The whole story. Review on Qatar Airways

Firstly, I am a Qatar Airways Gold Frequent flyer, I fly with them at least three time a month long haul and hope to be able to provide a'rounded view' to the whole Qatar experience.  My opinions below are based on a number of flights and not just individual occasions:

*Check In

*Manchester:  The Qatar Airways ground staff(and those of their handling agent here) are second to none and a credit to the company.  Their uniformed pressence in the queue helps to speed things up and they do recognise frequent travellers.  They are usually happy to help with seating requests and will always do what they can for you.

London Gatwick: I have never seen a big queue at Qatar check in at Gatwick, however the location of the desks does mean that Thomas Cook and Thomson charter passengers often overlap and hide the desks.  My biggest complaint at Gatwick is that they will only look at seat requests for your ex Gatwick flight and not any connections - they say that their system does not allow them to do it.  It is strange that every other airport to which Qatar operates is able to do this.  They advise you to try in Doha.  On a number of occasions I have seen families be told that they are split up on onward connections with nothing they can do(usually for Bangkok connections I must say)

London Heathrow:  I have never had any problems with them at Heathrow, however the airport itself is in my opinion - a mess.

*Boarding

*Very hit and miss - Sometimes business class passengers are invited to come forward first, sometimes not.  Somthimes frequent flyers are, sometimes not. Sometimes families are, sometimes not.  Very inconsistent.

*In Flight - Economy

*The economy product is superior to that of European carriers, however very much standard amongst Asian airlines.  It does depend on the aircraft operating, and if Qatar know how to do anything - it is to operate a differnt aircraft on a given route all of the time.  Why does this make a difference I hear you ask? Quite simply - the older aircraft have not been refitted with the new seats and individual entertainment systems.  One A330 is different to another.

The new aircraft are FANTASTIC and include comfortable slim line seats, individual on demand entertainment(below) and'mood lighting' in economy.  The older aircraft and short haul fleet feature thicker seats (less space) and overhead monitors.    Meals are acceptable, however quite acceptable and bar service is good(free pour whisky, vodka and gin - no other spirits)

*In Flight - Business Class

*This is where this airline earns it's 5 stars - truly a wonderful experience - true silver service.

My only complaint is that the seats are not lie flat and I do find it difficult to sleep on them - however the novelty of flying business with Qatar does mean that you dont really want to sleep.

*In flight - First Class

*I wish I knew!

*Cabin Crew

*Some very good, some very bad - there is no in between.  You can tell that they have had to recruit a lot of people very quickly.  Crew tend to be from Far East, India or Eastern Europe(although I have had Brits and Aussies too).  I do know from speaking to crew that there are serious issues and many are simply not happy.  Smiles tend to be more forced and not as personal now as it used to be.  However, I can not say that it is any better with any other Middle Eastern airline.

*Entertainment

*The Waves AVOD system is second to non - even when I travelled on 12 flights in one month(up to 7 hours each - with some shorter ones of course) there was still more than enough to entertain me.  Always top releases, I was surprised that Brokeback Mountain was shown a few months ago - on an Arab airline!

*Doha Airport

*Do not be put off by the horror stories - it is now fine since the extension and premium terminal opened.  My only complaint is still the smoking rooms are too small, spartan and stink - but hey, it's a bad habbit anyway.  Try the new Costa Coffee which is usually a quieter place to chill out.  The Silver and Gold lounges are havens!  If travelling First/Business the premium terminal is out of this world.

*When things go wrong

*Lets face it - delays happen with any airline, luggage is lost and emergencies arise.  I have to say that I have had more such problems with Qatar than anyone else - however they have always been very accommodating if there has been an issue and I have not once had cause to raise my voice or complain further(even before I had my gold card)

I hope that this has helped some of you