ŁukaszSometimes, Avios can be bought at discounted rates during special promotions or sales, providing good value for money. And...
Qatar Airways Upgrades:
All you need to know
Łukasz
Introduction
Navigating the world of business class flights can be an interesting journey in itself. The idea of spacious legroom, gourmet meals, priority boarding, and superior in-flight amenities is tantalizing, but these luxuries come with a price tag that often exceeds the cost of an economy class ticket by a substantial margin. In this article, I will show you that it’s possible to flight in business class cabin for much lower cost with Qatar Airways upgrades.
Qatar Airways’ Business Class offers passengers a heightened air travel experience. From the moment you arrive at the airport, the luxury treatment begins with expedited priority check-in and boarding procedures, designed to provide a seamless and hassle-free start to your journey.
Stepping onto the aircraft, the premium experience continues. Business Class cabins are designed to offer a luxurious and spacious environment. You can often transform your seat into fully flat beds, that provide an optimal level of comfort, coupled with enhanced legroom. This allows passengers to rest and arrive at their destination feeling refreshed.
In-flight dining in Qatar Airways Business Class redefines airline cuisine. The airline offers a wide selection of premium meals, presented in a dine-on-demand manner that prioritizes the passenger’s choice. This includes a choice of multi-course meals, supplemented with an array of wines and spirits.
To further improve your comfort, an amenity kit filled with high-quality comfort items such as sleep masks, earplugs, and skincare products is provided. This personal kit ensures that you have everything you need to feel refreshed during and after your flight.
Lounge access
I didn’t mention access to the exclusive Qatar Airways’ Business Class lounges on purpose. They are great and they allow to relax or work in a serene and comfortable environment. These lounges are well-appointed with a variety of services including top-notch food and beverages, shower facilities, and workstations to cater to every passenger’s needs. Unfortunately, access to the lounge is excluded when you upgrade your fare to Qatar Airways business class. You can, however, add Lounge access to your booking.
While booking your tickets in Qatar Airways Business Class can be expensive, there are few options that can allow you to upgrade and travel with enhanced experiences for much lower cost.
Upgrade with Avios
Since 2022 Qatar Airways adopted Avios as its official rewards currency. Thanks to that, you can accumulate Avios through other partner airlines (ex. British Airways, Iberia) and exchange them with 1:1 ratio.
You can use Avios for an upgrade to Business Class cabin and it’s relatively simple process:
- Login to your Qatar Airways account and go to Dashboard.
- Select “Spend your Avios” option, go to “Upgrade with Qatar Airways” tab and provide your booking details:
- Select passengers that you would like to upgrade & select flight:
- You will get One Time PIN (OTP) to your e-mail & mobile phone. After confirmation your flight will be updated.
Travel Advice
Remember that it’s always possible to buy Avios if you don’t have enough of them for the upgrade.
Moreover, since it’s possible to transfer Avios* between airlines that use them, you can also look for special offers that will give you bonus points so Qatar Airways Upgrades will be even more affordable.
* Important notice: Check if your account is eligible for transferring Avios before you buy them. For Iberia, account needs to exist 90 days prior to transfer.
Upgrade Offer
Another option for an upgrade is to accept Upgrade offer that should appear in your booking few days before departure. Check “Manage your booking” page or Qatar Airways mobile app frequently as you may not receive e-mail message with this offer. When offer is available, you will get an option to review it:
After accepting the offer, you will be able to provide your payment information.
Avios vs Cash upgrade
Example above shows that you need to be very careful with choosing your Qatar Airways Upgrades. Upgrade of DOH – SEZ flight was proposed at 4 200 PLN, which is equal to around 1000 – 1010 USD. Upgrading same flight with Avios costs 25 000 Avios, which is around 530 USD when buying Avios from Qatar Airways or 415 USD when buying through Iberia 50% Avios Bonus offer.
As you can see, it requires some effort to analyse potential options and find best deal but it’s definitely worth spending some time to choose best offer.
Approximate upgrade cost
You can find calculator for Avios upgrade on Qatar Airways website.
However, for Paid Upgrade it’s not that easy. Qatar Airways uses Dynamic Pricing to create Upgrade offer. Because of that, it’s not possible to predict exact cost of upgrade.
You will find some recent examples below:
MAN – DOH (Manchester – Hamad International):
1830 EUR
1230 EUR
620 EUR
SGN – DOH (Ho Chi Minh – Hamad International):
1000 USD
600 USD
DOH – MLE (Hamad International – Male)
880 USD
765 USD
534 USD
Is it worth to upgrade?
Qatar Airways Upgrades are great way to experience comfort, luxury, and excellent service during your flight. Ultimately, the decision to upgrade depends on your priorities, budget, and the overall value you assign to the upgraded experience.
Travel Advice
Personally, I follow simple rule when deciding if I should upgrade or not:
I can pay 80 – 100 USD per 1 hour of flight with Standard Airlines (Lufthansa, LOT, AirFrance, etc)
I can pay 100 – 120 USD per 1 hour of flight with Qatar Airways as Business Class experience they provide is worth spending a little bit more
Stay tunned for my Qatar Airways Business Class experiences that will be published pretty soon. Thanks for reading and I wish you many affordable Qatar Airways Upgrades!
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