imi7

I am flying from Riyadh to Lahore in April, along with the Mrs and 2 little 'us (10m old at time of flying). Looking to fly Business Class. Didn't choose Saudi or PIA as they only do economy (our BC fares are paid for so why not use it ).

Anyhow, with the 2 little 'uns we are looking for a short stopover, and initial research has bought up 7hr flights (including transfers) for each leg on either Etihad, Qatar or OmanAir. I have discounted Emirates as the extended stopover is too long (about 8-10hrs).

Question is - which airline should I go with? Qatar, Etihad or OmanAir?

I was originally thinking Qatar but a recent thread on here about how they treat their staff has made me think twice...

Answers on a postcard to.....here please .

Cheers.

flares

Either Oman or Etihad. Both have new terminals being built.

AUH possibly easier to transit through. Oman great views flying in and out. Airport is good too.

Get frequent flyer membership before you fly. Earn lots of point flying business.

But if I was in your shoes I'd do a direct on Saudia. It's not that bad an airline.

imi7

Thanks flares. I don't mind Saudia usually, but the Pakistan legs are heavily congested and its the first time travelling with the twins so wanted to be more comfortable,plus they don't off BC any more on this route.

I have been to both AUH and Muscat - are their new airports already open? I did like AUH a little better and was easier to navigate through the airport and had more shops for the Mrs .

I'm still in 2 minds about Qatar - being a OneWorld member I could collect loads of points.......

GQ1

I would recommend you to take the direct flight without any layovers when flying with small children. The travel time is only couple of hours so Class of service will have a minimal impact.

OriginalSunshine

OmanAir BC rocks

OmanAir EC stinks

Muscat new terminal is still (!) being built. Slight problem I heard with misappropriation of funds don't you know?

Anyway, a layover at Muscat when flying BC is really easy. The BC lounge *only* for OmanAir flyers has a complimentary masseuse, champers, wine, decent food on tap, and most importantly a child's playroom area.

Seats in the plane are big, and the staff are genuinely lovely.

imi7

Thanks - I might even stop over in muscat for a couple of days. Can you recommend any decent hotels - I have stayed previously at the Shangri-La - was expensive but worth it.

OriginalSunshine

Depends what you want to do - for decent diving, sailing, and beach related stuff, Shangri-La is prob best located. If you want to go to the Souq and tour then something more in town is better.
Crowne Plaza has a nice kiddy pool, decent restaurants though nothing too splashy, and is fairly central.
Intercon is most central, but getting old. Fun pool for primary school aged kids, decent lap pool, great gym.
Grand Hyatt has great rooms, ok pool and fun for kids, slightly less central.
Chedi is not really for families and out in arse end of nowhere, but really really nice for couples.
Millenium is near Barka, so a bit of a drive, and a dry hotel, but close if you want to do snorkelling/diving at the Dimanayats.
Al Bustan (even further away than Shangri La) is again nice for couples, but not great for kids. But food is excellent.

What do you want to do in the two days?

(btw if you do do a stopover, then when you go to check back in, OmanAir have an exclusive BC/FC entrance to the terminal and you must tell your taxi driver to drop you off there).

imi7

Thank you for the advice. We are 50/50 as to whether to stopover, but if we do all we want to do is laze around the pool.

OriginalSunshine

then the bottom line is how old are your children?

imi7

Thanks OriginalSunshine - but we have decided not to holiday in Muscat this time and postpone it for later in the year. However, I would appreciate your advice on Muscat Premium Terminal. The RUH - LHE leg lands in muscat at 7am with a transit time of 2 hours. For the return leg, we have a 3.5 hour transit time starting at 1500. Do you think the 2 hour transit time is enough to get from plane to the lounge, freshen up the babies ready for the next flight? Also, are any of these times classed as 'peak' times/

Grateful for your help.

OriginalSunshine

lol - there's not a Muscat Premium Terminal - not yet. 2016 inshallah.

there's Muscat airport. 2 hour transit time is plenty time. you'll be first off the plane. go straight to the lounge. have a massage, shower, breakfast, change, play in the playroom.

the 3.5 hr transit in the afternoon might get a touch boring though.

bring fold up strollers/buggys to the airplane doors, and tell them you need it for transit - however, if you can carry your babies in baby bjorns that may actually be better and one less thing to worry about

peak times? nah - varies from day to day, although Thursday evenings and Saturday evenings are busy with weekenders

later in the year is HOT - June can reach 52-54 c. July is Ramadhan. I would not visit Muscat from June through to August.

imi7

Thanks. We have been to Shangri-la last June and agreed, it was hot n humid. Will be looking to re-visit at the end of the year.

I reckon we will use the Baby bjorns we have, as not sure if the pram will turn up or not and like you said, one less thing to worry about.

imi7

Update - we have found flights on Emirates with the same total journey time as Oman/Qatar/Etihad. We have ruled out Etihad as their lounge seems to be crowded a lot, and Qatar for the reasons above. Its been years since I have flown Emirates, but they seem to have bassinet seats that suit our needs (twins).

Given the choice, can you please advise if you would fly Emirates or Oman Business Class. (having looked at the flights, it seems Oman offer BC seats that only recline, whilst EK offers lie flat seats - but of course this could change). Just wanted your opinions/experiences of BC on EK, as OriginalSunshine has given me a pretty good idea of Oman Air BC .

First time travelling with the twins so trying not to leave anything to chance.

Cheers

Mogs

If travelling with 2 very young children, the most sensible option is to keep flying/travelling time to a minimum - so go with a direct flight if available (irrespective of economy or business).

You're probably not going to enjoy the benefits of business when travelling with small children anyway (and quite possibly upset others who are expecting a peaceful business flight without having kids annoying them).

I would ask for the cash for the business class seats and book your own economy tickets on the direct route so you don't "lose out".

OriginalSunshine

sod "others". it's not as though they have paid for the flights themselves either. and children are just entitled to be on a plane as adults.