The Doha Hamad airport is one of the main gateways into Asia, so you may stop there if you are travelling to China, Japan or Thailand. I even met people who were travelling to Australia! If you are transiting there may want to know what it is like and any restrictions you may find.
Read more: Doha airport (Qatar) – what to expectGardens
It is the most enjoyable airport I have been to and I hope you can spend a few hours in its gardens. I know it sounds crazy as we always want to be as little as we can on these stops, but it feels so good to be there that I wanted to stay more instead of going to the boarding gate.
It is amazing the experience to walk inside a forest full of natural plants and trees, listening to the relaxing sound of a waterfall, and I am sure you will also enjoy taking lots of pictures. In case you are in a business trip it also has some areas where you can be with your laptop, although you may prefer to switch it off and just enjoy and relax!
Food and drinks
There were many options of mostly international food, from known brands such as Gordon Ramsay (pizza and burgers), Starbucks, Wagamama and many others. Prices were at the high end, with teas costing from $7. However, you may be so stuffed with all the food and drinks you get during the flights that may skip it.
Shops
There are many duty-free stores and luxury boutiques from international brands like Dior or Louis Vuitton. Some shops also sell local foods and souvenirs like baklava or chocolate-covered dates but with prices on the high end (from $25).
Visa
Not needed if you are not planning to leave the airport, official page here. In case you want to visit the city you have the details here.
Restrictions
The airport is an international area and people are not asked to follow any dressing style like wearing a hijab or special clothes, not even the ones working there.
If travelling during Ramadan (it happened to me on my flights to/from Japan) you will be asked not to drink or eat anything in public including water, but that doesn’t seem to include the bars as they were full of people having whatever they wanted to. Also, many tourists enjoyed a coffee happily in the gardens. So, this rule may only apply to those visiting the city.
Security controls
Your cabin luggage need to pass security checks even if you are not leaving the airport. The good thing is that you don’t have to remove liquids or electronic devices, but it was unclear to me if you were allowed to bring liquids over 100 ml that you may have bought at the duty-free store of the previous airport.
Distances inside the airport and to the plane
Be ready to walk a lot inside the airport and it would be good to ask for assistance if you have any disability. You should have anyway plenty of time to go to the boarding gate.
Once at the boarding gate, it will depend. In one flight the plane was connected through the usual tunnel, but in the other we took a bus that took around 15 minutes to arrive to the the plane. It felt like travelling to another city!
I hope this helps prepare for your trip and relieves any concerns. Feel free to ask any questions or share how was your experience in the comments!