FeuilladeTravel: Airline review: Qatar Airways B787-800 economy class, Stockholm to Doha

Qatar Airways B787 economy class, Stockholm (ARN) to Doha (DOH)

---
01. Trip report introduction
02. Qatar Airways B787-800 economy class, Stockholm to Doha
03. Qatar Airways A350-900 economy class, Doha to Singapore
04. Champion City Hotel, Singapore
05. Photo Essay: Singapore
06. Sats Premier Lounge, Changi Airport
07. Qatar Airways A350-1000 business class, Singapore to Doha
08. Photo Essay: Doha
09. Al Mourjan Lounge, Hamad International Airport
10. Qatar Airways A350-900 business class, Doha to Stockholm
---

Stockholm (ARN) to Doha (DOH)

Date: 2018-10-27
Flight number: QR170
Aircraft: Boeing 787-8
Registration: A7-BCQ
Age of aircraft: 4 years
Duration of flight: 5:57 (gate to gate)
Seat: 30D

Seat map with my seat (30D) in red. Courtesy of Seatguru.com

It's always a nice feeling to arrive at Arlanda. Especially when you know you're about to board a widebody and embark on another adventure! I arrived two hours before scheduled time of departure this morning. No need to arrive earlier than that, as I travelled light with only a carry-on bag, and had already checked in online. Besides, I travelled in economy class on this flight, so I had no lounge access at Arlanda either.

Security was really fast this morning, and there was no line for the passport control. A little surprising, as this was after all the Saturday morning when the schools had just closed for one week, when many families travel south in order to gather some more vitamin D before winter.

Surprisingly empty at ARN this morning

Where is everybody? It's not like I arrived four hours prior to departure...

It would have been a great option to fly directly to SIN on SQ, but today I wanted to try Qatar. Maybe some other time!

Boarding started at gate F58 almost half an hour late, but it was still fairly efficient, and we only pushed back seven minutes behind schedule. My first impression of the cabin was that it was nice and spacious, not quite unlike the Emirates triple seven. The Dreamliner feels more sleek, though, and is definitely an airplane that I love to fly on!

Getting in line for boarding!

Gate F58 this morning

Ah, there she is! I'm getting excited!

Inside the jet bridge

Maroon seats and pinkish LED lighting - I like it!

Seat 30D - mine for this hop to Doha

After flying to Mauritius earlier this year, I made a promise to myself to pick aisle seats when flying mid- to longhaul flights. Sure I love a window seat, but it's not worth it when you try to stay hydrated and have to visit the loo every now and then, or just want to stretch your legs a bit. Therefore, I reserved seat 30D for this flight. An aisle seat quite far down in the bowels of economy class. Since the aircraft had a 3-3-3 configuration, the person sitting next to me could just as easily climb over the passenger in 30F instead of me. So in this seat, I could get up whenever I wanted to, but I never had to get up just because the person next to me wanted to get up. Score!

Why, thank you!

Good legroom

Seat detail

Ready for pushback!

They didn't serve food until an hour into the flight, and I was a little disappointed to see that it was called "breakfast". I had been hoping for an early lunch, but oh well... The frittata was actually really tasty, so there was no need for disappointment at all! The IFE had decent selections, but the sound wasn't very reliable. It worked well enough to watch a movie though. Wi-fi was advertised, but didn't work on this particular flight.

An IFE that has Jimmy Eat World in their selection is a great IFE!

Breakfast? At this hour? Sigh...

One of the cons of sitting waaaay back in economy class. I'm hungry!

Here at last!

Mixed pepper frittata with corned beef hash - really tasty!

"Real" cutleries with the Qatar logo on them

Fresh fruit

The cabin was fresh, and so was the lavatory, which was kept in a good condition throughout the flight. Spacious enough for an obligatory selfie as well. Just like Emirates, Qatar serve alcohol in economy class (despite coming from and flying to strictly islamic countries), and a bunch of older passengers took advantage of that. Unlike on Emirates, however, the flight attendant actually urged them to drink water as well. I hope that they had onward flights, and weren't passing through Qatari immigration. (Or maybe I don't...)

Lavatory selfie!

An hour or so before landing in Doha, a chicken shawarma snack was served. Just like breakfast, it was really tasty, and the catering was definitely exceeding my expectations. To go with the snack, I had a diet Pepsi and an apple juice. Drinking a lot (of non-alcoholic beverages) is important for two reasons when flying mid- or long haul. First, you need to stay hydrated, and second, you get to stretch your legs whether you like it or not during your frequent visits to the loo.

Snack time!

Really tasty!

Staying hydrated is important!

Trying another lavatory this time...

The flight was pretty uneventful, apart from some slight turbulence above the Caucasus, and later just prior to landing. It had been a good flight, though, with excellent food, professional crew, fresh cabin and comfortable seat. The IFE could have worked a little better, but other than that, I'd say that my first experience with Qatar Airways was a really good one, and as we landed in Doha, I was looking forward to my connecting flight, QR942 to Singapore!