Underrated: Qatar Airways A380 Business Class Review from Heathrow to Doha
- Helena
- Sep 6
- 10 min read
If you know me, it is an incredibly well known fact that I have an unhealthy obsession with the humble Airbus A380! I am well aware that not everyone agrees with me (you’re wrong) and that a lot of people consider the Boeing 747 the best plane in the sky (you’re still wrong).
I have dreamt for a long time about flying on the Airbus A380, it’s been on the proverbial bucket list for about 15 years. Sam was well aware of this and, without me knowing, made sure to book the A380 flight with Qatar to Doha on our way to New Zealand so that I could experience this wonderful plane.
The flight, was amazing, and today ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, we are reviewing this flight!
The photos that you see today were taken before we decided to make Points Well Made, so these have come out of our personal albums, if you're wondering why the framing might be a bit off...
A Chaotic Start Before Heathrow
Whilst this was a dream come true the day had not started in the best of ways, and this is no word of a lie. The night before a van had veered off the road, crashed into our house and written Sam’s car off which was sat on our drive. The morning was spent emailing house insurance, phoning car insurance and also trying to explain to our solicitors and our estate agent what the heck had happened… Did I mention we were in the process of exchanging on a house move! Yeah, great timing!
So, once Sam’s car had been towed away it was time to hot foot it up to Heathrow, and begin to, 1) calm down after an exhausting 15 hours, and 2) start to get excited about a trip of a lifetime!
Business Class Check-In at Heathrow Terminal 4
The flight started with the Business Class check in area in Terminal 4, where we were whisked to a check-in desk, handed the famous lemon mint drink which Qatar serves and enjoyed a speedy, efficient and utterly delightful check in experience. They were surprised we only had three (admittedly large) holdalls for three weeks in New Zealand, this may be the only time I have ever been considered to have “packed light” … an otherwise totally foreign concept to me. After all, they wouldn't give you a weight limit to aim for right?
We then headed through security, again very quick and easy and headed to the little known about observation room where you get unrivalled views of the 09R/27L Runway (yeah, we’re getting technical girl) where we watched our gorgeous A380 which would be taking us to Doha perform a graceful landing. We then hot footed it to the lounge because you know that after the night we had we needed champagne, stat!
Qatar Airways Business Lounge, Heathrow T4
The Qatar Business Lounge is a lovely space. You are greeted with a table of stunning (real) orchids, so beautiful I had to send to my mum who is an orchid aficionado.
The lounge is bright and light, with floor to ceiling windows all the way from the lounge/sofa area right to the other end of the dining room. The windows show various gates below so some plane spotting is possible. Yes a runway view would be better but this is T4, you’re in the far corner of the airport so you can’t have everything!
We wiled away a couple of easy hours here, having some food despite the fact that we knew we were getting three course on the plane. I had the sushi, served with a gorgeous amount of ginger and wasabi! Sam had the steak, of course! The staff are attentive but not always as sharp as they could be, it was quite a busy time period as the lounge seating area was basically full.
After a few glasses of Laurent-Perrier each we then headed over to the gate to board our bird.
As you can see, I was incredibly excited, this really was such a bucket list moment for me, and the smile stayed on my face until I fell asleep whilst watching Harry Potter!
What Did We Pay?
This is the tricky part, we always tell you what we paid for each flight, but this one was leg one of a two leg epic journey with Qatar Airways to Auckland. For the whole leg from Heathrow to Auckland we paid 90,000 Avios, and £421.99 in taxes each, talk about a bargain! We talked all about how we booked this amazing points redemption in this article, and it's well worth a read.
Boarding the Qatar Airways A380
As we were incredibly lucky to be travelling in Business we boarded fairly early on. We were escorted to our seats, on the top deck, which is just insane to think about, by a member of the crew before we settled in to what is an incredibly comfy seat, more on that later.
The seat was beautifully presented with drinks menu, food menu and of course the infamous Dyptique Amenity kit. This really is the best amenity kit I’ve ever had on a plane, close second is British Airways First Class. You get good size products, including a handcream, scent, lip balm and a face cream. Plus your usual socks and eye mask, which Sam really rates!
The crew came round to introduce themselves, and from the start they were attentive and professional. Nothing was too much trouble, and there were always floating around to assist with anything you might need. We were offered a welcome drink, we both requested champagne … because can you ever have too much? They then came round with Arabic coffee and dates as another welcome. The coffee was delicious and the date, sumptuous. This was a lovely touch to a fantastic boarding process, and we felt so well looked after even from that.
The crew came back to take food orders from Sam, and the crew member who was looking after me ran me through my specials meals. She was an absolute delight and always talked me through each course to confirm that no dairy had been used.
We were also given a Diptyque scented, damp, hand towel. It was divine, and smells amazing, and ruins you for all other hand towel experiences on planes. Yeah it wasn’t warm but honestly that was quite nice. I used the majority of the ones given to us through out the four flights we did but I did bring some home with me and gave them to my sister and my mum because I knew they’d love them!
I like to give my mum at least one of the amenity kits I get from each business flight we do, and she’s had quite a good collection from BA, Malaysian, Virgin Atlantic and now Qatar.
We taxied, and took off, and I was amazed by how you could barely feel the A380 move or take off. It was buttery smooth and I honestly cannot wait to fly more on this bird.
The Business Class Seat
The A380s are fitted with an older product on board, aka not Q-Suites. However we were totally aware of this when we booked it as we had done our research. We had opted for two seats next to each other in the middle so that we could chat and squeal (Helena) over the fact we were on an A380!
