Maximise your Avios, air miles and hotel points

Forums Frequent flyer programs Other frequent flyer schemes Qatar Airways reward flights …. what time are seats released?

  • rams 281 posts

    Successfully booked my Qatar outbound to Melbourne last night on BA website for 23rd Jan 2024. Seats when first released on Qatar only had double Avios but after 4-5 days started to show availability for the 90k Avios seats. This thankfully was reflected on BA whose calendar only releases seats a week or so behind Qatar.

    Inbound for the week after looking full now. Hoping seats are released similar to outbound otherwise need to look into other options including Singapore Airlines.

    By way of update, booked my return leg with Qatar (90k points vs 130k with Singapore though higher taxes). Seats did not show on Qatar when released the 5 days ahead (except 2x cost). Then again like last time (perhaps to tie in with BA calendar) cost dropped to standard rate after 5 days or so and I wa sable to book at midnight. BA shows 2 seats at that price.

    Aston100 1,722 posts

    All very odd and possibly inconsistent.
    I appreciate what Rob has told us recently, but I am sceptical.

    RCHammer 72 posts

    Successfully booked my Qatar outbound to Melbourne last night on BA website for 23rd Jan 2024. Seats when first released on Qatar only had double Avios but after 4-5 days started to show availability for the 90k Avios seats. This thankfully was reflected on BA whose calendar only releases seats a week or so behind Qatar.

    I just got 2x Avios flights from MAN to MEL just after midnight (17/2/23) for 6/2/24. I booked on the QR website not BA. For the past week I have been tracking availability for dates a few days either side of the date I wanted and my experience was similar to above. The pattern seemed to be that flights were released T-360, generally showing a mix of “flex 2Q” or “occupied” but then, 5 days later, availability opened up to 1x Avios seats. The flights for 6/2/24 changed to standard reward seats when I checked just after midnight 17/2 and I booked them straight away. Both the flex flights and the occupied flights had changed to standard and all were available.

    Now for the nervous wait to get flights back because P2’s 100k Avios from Barclays are not due until early March at the earliest and I don’t have sufficient Avios without them….

    0 post

    How do you cancel an Avios flight on the QR website and what are the fees charged? Is it the same as on BA where you get all taxes and charges back less £35?

    Aston100 1,722 posts

    Been watching reward availability from the day flights to BHX were reinstated after a 3 year absence.
    I still cannot find a single day with any standard priced reward availability in business class.
    I understand what Rob wrote elsewhere about the reinstatement of BA flights to Hong Kong and why there isn’t a whole bunch of new award seats, but BHX I think is different because none of the new flights (commencing from early July) would have had seats sold for them as the route was axed sometime in 2020 I think.
    There are days with normal economy award seats to DOH priced at 21.5k (+£135.31) each. There are no normal priced business class award seats that I can see. However, there are Q2 double Avios reward business class seats every day.

    This does not conform with the statements we’ve been given about when Qatar release award seats.
    From BHX, there should be tons of normal priced business class award seats throughout the schedule, but there are zero.

    NorthernLass 10,462 posts

    I think I remember reading that Qatar make avios seats available at double the price at peak times like school holidays? So July would fall into that category, as the private schools break up at the start of the month.

    I had similar results booking DOH to MAN for December, but decided in the end that 7 hours in economy on a day flight for 21.5k avios plus a bit of tax is something I can live with!

    I don;t know whether outside of peak period they just get snapped up really fast – it does seem easier to find QR business seats via BA than QR though.

    NorthernLass 10,462 posts

    ** In fact the surcharges on our QR redemption seats were £60pp – not sure why you’re seeing £131, @Aston100.

    Aston100 1,722 posts

    Anna, see this screenshot.
    £135.31 every day (Economy).
    Also, the flight departure shows as 07:00 in the top left (which is 09:00 Doha time).
    It also says “from 43000 Avios” under each date.
    Very odd.

    QR BHX

    NorthernLass 10,462 posts

    Ah – I bet the surcharges are higher ex-UK? I just checked my booking confirmation from DOH and it was 270 Qatari rials each which is £60.91.

    Indeed – just checked ex-MAN and it’s £144.50!

    DonLee 262 posts

    I can confirm what @NorthernLass said about Qatar only make avios seats available at double the price at peak times. I was tracking MAN-DOH-MLE ticket since last year, the standard redemption ends at 6th July.

    Aston100 1,722 posts

    I can confirm what @NorthernLass said about Qatar only make avios seats available at double the price at peak times. I was tracking MAN-DOH-MLE ticket since last year, the standard redemption ends at 6th July.

    Looks like you are both correct.
    I have now found standard priced business class reward seats BHX > DOH in September and October (outside school holidays).
    So perhaps Rob & co need to get some transparency from Qatar?
    I’ve long associated Qatar Airways with deception and borderline lies (especially whenever they release an alleged promo or sale).

    Paul 224 posts

    is there any advantage to getting a reward flight through BA rather than directly with Qatar? BA sells them a few days after so chance seats can go

    There is and there isn’t

    Others have focused on the positives.

    What is not so great is booking ex EU. Almost every European capital has a daily flight to DOH some double daily and these flights feed into the wider QR network. BA site rarely provides these routings. Using QR is a better option and the fees and charges are usually lower.

    I recently booked ex CPH but used QR site and have just booked HAN LHR but used BA. The taxes and fees on the HAN flight were the same as QR albeit the QR option on BA was well done the list of options and behind CX BA combo in Y via HKG.

    Flying ex CPH was fairly last minute so availability, non existent from LHR and mostly Y or 2x Avios from EU. COH had standard availability but it also meant a night stop in CPH as it’s a. 08:55 departure. This isn’t everyone’s happy place but it worked for me.

    ATC 39 posts

    Has anyone had experience of Qatar releasing Business awards seats close to departure? Just wondering if they often do at say T-14 or less? Thanks.

    DonLee 262 posts

    Has anyone had experience of Qatar releasing Business awards seats close to departure? Just wondering if they often do at say T-14 or less? Thanks.

    yes, I booked MEL-MAN in J just 5 days before departure this Aug

    ATC 39 posts

    Ok great, thanks for the data point. I assume availability wasn’t there when you first looked?

    DonLee 262 posts

    Ok great, thanks for the data point. I assume availability wasn’t there when you first looked?

    Only availablity was flex option

    Bally1986 1 post

    Currently trying to purchase tickets flying out to Melbourne from London on Friday 19th December 2025 (for the Ashes)

    Ambitiously I have been monitoring the on sale times – more specifically trying to see if any Business Awards flights appear around this time

    Is there an allocation of Business Awards for every single flight; albeit a very small one?

    I guess what I’m asking is, am I wasting my time? 😂

    Any help would be greatly appreciated, thank you in advance

    Jess 51 posts

    QR release their seats 360 days in advance. I have managed to book them early morning on that day with no problem. Depending on which flight you choose, some may appear at double Avios for a couple of days and then reduce to the standard 90,000. I had no problems booking seats for November 2025.

    phantomchickenz 555 posts

    I booked two (they don’t seem to release any more than two this far out) reward seats to Melbourne for the 6th December 2025. Booked on the morning of December 11th (7am’ish), so the 360 days mentioned above ties in. Availability seemed good each day on the days leading up to it, not sure if that applies so close to Christmas.

    Make sure you’ve moved you Avios across to Privilege Club – in theory you shouldn’t have to but I kept getting errors until I transferred.

  • You must be logged in to reply to this topic.

The UK's biggest frequent flyer website uses cookies, which you can block via your browser settings. Continuing implies your consent to this policy. Our privacy policy is here.