StuartI thought I would give a review of the Etihad experience. We flew from Heathrow to Bangkok via Abu Dhabi. We flew business class on all but the final sector (Abu Dhabi to Heathrow) where I upgraded us to First Class as an early birthday present.
Etihad Business class from Heathrow to Abu Dhabi
We got picked up at our home to take us to Heathrow as part of our Business class ticket. If you buy any Business class ticket (except Business Saver rates) you get a chauffeur included if you are within a 100 mile radius of the airport although you can pay extra if you live outside this mileage (This has now been withdrawn). Don’t worry if you don’t get confirmation straight away when you book it as you will be contacted 24 hours before to confirm the car.
The Business class lounge is in Terminal 4 at Heathrow and is below the Skyteam lounge (don’t go into the Skyteam lounge as it is not the Etihad one!) This was the best Business class lounge of the whole experience although we didn’t get chance to experience the lounge in Abu Dhabi as we did not have enough time on the way out and we went First Class on the way back which has a different lounge (more on that later).
You can view our earlier post on the A380 Business class experience.
Eithad Business class from Abu Dhabi to Bangkok
The Business class seat on the 777 from Abu Dhabi to Bangkok is not nearly as nice as the Business Studio on the A380 and it is showing signs of its age. However, the service was just as good although the meal service did take a long time but I think this was because everyone wanted to eat at the same time and they want to give you the full service. The wine and food was excellent and we also had cereal and pastries before landing in to Bangkok.
Business class also gives you fast track immigration in Bangkok and you can avoid the queues. We were through within about 5 minutes. Our bags were also the first off, even though I thought they wouldn’t turn up at all as the connection in Abu Dhabi was so tight.
The chauffeur car that took us from Bangkok to Hua Hin was not as nice as the one in the UK, it was an older Mercedes which had wear and tear. Although the driver was nice enough and again you can pay an excess for going beyond the standard mileage. If you are not sure how much it would be you just need to contact Etihad customer services and they will give you a quote.
Etihad Business class from Bangkok to Abu Dhabi
Again, the chauffeur car was an older Mercedes and we didn’t even have water available which was quite annoying as we had it on the way out. Etihad really need to sort this out.
Business class check in was very quiet and you get fast track immigration.
The lounge in Bangkok is the Louis CIP lounge. This is a very basic lounge. No champagne was available and the food was very limited. It seemed a bit dingy and they need to look at whether they keep offering this lounge as it was one of the worst we had experienced (except the awful Delta lounge in Orlando, that is!) People can also pay for the lounge and whilst they were negotiating entry we had to wait to go in. They did come and get us when the flight was ready for boarding.
When we boarded, we realised that there are actually 3 versions of Business class – the Business Studio on the A380, the Business seat on the 777 which we had on the way out and this Business class seat. This was the oldest of the three and, whilst the seat was comfortable, Stuart had problems with the recline on his seat and the row in front had issues with their in flight entertainment. Whilst I appreciate this is a leisure route, Etihad really need to refurbish this to bring it up to standard. The service was excellent, however, as was the food.
Abu Dhabi to Heathrow in Etihad First Class
As I said, I upgraded to First Class as an early birthday present. I managed to do this by using the bidding system that Etihad use where you can bid for an upgrade. There is a minimum and maximum you can bid and a meter on the site tells you how likely it is to be accepted. Once you have made your offer you will be told 24-48 hours before departure if you have been accepted and your seats will be allocated at check in and you will be charged. If you are unsuccessful then you won’t be charged anything.
The First Class lounge is separate to the Business class lounge and is quite difficult to find as they are not next to each other. It is by the Fendi shop in the shopping area of the terminal.
As a First Class passenger you get a free 15 minute spa treatment. We both opted for a facial but when we came to getting it we were told that the facial wasn’t available for both of us so I had a back massage instead.
We had some lovely vintage champagne and tried some sliders which were really nice but a bit spicy. The bar is a particular focal point of the lounge and it is very much like a swanky hotel lobby lounge. We could have had a three course meal in the lounge but we decided we would eat on the aircraft.
We were called to board the aircraft about 10 minutes before departure. Again, you get worried that they are going to forget about you and that you will miss the flight but you won’t.
We boarded the aircraft (the A380) and were personally welcomed and shown to our First Class apartment. We had 5D and 5H which were opposite the aisle from each other. Etihad First Class is a small cabin of 5 rows, one apartment on each side (apart from 1A which is The Residence). Each apartment has a large leather seat, separate bed and vanity unit. You can also eat when you like.
The Cabin Manager introduced herself and we had warm nuts and champagne before take off. We also had our food and drink order taken from the on board chef and we were glad to hear that we could eat together as the table in each apartment has room for 2 to eat together.
After take off, we had a three course meal with some exquisite wine and champagne and it seemed like we were the only people on the flight, it was very private and the service was outstanding. We wanted for nothing.
After dinner, we were asked if we wanted to take a shower. Now this is something unique to both Etihad and Emirates first class – they have a shower onboard! They get the shower ready for you and you can have a shower for up to 5 minutes. There is something really weird about having a shower 38,000ft up in the air. Not sure how I felt about it. They had a hairdryer in the shower area and I had my in flight pyjamas and slippers to change into to bed down for the night. When I came back to my “apartment” the bed had been made with sheets, duvet and pillows and I closed the doors on my apartment, turned the lights out and went to sleep.
If you need water during the flight when your apartment doors are closed, you can either call for a crew member or get it out of your own apartment minibar.
We slept for a few hours then got up and had breakfast of cereal and pastries with a lovely hot latte. Once we had eaten breakfast I used the toiletries that came in my Christian Lacroix(!) washbag to make myself look presentable before landing.
The bed was then put away and we came in to land.
When we had got through Heathrow immigration (don’t even go there – abysmal is not even a bad enough description of it!) we picked up our bags and our chauffeur was outside arrivals who took our bags and drove us back home in a very comfortable BMW.
Conclusion
There really is no other way to travel longhaul. We would definitely do Business class again and would love to do First Class at the right price.
