Best lounges for Qatar business class

8 replies

iM

Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer

Member since 27 Jul 2016

Total posts 32

I'm Qantas Platinum and the wife and I are trying something different later this year: Sydney-Jakarta (Qantas in economy), then Jakarta-Doha-Amsterdam with Qatar in business class. Two questions:


1: The best lounges available in Jakarta, Doha and Amsterdam on Qatar business class ticket or as One World Emerald?


2: With 8.5 hr connections both ways in Doha, is it worth a transit hotel (and is there something less pricey than the Oryx close to the airport)?


Any suggestions would be appreciated!

Brandon Loo

Member since 10 Jul 2018

Total posts 105

Have you checked if you're eligible for Qatar Airway's complimentary transit accommodation?

  • Main criteria you'll need to fulfil is "No connection less than 8 hours possible"

If eligible, they can arrange accommodation, entry visas, airport transfers and meals. You'll need to contact them.

Best lounge in DOH is probably the Al Mourjan Business Lounge where only a business class ticket can get you in – not even Oneworld Emerald status unless other lounges are full.

In Jakarta, it's all contract lounges so you'll probably have to stick with the JAS Premier Lounge. In Amsterdam, there is a British Airways lounge after security you might be able to use instead of the contract Aspire lounge which is apparently before security.

Chris C.

Member since 24 Apr 2012

Total posts 1,116

Acronyms in the question replaced with 'real words': this helps all readers understand what's being asked and provides the best chance at getting useful feedback when asking questions. We ask users to avoid abbreviations like 'J', 'Y' and so on, because your average person doesn't know what those letters mean, even though those working in the travel industry or more advanced frequent flyers may be familiar with them.

aeries

Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer

Member since 18 Mar 2018

Total posts 21

I'm doing something very similar to you in April: Sydney to Jakarta in Qantas (Business), then Jakarta to London Heathrow via Doha in Qatar Business. I'm also a QFF Platinum.

1. From what the oneworld website and Qatar website says, the JAS Premier Lounge is the lounge that you can access while flying Qatar. This is because Qatar flights leave from Terminal 2, while Qantas flights use Terminal 1. I have transited at Jakarta before (flying JL and QF), and was able to access the Plaza Premium Saphire Lounge (Terminal 1). Maybe you can use the PP Lounge when you come back, it's pretty good!

In Doha, the lounge that Brandon pointed out earlier is definitely the best one - it's exclusively for Business passengers so it should be top notch. I've used a similar "Business only" Qatar lounge in Bangkok, and I was very amazed at the quality, service and food offerings. I think there's quite a few other Qatar Business Lounges and you can even use the First Class lounge but that one is mainly for Oneworld Emerald passengers.

Haven't been to Amsterdam, so I can't really help with that one.

2. In the past, I've always just stayed in the airport and lounge hopped to burn away the long 8-10 hour layovers. You can lounge hop between the many lounges in Doha (except the Al Safwa First Lounge) or as Brandon also pointed out, there is a free transit hotel service available.

If you're flying after April, I can update this post and give you general feedback on my experience.

iM

Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer

Member since 27 Jul 2016

Total posts 32

Have you checked if you're eligible for Qatar Airway's complimentary transit accommodation?
  • Main criteria you'll need to fulfil is "No connection less than 8 hours possible"

If eligible, they can arrange accommodation, entry visas, airport transfers and meals. You'll need to contact them.

Best lounge in DOH is probably the Al Mourjan Business Lounge where only a business class ticket can get you in – not even Oneworld Emerald status unless other lounges are full.

In Jakarta, it's all contract lounges so you'll probably have to stick with the JAS Premier Lounge. In Amsterdam, there is a British Airways lounge after security you might be able to use instead of the contract Aspire lounge which is apparently before security.

Thanks Brandon. Yes, I checked with Qatar and we're not entitled to transit accommodation because there's a quicker connection each way (that's much dearer). Your comments on the lounges backs-up what I've researched, which is reassuring!

iM

Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer

Member since 27 Jul 2016

Total posts 32

Acronyms in the question replaced with 'real words': this helps all readers understand what's being asked and provides the best chance at getting useful feedback when asking questions. We ask users to avoid abbreviations like 'J', 'Y' and so on, because your average person doesn't know what those letters mean, even though those working in the travel industry or more advanced frequent flyers may be familiar with them.

Yes, understand. However, my questions require someone with considerable travel experience to answer, hence the use of 'jargon' in this instance.

iM

Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer

Member since 27 Jul 2016

Total posts 32

I'm doing something very similar to you in April: Sydney to Jakarta in Qantas (Business), then Jakarta to London Heathrow via Doha in Qatar Business. I'm also a QFF Platinum.

1. From what the oneworld website and Qatar website says, the JAS Premier Lounge is the lounge that you can access while flying Qatar. This is because Qatar flights leave from Terminal 2, while Qantas flights use Terminal 1. I have transited at Jakarta before (flying JL and QF), and was able to access the Plaza Premium Saphire Lounge (Terminal 1). Maybe you can use the PP Lounge when you come back, it's pretty good!

In Doha, the lounge that Brandon pointed out earlier is definitely the best one - it's exclusively for Business passengers so it should be top notch. I've used a similar "Business only" Qatar lounge in Bangkok, and I was very amazed at the quality, service and food offerings. I think there's quite a few other Qatar Business Lounges and you can even use the First Class lounge but that one is mainly for Oneworld Emerald passengers.

Haven't been to Amsterdam, so I can't really help with that one.

2. In the past, I've always just stayed in the airport and lounge hopped to burn away the long 8-10 hour layovers. You can lounge hop between the many lounges in Doha (except the Al Safwa First Lounge) or as Brandon also pointed out, there is a free transit hotel service available.

If you're flying after April, I can update this post and give you general feedback on my experience.

Thanks Aeries, that's very helpful! We're flying in August/September, so I look forward to your feedback and thoughts. It's amazing that the Doha Oryx transit hotel wants something like A$400+, but the Mercure downtown, for example, is around A$80 (plus about A$120 for 2 pax round-trip transfers).


From what I've seen online the Al Mourjan Business Lounge has semi-private day beds, which I think will be the go. It also looks like a great place to burn those hours, even though they'll be in the middle of the night for us on the return journey.

Safe travels and I look forward to your update!

DY

Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer

Member since 02 May 2017

Total posts 19

I spent 6 hours overnight in the Al Mourjan lounge a few weeks ago - I wouldn't count on the day beds giving you much rest, they're on the thin side and angled like a sun lounger, and although they're semi-private and located in a quiet corner of the lounge, they are still open to the general noises of the lounge and terminal. Nothing like the quiet lounges in the F lounge at DXB!


Overnight there are hardly any other passengers in the lounge, which means the staff use the opportunity for all the necessary cleaning to be done, which can be another hindrance. There are some other cushioned things that you could get some rest on - I guess it really depends on how much rest you'll be after! If I had to do it again I'd make sure I was getting plenty of sleep on the incoming flight so sleep wasn't such a priority.

Chris C.

Member since 24 Apr 2012

Total posts 1,116

Acronyms in the question replaced with 'real words': this helps all readers understand what's being asked and provides the best chance at getting useful feedback when asking questions. We ask users to avoid abbreviations like 'J', 'Y' and so on, because your average person doesn't know what those letters mean, even though those working in the travel industry or more advanced frequent flyers may be familiar with them.

Yes, understand. However, my questions require someone with considerable travel experience to answer, hence the use of 'jargon' in this instance.

You're certainly welcome to say as much when posting your question, but this isn't an industry (etc.) website, so again, please use real words when posting questions.

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