Review of Qatar Airways flight Doha Singapore in Business

Airline Qatar Airways
Flight QR944
Class Business
Seat 1K
Aircraft Airbus A350-1000
Flight time 07:15
Take-off 26 Nov 18, 08:15
Arrival at 26 Nov 18, 20:30
QR   #10 out of 97 Airlines A minimum of 10 flight-reports within the past two years is required to appear in the rankings. 621 reviews
Rewardflying
Published on 13th January 2019
photo qr944 cover

This trip could be called, "You fell for a sale trip". One morning in October I received an email from Krisflyer stating their new A350 long range flights were on sale. What was normally 88,000 points to the west coast was promoted at 65,000 points. The Newark flight was a little more. I looked at some availability and LA's flight got in too late to fly on to Chicago and Newarks' flight wasn't available for the time I wanted to travel. Then I stumbled upon the inaugural A350 ULR flight to SFO. More digging found Q-Suites to Doha and Q-Suites on the new Qatar A350-1K to Singapore. So with no intention of taking a round the world trip when I awoke that morning, within a couple hours I was booked.

ORD-DOH Qatar Airways B777-300 QSuite Buisness Class - Click to view

DOH-SIN Qatar Airways A350-1K QSuites Business Class - Al Mourjan Business Class lounge - this report


SIN-HKG Singapore Airlines A380 New Business Class - to come
HKG-SIN Singapore Airlines A380 New First Class - to come
SIN-SFO Singapore Airlines A350-9 ULR Business Class - to come
SOF-ORD Alaska Airlines A320 First Class - to come

Maybe the perfect flight.

Doha’s Hamad International Airport is a stunning piece of architecture. Only an $8 Uber ride from Old Town that takes about 10 minutes, the airport is located on east side of Doha against the Persian Gulf coast.

With the flight leaving at 8:15AM it was an early ride to the airport, and as it turns out I wish I left earlier as there was much to do in the Qatar business class lounge.

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A grand entrance awaits premium class passengers.

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Check In took a matter of seconds as did security. The airport was plenty crowded, but most were connecting passengers.

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I’m sure there is a good explanation for this 5 or 6 million dollar bear, I just haven’t heard it. It’s a good photo op.

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High end shops, Apple computers, flight simulators and race cars. And that’s before the lounge.

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Take an escalator up to the Al Mourjan business class lounge. The lounge is massive, shaped in a long rectangle. This guide shows the layout.

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This artwork is at the entry. Go left to take a tour around the facility or go upstairs for a full service restaurant.



Seating is everywhere, except unlike most lounges the chairs a spread out into spacious areas that offer a certain amount of privacy.

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At the far end there are cafeteria like tables where you can grab a coffee and sweet.

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There wasn’t a vast amount of food in any of these areas. I suspect due to the restaurant upstairs.



Business workstations, Game Room, Washroom, Prayer Rooms, this lounge has everything.



Including a lake, below the staircase up to the restaurant.

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Which I failed to allow enough time to enjoy, next time.

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QR944 to Singapore left from the farthest gate, as it turns out it was a remote gate which was a bus gate that offered a closeup of an A380 as well as 2 A350-1K, one of which would take me to Singapore. A golden opportunity wasted. What an awesome picture a closeup of that Rolls Royce Trent XWB engine would have been. Try taking a photo walking up stairs with a busload of people behind you, carry-on roller in one hand and laptop case in the other because I left the shoulder strap at home.

At least I got half!



Today’s journey would be on Qatar Airways A350-1000 registration A7-ANB, delivered on June 30th, 2018.

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There are 2 cabins on the A350. The front cabin has 40 of the 48 business class suites on the A350-1K.

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During the flight I went back to the mini-cabin that has only 8 seats. Other than boarding congestion, this is the place to be in my opinion.

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Specifically in 11A or 11K with a nice view of the engine.

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There are only 2 lavatories, behind door 2 on this Airbus which could be problematic on long flights before landing.



Seat 1K would be my home. This seat was not blocked when I booked this flight, unlike row 1 on the 777 out of Chicago. (Next time I'll listen to SoCalNow and snag row 5, or 11)

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The QSuite on the A350-1K has 1/2 inch less width than on the 777 QSuite.

