Another Original Post - Emirates First Class (A380)
Woopie, another travel blogger writing about Emirates First Class, how original. Despite how overcovered this product is (including by this blog), I still think it’s important…to you know see what First Class is all about! Hint: Emirates is all about creating an experience as opposed to a flight, and it definitely shows.
Flight: EK 206
Departing: John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK)
Arriving: Milan Malpensa Airport (MXP)
Operated by: Airbus A380
Cabin: First Class
Check in and Ground Experience
I managed to convince my friend to come along for the ride, as this was also going to be his first First Class. Originally, we had booked 2 business classes seats, and were planning to upgrade at the airport. Consequently, we got to the airport 3.5 hours beforehand, and found thankfully that there were still two seats to upgrade! Cue the frantic swiping of AMEX Platinums (NOT DEBT FUELED), and 10 minutes later we had our golden tickets in hand. Note the earlier you get to the airport the better, as Emirates may have capacity controls based on catering requirements.
Tickets
My friend suggested we hop over to the Virgin Atlantic Clubhouse for a drink after the ordeal - this smaller, more intimate space was fantastic. Made to order drinks, food, and of course the cheeky (but nice) British Hospitality all made me sad to leave this lounge. But, this was an Emirates review, so we hoped over to the Emirates lounge, which happened to be the complete opposite of this.
Lounge Entrance
The lounge was MASSIVE, which made sense given that two A380 flights, one straight to Dubai and one popping over to Milan were taking off at similar times. However, as a First Class passenger, I was a tad miffed at the lack of “specialness” of the lounge - it felt like Emirates though size could overpower all else.
However, this annoyance (#firstworldproblems) was washed away by the plentiful amount of mid-tier alcohol. I took this moment to do a taste test on Moët vs Veuve, and found that I preferred Veuve. Not that is really matters, given they are both owned by LVMH, with the current CEO being one of the wealthiest people in the world.
Champagnes
Bar
But don’t fill up on the ground champagne, as there is plenty more to come in the sky! I did take a moment to try out the self serve buffet, and found it to be quite good. Given Emirates is based in the Middle East, there is a wide variety of Halal food available.
Note for Milan departures: you don’t get to depart from the lounge, which means (gasp) you will have to walk downstairs to the gate. And…you’ll have to board with the business class passengers. The horror.
Boarding
I will say, the Emirate’s ground experience did disappoint, especially in compared to the Lufthansa First Class I flew later; however, New York isn’t it’s hub, so this can be forgiven a bit. Emirates does have 2! massive First Class lounges in Dubai, and I hope to try them out one day.
Seat and Cabin
There are 14 seats in the first class cabin, spread on a 1-2-1 configuration (1 window, 2 together, 1 window) - the math means that there are 2 “extra” seats in the back of the cabin so it all adds up. It’s always fun going up the stairs of the A380, though the stairs were unfortunately roped off for the rest of the flight.
Stairway to First Class
The seats were…about as Emirates as one could get. Meaning plenty of faux gold and wood finishes that reminded me of early 2000’s Vegas.
Emirates First Class Seat
Wait, that’s seat 2K. I was in 2F, which was right behind my friend in 1F - this was great, as we wouldn’t have wanted to look at each other.
First Class Seat
Suites
Pictured above was our flight attendant, K, when was probably mildly confused at the sheer number of new passengers that came on. Settling into the seat, I found it quite comfy, but not as comfy as the previous Emirates flight I flew on.
Seat
The front of the seat I think is equally, if not more, prettier than the one I had on my previous Emirates flight.
Front of the Seat
We will go into the amenities later, but I just want to point out the amenity kit on the top left, the sleep stuff right beside it, the writing equipment and the snack basket.
Tablet
Remote Control
The seat also has a tablet and remote control to help navigate, although I barely used it given how responsive the touch screen was.
To the right of that, there was also the Emirates bar, which does nothing really given you can order drinks on demand. However, I did partake in a diet Pepsi that was unfortunately quite warm given the bar wasn’t chilled.
Minibar
The seat also came with a pair of Bowers and Wilkins headphones, which my friend said were quite nice.
Headphones
Finally, the seat came with a pillow, mattress and blanket.
Sleep Things
I actually decided not to use the mattress pad, partially because I get hot while sleeping and also because I would get 15 minutes of less sleep (the flight attendant said he would need to wake me up 15 minutes earlier to collect the mattress).
Bed
For reference, below is the business class seat - Emirates’ business class seat is quite disappointing, possibly to make passengers upgrade to first class.
Business Class Seating
Amenities
Going on an Emirates flight is like going on a shopping trip, only everything is free. Let’s start with the amenity kit, which is the best in the business. Made by luxury brand BVLGARI, it includes: body lotion, face emulsion, cleansing towel, lip balm, comb, tissues, deodorant and shaving stuff. The big difference between the male and female version is the parfum: I did a test with another passenger, and we both agreed that the female version was much better (the male version was “spicer” and more citrusy).
