(upbeat music)
- Flying to Istanbul, a special new aeroplane.
The Al Safwa First Class Lounge.
What is this? This is sand!
(whoosh and pop)
Oh yeah.
(bowl gongs)
Big gigantic bear with a lamp on top.
(buzzing)
Doctor?
- Kamran.
- Kamran?
- Yeah.
- From Afghanistan?
- Oh yes, that's right, no more PPE.
- In other business class suites like a Qsuite?
- That's right, that's right.
- But not exactly a Qsuite.
- Not exactly a Qsuite.
- Long time, no see this jacket.
Not a full flight.
Three, three, three.
But there's also advantage on the Dreamliner.
Literally saw the whole city, Istanbul.
Asia side and Europe side.
(upbeat music)
Back at Doha Airport today, flying to Istanbul.
And the reason is a special new aeroplane.
Lets fly guys.
Yeah this is a huge airport, but,
very quiet right now at this hour,
I came 4 hours early because I'm going now
to the Al Safwa First Class Lounge.
- [Sam] Hello, how are you?
- Really good, thank you sir.
- [Sam] Good to be back.
- Oh, good to see you again.
- [Sam] Yeah. Since when the lounge has opened?
- It's almost a month already.
(upbeat music)
- It didn't feel like a lounge here when I first walked in,
it actually felt like
an art gallery, water feature, and all the stuff
on display, and beautiful painting in the background.
(mellow music)
So let's go have a look at the facility here.
(rushing water)
- So this is a Tibetan room treatment sir.
- [Sam] This is a what?
- Tibetan massage.
- [Sam] What is this is sand?
- This is like a small stone,
its supposed to be more hot than this one.
- [Sam] Ohhh!
- You can put it inside you.
- So its hot, okay.
- So we will cover this one with a towel.
- [Sam] Uh huh.
- And we will start the treatment with the music.
This is for the manicure and pedicure.
- [Sam] Ah, a pedicure and manicure.
- The jacuzzi is temporarily closed.
- [Sam] Oh, it's closed now, jacuzzi.
- Yeah, normally we have some customer will lie
over here and relax, you can do for two person
but most customer they like to be alone.
- [Sam] Normal treatment room.
- Yes, this is the normal treatment room, we do the
facial, also here, we to the massage,
we do hot stone treatment.
- [Sam] I'm going to lay down.
Whoa, lie face down?
- Yes.
(pops and boings)
(Tibetan bowl gongs)
- [Sam] This is very nice, and then you know
what I actually sleeping under is, look at this is all
the sand and it feels like gold, golden nuggets here.
After a massage, I'm getting hungry, now getting some food
and drink, let's go!
(gentle music)
- Rose and Brut Saint-Julien
and Carmenere It's a French wine from 2008 vintage.
- [Sam] I'm really hungry so comfort food, spaghetti
with bolognese, what can be better?
(water noises)
It is so quiet here, you can hear the water coming down
from the roof, this is certainly the centrepiece feature
of Al-Safwa lounge.
(water noises)
- Some Arabic Coffee?
- [Sam] Oh yes, very nice.
- Baked treat?
- [Sam] Okay, thank you.
It is like a hotel here.
- So we have two type of rooms, single and doubles.
- [Sam] Oh, they have a private shower here as well?
(indistinct)
This is also a single room?
- Yes.
- Double room and a single room.
First 6 hours free, then you pay extra
if you want to stay longer than 6 hours.
- Yes.
- [Sam] Got it.
So before I am leaving the lounge, I just found out they
have a hidden corner, there is a sushi bar
and there is a salad bar over there.
Bye!
This is the feature I love the most at this airport
Is this big gigantic bear with the lamp on top, it's iconic
isn't it, I love it.
(upbeat music)
2:15 is the departure time but they haven't a security
clearance on this flight so we are waiting
to board here at the gate.
- My name is Dr. Kamron.
- [Sam] Doctor?
- Kameron.
- [Sam] Kameron.
- Yeah.
- [Sam] From Afghanistan?
- No, from Pakistan.
- [Sam] From Pakistan, okay.
- Welcome aboard.
- [Sam] Nice to meet you.
- Nice to meet you too, sir.
(upbeat music)
- [Sam] This is a fun one, when you are flying a
middle eastern airline, you see different nationalities.
- Exactly!
- [Sam] Sing Yong from Korea.
- From Korea.
- [Sam] There you go.
- And crew taking care of you on your side is Mochia.
- [Sam] Mochia?
- Hi!
- [Sam] You guys, I see you guys gone away
with the PPE, no more PPE.
