Review: Qatar Airways First Class, Dubai to Doha

Trip to Kazakhstan in Lufthansa First Class and Dubai to Stockholm in Qatar Airways Business Class

A few weeks ago, I traveled to Kazakhstan for the first time where I spent two nights in the capital city of Astana. I flew from Dubai to Astana via Frankfurt (and back) in Lufthansa First Class using my miles and needless to say, it was one of the best trips I've ever had. I had a separate ticket on Qatar Airways between Stockholm and Dubai where I flew in economy class on the outbound and business class on the inbound. My business class ticket on Qatar Airways from Dubai gave me the chance to visit their newly opened lounge which was really nice, as well as that of British Airways'. This whole trip lasted for a week and eventhough it was very extensive, I loved every single minute of it!


Photoreview: Lufthansa Business Class Lounge, Dubai T1 Concourse D (DXB)
Review: Lufthansa Senator Lounge, Dubai T1 Concourse D (DXB)
Review: Lufthansa First Class, Dubai-Frankfurt
Photoreview: Lufthansa First Class Lounge, Concourse A Schengen (FRA)
Review: Lufthansa First Class, Frankfurt-Astana
Top Attractions in Kazakhstan
Review: Hilton Garden Inn Astana
Review: Astana Airport Transit Hotel
Review: Lufthansa First Class Astana-Frankfurt
Photoreview: Lufthansa Welcome Lounge, Frankfurt (FRA)
Review: Lufthansa First Class, Frankfurt-Dubai
Review: Hilton Garden Inn Dubai Al Muraqabat
Photoreview: British Airways Galleries Club, Dubai T1 Concourse D (DXB)
Photoreview: Qatar Airways Dubai Premium Lounge, Dubai T1 Concourse D (DXB)
Review: Qatar Airways First Class, Dubai-Doha
Review: Qatar Airways Dreamliner Business Class, Doha-Stockholm

Qatar Airways B777 first class, Dubai to Doha

Flight: QR 1023
Departure time, DXB: 13:30
Arrival time, DOH: 13:40
Aircraft: Boeing 777-300 ER
Seat: 3A
Duration: 1h 10m
Date of flight: September 13, 2016
*Revenue Ticket, Business Class flight #110

Dubai International Airport Terminal 1

I took a taxi from the Hilton Garden Inn Dubai Al Muraqabat where I stayed the night before and since there was no traffic, the journey went quickly. I was at the airport more than 4 hours before departure which was good since I wanted to have enough time to visit the Qatar Airways Premium Lounge as well as that of British Airways and the Skyteam Lounge.

Check-in

I already had my mobile boarding pass but needed to pass by the check in desk to check-in my luggage. The check in agent was friendly and in a few minutes, I was ready to go to the security and passport control.

My Qatar Airways mobile boarding pass

There was no fast track lane for premium passengers although there was not much people so it went pretty quickly. After the passport and security control, I took the train to the departure gates.

Taking the train to the departure gates.

Dubai International Airport, Concourse D

Dubai Airport free wifi access

Qatar Airways Premium Lounge

Then, it was time to visit the gorgeous Qatar Airways Premium Lounge. I have to say that the staff were very friendly and that the food and drinks offering were extensive. Furthermore, the design is very elegant and reminded me of their very own Al Mourjan Business Lounge in Doha which was awarded the best business class lounge in the world by Skytrax. I was also able to visit the British Airways Galleries Club which although not as impressive because of the limited food offering, was still a very nice lounge compared to the one they had in Concourse C. A little after 12:30pm, I left the lounge and headed to the departure gate.

Aircraft, Boeing 777-300

Qatar Airways Boeing 777-300 bound for Doha

Boarding, Gate D13

Boarding started around 12:55 beginning with families with kids followed by first class and status passengers.

Jet bridge

As I boarded, I was welcomed by Grace, the Filipina Cabin Service Director, who then directed me to my seat.

First Class Cabin

The cabin with a configuration of 2-2-2 has a total of 24 seats but only 3 were taken on this flight to Doha.

Qatar Airways Boeing 777-300 first class cabin

Seat 3A

My seat, 3A.

Personal screen

Spacious legroom

Magazine rack

IFE magazines, duty free catalog, Oryx magazine, etc.

The entertainment controls is located under the right armrest ...

...while the seat controls are on the left arm rest.

There are also reading lamps located between the two seats.

Air vents

A few minutes after settling in, I was offered a pre-departure beverage by Raluca, one of the flight attendants working in the first class cabin, as well as my choice of hot or cold towel. I settled for a glass of water with a slice of lemon and a cold towel. Doly, the other flight attendant working in the cabin came to take my meal order. I chose the prawn salad (the other was vegetable salad) and apple juice for my drink.

Arabic coffee and dates being offered

Moments later, I was offered some Arabic coffee and dates. I had to decline but requested to take their photo which was granted. Thanks guys 😉

Around 1:20pm, the captain came on the PA to welcome us onboard.

Ten minutes later, the safety video started to play.

View of Air India and Emirates planes from my seat.

As we started our pushback from the gate, a small present was handed to the first class passengers which consisted of chocolates to celebrate Eid!

Airshow enroute to Doha

We had a smooth take off and moments later, we were airborne.

View of Dubai skyline with the prominent Burj Khalifa in the center.

Dining

This is actually my favorite part of this flight. I've flown a few times in Qatar Airways first class within the gulf and I'm just amazed by how they are able to do the meal service in such a short flight. Of course, this flight is not really full but my previous flights with them like my flight from Abu Dhabi to Doha earlier this year was almost full and the service was fantastic. Again, I salute the crew for such an amazing job.

Qatar Airways "Prawn Salad"

My prawn salad was tasty as usual although I had to skip the dessert since I was already full.

Lavatory

Qatar Airways first class lavatory with products from Rituals

Qatar Airways first class toilet

Qatar Airways arrival info

Arrival in Doha Hamad International Airport

We landed at the Hamad International Airport around 13:21 local time, and it took us about 6 minutes before we reached our gate. Fortunately, there was no security control from this flight so I headed immediately to the Al Mourjan Lounge where I spent a few hours before taking my flight back to Stockholm.

CONCLUSION

Just like my previous intra-gulf flights on Qatar Airways, this turn out very well again. The flight attendants were very friendly and professional, the food was great and the service excellent. I loved the special gift we got for the celebration of Eid as it only shows they wanted to make this flight special. To all the crew on this flight, "Shukran!"


Related Posts:

Review: Finnair Business Class, Helsinki-Stockholm

Review: SAS Business Class, Copenhagen-Stockholm