Amenity Kit
The flight attendant also passed out pajamas, which was encapsulated in a SUPER CUTE tote bag. Hilariously enough, the men’s medium was too big, and I had to swap down to a female small; I lucked out, and got the last one.
Pajamas
Slippers
Emirates asserts that there is a special hydration fabric in the pajamas that incorporates Shea Buter and Argan Oil. I however felt nothing except comfort. Unfortunately, I can’t say the same praises about Emirate’s slippers -while acceptable at first, they contained substantially less padding than my Lufthansa First Class slippers.
Sleep Stuff
In addition to the amenities being thrown at you, there were also things in the seat. This included a makeup kit, which contained facial toner, eye cream, pillow mist (still trying to figure that out) and facial towels.
Writing Equipment
There was also emirates branded notepad and pen - I knew there was something I forgot to pack away! Finally, in the main shower space, there was a ton of Voya branded stuff - this is serious business, costing over $100 for a 50ML bottle!
Shower Spa
Speaking of which, let’s move onto the SHOWER! Yes, you can SHOWER IN THE SKY. WHAT A WASTE OF WATER AND MONEY. BUT ITS POSSIBLE. First class passengers can book the shower spa - note it’s far easier to get an appointment at the beginning of the trip than at the end. You can book 30 minute appointments, although you only get 5 minutes of water, so I can’t imagine what you’d do the rest of the time.
Shower Spa I
Shower Spa II
There is also a shower attendant, whose sole job is to help out with the shower; mine, let’s call her M, was fantastic in offering me more lotions / helping with my pajama size. She did go over the safety features of both the shower and the plane, which I thought was hilarious.
Shower
I actually thought the actual shower itself was a bit cramped #firstworldproblems, but this was due to the design / curvature of the plane, so we can give Emirates some slack.
But after your shower, you might think it’s time to go get a drink. Which is EXACTLY what my friend and I intended to do. Or no - we were actually told to be because we were being a bit too loud (our mistake!). The bar is located at the back of the upper deck, and is accessible to both First and Business Class passengers.
Bar I
Bar II
If you look on the bottom right hand corner, behind the Belvedere, you can see the Hennessy Paradis, which retailed at $1,500 a bottle. Which meant the bartender only put a little bit in our Dom Perignon champagne cocktails :(.
Lots of customers enjoy gathering in the area: I spoke at length with another flyer and the purser, with the purser giving us some insight into how the whole operation was run. A few more glasses in, I tried my best to talk with a girl my age, but alas felt the need to sleep.
Food and Drink
In my haste to sleep, I unfortunately did not take a picture of the menu; however, for my other review, see attached for the menu. Emirates operates on a dine on demand system, although the flight attendants request that you give them 15 - 20 minutes notice for the main courses so they can properly prepare them.
Dom P 2013
I started the meal out with the classic Dom Perignon. It’s very very well balanced, something that I feel is a trait with most high end alcohol. That being said, it not like 4X better than something like Veuve despite costing 4X more.
Caviar
Next up was caviar with all the trimming, a classic. Emirates always manages to do it soooo right.
Crab Appetizer
The same could be said for this crab appetizer, which was fresh and delicious.
Lamb Dish
Unfortunately, the same could not be said for the lamb. I find that Emirates tends to overcook it’s meats (based on 2 flights, #statisticallysignificant), and my travel friends tend to agree. Stick with the seafood.
Too many glasses in
I snuck back in for a final champagne cocktail before heading over to bed.
The Service
I think the service, while still quite good, was a bit more professional than the last time I flew the airline. Which isn’t a bad thing at all! The flight attendant, K, was efficient in tending to all of the guest’s needs, but I felt didn’t bring as much personality into this (probably because he had a column of guests). The purser was super cool: beyond indulging in our endless requests for more photos, he shared some cool nuggets of wisdom about flying on the A380. And the shower spa attendant was extremely attentive, and very generous in offering the expensive lotions in the sky. All in all, a very pleasant crew that made the journey smooth, and far far too short.
Final Thoughts
Having flown both the 777 and A380, which experience did I think was better? On the hard product, the new 777 suites blow the A380’s out of the water in terms of privacy, functionality and general level of fun. However, the amenities on the A380, such as the shower suite and bar, are so much cooler. Thus, I’d say that on a longer flight, I would actually prefer the A380, as there are just more things to do and places to mingle. To be clear, this is splitting hairs between two of the world’s best airline products - the one thing I will say is Emirates step up your catering! Lufthansa First Class did not have the problem of overcooked meat (and indeed, it was so good it dethroned my Air Canada favorite). To sum it up, Emirates First Class is an experience of a lifetime: no matter what type of plane you choose, prepare to create some amazing memories.
