Quinlanty

Anyone have any idea when the second frequency JFK-DOH will change to Q suites. First time ever on Qatar, pretty excited either way. TIA!

N1Rotate

For those that haven't tried the seats or have tried but haven't had enough time to explore the seats, the notes below maybe useful. This is just my opinion, and people's experience may vary. As with any design that has to comply with weight and space limits there will have to be compromises, overall I find Qsuite product a step above QR's other business class products and am looking forward to the roll out of the product.

The crew I spoke to are still getting used to the seat layout, it adds to their workload and makes movement a bit more cumbersome so service is slower and this will take time to iron out. Some of the cabin crew still don't know all the features of the seat or don't explain them well. As with any new seats, there tend to be technical issues and de-bugging for a first generation seat and small improvements are made to mechanisms and materials in latter production.

Now to compare to the A350/787/A380 seat and overall space:

- The Qsuite is narrower at the seat pan (between the arm rests) by about 1.5 inches, however it is wider at the foot rest and head rest. The seat back is higher too.

- Speaking of the footwell, not only is it wider and more squarish on the Qsuite, there is also noticeable more space vertically than on the A350/787 suite.

- The bed length is slightly shorter but I felt the Qsuite is longer because it is wider at both extremes while the extra length on the 787/A350 seat is not really useable. Think of the Qsuite bed as more of this shape (___) while the super diamond is more of this shape <____>.

- I found the Qsuite cushioning more comfortable than the 787/A350 seat, especially in the bed position. The takeoff/Landing seat position on the Qsuite has a slight recline and you can keep both armrests up, so I find it more comfortable during take off's and landings.

- Even though the Qsuite appears more cramped and the table and screen seem (or are) closer to you, I don't hit my shins on the table while I do that often on the 787/350 seat. This is due to the table being seat higher relative to the seat.

- One of my favorite features of the seat and one that in my opinion trumps the appearance of spaciousness on the 787/A350 and the actual spaciousness of the old 777 seats is the big space to your side to stretch your arms. The arm rest especially on the forward facing seat is quite large and when pushed down to be flush with the bed it gives good space for side and stomach sleepers to spread your arms or to place your behind if you are side sleepers and like to bring your knee up (almost foetal position). You don't have to worry about your arms flailing in the aisles. The seat shell is also wider at head and shoulder level especially compared to the A350/787 seat and is covered in a comfortable soft material.

- Continuing with the arm rests, when pushed down on the forward facing seats it makes the seats much wider and allows you to vary your seat position. While reading I like to recline the seat into a bed and sit on the retracted armrest, it gives me plenty of of room to cross my legs or put my legs in different positions. For the rear facing seats the arm rest while retracted is a good space for a co-passenger to sit for a short chat.

- I loved the new mini snack plates, these are offered in addition to the usual menu so it just adds to the variety of the food options on board.

- Storage wise, I found the seat significantly better than the 777 but a step below the 787/A350 seat. There is good storage space inside the armrest along with the faux marble top console and a shelf below it for laptops and tablets. Unlike the 787/A350 seat there is no gap to store things under the footwell and there is no shoe storage drawer. There is a small space for shoe storage on the forward facing seats between the armrest and console, but it doesn't work for boots or heels.

N1Rotate

Another note, one of the posts I read earlier (can't seem to find it) that not all seats on the window sides have windows. That is not correct, all A/B and J/K have windows, just the rear facing seats are right up to the windows while the forward facing seats you are seated further from the windows with the windows slightly obscured by seat elements. It is not like the BA CW seats where the seats completely overlap.

mileagerun99

My family and I just managed to try the QSuites from London, and we all found it fantastic. Miles better than any other business class product due to the privacy and effective use of space. I agree with other commenters that it doesn't look spacious at first glance but all of us had no problems with the size of the suite. Perhaps two minor issues include the fact that the arm rests are lower than what I'd like and that shoe storage space might not be sufficient for those with larger shoes! Also, the 777 seems significantly noisier than the 787/A350/A380. But nonetheless QSuites has proven to be an excellent hard product.

Regarding the soft product, I feel that it brings the great QR service to the next level since the snack platters increases the already great variety. Meanwhile, the crew was possibly the best crew I've ever had while flying. With the combination of this soft product with the QSuites hard product, I'd even take a longer layover to specially fly it.

Cspnvdl

Is there any reason why the snack platters should be exclusive to q suites (specially equipped galley or something) or is this something that might get a wider roll out — as seems to be happening with pillows and quilts?

FlyingScientist

anabolism

ExpertFlyer (a very useful subscription service with a free trial, used by many FTers) will show you the configuration and seat map that is currently loaded, but of course that is no guarantee either way, as the airline can change configurations at any time (I've had QF 747 flights where the seat map changed every few weeks).

I think the information posted by TGflyergirl has been revised by QF and I wish we had current info. Two of us are booked on a QSuites flight out of LHR in July. When first booked, I called QR and the agent assigned two center rear seats (the pair with the seats touching each other) to us, but there was a delay in ticketing, during which QR cancelled our space. We were rebooked and reticketed, same flight, same date, but now QR refuses to allocate center seats to us. They insist they are held for airport control. Possibly they will be available closer in, possibly only at the airport (but that seems quite odd and very unsatisfying). When I call, the agents can see in the history that we did have those seats, but they all insist they can't be allocated now.

See my answer just above regarding ExpertFlyer. However, as others have advised, best not to book a flight just because of the equipment, unless you have a fully flexible ticket and can change it if and when the equipment changes.

Glad to read it! Can I ask if your family flew in the center seats? If so, can you also say how far in advance you booked the flight, and at which point were you were allocated the center seats?

DatBoi

Im going to miss the islamic art on the quilt and pillow. I was also a fan of the old pillow and matress pad (they were by frette I believe).

mileagerun99

We didn't fly in the center seats since we all prefer to look out of the window! The check-in agent at Heathrow did offer to seat us together in a center quad if we wanted to even though the flight was full (according to expert flyer), so perhaps requesting for a quad at check-in might not be a problem (although I am not too sure about this).

batmandds

Booked Qsuites out of IAD for our family of four for March. I was able to pick the center seats immediately upon confirmation.

iluvdoco

Rev or award tickets?

batmandds

These were revenue tickets through Amex's IAP.

anabolism

Did you pick the center seats online or via an agent? (When I use the QR manage my booking to select seats, all center seats are blocked.)

remdk

anabolism as per the Wiki on this thread all centre seats are blocked and can only be released on request to QR.

batmandds

I booked the seats online under manage by booking. Maybe they just let me do it because my reservation was for four people?