HaleiwaFlyer

Thanks for the photos, and will help people’s expectations. Even the lounge on QR website just looked like a space with AC to hang out before the flight, and didn’t offer much.

On par for the region; similar to Garuda lounge at CGK.

FlightDetective

The fact they've stopped communicating means they consider the matter closed. I've never got to the point where an airline has stopped communicating, so you must have written back and forth quite a lot.

I think you should just put it behind you now, as nothing else is going to happen.

dave31

Firstly thanks for the responses although somewhat shocked by some of the 'give up' attitudes. I do not propose to continue to bore people on this topic but it seems that people who have been to Clark accept that (a) It is of a poor standard (b) it is not the same lounge as shown on Qatar's own website. I think that Qatar need to accept this and not just issue some vague 'we will try to do better' general issue letter.
I have written to Qatar with simple questions with yes/no responses required. eg. Is this lounge up to the standard that one should expect from a lounge Qatar Airways lounge Yes/No? I have not received any direct answers from Qatar to my questions.
I believe that there should be some accountability from Qatar but this does not seem to be forthcoming. It is not of such great importance that external agencies are required but very disappointed as I have always found their on board service to be excellent. It is just too easy to say 'so sorry' then carry on the same as before.

ph-ndr

To answer bluntly what others have attemted to say nicely: QR don't do customer service. Yes, QR is nice when it all works, and if it don't work then it don't work.

-A

IAN-UK

But you seem to be conflating the laudable attempt to alert the airline to the situation, with a stab at gaining compensation for the experience you went through.

QR has responded to the former, and may or may not implement change at Clark. But you've done your public spirited bit, and maybe should let it rest.

On the other angle, QR doesn't willingly do compensation except in the most egregious cases. Whether misleading photos and an unsatisfactory lounge experience constitute an offence of sufficient magnitude to release cash or avios is with the airline. Your local consumer affairs agency might offer advice: the Qatari version isn't going to be much use.

Catalogued in another thread: when I had to sit upright through the night on a broken Q-suite flight the airline initially thanked me for my understanding. I eventually prised a very small handful of of avios out of them: six thousand of the things is neither here nor there to me or the airline, but there's some satisfaction in both parties accepting some share the pain when things go wrong.

KingCanute

Firstly of course, saying sorry to you now does not mean that they will then just carry on as normal, or that nobody at the Philippines team knows it's bad and isn't bothered, or that nothing will ever change.

But their hands are tied in the short term. If this is the only lounge operator available in their departing terminal, and the current offer is a temporary (albeit inadequate) facility on the main concourse whilst the normal space is being refurbished, their other main option would be to offer no lounge at all whilst the works are underway. That wouldn't go down well either, and they can't offer what isn't there.

So as with all complaints, you need to know and communicate what it is you want them to do for you as a service recovery on top of the apology they have already made, if anything. Give you some points? A partial refund? Only you know.

Everything else is suggestions and feedback. Update the photo on the website? Web pages are out of date the world over and accepting that there may omissions or inaccuracies or changes is included in the terms of use when using their website (as it is for most large companies). Offer a $20 refreshment voucher instead of the lounge? Or offer nothing at that airport? Perhaps you have other suggestions too but they only need communicating once which is perhaps why they have stopped responding.

What is almost certain though is that once the refurbished lounge is open again, customers will be accommodated there and the temporary facility dismantled. And I would wager 60 qcredits that QR will never be building their own lounge there either.

Constructive feedback will likely get you further than insisting they tick a bunch of yes/no boxes possibly loaded towards making them feel bad or scoring points. Yes it was poor. They have accepted they did not meet your expectations. And now they appear to regard your matter as closed, having apologised and taken your feedback.

Be upset, be dissatisfied, take your business elsewhere. But the value of a lounge entry is sufficiently low that it probably is kind of people to suggest you let it go now.