fkarotz
Aug 24, 08, 11:53 am
So, crazily I decided to fly to Shanghai through Dubai, with Emirates. I had heard good things about the airline and Dubai as a transit point, and thought I’d give it a go.
LGW-DXB
The first leg was from Gatwick (North Terminal) to Dubai. The flight was on a new 777-300, which was very comfortable in economy class. The service, food and entertainment was certainly superior to most European and American airlines, although the service was delivered with unsmiling efficiency. The flight was nearly 8 hours, and there was a drinks round, followed by a meal, then a drink before landing, although some people were offered a snack for some reason. A good touch was the hot wet towel offered before takeoff, which is something other airlines like BA only really do in business class I believe.
Arrival at DXB was smooth, and the plane was at the gate quickly. Deplaning was a bit of a scrum, although that has to be expected with any flight into the Middle East or the Gulf. However, I was glad to be seated at the front of economy, because the lines for the transfer checkpoint quickly became very long... Once through into the airport, I quickly realised that my 10-hour layover was not going to be very comfortable. The place was completely packed with people, many of them sleeping all over the place. Furthermore, there are only 3 or 4 toilets, and they were absolutely filthy, very smelly, and very crowded – it was disgusting just to use them, I didn’t want to touch anything as there was urine all over the floor.
So I decided to try a lounge. I had read that the Marhaba lounge can be a good bet when DXB is as hellish as this, so I went to the lounge, but found that a lot of people had had the same idea, and I wasn’t about to pay to sit in a crowded lounge. Back to the terminal, and a tactical retreat to the Safar Restaurant, where EK offers free lunches and breakfasts if you have long layovers (I think it’s for people with layovers of over 6 hours, but don’t quote me on this!). This was quite pleasant, although too soon I had to leave and try and find a sleeping place. I opted for the end of the terminal, and slept on the floor for what were probably the most uncomfortable 3 hours of my life. During this time, the overcrowdedness of DXB really got to me – people sat with their legs dangling over me as I slept, someone spat directly into a bin next to my head (luckily, they had a good aim so they hit the inside of the bin!), and the airport announcements and constant chattering of the security guards and cleaning staff ensured that nobody got any sleep. When, bleary-eyed, I decided to get up at 5am and try the toilets, I was again greeted by a long line of people waiting to use the toilet. The climax came when I tried to wash my hands – no soap – and looked over to find the guy next to me at the washbasin had decided to have a full-body wash. In the washbasin. When I left, he was washing his feet and legs in the damn washbasin. I swore never to touch one of those basins again!
This experience has completely put me off DXB. It is crowded and dirty, and it is very hard to find seating at the best of times. Emirates is a good airline, and the airport looks very modern, but they need less duty free shops and more toilets, less shopkeepers and more cleaners here. Otherwise, it will remain what it is – a packed, crowded sorting-house with some glittering shops thrown in. But then again, some might say that’s what Dubai is anyway...
DXB-PVG
Our EK flight to PVG (Shanghai Pudong) was scheduled to leave at 10.35am, but left around half an hour late. This would not have been much of an issue...the A330m was half-empty, so I had room to spread out. However, it was very hot outside - of course - and the a/c packs were not switched on until after departure. This made the plane a sweaty place to be waiting for 30mins on the tarmac.
Takeoff was smooth, climb was slow. We routed quickly out over the Gulf, towards Pakistan. About 1 hour into the flight, the attendants came round with drinks, followed by a meal. The attendants on this flight were mostly Chinese or of other East and South-East Asian origins and were much nicer than on the London-Dubai flight...at least they smiled. The entertainment system was not ICE like on EK's 773, but you could still catch a movie if need be. There were other drinks rounds too, with the FAs offering orange juice, tomato juice, and water.
Finally, after nearly 9 hours we touched down in PVG. Deplaning was quick due to the few people there. The walk to passport control was about 5 minutes. Passport control took about 2 minutes, and was very efficient. From there, it is a 10 second walk to the baggage hall, where I picked up my bag less than 10 minutes later. I was out and into a taxi within minutes from picking up my bag. Very fast, very efficient, very clean, so very different from the crowded and unpleasant Dubai airport. Will I be flying EK again? Probably. But I sure will try to limit my time in DXB!
