Gulf Air / Qatar Air and Kathmandu questions

UnderwaterRhymes · February 2012

I'm traveling to Kathmandu soon and am debating two different flights.

One departs out of my home city through London and Bahrain on Gulf Air.

The other routes through DC and onward to Doha then to KTM on Qatar. I've heard great things about Qatar Air, but am wondering if it's worth the extra $200.

Also - any suggestions on what to do in Kathmandu? I'll be there for work, but should have some play time as well.

Jells2dot0 · February 2012

I flew Qatar Air from the Seychelles to Doha. It was a 4 hour flight and probably one of the worst I've been on. We tried to buy upgrades to business, but the airline refused the cash. Business class was EMPTY!!! Literally noone was up there. On a positive, the attendants are every nice, the entertainment offerings are decent, and the food was okay. One negative is that the seats on this particular plane reclined back further than normal coach seats, but they did not give the rows any extra leg room. I was trapped in my seat, had to sit at an angle to view the TVs, and to top it off, the family behind us was incredibly loud and rude. Obviously not the fault of Qatar Air, but the dad placed his legs behind my chair in such a way that my seat could not recline. It was very obvious that he was doing it and it was very obvious that I was uncomfortable, and it was very obvious that the child behind my FI was shaking my FI's seat and the attendants just continued to let the kids scream and the dad lay awkwardly in the row. I said something, but the family either didn't understand English or pretended to not understand. I know that my rant is probably just a personal one and shouldn't be reflective of the airline, but at the same time, they need to fix those seats!!! One thing I will say about the Doha airport is that the staff was very friendly and accommodating.

sunshine608 · February 2012

Qatar airways customer service is the worst. I will never fly with them if I have a choice because of my experience with that.

Now the the flight and flight personel were great. Just booking my flight ( had to book it in Doha) and dealing with the customer service over the phone was horrible.

Brit's Luna154 · February 2012

Here are some of the things that we did in Kathmandu last fall: http://eatrunbrit.com/2011/11/09/exploring-the-kathmandu-valley/

UnderwaterRhymes · February 2012

This is super helpful. I had heard only good things about Qatar Air, so it's somewhat relieving to know that they're not standing necessarily head and shoulders above Gulf.

Thanks for the link, Brit! Your pictures are amazing. We're going to do some of the temples, and also a short trek out of Pokhara, but no Everest here either.

jupiter2311 · February 2012

I haven't been to Kathmandu, but I do have an idea of the airlines. If you have a choice between Gulf Air and Qatar Air, I would choose Qatar Air. I fly Gulf Air quite frequently as I live in Bahrain, but it's better for short trips. I've also flown it for longer flights and have had seriously awful experiences - broken seats, broken bathrooms, cancelled flights with no warning, etc. Out of all of the Gulf airlines - Qatar, Emirates and Etihad are the best and if you have the option I would choose any of those over Gulf. At least you'll have a better entertainment system and a bit more comfort. Airport wise, neither Doha or Bahrain are anything to write home about.

JennyBee1018 · February 2012

UnderwaterRhymes:
This is super helpful. I had heard only good things about Qatar Air, so it's somewhat relieving to know that they're not standing necessarily head and shoulders above Gulf.

I live in Doha, Qatar and fly Qatar Airways all the time! I fly consistently from here to Dubai, as well the long haul flights to DC. I think they definitely stand head and shoulders above Gulf Air!

Qatar Airways service is amazing. The entertainment section is great, and you have your own tv in front of you with tons of current movies and tv shows. The food is good and there are always a few options - usually chicken/lamb/veggie indian. Also, all beverages, including alcohol are completely free. They also leave out snacks in the back for the long flight so you can get up and walk around and stretch your legs. I've never had bad service or a bad flight with QA!

If it were me, and I had a choice, I would 100% choose Qatar Air over Gulf Air. I know Gulf Air is trying to improve their service, but they're not in the same class as Qatar, Emirates or Etihad.

Trust me, take the Qatar Airways flight - you won't regret it!

azure_azure · February 2012

I also love Qatar Air. I've always had great service, good food and we were even upgraded to business class for free the first time we flew with them.

The only downside we had was the long layover in Doha in the middle of the night - the airport was freezing, but that wouldn't stop me from travelling with them again.

UnderwaterRhymes · February 2012

Thanks all! I went with Qatar Air.

Gulf Air / Qatar Air and Kathmandu questions

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