rvlcr

months ago i booked ORD - DOH - MLE with QR avios. a few months after i booked, the DOH-MLE leg which was supposed to leave at 1:35am got pushed to 3:00am, extending my already long 7something hour layover to over 9 hours

i am now seeing availability for a different DOH-MLE flight that leaves at 12:55am also with avios, but QR is saying they are unable to put me on that flight given the schedule change was only 1.5 hours (minimum is 2 hours). i dont understand how this is logical in any sense given that leaving at 3 is much more of a hassle than leaving at 12:55? shouldnt they be able to override? i get this is QR and they are the antithesis of customer service but this is so basic, especially since this is a schedule change we are talking about?

their only solution was for me to cancel my booking and then re book (yeah, as if i'd do that... with no promise that ORD DOH will go back into inventory lol).

florin

That stinks, I understand it's annoying... but I really don't understand your point. You're booked on a 3am flight to MLE. How is this a hassle for QR and why should they put you on a 12:55am flight? Mind you, same day standby / changes are a US thing and not seen much elsewhere, so don't expect to just be able to change to an earlier flight because seats are available. Also, DOH is a 24/7 airport, so 12:55am / 3am... it's all the same to them. The expectation that "X is more convenient to ME therefore the airline should accommodate that" is unreasonable.

KingCanute

If your schedule change was classed as significant (ie. more than 2 hours) you would be able to argue for a rebooking. QR are not alone amongst airlines around the world in setting 2 hours as a minimum for such rebookings.

They also operate on the basis that they have sold you a ticket from ORD to MLE. The stop in DOH is neither here nor there in terms of the origin and destination because ORD-DOH and DOH-MLE are not separate tickets. Again, they are not alone in this approach.

So when you are requesting a voluntary change, as in this case, you need there to be availability for the new ticket from ORD to MLE at the price you paid. When it is a points ticket and there is no points availability for a new ticket for the whole journey (potentially both ways if it is a return ticket), you will not be able to make that change. If it were a cash ticket you might be able to but at a higher fare. And they are right to suggest that your existing redemption seats ORD to DOH may not automatically become reavailable if you cancel. When you booked, the flight may have been empty. But now it may be almost sold out and they or their computer may feel that they could now sell those seats for a full cash fare. Again, revenue management like that is not unique to QR.

With a very slightly longer layover now, why not leave the airport and look around Doha, have some dinner etc? All that might be much more memorable and even be more relaxing than arriving at MLE after either of 7 or 9 hours sat in the airport