We were securely booked TLS-LHR-DOH, via Expedia, on British then Qatar Airways, due to depart TLS at 11:20am, finally arriving Doha at 11:30pm (thanks to timezone difference). I clicked through countless online pages about flight/entry/arrival requirements for Heathrow and Doha. I filled out several circuitous online forms for British Airways, Qatar Airways, Qatar government (ehteraz) and UK government (passenger locator form), and also downloaded the Verifly app as it was encouraged by British Airways. In assessing these various website/app User eXperience, the gov.uk covid info site was best, as it clearly listed cases, with hyperlinks to click for details about each case. The Qatar government site is typically (in my past experience) very wordy, with every possible case and argument dealt with in a single very long document: combine citizen/resident/GCC/visitor times vaccinatedUS/vaccinatedQR/non-vaccinated/recovered, and you get 4x4 long paragraphs. I completed their lengthy Ehteraz webpage for the Advanced Registration form, which trumpeted that, after inspecting our details, we are APPROVED to enter Qatar! I tried to print it out, but our hosts' printer refused to be recognized by my MacBook (30 minutes of downloading/rebooting/power-cycling). Ah well, it's on the phone – I downloaded the form to my iPhone Files.
However, British Airways would not approve us for online check-in until Verifly approved us; its app occasionally “failed authorization check” for unknown reasons; and it would only accept British Airways flights, i.e. Our flight to London, no mention of Doha. I spent an hour filling out the British government Passenger Locator Form (lengthy, but well-designed), hoping that it would stimulate Verifly. Completed the Form for both of us, and downloaded them. By this time, it was 6pm. I decided to wade through the Qatar government website, to read through all the many cases to try to find our Typical Tourist case: a visitor recently-Pfizer-boosted. To my horror, it seems that such a case requires a recent PCR test. But congratulations, no need to quarantine. PCR. No mention of RATest. I checked French government website, which has a nice map-locator list of Covid testing sites, with a handy office-open time and hyperlink click-through to make an appointment. One lab is open until 7pm – I telephone, and sorry, no more covid tests today, maybe you can try Hopital Purpan. We walk next door to enlist aid of neighbor Anne-- her daughter is helpful, calling the hospital for us: no testing until tomorrow morning. I return to the government website to search for any place open until 8pm; there is one evidently small operation on the other side of town, I can click to make an appointment for 7:20pm! We get in the car, rush over there through pouring rain: it is a huge apartment block, no street names or numbers to guide. I ask a shop owner; he points me to a large lab around the corner – it is closed. I run back around the other side of the building, ask a passer-by who tries to be helpful; together we collar a resident exiting the building who identifies the street name and number (not here), and notes that there are actually 2 labs next to each other, “look closer”. I run back and indeed find an obscure gateway to an old building with the name of the nurse (infirmiere) running the lab, and a phone number (different from the number listed on the website) and a scrawled name on an intercom (which a placard informs us is out of order). I try calling the new number, get voice-mail, leave a message. Then a young man arrives: he also made an appointment on the website, also need to fly tomorrow (to Morocco!). He tries the various phone numbers, to no avail. As I am about to leave him there to keep trying, so that I can return to the parked car where Barbara awaits, she walks up, worried and searching for me. We all agreed that the infirmiere evidently decided to close early. Barb and I drove back home in the rain, disheartened. I made an online appointment for the airport Centre de Dépistage for a PCR test at 7am. We cleaned and packed, had a short and restless sleep, waking at 5:30, on the road by 6, arriving at the Centrebefore 7. They nicely tell us that a PCR test takes 24 hours. No, they have no Express option. Perhaps we could fly to Heathrow where they offer an Express option?
I get on the phone to British Airways, through lengthy authorization questions, and the friendly agent finally says “you booked through a third party, so you must contact them”. Ah. Expedia. Expedia has an onine chat function, where Mr. Jain kindly assists me, tries to foist me back to British, then tries to contact BA himself, to no avail. “Best to see what the ticket-counter agent can do for you at this point”.
Agents nicely said that they must confirm PCR negative test before any flight terminating in DOH. Period.
I get on the phone with BA again; a very helpful agent is sympathetic to my story, seems to understand, says no he cannot split the ticket, but he could re-book us to a later flight. I say: “ go ahead and delay us by 1 day. That will give time for the PCR test.” He says he is working on it, but the phone line cuts off.
In the meantime, Barb walked back to the Centre to ask the workers there if they knew of any place with an Express PCR test (we had not asked before, and they had not volunteered the possibility). Oh yes, Hospital Purpan can do it. They did not offer to phone the hospital.
Then I return to the desk to ask if they could phone; another clerk says oh, there's a lab nearby that offers Express tests: AirBio Lab. Indeed, it's only 5 minutes away. We load everything back in the car, drive over to AirBio Lab, wait in a short queue – they are very friendly and efficient. Yes indeed they can perform a PCR test, probably within an hour! Wow. Q-tip up the nostril. Merci beaucoup and au revoir.
Ahh, but what about my recent request of BA to delay our ticket by one day? Another phone call to them confirmed that they had not changed the ticket – though the earlier agent evidently e-mailed me to ask me to call back. Ironically, it was fortunate that we were cut off that way.
We drive back to the airport, quickly unload the baggage onto a cart which Barb wheels in, while I return the rental-car to its appointed garage downtown – a tale of great automation in itself, for another chapter of this story. Thankfully we had scouted out the area earlier, so I knew where to walk, looking for a taxi. But I checked the airport bus navette webpage; a bus shows up right then, before I find any taxi available. The bus zips me to the airport quickly. Run in to meet Barb by 10am. Check-in-counter guy is very friendly and encouraging, no problem, have a nice flight, you will have a good time. Lengthy walk apparently around the whole airport to reach security (they worried a lot about liquids, but were very friendly), passport control, then the gate, only a few minutes before our boarding group was called. Just like we had always planned. No need to notify the VIS school that we will not be able to visit. No need to cancel hotel reservation in Doha. No need to notify our house-sitting hosts that we would arrive only 6 hours before they depart on their trip.
Is all well that end's well? Not exactly; we are quite tired and stressed, and learn a few lessons:
Both partners double-check all paperwork and visa requirements. As Ronald Reagan famously said, “Trust but verify”. Barbara would have pressed me for proof on covid-test status. (Still, when she looked through the page today, she also could not find it.)
Try harder to clarify online check-in as soon as possible – get on the phone if necessary. I hesitate to spend time on hold; but they can be helpful.
Barbara had worried about packing and preparation yesterday, and hesitatingly agreed to go into Toulouse for a mid-day concert (which was wonderful, by the way, along with the outdoor café afterwards). Agreed that we need to focus more on preparation beforehand, to assure that all is neatly settled.
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