Following its opening in 2014, Doha’s Hamad International Airport has announced that the next stage of expansion is set to be completed by 2020. This expansion is expected to boost the airport capacity to over 60 million passengers per year. Here are some of the key features in this upcoming expansion:
- A new 9,000 m²/97,000 ft² Qatar Airways Al Mourjan Business Class Lounge that comes with gym and spa facilities, and
- A controversial 10,000 m² / 107,000 ft² indoor tropical garden with a 268 m²/2,900 ft² water feature that will look like this:
Does it ring a bell to you? If not, how about this?
Acknowledging the similarity between Changi Jewel and Hamad’s indoor tropical garden, here is what Qatar Airways and Hamad International Airport CEO, His Excellency Akbar Al Baker, has to say:
“Somebody copied our design, which was already on the table six years ago…. We had individuals from that country, I will not name it, who took that and did it (themselves).”
However, Al Baker also did name one difference between them:
“One is a shopping mall, and one is an international airport.”
New Qatar Airways Al Mourjan Business Class Lounge
Although the existing Qatar Airways Al Mourjan Business Class Lounge is the largest lounge that I have seen thus far, there has been an overcrowding situation during peak periods. Fortunately, they will be introducing another Al Mourjan Business Class Lounge – a standalone lounge rather than an expansion of the existing lounge. This is a welcome move as I personally feel that if the lounge gets too big, it will somewhat loses its exclusivity (feels like a mall instead of a luxurious lounge).
As mentioned earlier, the new lounge will have a gym and spa facilities. Other than that, no other details have been disclosed.
What is your view on the expansion plan? Drop your thoughts in the comment section below.
H/T: Executive Traveller