Doha layover?

[Hyde Hunter]

looking at flying Qatar next year, sorry to say economy. but I wonder if a 2hr and 25 min is long enough to get plane transfer in Doha or if longer is needed? I will be taking my rifles and using Jennifer at Travel express. thanks for the info

 

[JimP]

In my mind that should be fine, I believe that is about what mine was a couple of years ago when we flew Qatar.

However, flying economy I would opt for Delta and just a 15 hour flight. that 16 or so hours to Doha and then another 8 hours to Joberg in economy is a killer. I really didn't notice it going over, perhaps the excitement of the upcoming hunt but those flights home were as miserable as a flight can get.

You might also find that with all the flights that you will be packed in like sardines in a can. Qatar is a major airline flying people all over the middle east and Asia. Our flight out of Dallas was delayed over a hour just because of boarding problems and trying to get every one in and seated.

I would much rather pay a little extra and suffer through the shorter flights than fly Qatar economy again.

 

[Altitude sickness]

I would not want that short of layover in Doha.

You need :30 to get off the plane on the Tarmac and get to the terminal. Then :30 at least from the cattle loading dock waiting on a bus to get to the plane on the tarmac.

 

[Mark Biggerstaff]

I have done Qatar on 2 trips, 2.5 -3.5 hr layover on both. I was flying Business but had plenty of time on both.

If flying coach tho I would go Delta. Not worth all the extra flying time. Qatar coach is usually packed tight.

 

[Puddle]

I remember asking Jennifer way back when that same question. Are you sure that's enough?

It was, no problems.

 

[mdwest]

They won’t announce the gate of your follow on flight until2 hours prior to departure. 2.5 hours is plenty of time assuming your flight from the US arrives in Doha on time.

We fly Qatar pretty much every year out of DFW and typically have a 2.5-3.5 hour layover… never missed a flight…

This year for some reason the early arrival flight into joberg wasn’t available.. so we’ve got a 9 hour layover… we’ll be spending some time in the Al Maha lounge..lol

 

[Bivy]

I’ve transited through Doha six times in the past year. That is plenty of time to make the connection. No worries!

@mdwest try to get into Al Mourjan if possible. It has far nicer services.

 

[Edster]

Plenty of time.

 

[PHOENIX PHIL]

looking at flying Qatar next year, sorry to say economy. but I wonder if a 2hr and 25 min is long enough to get plane transfer in Doha or if longer is needed? I will be taking my rifles and using Jennifer at Travel express. thanks for the info

I've flown QA twice to Africa in coach both times. I personally find even with the extended flight time in comparison to Delta to be a more enjoyable experience as the flight staff treat you much better. Whatever the case, it took on both trips about an hour to deplane and make it back thru security and into the terminal for the next flight out. So 2.5 hours should be plenty.

Furthermore, QA will ensure your firearms are loaded on the next flight before they allow you to board. I know this from personal experience. At boarding time on our flights, they held me up for just a moment as their screen flashed I was traveling with firearms. It was only a moment and the one agent told me why.

 

[Wishfulthinker580]

We had that amount of time on the way home last year. The 2.5 hrs was ok but not much time to stretch your legs. I can’t remember what lounge we had on the way home but it only had one shower and that made things a little difficult since it had to be cleaned by the attendant after each use.

The 4 hour layover on the way over was great and the other lounge (can’t remember the name) was way better with multiple bathroom attendants and 4-6 showers.

If my options were to either connect in Doha or overnight in RSA I honestly think I would go through RSA. If those were my only choices.. That 15 hours to Doha and 8 hours to Windhoek are absolutely brutal in cattle class and that’s with the extra leg room option. 9 hrs and 16 hrs on the way home…

As has been mentioned before, the flights to Doha and on the way home will be cram packed. There will be plenty of time to familiarize yourself with the cultural differences and personal hygiene of people from parts east of Doha.

 

[Wishfulthinker580]

I would not want that short of layover in Doha.

You need :30 to get off the plane on the Tarmac and get to the terminal. Then :30 at least from the cattle loading dock waiting on a bus to get to the plane on the tarmac.

I tend to agree with this. Especially if rifles are involved AND you want a shower and a few moments to relax. I didn’t bring a rifle but there was next to zero extra time in my experience at least

 

[Mekaniks]

We traveled through Doha last year going both directions. Doha airport is huge but it is very well marked, all signs in English, and is fairly easy to to navigate compared to some of the US airports such as LAX and DFW.
I had much more layover time than you do, but could have easily made connections in 2 hrs....

 

[Altitude sickness]

It also matters what time of day. 6:00-10:00 AM
Then 10:00PM through 2:00 AM are peak times

 

[Doug3006]

I think that layover is doable in Doha. They are one of the more efficient airports I’ve used. Thats if everything goes according to schedule. If your arriving flight is late by 30 minutes or more, you May have trouble with you bags making it. I like 4-6 hours to get a bit more breathing room.

