It seems that Qatar has officially outgrown the Doha International Airport. As the DIA gears up for the annual summer rush, officials are making the usual announcements about checking in online and arriving early to the airport. 

But this time, they’re advising travelers to get to the airport as early as four hours before a flight (as opposed to two or three hours), especially during peak travel times over the next few weeks. 

For Terminal A (Qatar Airways), those times are expected to be from 5am to 9am, 6pm to 8:30pm and 10:30pm to 1:30am. For Terminal B (almost all other airlines), the peak times are from 7am to 9:30am, 4pm to 6pm and 7pm to 11pm.

Managing traffic

To help ease congestion this month, DIA said it is adding staff and opening more check-in counters to reduce lines. It has also advised those dropping off and picking up passengers to park in short-term parking, instead of idling outside of the arrivals and departures terminals.

The airport, which saw 21 million passengers last year (a 17 percent jump from 2011), was supposed to get some relief with the opening of the new, state-of-the-art Hamad International Airport in April, but that date was postponed after the facility failed to meet government safety checks.

It is now expected to welcome passenger traffic by the end of this year.

Are you traveling this month? Thoughts?

Credit: Photo by Howard Pulling