The seats themselves were ridiculously comfortable. Whilst there was no door or privacy panel on the aisles, the seats were angled away from each other enough to mean you didn’t accidentally catch someone’s eye whilst sat down. Mine and Sam’s seat angled in towards each other with all our in seat storage in between us. There was also a privacy screen which could have been put up if we decided to have a massive argument. Not really our style but you never know!
The seat had good padding, and despite me not even putting it into fully flat bed mode, I still conked out on this seat. I usually find it quite a challenge to fall asleep on a plane, usually because it's just all too exciting, but I could have honestly slept the whole way to Auckland on this seat!
There was plenty of space and legroom, not hard for me, and in seat storage, something that we love a lot. The tray table sits under the screen and pulls out towards you and folds out to create a huge space, perfect for food or a laptop. It is also wonderfully sturdy, so no wobbling around whilst you type out a strongly worded email!
The Onboard Bar
Yeah, there is a bar on board.
We spent a good 45 minutes sat here having a cocktail prior to dinner, and chatting away about our three week adventure to come, how amazing the experience had been so far and pinching ourselves on how lucky we are. When I say the crew do not scrimp on the shot sizes, I ain’t joking honey! These cocktails were STRONG! So strong that neither of us could manage to finish them!
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Dining Onboard Qatar Airways Business Class
Something that is exceptionally cool about Qatar Airways is their Dine On Demand. When the crew members come round to take your food order at the start of the flight, they will then ask you when you want your food. We opted to eat about 2 hours into the flight as it was an evening flight and we wanted this to be the last meal before aiming to have a good chunk of sleep on the flight from Doha to Auckland. Sam though... more on that later.
For the sake of my stomach, and not to ruin the first week in New Zealand… and also because we’d be living in close quarters in a van with little ventilation in reality (read between the lines), I opted for a lactose free meal on this flight. Sam of course had full run of the menu and tried as much as possible!
My starter was this amazing lentil salad with an avocado sauce and peppers and aubergine. When I say I could have licked the plate clean I am not joking, I almost did! Utterly delicious, well balanced, perfectly seasoned. Everything that you expect from a business class meal on Qatar.
Sam had the Smoked Scottish Salmon Carpaccio with Avocado and Ricotta, I am currently writing this staring at the photo he took which is taunting me. It was again, outstanding.
Sam then went all in, because why not, and had the Lobster Thermidor. He had wanted to try it for ages and was delighted he did. It was served with dauphinoise potatoes and asparagus, both cooked really well.
My main was a fish dish with potatoes, carrots and herbs. It was ok. Honestly if they could have just given me three courses of my starter I would have been happy but there you go. You win some, you lose some. It wasn’t awful, it was just very lemony which overpowered the dish somewhat.
Dessert for Sam was this amazing looking chocolate torte with salted caramel. It smelt amazing (I can’t eat these things so I torture myself by smelling them).
My dessert was a chocolate vegan thing and it really wasn’t my jam. Where they don’t use gelatin they use some other sort of structural agent and it always gives this grainy texture to a dessert which almost curdles in your mouth. This is not exclusive to Qatar, this was on Emirates too and I have just come to expect it from a dessert on a plane now. A small price to pay for not looking pregnant for the next week! Honestly I think I would rather just have a fruit plate which is the other dessert alternative, but that’s a but unoriginal!
Somehow Sam still had room for more, so decided to have a "light meal" of the breaded prawn burger. Yes the chips were slightly limp, something that's hard to get right when they've been reheated, but the prawn burger hit the spot.
You'll find the full menu below.
In-Flight Entertainment (IFE)
Qatar’s Oryx One entertainment system is excellent, with a wide choice of films, TV shows, and classics. so many options from new films all the way to the classics like Harry Potter and Lord of the Rings. I waited until the flight home to crack into those bad boys as I wanted the next time I watched them to be filled with thoughts of “I’ve Been There”.
Instead I binged season two of House of the Dragon (apparently my “plane only” tradition now). I then wanted a break so popped on Harry Potter and The Prisoner of Azkaban and promptly fell asleep. I do not remember doing this, but I had a good 50 minute nap! HA! As you can see, I was pure gone!
The screen is a great size, with the brightness and clarity incredibly good. This will sound funny, but the Harry Potter films and also the House of the Dragon are good ones to test the screens with, as some of them use quite dark, moody and almost muddy colour palettes, so unless you have a good screen it's just going to look dark with no level of contrast. Both worked really well on this screen.
Final Thoughts: Qatar Airways A380 Business Class Review from Heathrow to Doha
This Qatar Airways A380 Business Class flight from London Heathrow to Doha is easily one of my top five flights ever. The A380 itself is a joy to fly on: smooth, quiet, and comfortable.
While these A380s don’t feature Q-Suites, the comfort, storage, service, and onboard bar more than make up for it. Qatar Airways continues to prove why it’s considered one of the world’s best airlines, with outstanding crew and top-tier dining.
If you’re an aviation enthusiast or just want to experience the magic of the Airbus A380 before it disappears from the skies, this route should be on your bucket list. I, for one, cannot wait to fly her again.
The experience of flying with Qatar was also outstanding. Don't get me wrong, the Q-Suite will always win for me, however this seat doesn't get enough credit. I understand that people want privacy, and yes if you were flying for longer you might want that but honestly, I could have flown this plane for longer. I distinctly remember thinking "man I wish this was the seat we had in the next leg" as it was just that comfy. And if that isn't the perfect way to sum up a plane review, I don't know what is.
Helena
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