Bits: Qatar Airways increases Heathrow flights, double D$ (up to 14%) with Global Hotel Alliance

News in brief:

Qatar Airways increases flights from London, Manchester and Dublin

When it comes to flights to the UK, and particularly London, Qatar Airways appears to be insatiable. Last year, it launched its eight daily flight to Heathrow. This winter, it says it will have up to 10 flights per day to the airport on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays with nine on other days.

This is on top of BA’s own two daily services to Doha as well as 10 weekly flights from Gatwick. Four Gatwick flights have been dropped – it was 14 – which explains some of the additional Heathrow capacity.

Flights from Manchester will also increase from21 to 24 (over 3x daily) whilst Dublin goes from 14 to 17.

Flights do not appear to be loaded yet. It’s likely they will start from the end of October, which is when the winter season begins in the aviation world.

It’s unclear where the Heathrow slots are coming from to allow the increase, although winter is normally less busy than the peak summer months. It may be that Qatar Airways is able to mop up some unused capacity when flights to popular summer holiday destinations ramp down.

Either way, it is good news for anyone looking for excellent value Avios redemptions to Asia and Australia, as the additional flights should open up a few more reward seats.

The timetable, if confirmed, is a wonder to behold. There will be departures from Heathrow at 08.05 (A350), 08.25 (777), 08.35 (A380) and 08.40 (A350), with an extra 08.40 out of Gatwick for good measure. These are all timed to catch the main ‘bank’ of onward departures from Doha. Good luck getting a seat in the Terminal 4 Premium Lounge!

Get double DISCOVERY Dollars with Global Hotel Alliance

GHA DISCOVERY, the loyalty scheme for Kempinksi, NH, Anantara, Corinthia and 40 other hotel chains, is launching a generous ‘double DISCOVERY Dollars’ promotion.

For stays booked and completed between 1st August and 30th September 2025, you will earn double the base level of DISCOVERY Dollars.

This means:

• a Silver (entry level) member gets 8% back
• a Gold member gets 10% back
• a Platinum member gets 12% back
• a Titanium member gets 14% back

This is all based on pre-tax spending.

You can earn the bonus on up to two rooms per stay.

It is laughably easy to earn elite status with Global Hotel Alliance and increase your earning rate. Top tier status requires you to stay at just three different brands during a year, so it can be earned in as little as three nights.

Here is the full list of benefits online but in summary:

• Silver is the entry level, given to you immediately when you sign-up. It gets you access to member-only rates, free internet and 4% back in DISCOVERY Dollars.

• Gold requires just two stays or $1,000 of spending but has no real additional benefits, except that your cashback increases to 5%

• Platinum is the mid-tier status given after 10 nights in a year or $5,000 of spending or, more easily, staying at two different brands.  Platinum gives you extra benefits on top – an upgrade to the next room category, a local amenity, 3pm late check-out and 6% back in DISCOVERY Dollars.

• Titanium status requires 30 nights, $15,000 of spending or, far more easily, staying at three different brands. You receive an 11am check-in if available, 4pm late check-out if available, a double upgrade, free breakfast at selected brands (a new benefit, the brand list is constantly growing), a welcome amenity and 7% back in DISCOVERY Dollars.

1 DISCOVERY Dollar is worth US$1 towards your hotel bill at check-out. Some hotels allow D$ to be used when booking a pre-paid rate.

IMPORTANT: You must register for the ‘double dollars’ promotion via this page of the GHA website.

IMPORTANT: The ‘bonus’ DISCOVERY Dollars have an expiry period of just six months. Use them or lose them. Your ‘base’ DISCOVERY Dollars have the usual expiry period of 12, 18 or 24 months, depending on your tier in the programme. London-based readers will soon be able to redeem for meals at The Wolseley and its sister restaurants.

Our most recent overview of Global Hotel Alliance is here.