LGW-DXB
The first leg was from Gatwick (North Terminal) to Dubai. The flight was on a new 777-300, which was very comfortable in economy class. The service, food and entertainment was certainly superior to most European and American airlines, although the service was delivered with unsmiling efficiency. The flight was nearly 8 hours, and there was a drinks round, followed by a meal, then a drink before landing, although some people were offered a snack for some reason. A good touch was the hot wet towel offered before takeoff, which is something other airlines like BA only really do in business class I believe.
Arrival at DXB was smooth, and the plane was at the gate quickly. Deplaning was a bit of a scrum, although that has to be expected with any flight into the Middle East or the Gulf. However, I was glad to be seated at the front of economy, because the lines for the transfer checkpoint quickly became very long... Once through into the airport, I quickly realised that my 10-hour layover was not going to be very comfortable. The place was completely packed with people, many of them sleeping all over the place. Furthermore, there are only 3 or 4 toilets, and they were absolutely filthy, very smelly, and very crowded – it was disgusting just to use them, I didn’t want to touch anything as there was urine all over the floor.
So I decided to try a lounge. I had read that the Marhaba lounge can be a good bet when DXB is as hellish as this, so I went to the lounge, but found that a lot of people had had the same idea, and I wasn’t about to pay to sit in a crowded lounge. Back to the terminal, and a tactical retreat to the Safar Restaurant, where EK offers free lunches and breakfasts if you have long layovers (I think it’s for people with layovers of over 6 hours, but don’t quote me on this!). This was quite pleasant, although too soon I had to leave and try and find a sleeping place. I opted for the end of the terminal, and slept on the floor for what were probably the most uncomfortable 3 hours of my life. During this time, the overcrowdedness of DXB really got to me – people sat with their legs dangling over me as I slept, someone spat directly into a bin next to my head (luckily, they had a good aim so they hit the inside of the bin!), and the airport announcements and constant chattering of the security guards and cleaning staff ensured that nobody got any sleep. When, bleary-eyed, I decided to get up at 5am and try the toilets, I was again greeted by a long line of people waiting to use the toilet. The climax came when I tried to wash my hands – no soap – and looked over to find the guy next to me at the washbasin had decided to have a full-body wash. In the washbasin. When I left, he was washing his feet and legs in the damn washbasin. I swore never to touch one of those basins again!
This experience has completely put me off DXB. It is crowded and dirty, and it is very hard to find seating at the best of times. Emirates is a good airline, and the airport looks very modern, but they need less duty free shops and more toilets, less shopkeepers and more cleaners here. Otherwise, it will remain what it is – a packed, crowded sorting-house with some glittering shops thrown in. But then again, some might say that’s what Dubai is anyway...
DXB-PVG
Our EK flight to PVG (Shanghai Pudong) was scheduled to leave at 10.35am, but left around half an hour late. This would not have been much of an issue...the A330m was half-empty, so I had room to spread out. However, it was very hot outside - of course - and the a/c packs were not switched on until after departure. This made the plane a sweaty place to be waiting for 30mins on the tarmac.
Takeoff was smooth, climb was slow. We routed quickly out over the Gulf, towards Pakistan. About 1 hour into the flight, the attendants came round with drinks, followed by a meal. The attendants on this flight were mostly Chinese or of other East and South-East Asian origins and were much nicer than on the London-Dubai flight...at least they smiled. The entertainment system was not ICE like on EK's 773, but you could still catch a movie if need be. There were other drinks rounds too, with the FAs offering orange juice, tomato juice, and water.
Finally, after nearly 9 hours we touched down in PVG. Deplaning was quick due to the few people there. The walk to passport control was about 5 minutes. Passport control took about 2 minutes, and was very efficient. From there, it is a 10 second walk to the baggage hall, where I picked up my bag less than 10 minutes later. I was out and into a taxi within minutes from picking up my bag. Very fast, very efficient, very clean, so very different from the crowded and unpleasant Dubai airport. Will I be flying EK again? Probably. But I sure will try to limit my time in DXB!