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Qatar installed the premium dual transparency electronic window shades which are so much nicer than the pull down shades.

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When seated in 1K, the only other seat in line of sight is this one.

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When seated your privacy with both suite doors open.

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Row 1 center, like the 777, is rear facing.

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Air vents!

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Even with a slightly more narrow pod, the foot well has plenty of room.

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The window side armrest can be lowered and connects with padding to make an even larger area to sleep.

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IFE controller and ports are opposite of the 777, or maybe it’s that way on seat K on the 777.

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QSuite and A350-1000 Safety instructions.



Time to go.

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Cleared for takeoff.

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Amenities on this trip are similar to those one the inbound 777, with the exception of pajamas due to being a day time flight.

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The aircraft had wifi with less than impressive speeds when I tested it.

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Coffee is in order on the morning flight before breakfast. Sorry no Mimosa or Champagne for me!

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For Breakfast I would have the smoked salmon and scrambled egg.

Later on the Light Options tried are the grilled chicken with pesto sandwich and stir-fried beef tenderloin.

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Plus from the Snack Platters menu I’d try the veggie skewer and raspberry tart.

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Non-alcoholic beverages for this morning flight.

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The smoked salmon with dill cream cheese was outstanding.

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These were thick slices of salmon.

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And a basket of rolls. It’s so much more like first class doing it this way as opposed to the FA bringing around a basket and you select one.

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The main course was restaurant quality as well.

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I’m tempted to compare this to a dozen or thereabout other so called premium class breakfasts I’ve had on international flights.

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After breakfast the mood lighting was turned on. What’s not to like?

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Here is my only complaint about this flight, if you can call it a complaint.

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The handheld remote device has the airshow.

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Which is pretty cool.

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Except it kept shutting off, just like your phone shuts off every few minutes. I gave up after awhile.

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Heading east to Singapore where the time zone difference is 5 hours meant it was 5PM before I knew it.



I started my sampling feast by ordering the veggie skewers. My flight attendant for the flight was amazing. Polished, friendly, attentive, all the things that make a great flight experience she had. Much different from the inbound flight. She suggested I order more than one skewer as “they are small”. I enjoyed them with a Cháteau Batailley, which was surprising they had any left after my inbound flight.

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No kidding they were small! But delicious.
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Ditto!

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I was encouraged to try the grilled chicken sandwich.

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Why stop now?

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The stir-fry beef tenderloin was remarkably good. The chili sambal added just a touch of heat, I was tempted to order another.

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An amazing experience was coming to a close.

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To learn about redemption options for this flight click this link to reward flying

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Verdict

Qatar Airways

8.8/10
Cabin9.0
Cabin crew8.5
Entertainment/wifi8.5
Meal/catering9.0

Qatar Airways Business Lounge

8.4/10
Comfort9.0
Meal/catering8.0
Entertainment/wifi7.5
Services9.0

Doha - DOH

9.0/10
Efficiency9.0
Access9.0
Services9.0
Cleanliness9.0

Singapore - SIN

9.0/10
Efficiency9.0
Access9.0
Services9.0
Cleanliness9.0

Conclusion

I can't imagine a better flight. Having over 30 international business class flights over the last few years this one was the best, over taking my prior Qatar business class flights. With QSuite and the cuisine they serve, Qatar has truly become #1 in business class. The flight crew on this flight was great. They were a little older and more experienced than my flight from Chicago. That's probably the one are where they could improve upon, better trained FA's. But if you can fly Qatar (Qsuites) do it, and spend some time in their lounges as well.

Information on the route Doha (DOH) Singapore (SIN)

Les contributeurs de Flight-Report ont posté 13 avis concernant 1 compagnies sur la ligne Doha (DOH) → Singapore (SIN).


Useful

La compagnie qui obtient la meilleure moyenne est Qatar Airways avec 8.3/10.

La durée moyenne des vols est de 7 heures et 48 minutes.

  More information

7 Comments

If you liked this review or if you have any questions, don’t hesitate to post a comment below !
  • Comment 483916 by
    KévinDC TEAM SILVER 6658 Comments
    Hi RewardFlying, a fantastic report as always!

    It's a Qsuite-palooza this week ?

