airport hotel and have dinner at Al Mourjan before going to the hotel.
Another option would be to buy Al Safwa access for a better dinner. Worth it? Or maybe plan to stay in/sleep in Al Safwa for the duration? From past comments, those sleep areas are hard to come by so my current thought is that the hotel would just be more comfortable and predictable
Thoughts on the best plan/approach? Pros/Cons?
I miss our 3 hour layover that we had originally :-(
We have an itinerary coming up that, with recent flight changes, will put us at DOH for a 13.5 hour overnight layover. about 5:30pm to 7:50 am. STPC not an option due to covid
We will have Al Mourjan access since we are traveling in business. We have done an overnight there several times and not thrilled with the noise in the sleeping room. Not sure if that is even open now with covid?
So one option is to book the airport hotel and have dinner at Al Mourjan before going to the hotel.
Another option would be to buy Al Safwa access for a better dinner. Worth it? Or maybe plan to stay in/sleep in Al Safwa for the duration? From past comments, those sleep areas are hard to come by so my current thought is that the hotel would just be more comfortable and predictable
Thoughts on the best plan/approach? Pros/Cons?
I miss our 3 hour layover that we had originally :-(
Al Safwa is OK, but I find the rooms to be limited: at one time they didn't even provide bottled water, and you're not allowed to bring drinks in from the bar. There's the uncertainty of room availability, and there's a six hour time limit. I've never enjoyed what I'd call a satisfactory rest in those rooms, partly due to the anxiety of out-staying my welcome, but it is better than nothing, if for example, the airside hotel is full & you don't have a booking.
Food-wise, Al-Safwa is a bit of a disappointment, as someone else mentioned earlier, the steak is bad enough to make you go vegetarian. You're better off with something like a biriani. I'm not convinced the food in Al Safwa is any better than Al Mourjan to be honest, although the service in Al Safwa is certainly a notch up. The booze is usually OK in Al Safwa: my favourite position is at the bar, they often have wines that aren't on the list if you ask.
If you've never been into Al Safwa, then I'd recommend it as a bucket list item despite what I've said: the space itself is unique.
My own MO on a very long layover is to book the airside hotel, and to prop up the bar at Al Safwa (usually more than once).
Apr 24, 2022, 9:44 am
#2527
Join Date: Aug 2006
Location: In the sticks
Programs: VS FC Gold, BA EC Gold, Amex Centurion, EK Gold, ex-G-ATVK driver
Posts: 1,829
Had that in KUL, drunk dude at the podium in front of the Golden biz & first lounges trying to get me to guest him into one of them in the satellite terminal. I declined, but even the lounge agent was encouraging me to do it, perhaps so he was no longer her problem. Weird.
Apr 24, 2022, 9:58 am
#2528
Join Date: Apr 2015
Programs: Some
Posts: 5,252
If I were in direct transit then I think I would have access as arriving in DOH from LHR on A380 in F and onward in J as that is the highest cabin available on second sector. Fare basis is A/J
However, if arriving in F on A380 from LHR but having a 4 day stopover in DOH, before onward connect in J (9 hr sector), can I checkin at F and use F lounge.?
On my return, I have straight transit at DOH so can use F lounge as sector on A380 in F
i should add, for completeness, that A380 F flights are under BA codeshare, should that make a difference.
However, if arriving in F on A380 from LHR but having a 4 day stopover in DOH, before onward connect in J (9 hr sector), can I checkin at F and use F lounge.?
On my return, I have straight transit at DOH so can use F lounge as sector on A380 in F
i should add, for completeness, that A380 F flights are under BA codeshare, should that make a difference.
Apr 24, 2022, 11:29 am
#2529
Join Date: Nov 2002
Location: London, UK
Programs: BA Gold (and other non-status plastic)
Posts: 1,889
Last week I pre-paid for Al Safwa via MMB (20% cheaper than on-the-door - about $130 for 6 hours - time limit not enforced), and it was a revelation. 6 hours of sleep in a proper hotel-style room was the perfect tonic. Although they don't throw you out (of the lounge) after 6 hours, the rooms are strictly 6 hours with no advanced booking, so time your request carefully - suggest asking for a room *just before* the late evening rush of arrivals... As others have said, the food is meh, nothing special, but the service is friendly and fast, and the space itself is worth experiencing
Airport Hotel in theory is the best option, but was 3x the price. Up to you if you think it's worth it, but for me Al Safwa hit the spot...
