Booked: Qatar A380 First Class To Iraq

Intro

Well, I am excited to announce something. Over the past few weeks, I have been quite distant due to hunting marlin off the north coast of Bali. However, I now find myself in Myanmar for the next 10 days, and have planned my next trip after. To say I am excited would be the understatement of the year, as not only am I going to Iraq, but it includes First Class on the A380. Sign me up!

The Details

The plan is that by the end of October, I hope to begin my new life in Africa. However, with my trip set to end mid-October, I found an exceptional deal through AA miles in Qatar First Class. The deal was as follows:

Qatar A380-800 First Class Bangkok-Doha

15 Hour Layover at the Al Safwa Lounge

Qatar 787-8 First Class Doha-Amman

Royal Jordanian E195 Business Class Amman-Baghdad

I purposefully booked a 15-hour layover in the Al Safwa Lounge to try out the beds and chat with the manager, Arval. Lovely man from Nepal...

From there, things are still slightly up in the air. I would love to try out Iraqi on their new 787, but it seems that the cost is quite high, and the tickets are hard to book. However, I see that they are running a flight to Istanbul on the 787, so let's see.

If not, the plan is to hop over to Paris for a night and fly on Air France down to West Africa in Business, if I can find some saver space here...

How Long Do You Recommend For Iraq

For anyone who has been to Iraq, I am curious to hear how long you recommend going for? My plan was to stay around Baghdad, but potentially head up North for a little bit. I'm not entirely sure yet, but I've heard that a week would be more than enough to explore two cities.

Iraq has some very interesting history to it, and this is actually one of the reasons I decided to go. Additionally, it has become quite safe over the past few years, so this contributes to the timing of the visit, not that safety really plays a role in my eyes 😅. Overall, I'm excited to visit, but would love any recommendations you have! TIA!

Final Thoughts

Bring on country number 126, as I have just booked my ticket to Baghdad, Iraq. This is a country I am extremely excited to visit, and one of the last countries in the region I have yet to visit. Time to brush up on my Arabic before I begin my French courses in West Africa. Ahh, stay tuned for reports on the QR A380, as it seems like an underwhelming product, but I have a feeling I am going to be pleasantly surprised. I'm a sucker for great champagne, caviar, and an onboard bar...