I first flew with Qatar Airways a little over two years ago on a trip to Adelaide Australia and I was so impressed with every aspect of their service, that I didn’t hesitate to book with them again on my most recent trip to Adelaide. On my previous trip I had flown on their Airbus A350 and Boeing 787 Dreamliner, but on this trip I had the option of booking a Qatar Airways Airbus A380 from Sydney to Doha.

Qatar Airways Airbus A380 from Sydney to Doha

On previous Qatar Airways flights I have only flown in their business class cabin, and the seat on their Airbus A380 isn’t any different to the seat which you will currently find on their Boeing 787 Dreamliners and most of their Airbus A350s. Because I had effectively sat in this seat many times before I decided not to review the entire flight, so instead I decided to just enjoy the experience. However, there was one element of the flight that you find only on the Qatar Airways Airbus A380 which I wanted to write about, and that is the bar-lounge area. Just to clarify, the A350 and the 787 do have small bar areas with standing room only, but the A380 had a complete bar  and lounge area with seating for 10 people, plus standing room at the bar.

Qatar Airways Airbus A380 Bar

The bar is open and ready to serve your favourite tipple as soon as the seatbelt sign is switched off, and remains open until the cabin is prepared for landing. Should you hit turbulence, there are even seat belts discreetly located on the sofas so you can remain seated in the lounge area should you wish to. The bar is stocked with a generous selection of drinks, and was constantly manned by a member of crew to prepare your drinks for you on demand. 

The bar area was located on the upper deck of the aircraft, behind the business class cabin. To either side of the area were comfy cream leather low back sofas, each seating four people, with a smaller sofa to the front of the bar which could seat two. The sofas had small wooden drinks tables built in so you had somewhere convenient to place your drinks. There was also standing room to either side of the bar. The bar itself was shaped like a ‘7’ but with a small return on the other side. The bar had a stylish deep red/brown coloured wooden top with deep purple leather sides, and also had feature lighting. To the back of the bar there was a mirrored glass shelved back wall where the spirits were kept, which also incorporated the Qatar branding. On the ceiling above the bar were two very intricately decorated lighting domes which just oozed classic Arabic design.  

#qatarairways #airbus #a380 onboard bar! #theta360 #theta360uk – Spherical Image – RICOH THETA

The bar has a small list of signature cocktails (which can also be ordered from your seat), but if there is something which isn’t on the menu all you have to do is ask and the bar staff will do their best to accommodate your wishes. I visited the bar a few times during my 15 hour flight from Sydney to Doha, but on one visit I really fancied an Espresso Martini, and I honestly didn’t think this would be possible, until I heard the words ‘certainly, coming right up!’. I was genuinely impressed that they were able to accommodate my request, and part of me only asked for the Espresso Martini to see if they could actually make one. However, it did go down very well, and I even ordered a second one! Throughout the flight there were brut and rosé champagne bottles in ice buckets along with a selection of freshly made snacks.

As this was the first trip I had taken on a Qatar Airways Airbus A380 with an onboard bar I wasn’t completely sure what to expect. The bar area is open to all Business and First passengers, that’s a total of 56 people, so it had the potential to be quite busy. Luckily this was not the case on my flight! I’m not sure if this is usually the case, or if it was the fact that my flight was during the night, but it was good to be able to enjoy the bar area without having to fight for a seat or to get to the bar. 

Would I book to travel on a Qatar Airways Airbus A380 again? Definitely! It nothing else it was lovely to have an area to go to to relax and stretch your legs, and the added bonus of the bar made it a fantastic experience that I can’t wait to enjoy again next time I fly with Qatar Airways!