    Just as the Qsuites blur the lines between F and J, the Hub J lounge has many F lounge features, including a table service restaurant. The architecture is just amazing. This is what I can a flagship hub lounge.

    The catering looks great. So many carriers don't put much effort into serving creative and elevated dishes for breakfast, but QR have definitely done that here.

    Looks like you were able to get some good cabin shots with the daytime flight.

    Thanks for sharing!
  • Comment 484094 by
    hometoyyz 539 Comments
    Hello, Rewardflying!

    Thanks for sharing this perfect flight. Let’s dig in, shall we?

    “More digging found Q-Suites to Doha and Q-Suites on the new Qatar A350-1K to Singapore. So with no intention of taking a round the world trip when I awoke that morning, within a couple hours I was booked.”
    That sentiment certainly brings a smile to my face. I love it when a plan comes together like this.

    “Doha’s Hamad International Airport is a stunning piece of architecture.”
    - You’re not kidding. That really comes through in your shots of the check-in and the inside of the terminal.

    “I’m sure there is a good explanation for this 5 or 6 million dollar bear, I just haven’t heard it.”
    - I’m taking it you’re not accepting “Because we could!” stated cockily whilst using $100 bills to light cigars as a good explanation?

    I also appreciate the openness and spacing of the lounge. And that lake. Just beautiful. Too bad you didn’t have enough time to check out the restaurant. I’m sure it would have been great.

    “Try taking a photo walking up stairs with a busload of people behind you, carry-on roller in one hand and laptop case in the other because I left the shoulder strap at home.”
    - Sadly, I can relate to this feeling. Although I usually go with a backpack fo my laptop, given even me less excuses for photography challenges.

    “The QSuite on the A350-1K has 1/2 inch less width than on the 777 QSuite.”
    - Interesting. So much for that xtra-wide body.

    A great tour of the Qsuite, which is beauitful and so nicely done. And I think I’d have to swipe that Wonderful Place to Be pillow even harder than the Happy Place one.

    The catering looks great, and it sounds like it lived up to high expectations as well. That stir-fry, in particular, looks like a winner.

    Another great look at the reigning, defending business class champeen of the world. Thanks for sharing, and looking forward to SQ.

    Cheers!
  • Comment 484110 by
    socalnow 976 Comments
    Thank you for yet another thorough, interesting and informative flight report Mark.

    “Take an escalator up to the Al Mourjan business class lounge. The lounge is massive, shaped in a long rectangle.”
    -So true, I walked the place several times and still feel like I didn’t get to every feature.

    “This artwork is at the entry. Go left to take a tour around the facility or go upstairs for a full-service restaurant.”
    -I didn’t see a full-service restaurant upstairs but rather a nice buffet and a bar. On my visit there was no table service or a la carte menu (if that’s what full-service restaurant implies even). Hmmm.

    “At the far end there are cafeteria like tables where you can grab a coffee and sweet.”
    -This is the location that I observed table service and a small but nice menu of made to order sandwiches and panini.

    “Business workstations, Game Room, Washroom, Prayer Rooms, this lounge has everything.”
    -Yes! It’s phenomenal. Awesome facilities for families.

    “R944 to Singapore left from the farthest gate, as it turns out it was a remote gate which was a bus gate that offered a closeup of an A380 as well as 2 A350-1K, one of which would take me to Singapore.”
    -Lucky duck, bus gate.

    “Seat 1K would be my home.”
    -Seat 1K for your first trip on the A350-1K….I see the symbolism…well played.

    Great cabin shots! I must go again to get the “The Sky Is A Wonderful Place To Be” pillow.

    Such a large and varied selection even for a breakfast flight.

    “The smoked salmon with dill cream cheese was outstanding.”
    -It’s a beautiful dish, I was drawn to the same. The presentation, wow.

    “And a basket of rolls. It’s so much more like first class doing it this way as opposed to the FA bringing around a basket and you select one.”
    -The tradeoff being warm bread vs. not warm.

    “started my sampling feast by ordering the veggie skewers.”
    -It’s a lot of fun being able to mix and match small plates and have such variety.

    “I enjoyed them with a Cháteau Batailley, which was surprising they had any left after my inbound flight.”
    -Save some for the rest of us, please.