 

[dchum]

looking at flying Qatar next year, sorry to say economy. but I wonder if a 2hr and 25 min is long enough to get plane transfer in Doha or if longer is needed? I will be taking my rifles and using Jennifer at Travel express. thanks for the info

I trust Jennifer and Daren

But like other have said. It takes 30 mins plus to get off the plane and be bused to security.

You have to go through security in Doha airport regardless and then not much time to catch your breath after a 15+ hour flight.

It is doable as they are efficient and well organized airport but not what I would want!

Ask about options and your needs!

 

[dchum]

We had that amount of time on the way home last year. The 2.5 hrs was ok but not much time to stretch your legs. I can’t remember what lounge we had on the way home but it only had one shower and that made things a little difficult since it had to be cleaned by the attendant after each use.

The 4 hour layover on the way over was great and the other lounge (can’t remember the name) was way better with multiple bathroom attendants and 4-6 showers.

If my options were to either connect in Doha or overnight in RSA I honestly think I would go through RSA. If those were my only choices.. That 15 hours to Doha and 8 hours to Windhoek are absolutely brutal in cattle class and that’s with the extra leg room option. 9 hrs and 16 hrs on the way home…

As has been mentioned before, the flights to Doha and on the way home will be cram packed. There will be plenty of time to familiarize yourself with the cultural differences and personal hygiene of people from parts east of Doha.

Yep now that there is no more Doha to Windhoek direct I am moving on.

We will now be over nighting in SA at Africa sky and then waking up rested and flying to @KHOMAS HIGHLAND HUNTING SAFARIS the next morning.


I would prefer to do what I did last time but with Qatar removing direct Namibia it just makes more sense.

 

[wesheltonj]

I looked back at my flights last year. Going over I had a layover of 2 hours and 5 minutes. I was able to head to the lounge, take a shower, eat and knock back at least two drinks. Returning to the USA, had a layover of 1 hour and 5 minutes. No lounge time on that layover. My gun made all flights on-time.

 

[sgt_zim]

looking at flying Qatar next year, sorry to say economy. but I wonder if a 2hr and 25 min is long enough to get plane transfer in Doha or if longer is needed? I will be taking my rifles and using Jennifer at Travel express. thanks for the info

We're flying Qatar next month on our way to JNB. The direct to Qatar from IAH is 14.5 hours, plus a 9 hour layover in Doha.

For me, it was a no-brainer. I'm bringing the missus, so doing business class for 2 was just not in the budget. I'm 6'6" and she's 5'11". Upgrading to economy+ brought us in at just under 2200 USD each. Upgrading to econ+ on Delta or UA would have put us right at 3K each.

I will happily deal with the extra air time and layover time to not be crammed in my seat on an international flight where the dude in front of me bounces his seat off my knees trying to recline.

I don't fly over salt water as much as some of the guys here, but this ain't my first rodeo leaving CONUS. In my experience, foreign carriers just kick the shit out of US carriers, and it isn't even close.

When things go well, as they usually do, UA and Delta aren't bad. But when things don't go well, their customer service is, to put it as politely as I can, wanting.

The pity of it all is that the shortest flight to JNB from CONUS would be from Logan, but there are no directs from Logan to JNB. EWR -> JNB is a shorter flight than ATL -> JNB. But I wouldn't fly UA (EWR) if you held a gun to my head. 20+ years on, I'm still pissed that UA acquired Continental.

 

[mdwest]

For me, it was a no-brainer. I'm bringing the missus, so doing business class for 2 was just not in the budget. I'm 6'6" and she's 5'11". Upgrading to economy+ brought us in at just under 2200 USD each. Upgrading to econ+ on Delta or UA would have put us right at 3K each..

I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised and happy you did the economy plus upgrade.

I’m in a similar situation… we go pretty much every year.. and typically do at least 1 additional international trip every year.. and I’m usually buying 3-4 tickets (myself, wife, and a kid or two)… so economy is the best solution for us..

Thankfully I’m a “platinum pro” flyer with American.. and their code shared with Qatar… so I book through American and get auto upgrades to economy+…

We buy tickets well in advance and always select the bulkhead seats…no one in front of us.. and even more leg room than the normal economy plus seats.. like you, I’m tall (6’4”)… and these days a bit wider than I should be… so any extra space I can grab is welcomed…

Qatar is a very good airline… it is the only carrier we consider out of DFW going to South Africa anymore… I don’t even bother pricing anyone else…

 

[JimP]

I trust Jennifer and Daren

But like other have said. It takes 30 mins plus to get off the plane and be bused to security.

You have to go through security in Doha airport regardless and then not much time to catch your breath after a 15+ hour flight.

It is doable as they are efficient and well organized airport but not what I would want!

Ask about options and your needs!

2 years ago we didn't have to go through security either way since we stayed in the same terminal so to speak. All of our flights were international.