Apr 25, 2022, 5:54 am
#2530
Join Date: Nov 2008
Location: Minnesota
Programs: AA EXP; United 1K, Delta, IHG Plat Amb, PE, Marriott/Hilton Gold
Posts: 749
Thanks for the thoughts all around everyone. Just in case, I booked the hotel (can cancel later). There are two of us so the price difference isn't as bad. May just take the time to have a sit-down meal in AM lounge before checking in.
Apr 25, 2022, 6:14 am
#2531
Join Date: Nov 2008
Location: Minnesota
Programs: AA EXP; United 1K, Delta, IHG Plat Amb, PE, Marriott/Hilton Gold
Posts: 749
Thanks for the thoughts all around everyone. Just in case, I booked the hotel (can cancel later). There are two of us so the price difference isn't as bad. May just take the time to have a sit-down meal in AM lounge before checking in.
Apr 25, 2022, 10:09 am
#2532
Join Date: May 2008
Location: San Francisco, where else?
Programs: EXP,EX-CK 2.5mm, now lifetime Platinum, ex-UA1K, Marriott- Platinum, Hertz 5*
Posts: 991
OWE in J...
I have read through this thread, several articles and looked at the One World and Qatar sites. I am a OWE flying J.... it appears I cannot access the Al Safwa lounge? Just wanted to confirm as I have found so much conflicing info and most of the debates seem to be about Y OWE trying to get in. Appreciate any clarity. Qatar chat rep says I do have access....?
Last edited by goldengate; Apr 25, 2022 at 10:34 am
Apr 25, 2022, 10:35 am
#2533
Join Date: Aug 2005
Location: BKK
Programs: Mucci Chevalier de la Brosse a Cheveux Dore, SK *GfL, BA Gold, WY G, HH DIA, IC Plat Amb., Hertz PC
Posts: 3,699
I have read through this thread, several articles and looked at the One World and Qatar sites. I am a OWE flying J.... it appears I cannot access the Al Safwa lounge? Just wanted to confirm as I have found so much conflicing info and most of the debates seem to be about Y OWE trying to get in. Appreciate any clarity. Qatar chat rep says I do have access....?
Apr 25, 2022, 12:19 pm
#2534
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: May 2001
Location: South Bend, IN
Programs: AA EXP 3 MM; Marriott Bonvoy Lifetime Titanium Elite
Posts: 18,561
I have read through this thread, several articles and looked at the One World and Qatar sites. I am a OWE flying J.... it appears I cannot access the Al Safwa lounge? Just wanted to confirm as I have found so much conflicing info and most of the debates seem to be about Y OWE trying to get in. Appreciate any clarity. Qatar chat rep says I do have access....?
Apr 25, 2022, 12:21 pm
#2535
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: May 2001
Location: South Bend, IN
Programs: AA EXP 3 MM; Marriott Bonvoy Lifetime Titanium Elite
Posts: 18,561
So I've done Al Mourjan for a long layover (pre-Covid - although they have reopened), and basically you won't get sleep; the recliners are uncomfortable and "exposed", and the quiet area is stuffy and anything-but-quiet. It's a novelty to roam around an almost empty lounge at 3am between the two main waves of flights, but you will be a sleep-deprived zombie for the rest of the day
Last week I pre-paid for Al Safwa via MMB (20% cheaper than on-the-door - about $130 for 6 hours - time limit not enforced), and it was a revelation. 6 hours of sleep in a proper hotel-style room was the perfect tonic. Although they don't throw you out (of the lounge) after 6 hours, the rooms are strictly 6 hours with no advanced booking, so time your request carefully - suggest asking for a room *just before* the late evening rush of arrivals... As others have said, the food is meh, nothing special, but the service is friendly and fast, and the space itself is worth experiencing
Airport Hotel in theory is the best option, but was 3x the price. Up to you if you think it's worth it, but for me Al Safwa hit the spot...
Last week I pre-paid for Al Safwa via MMB (20% cheaper than on-the-door - about $130 for 6 hours - time limit not enforced), and it was a revelation. 6 hours of sleep in a proper hotel-style room was the perfect tonic. Although they don't throw you out (of the lounge) after 6 hours, the rooms are strictly 6 hours with no advanced booking, so time your request carefully - suggest asking for a room *just before* the late evening rush of arrivals... As others have said, the food is meh, nothing special, but the service is friendly and fast, and the space itself is worth experiencing
Airport Hotel in theory is the best option, but was 3x the price. Up to you if you think it's worth it, but for me Al Safwa hit the spot...