- Oh yes, that's right, no more PPE
because all Qatar Airways crew, we are fully vaccinated.
- [Sam] Right, goodbye to the PPE
Yeah, this is why I'm here, right, this is the inner
business class suite, like a Qsuite.
- That's right, that's right.
- [Sam] But not exactly a Qsuite.
- Not exactly a Qsuite.
(upbeat music)
- The flying time is going to be 3 hours
and 15 minutes to Istanbul.
- [Sam] Wow, Air Canada 787 just landed, that's a long way
from Toronto to Doha if you see the airport is
currently expanding, you see cranes in the background
and that is because the airport was built brand new 2015
29 million capacity, currently 39 million, 10 million more
than expected, they need to quickly pick up the expansion
and ready for the World Cup next year.
(upbeat music)
- The wireless charging is right behind you.
- [Sam] Oh, it's wireless?
- Yes, it's wireless, you don't need your charger
for anything, you just pull on that dock.
Just keep it in the centre and there you go.
- [Sam] It's charging now, wow that's great, thank you.
I think this seat is all about privacy, this door makes
a lot of difference, how we sit isn't new but adding
that door is something different now.
Long time, no see this jacket.
- I know, I've missed it too, I really like this colour on me
- [Sam] I like the blue one.
- Yes.
- [Sam] My favourite, too.
- Thank you!
- Are you ready for lunch?
- [Sam] Yeah, ready for lunch.
- May I dress the table for you?
- [Sam] Sure.
- Allow me to open for you.
- [Sam] This table?
Oh, it's here.
- Yup.
- [Sam] Oh wow.
- So there is a small push button if you pull it right there
and just twist it.
- [Sam] Oh you stretch.
- Uh huh.
- [Sam] Oh like this.
- Yeah Keep it as per your liking.
- [Sam] Uh huh.
- Maybe at the back or...
- [Sam] Oh you can get out of the seat like this.
- Yes Salmon with scallops and cream cheese.
- [Sam] Oh my god, the kale it's bitter, it's painful,
when someone who don't like vegetables
eat a vegetarian meal.
(upbeat music)
- I have a little trick to show you during a COVID
times, if you're flying on 787-9, there is a little trick
in the toilet that you should know.
- [Sam] A trick, it's not a flushing toilet?
- It's not a flushing toilet
Usually after you use the toilet, you wash your hands
clean your hands and everything and you need
to touch the waste bin, we have a little pedal right there.
- [Sam] Oh, I see.
- Yeah.
- [Sam] So my foot here, and this will open.
- Yes, there you go.
- [Sam] Like this Oh.
What's for lunch today?
- We have 3 options for their lunch, we have a chicken
wafflette, a beef with mashed potatoes,
or a vegetarian option with rice and zucchini.
- Just I do chicken with rice.
- [Sam] Oh the chicken, how was it?
- It was good tasting.
- [Sam] Which part of Pakistan are you from?
- Lahore.
- [Sam] You're from Lahore?
- Yes.
- [Sam] Which airline is better, pIA or Qatar Airways?
- I love my Pakistan so PIA is the best.
- [Sam] PIA is the bravest one!
- Yes.
- [Sam] I come down here to out the economy seating
not a full flight, 3-3-3, lots of people complain
about the tightness on the Dreamliner because it's 9 seats
per row, a little bit tighter, the 350s also 3-3-3, a little
bit wider, but there's also advantage on the Dreamliner,
I feel the cabin humidity is better, and also the curvature
of the overhead bin create a lot of space
for you, so there is pros and cons on the 787 vs A350.
- If you're travelling together, we can lower the middle
partition seat just like the Qsuite, let me show it to you.
So you press the button, hold together and it lowers.
- [Sam] Oh yeah, so I think the only slight difference
is the Qsuite you sit together,
it's like a loveseat together
right, and this one is one face this way, one face my way.
So its a little like a diagonal shape
and the Qsuite is together.
I'm going to take a nap now after a meal,
I'll see you guys later.
So I'm just trying out the sleeping positions going fully
flat and as expected my feet go into a box in front of me.
And that is restricting the leg movement a little bit, for
a big guy, I would recommend to sleep sideways
to get a bit more room.
(upbeat music)
Wow, what a beautiful approach, I am speechless.
I literally saw the whole city of Istanbul, Asia side
and Europe side, the harbour.
Oh, wow, it was just reminded me
why I love to travel so much.
Regarding the 787-9 qsuites compared to the A350 and 777,
I would say the 787-9
is more of a short to medium haul aircraft.
So it's a little narrower than the original Qsuites
on the 350 or 777 so for longer flight,
you would have preferred that one.
(upbeat music)