    “I can't imagine a better flight. Having over 30 international business class flights over the last few years this one was the best, over taking my prior Qatar business class flights.”
    -What a lovely experience. It’s special when the kind, genuine service lines up with top quality food and beverage in a well-designed and comfortable space.

    Thank you again for sharing this experience and happy flaying.
  • Comment 484139 by
    Rewardflying AUTHOR 493 Comments
    Hi Kévin, Thanks for your comments as always.

    It's a Qsuite-palooza this week ?

    -SoCalNow should be duplicating any minute now, or should I say put my report to shame!

    Just as the Qsuites blur the lines between F and J, the Hub J lounge has many F lounge features, including a table service restaurant. The architecture is just amazing.

    -No expense was spared at this airport, that's for sure. The above mentioned writer however says it's not table service. Apparently I didn't do my homework properly.

    In any event, Qatar is back in my good graces after the Qsuite issue this past summer. Truly an exception business class experience, all the way.
  • Comment 484140 by
    Rewardflying AUTHOR 493 Comments
    Hometoyyz! Great to hear from you. It's been awhile. Thanks for taking the time to leave such a detailed note. Even better to get your feedback.

    That sentiment certainly brings a smile to my face. I love it when a plan comes together like this.

    -How true!

    You’re not kidding. That really comes through in your shots of the check-in and the inside of the terminal.

    -Pulling up to the terminal it doesn't look that big, but once inside it's massive. Ever been?

    I’m taking it you’re not accepting “Because we could!” stated cockily whilst using $100 bills to light cigars as a good explanation?

    -Sure, but then comes and then you can't. Been there done that myself!

    I also appreciate the openness and spacing of the lounge. And that lake. Just beautiful. Too bad you didn’t have enough time to check out the restaurant. I’m sure it would have been great.

    -Next time, although SoCalNow says it's not a restaurant. I didn't go inside. Fake news!

    Sadly, I can relate to this feeling. Although I usually go with a backpack fo my laptop, given even me less excuses for photography challenges.

    -This was a one time opportunity and I blew it!

    A great tour of the Qsuite, which is beauitful and so nicely done. And I think I’d have to swipe that Wonderful Place to Be pillow even harder than the Happy Place one.

    -I have a hard enough time fitting suitcase with any pj's and amenity kits. Pillows, no way.

    The catering looks great, and it sounds like it lived up to high expectations as well. That stir-fry, in particular, looks like a winner.

    -Yep, really good. So was the salmon for breakfast.

    Again, great to hear from you!
    • Comment 484146 by
      hometoyyz 539 Comments
      "Great to hear from you. It's been awhile."
      - It has been. Too long, really. I'm trying to be more active around here... but geez, there's a lot. And that's great. But it makes it tough to keep up!

      "Pulling up to the terminal it doesn't look that big, but once inside it's massive. Ever been?"
      - Alas, I have not. My points exposure has primarily been StarA, SkyTeam, and Alaska, so my exposure to the ME3 has been way too limited. One of these years, I should really make it a point of figuring out a way to get a stockpile of AA points going so I can try some of this good stuff for myself.
  • Comment 484145 by
    Rewardflying AUTHOR 493 Comments
    Hi Christian!

    I didn’t see a full-service restaurant upstairs but rather a nice buffet and a bar. On my visit there was no table service or a la carte menu (if that’s what full-service restaurant implies even). Hmmm.

    -I didn't go up, just was going off what I read and what I could see. Maybe it was closed at midnight when you were there.

    This is the location that I observed table service and a small but nice menu of made to order sandwiches and panini.

    -Interesting. Maybe the restaurant was closed since you were there so late and I was there in the AM and this area was where a makeshift restaurant is set up. Guess we have to go back for more investigation.

    Lucky duck, bus gate.

    -Arriving AND departing :)

    Seat 1K for your first trip on the A350-1K….I see the symbolism…well played.

    ?

    Great cabin shots! I must go again to get the “The Sky Is A Wonderful Place To Be” pillow.

    -I must go to get one myself. Did you hear they put a 100% tax on alcohol in Doha eff 1/1. Great idea since you want lots of people for the World Cup.

    The tradeoff being warm bread vs. not warm.

    -Unless you are on United and the roll has gone from warm to hard!

    Can't wait to see your report blow mine out of the water! When????

    Happy reward flying Christian.

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