Qatar Airways Resumes Direct Flights from Malaga to Doha

Pilar Martínez

Málaga

Málaga has re-established the direct flight to Doha, the Qatari capital, since this Friday, June 22. Qatar Airways is reinstating this connection, which was suspended on March 2 due to the outbreak of the war in Iran. After this hiatus, the first flight will land this Friday at three in the afternoon at Costa del Sol Airport, and according to travel agency sources, it is nearly full. This airline operates this route with an A350-900, which has a capacity of about 280 passengers, depending on the configuration.

The company resumes this connection, which will continue throughout the year, albeit with different frequencies depending on the season. Thus, according to these sources, it starts with flights every day of the week except Tuesday and Saturday. From June 16, it will operate this route daily. This schedule will continue until September 10, after which the frequency will be reduced to three flights a week. Flights will operate on Sundays, Mondays, and Fridays, as before the interruption due to the war crisis in Iran, which affected the entire region.

It is worth noting that Qatar Airways is the only Gulf company operating year-round at Málaga Airport, which does have direct flights to five destinations in this region during the summer season. Specifically, in the high season of 2025, Costa del Sol was connected non-stop with the capitals of Qatar, Doha; Kuwait, Kuwait City; Saudi Arabia, Riyadh; United Arab Emirates, Abu Dhabi; and Bahrain. In fact, Gulf Air announced that it will resume the direct flight from Málaga to Bahrain starting next June 17 and will keep it active until September 25. "This connection offers a convenient and efficient option for both business and leisure travel, with excellent connections to the Persian Gulf, the Indian Ocean, and Asia," explained the airline, which will operate two flights a week from Málaga Airport. Specifically, they will depart every Thursday and Saturday at 1:40 PM, arriving in Bahrain seven hours and fifteen minutes later.

The first flight, after the hiatus due to the war in Iran, will land in Málaga with almost all seats occupied.

In addition to Turkish Airlines, which operates two daily flights between Málaga and Istanbul, it has kept these connections active despite the Persian Gulf conflict.

Qatar Airways began operating at Málaga Airport with direct flights to Hamad (HIA) in Doha before the pandemic, in the summer of 2018. After this health crisis that halted tourism worldwide, it resumed flights in 2022. It did so with three frequencies a week. The success of the operation led them to announce that they would make the seasonal flight a permanent year-round connection between Málaga and Doha. Starting in November 2024, they began flying, offering 3,000 seats per month, continuously until the Iran war.

For Costa del Sol and the city of Málaga, this route is considered strategic by industry professionals for these destinations to position themselves in high-impact markets such as the Middle East and the entire Asian region, becoming a key gateway for travelers from Asia due to the lack of direct flights with these markets.

Qatar Airways also operates in Spain at the airports of Madrid and Barcelona. From the company, they assure that they continue "advancing in the recovery and strengthening of their international destination network, with the expansion of the flight program starting June 16, 2026, to include more than 150 destinations on six continents." They also invite travelers to visit their website or app "to ensure they update their contact details, noting that flight schedules may be subject to changes or cancellations according to operational, regulatory, public safety, or other circumstances beyond their control."

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• Tourism
• Qatar
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• Costa del Sol
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