Qatar Airways to Fly to More Than 170 Destinations This Winter

Qatar Airways will serve more than 170 destinations from Doha during the 2026-27 northern winter season, the airline announced on 10 September, as it restores routes and adds frequencies after a year in which Gulf networks were heavily disrupted.

The carrier said it plans close to 1,800 weekly frequencies in December, with resumed services and extra flights spread across all six continents it serves.

Saudi Arabia gets the biggest regional push

The most significant regional move is in Saudi Arabia, the Gulf’s largest aviation market. Qatar Airways is restarting flights from Doha to four Saudi cities, each at two flights a week: Qassim from 25 October, Taif from 31 October, Yanbu from 2 January and Tabuk from 3 January 2027.

That will lift its Saudi network to 12 destinations and more than 155 weekly flights, an increase of over 10 per cent on the summer schedule. The expansion comes as Saudi airports reported 140.9 million passengers in 2025, according to the Kingdom’s statistics authority, and as new Saudi carriers, including the Air Arabia-led airline that began flying from Dammam in September, add competition to the market.

Africa, Asia-Pacific and Europe

In Africa, daily Zanzibar flights resume on 25 October, Johannesburg moves from 14 to 18 weekly flights from 2 December, and Seychelles goes from four to seven a week from 1 March 2027.

Asia-Pacific sees the most frequency growth. From 25 October Phuket rises from 14 to 21 weekly flights and Malé from 12 to 21. Ho Chi Minh City increases from seven to 11 weekly services from 7 November, helped by restored nonstop flights alongside the existing service that continues to Phnom Penh. Kuala Lumpur will have 18 weekly Qatar Airways flights from 25 October, supplemented by oneworld partner Malaysia Airlines.

Australia is a particular focus. Daily flights to Canberra via Melbourne return on 9 December, and Melbourne doubles from seven to 14 weekly services. Partner Virgin Australia is also adding Doha flights from December, doubling Sydney to 14 a week and restarting Brisbane and Perth.

In Europe, London Heathrow increases from 49 to 56 weekly flights from 25 October, an 11 per cent capacity rise, and Frankfurt grows from 18 to 21 from 7 December. Across the Atlantic, Montréal goes from five to seven weekly flights from 25 October, which the airline says adds 40 per cent more seats.

Connectivity as a selling point

Qatar Airways is also using inflight Wi-Fi as a competitive tool. It says more than 150 of its widebody aircraft are fitted with Starlink, supporting up to 340 Starlink-equipped flights a day.

For Hamad International Airport, the schedule signals a push to rebuild transfer flows into the peak winter months. The airline’s hub traffic depends heavily on connections between Europe, Asia-Pacific and Africa, the regions where most of the new capacity is being added.