Radisson Blu Hotel, Doha

I've stayed here for many years, they have nice rooms (I prefer smoking), and decent facilities. The staff are nice (on ground)

A bit expensive, and they weren't aware of my usual check in time being out of hours from their regular check even though I informed them well in advance. It's stressful having to deal with that aspect. For those interested in the details: I have stayed at Radisson Blu hotel for over 3 years now, it being my preferred option within Doha. They have always looked out for my needs well, however this time I had to travel on very short notice due to the death of a loved one. I booked my flights via Qatar airways and was not given the option to book Radisson blu via DiscoverQatar+ who would usually sort these issues out. I ended up booking a room, thought why not, but given this was a transit stop for me (18 or so hours) my timings were going to be unusual, for check in and check out. I called them in advance to notify them of this, that I'll be checking in at 6 am and checking out at 6pm. I had done this before without any dramas (DiscoverQatar+ reservation) but this was my first time dealing with them directly. Over the phone they notified me of a daily rate that was HIGHER than booking.com and kept saying I couldn't check in till later as check in starts at 2 pm. I tried explaining my situation over and over again, but it did not work, I ended up just booking and risking it, knowing that I was due for drama after a 17 hour flight from Melbourne. The check in process ended up being smooth, as the on ground staff were helpful and didn't actually protest at all, it's just the administration staff that answer phone calls that caused me grief.