Can I use Qatar Airways airport lounges with a British Airways Silver or Gold card?

Today I want to look at whether you can use Qatar Airways lounges if you have a British Airways Silver or Gold Executive Club card.

Lounge access is one of the perks that many people aspire too when the travel. Nothing beats escaping the crowds of a busy terminal and settling down with some free wine or champagne before a long flight.

Your entitlement to lounge access already depends on what status you hold, even with British Airways’ own lounges.  British Airways Bronze members are not entitled to lounge access whilst Silver and Gold members are.

Qatar Airways has some of the finest airport lounges in the world. This is the good news. The bad news is that the airline makes them more restrictive than it could, in the same way that British Airways excludes The Concorde Room at Heathrow Terminal 5 from the usual access rules.

Here is a summary of the Qatar Airways lounge situation in London Heathrow and Doha:

London Heathrow

• Are you flying in Business Class (not ‘Business Light’) or First Class from Heathrow? You can use the Qatar Airways Premium Lounge in Terminal 4 which we reviewed here

• Do you have British Airways or any other oneworld elite status and are flying Qatar Airways in Economy or on a ‘Business Light’ ticket? You can use the Qatar Airways Frequent Flyer Lounge in Terminal 4 which we reviewed here

• Do you have a ‘Business Light’ ticket or an economy ticket, and do not have elite status with BA or another oneworld airline? You do not receive lounge access.

Hamad International, Doha

• Are you flying in First Class from Doha, on Qatar Airways or any other oneworld airline? You can use the amazing Al Safwa lounge which we reviewed here

• Are you flying Business Class (not ‘Business Light’) from Doha, on Qatar Airways or any other oneworld airline? You can use the Al Mourjan lounge which we reviewed here or the new Al Mourjan Garden lounge which we previewed here

• Do you have British Airways Gold or any other oneworld Emerald status and are flying Qatar Airways in Economy or on a ‘Business Light’ ticket, or on any other oneworld airline in Economy or Premium Economy? You can use the Qatar Airways Platinum Lounge which we reviewed here

• Do you have British Airways Silver or any other oneworld Sapphire status and are flying Qatar Airways in Economy or on a ‘Business Light’ ticket, or on any other oneworld airline in Economy or Premium Economy? You can use the Qatar Airways Gold Lounge which we reviewed here

• Do you have a ‘Business Light’ ticket or an Economy ticket, and do not have elite status with BA or another oneworld airline? You do not receive lounge access

At other airports, standard rules apply – although holders of ‘Business Light’ tickets will not receive lounge access unless you also have British Airways Gold or Silver status.

You can check out the global network of lounges which you can enter with your British Airways status on the oneworld alliance website here.

(This article is part of our ‘BA Q&A’ series which explains how British Airways Executive Club works.  You can see all of our ‘BA Q&A’ articles here. )

(Head for Points is the UK’s biggest frequent flyer website with 2.5 million monthly page views.  Want to learn more about earning and spending Avios?  Click here to read our latest news stories and click here to join the mailing list for our weekly or daily email newsletters.)

---

How to earn Avios from UK credit cards (April 2024)

As a reminder, there are various ways of earning Avios points from UK credit cards.  Many cards also have generous sign-up bonuses!

In February 2022, Barclaycard launched two exciting new Barclaycard Avios Mastercard cards with a bonus of up to 25,000 Avios. You can apply here.

You qualify for the bonus on these cards even if you have a British Airways American Express card:

There are two official British Airways American Express cards with attractive sign-up bonuses:

You can also get generous sign-up bonuses by applying for American Express cards which earn Membership Rewards points. These points convert at 1:1 into Avios.

Run your own business?

We recommend Capital on Tap for limited companies. You earn 1 Avios per £1 which is impressive for a Visa card, along with a sign-up bonus worth 10,500 Avios.

SPECIAL OFFER: Until 12th May 2024, the Capital on Tap Business Rewards Visa card is offering a bonus of 30,000 points, convertible into 30,000 Avios. You must have a Limited Company to apply. Click here to learn more and click here to apply.

You should also consider the British Airways Accelerating Business credit card. This is open to sole traders as well as limited companies and has a 30,000 Avios sign-up bonus.

There are also generous bonuses on the two American Express Business cards, with the points converting at 1:1 into Avios. These cards are open to sole traders as well as limited companies.

Click here to read our detailed summary of all UK credit cards which earn Avios. This includes both personal and small business cards.