I'm flying QR soon, JFK-DOH-PVG in J, and have been watching this forum with interest for the past few months. I will provide feedback to this thread concerning the experience, and while I cannot promise one of the grand trip reports others seem able to assemble, I will endeavour to describe the flavour of the experience as it pertains to service on the ground and in the air.

So far I've encountered the same issue w/Amex as others have noted, and I am sure to encounter difficulties since I am crediting the flights to my US DM account.

The return leg of PVG-DOH-JFK is later in October, so fingers crossed I don't encounter too many headaches.

One question -- my outbound leg has me on the ground at DOH for ~5.5 hours, assuming I arrive on time. I wondered if it would be possible to get into town to have a look around, and if so, what would be suitable destinations?

I had wondered if I could approach the concierge at the premium terminal and ask them to provide suggestions and/or arrange transportation. Has anyone else done something similar on this duration of layover?

twj

 

If you are an American you should not have any issues getting a visa on arrival.

http://www.qatarembassy.net/visa.asp

I am not sure about the modes of transportation but one place you can check out is "Pearl". The concierge might help you get a cab or limo.

http://www.thepearlqatar.com/main.aspx

Note that "The Pearl" is quite faraway from the airport and if your are reaching Doha on a weekend (Friday / Saturday) traffic might be a big problem. For a shorter stay inside the city, you can try Corniche or any of the malls (Villagio or City Centre).

Enjoy!

 

I'm not sure if you can exit the airport via the premium terminal. All Qatar final arrivals are directed to get off the busses at the main terminal. It is worth a shot and, please, let us know if they can let you out.

FWIW
DLM

 

Brief update so far:

Despite knowing that QR would ask to see the credit card I used to buy my tickets, and even though I (thought I) had it in my wallet, I still encountered a problem. I bought my ticket in May, but in August my issuer canceled the old number and supplied me with a new card. I didn't think to keep that letter in order to bring it to the airport. The ticketing agent for QR at JFK was very helpful and in the end we convinced the issuing bank to send a fax to JFK so they could issue my boarding passes. This was nobody's fault but my own, but apparently I am not the first to encounter this particular issue.

A quick trip to the (frankly dreadful) Oasis lounge for some plane-spotting, and then on to the (equally dreadful) gate area to await boarding. They actually got started more than an hour prior to scheduled departure because they have an unofficial goal to make their advertised departure time the 'wheels up' time, so they go for an early pushback if possible. Indeed we managed a pushback roughly 5 minutes ahead of schedule.

I will post in more detail later about the flight, but suffice it to say it was easily the best business class flight I've had. The cabin crew were all friendly and attentive, the food & drink were plentiful and of high quality, the AVOD was great, the seat provided ample space for sleeping once converted into bed mode. They provided comfortable sleep suits, a good blanket & pillow, and I managed to sleep for ~6 hours.

Upon arrival at DOH, they put the J passengers onto the first bus, and then drove us first to the main terminal. If you were heading into Doha, or were transiting to a non-premium seat on QR, that's where you got off. The bus then continued to the premium terminal.

Upon arrival. I approached the concierge desk to inquire about getting a car & driver to take me around town. They made a few phone calls and then recommended that I take the bus back to the Arrivals area at the main terminal, where I could buy my visa on the spot and then proceed to the taxi/limousine area and negotiate my way into a tour guide. That's precisely what I did and, for US$100, I had 2 hours in a long-wheelbase Jag with an English-speaking guide who took me wherever I wanted to go, and made suggestions when I had no idea. All very straightforward. He then returned me to the premium terminal where I cleared Qatari immigration without incident, and now I'm back in the lounge awaiting my onward flight.

So far QR has been great, on the ground and in the air. I still have 3 more sectors on this itinerary so will keep more detailed notes but I have nothing but high regard at this point.

twj

 

I've now completed my itinerary. The trip, in review, was the following:

QR083 JFK-DOH (777-300ER)
QR888 DOH-PVG (330-300)
QR889 PVG-DOH (330-300)
QR084 DOH-JFK (777-300ER)

All were 2-cabin aircraft. I flew in C on all segments.

The 777 have QR's latest full-flat seat and AVOD hardware. Both 330-300s had flat seats which didn't go fully horizontal; the first one had an older version than the second, which featured memory positions and AVOD w/live satellite TV.

All four flights provided sleep suits and amenity kits. The sleep suits are unisex and carried in M-XXL on board. The flights touching JFK featured Molton Brown products, whereas the PVG flights were Aigner.

The wine/drinks list was identical on all four flights. I was able to keep menus from the first two sectors. The food menus all featured both a set meal option with various choices, plus an 'Indulgences' component which had a number of a la carte options divided into starters, main courses, and sweets. You could order whatever you wanted at any time. Wine & liquor were good quality but not top-shelf (e.g. JW Black, no Krug/Dom).

The signature non-alcoholic drink (in the spirit of both Cathay and Singapore) is the Lime & Mint, which is a pleasing sweet & tart mix of lime syrup and mint, amazingly enough. Very refreshing!

All four flights left on time and arrived either on schedule or early. Transit through the Premium Terminal at Doha was easy in both directions. The staff I encountered (at QR's call center, plus on the ground and airborne throughout the trip) were all helpful and forthcoming. My checked bag was already on the belt by the time I made it to baggage claim at PVG, and was among the first to appear as I approached the belt at JFK.

There were some very minor service inconsistencies. The purser introduced herself to everyone on 3 out of 4 sectors. Each aisle in the cabin sometimes received service elements at different times, and the latency between the two could be significant. The lounges QR uses at JFK (Oasis) and PVG (Contract Lounge #69) were both unremarkable.

I had my US FF# on the reservation, and all four sectors have already credited correctly. I put the number in originally when I booked my ticket online, but when I called a few days prior to departure I found that it hadn't been saved so the agent added it manually. There was an element of confusion when she mistakenly entered it as a UA #, but that was quickly sorted.

All in all I really have nothing of substance to complain about; it was clearly the best business class trip I've taken. I got plenty of sleep on JFK-DOH and PVG-DOH, and plenty of distraction via AVOD whenever I wanted. Food was varied and well-prepared, presented on individual dishes and fresh silverware (metal knives!) for each course, and always had a fresh bread basket.

I would gladly fly QR C again, and am happy to answer questions if anyone wants to know more about the service.

twj

 

That's great, thanks for the review. I fly JFK-DOH-BKK next week in C and am really looking forward to it.