Qatar flash sale ends tomorrow
Qatar Airways has launched a flash sale from the UK. The fares are not exactly exciting but they are a bit cheaper than pre-Covid and for the lack of hassle and the fact they are mainly cheaper than BA, it’s worth a look. You must book by 13 October 2021 for travel between 12 October 2021 and 30 September 2022. Auckland is a good price but obviously, it’s a bit of a gamble when it may reopen.
From London in business class return:
- Doha From £3066
- Muscat From £1876
- The Maldives From £2480
- Auckland From £2890
- Bali From £2825
- Cape Town £2342
- Abu Dhabi £1614
- Singapore £2185
- Zanzibar £2373
- Seychelles £1838
- Phuket £1851
- Hong Kong £1908
- Seoul £2097
- Tokyo (NRT) From £2339
- Johannesburg £1943
- Kuala Lumpur £2064
- Colombo £2032
You can find the UK special offer page here.
A few fares from Stockholm now that we are allowed in from the UK:
- Dubai £1113
- Singapore £1219
- Seoul £1388
- Phuket £1243
- Nairobi £1513
- Johannesburg £1513
- Bangkok £1194
You can find the Swedish website here.
Thailand to reopen with no quarantine for the UK
Thailand plans to end Covid-19 quarantine requirements for fully-vaccinated travellers from at least ten “low-risk” nations rather than the complex mess that is the sandbox scheme. The countries include UK, China, Germany and the US.
The changes will come into effect from 1 November but as ever I’d advise caution with dates as they are subject to change at very short notice.
You will still have to present a negative COVID test and take a second on arrival. If the second test is negative, then you will be allowed to travel freely within Thailand. At the moment, you would be required to spend the first seven days of their holiday in a designated resort hotel.
The Uk also removed Thailand from the red travel list on Monday and the Foreign Office is now not advising against non-essential travel anymore.
Thailand is experiencing very high case numbers currently so I would advise caution. The country has only vaccinated around 30% of its population currently. There have been limited services with entertainment venues and the serving of alcohol but these are due to end on 1 December.
Collinson gains UKAS accreditation
There are a few countries that require UKAS accreditation for PCR tests with Jersey being one of them although you can get a free test on arrival. UKAS has two standards to focus on for different aspects of delivering a high-quality private Covid-19 testing service. The ISO 15189 examines general aspects of the testing process such as overall quality management systems, staff training and core competency checks, through to how samples are collected from patients, interpreting PCR lab results and turnaround times. ISO 22870 addresses processes more involved with rapid care testing clinics.
Collinson (UKAS ref: 22211) has just achieved accreditation and is one of only a few public facing testing providers to receive these accreditations, meaning consumers can be assured its processes are of the highest possible quality in the country
This new accreditation accompanies Collinson’s ongoing presence on the UK Government’s list of providers for all types of travel testing. Collinson has fifteen UK testing centres at major airports and central London locations.
The company offers pre-departure and post-arrival tests at its testing centres: £40 for Antigen and £69 for PCR, while the £95 Rapid 3-hour PCR is currently at five of its facilities: near Heathrow and Gatwick, at London’s O2 Arena, and Manchester Airport and Stansted Airport.
Rapid PCR tests
Collinson are definitely one of the more reliable providers and their rapid PCR is reasonable value at £95.
Last weekend we tried DocTap’s rapid PCR test which costs from £119 for same-day or £129 for 4-hour turnaround. The result arrived at the requested time and the process was simple. One useful thing about DocTap was that they open early at weekends – from 8am on a Sunday which we had struggled to find elsewhere, even in central London.
If you want to find the nearest or cheapest reliable provider for all types of Covid test for travel, the Covid Testing Network is a great comparison site to sort the wheat from the chaff!
14 comments
Michelle,
Until fairly recently Collinson gave extremely good service within LHR T5 itself. Now they’ve left the terminal building and are located some distance away, hopeless if you need a Day 0 test immediately on arrival and don’t have a car. Do you know the inside story of what happened to Collinson’s contract and why they moved out of the terminal? Their replacement, ExpressTest, have proved equally reliable for us, but do they have UKAS accreditation?
Express test do not have UKAS accreditation but you don’t need that for most countries tests. They have applied but it takes about a year to be approved.
Are those fares from Qatar offering lounge access in Doha? Thank you
You will need to check – you don’t want the lite fares.
As per usual UK flights are well over priced. Save £1500 on average (ish) for two people, fly ex EU and maybe treat yourself to a nicer hotel ?
Fares released on 12th October to expire on 13th? Ridiculous..
Seriously Peter, do you really think that’s the case. The sale has been on for days now. Don’t you read these blogs make yourself aware? Good ex EU prices, but from U.K. yes, bit rubbish.
That is the point of a flash sale… but I wouldn’t worry as Qatar have a sale every week at the moment!
Polly reckons its been on for days, why did it take so long to filter to this site?
Well, Polly is incorrect. There have been multiple sales from Qatar recently which is where the confusion probably lies. To be clear – here is the exact wording from Qatar
“Michele, for only 48 hours, enjoy online fares starting from £349 to Bangkok, Dubai, Kuwait and other select destinations around the globe.
Take advantage of this limited-time offer to travel to some of the world’s most memorable destinations.
Book by 13 October 2021 for travel between 12 October 2021 and 30 September 2022.”
I received that on Tuesday 12th.
Thanks, that makes sense
How do you find ex EU prices?
Use google flights to search from European airports
Hugo, Try ARN (Stockholm), OSL (Oslo), HEL (Helsinki) first in Google Flights. Those are typically the cheaper ex EU departure cities for Qatar Airways.
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