If you have a long transit at Doha, you have a few options for getting some sleep. There are quiet rooms in both of the Al Mourjan lounges, a capsule-type hotel called the Sleep n Fly lounge, or the airside Oryx Transit hotel. There is a new Oryx Garden hotel but this is not selling rooms as Qatar Airways are using it exclusively.
It is worth noting that Qatar provides complimentary accommodation for transfers of more than 8 hours long if there is not an option available sooner than 8 hours. You can find more about it on this page.
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Booking and price
You can book direct with the hotel or through online agents such as Booking.com or Hotels.com.
Average prices are £216 to £235 per night, room only. You can also just turn up, but I’d advise against this as they are very often completely full.
Location
The hotel is relatively easy to find, as the lifts to enter are close to the giant bear in the B gates area. If you look behind the bear, you will see the C,D,E signs on the top of the bridge. Closer to those gate signs, you will see desks for flight upgrades in the right corner, and beside that, elevators. Take the elevator to the third floor, and you will be at Oryx Airport Hotel.
Check-in
I had booked for the whole night, although they do sometimes have rooms available for shorter periods. Despite arriving at 1am, I was informed my allocated room was still being cleaned, so I had a choice of a twin bedroom or one at every end of the corridor. I stupidly thought, how far can it be? so opted for the one at the end. The answer is it was a good 5 minute walk away. If you have stayed at the end of a corridor in Vegas, take that distance and triple it, and you are getting close!
The check-in agent was friendly and helpful but it did take a lot of paperwork and faffing around for a transit hotel when people are naturally short on time. It would be good if they could so some form of pre-arrival check-in to cut down on paperwork.
They offer a wake-up call but also ask for your flight details. They then inform you of the latest time you should leave the room to board your flight and call the room at that time, whether you like it or not. So it’s perfect if you worry about oversleeping!
The room
Once I eventually arrived at the room, I have to say I found it pretty impressive overall. There were a few niggles, but it looked relatively luxurious and more than adequate for a short stay.
The room had a very comfortable bed, a desk, good air conditioning and a chair. The bed could have been a little bigger given the usual super kings you get in luxury hotels in the Middle East, but that’s a minor quibble.
The two things I did not like is that the curtains were poor quality and did not fit well enough to keep out the light to my satisfaction from the concourse below. You could also occasionally hear announcements from the airport which was irritating.
There was a huge TV with plenty of international channels and refreshments too. A kettle with tea and coffee plus long life creamer and two cartons of water were provided.
Bathroom
One of the things I really want on a long layover is a good shower, and I had no complaints about this huge walk-in shower with its rain head and separate hand lead showers.
The pressure was OK and the toiletries were by Rituals. Shower gel, shampoo, conditioner and body lotion were available as well as soap.
There was a shaving mirror and a separate toilet and bidet too. The only disappointment was the old-fashioned hose type of hairdryer, although it wasn’t too bad power-wise.
Conclusion
The Oryx hotel is very expensive for an airport hotel, however you are paying for convenience. I was able to leave my room and board my aircraft at the B gates within 10 minutes, which is pretty impressive. Not having to think about going through security again was also great.
Unless I had a much longer layover where I would go into Doha, I would use this option again. But I would like some better blackout curtains and soundproofing. I don’t actually see the point of having a window onto the concourse since most people will sleep and then leave almost immediately. I’m not sure if all rooms have a window onto the airport, but I would guess some rooms are quieter than others, so next time, I would request one away from the concourse.
Like our Doha Airport transit hotel review? You can also read our other hotel reviews here.
3 comments
Michele,
I’ve stayed in the Oryx several times and agree, although it is very expensive, the convenience and overall quality are very hard to beat.
The curtains are very poor but next to them there is a wooden screen with a handle which covers a series of panels which provide total blackout.
My biggest issue with the hotel when I stayed last time (two weeks ago) was that I couldn’t get the internet to work and had no mobile reception in the room.
I stayed in the Oryx airside hotel for just 8 hours a few years ago. It was bliss to actually have a proper sleep rather than doze in the lounge. I think they still do hourly rates but you have to email them or call….
We stayed there a few weeks ago. 8 hours gap between flight so it was lovely to have a few hours kip….About £250 but considering the enormous cost of the flight to Perth in First Class, it was a minor extra! Excellent staff too.
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