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Aisle be back: the return of international air travel is right around the corner

Qatar Airways has never stopped flying to Australia, bringing hundreds of stranded Aussies home on repatriation flights during the pandemic – and with the opening of international borders on the horizon they are ready to fly you wherever you want to go.

Qatar Airways has never stopped flying to Australia, bringing hundreds of stranded Aussies home on repatriation flights during the pandemic – and with the opening of international borders on the horizon they are ready to fly you wherever you want to go.

You have had two years to think about it: where is the first place in the world you want to go when the shackles of closed international borders are finally thrown off? 

Do you want hit the famously windy streets of San Francisco? Maybe you want to go on a safari on the red-dust roads of Zimbabwe? Or take in the history of the Al Rakayat desert fort in the north of Qatar? What is the place that you have missed the most since the pandemic closed us off to the rest of the world?

Who in the world do you want to see? And have you missed that incredible feeling of anticipation when you set foot in a place you have never been before?

Ready for take-off

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As a travel advisor, you might be keen to jump on a plane but also to get back to work, booking people on the trips that they will remember for the rest of their lives. Overseas weddings, family reunions or dream holidays that have had to be pushed back due to the freeze on international trips, all of these are back on the table in 2022 and the pent-up demand will likely be through the roof.

Qatar Airways has the reliability and scope in its network to service your clients when the borders are open again. Unlike a lot of other airlines, Qatar Airways never stopped flying to and from Australia providing a lifeline for stranded Australians and navigating the constantly changing government restrictions to get everyone home safe.

And for travel advisors the airline does not impose surcharges for using the GDS platform. Part of the reason Qatar Airways continued to fly during the most difficult times is that it values the Australian market and wants to forge strong ties with the travel industry so it can be at the forefront of getting Aussies travelling again. 

Plane sailing ahead

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A lot of us in the industry are desperate to see the inside of a plane again, with even domestic flights a luxury for many of the eastern states. Forget the 50s and 60s, 2022 is our new golden age for air travel where it is exciting just to be on a flight again. I have even missed you middle seat! 

Your clients however might be a bit nervous about travelling again given the uncertainty of the past two years. Qatar Airways understands the new travel landscape and it has provided more than $3bn worth of refunds in 2020 to passengers whose travel plans have been impacted by COVID and continues to do so. 

Qatar Airways has a strong relationship with agency partners and they truly understand how to help you book flights in an ever-changing world of global restrictions. They want to make it easy for you and your clients to get back out into the world with extended flexible travel policies to cover travel completed by May 31, 2022 if their plans change.

More places, more often

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The pandemic has made it feel like the world has shrunk but during the past two years Qatar Airways has continued to expand its network to more than 140 destinations.

Despite the fact that the US was one of the hardest-hit countries by Covid-19, Qatar Airways remained committed to them, too, and they have increased flights to the US to more than 100 weekly flights across 12 gateways. Travelling to the US from Australia is simple on Qatar Airways with the airline adding two new destinations in Seattle and San Francisco.

In Africa, the airline added six new destinations during the pandemic including Lusaka, Zambia and Harare in Zimbabwe. While in Europe they have kept their expansive and reliable Continental network going in the face of great challenges.

Stopover, in the name of love

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Hamad International Airport in Doha recently kicked Changi airport off the top spot in Skytrax’s top ten airports in the world. Changi held the top spot for eight consecutive years but Doha, the home of Qatar Airways, took the gong for its “cleanliness, comfort, posh boutiques, unique artwork, Covid-19 response and indoor train that shuttles passengers through the terminal” according to Skytrax.

Your clients can experience the world’s best airport when they fly Qatar Airways and connect via Doha to world or even enjoy a stopover experience to explore the city itself. This vibrant Middle Eastern destination is set to host the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022, another great reason to come visit Qatar.

And that was not the only award for Qatar Airways last year with the airline itself the first airline in the world to receive Skytrax’s five-star COVID-19 airline rating and Qatar Airways also picked up AirlineRatings Airline of the Year for 2021.

While there will be gung-ho travellers ready to take the first flight out of here when the border wall falls, a lot of Australians might be cautious about the return to international travel and Qatar Airways has the safety, the flexibility and the reliability to make sure their first trip in two years is a great one.

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