olafman

As the Middle East carriers continue to gain market share from the legacy carriers of the world, it’s time to compare two of the top airlines head to head and their first class offerings. And thus begins The Battle in the Middle East.

I decided to take this challenge on during a trip to Cape Town, South Africa to ride in the Cape Argus Cycle Tour bike race. My best friend lives in Cape Town and I love the place. I’m guessing I’ve been there more than 50 times. It’s especially amazing for road and mountain biking and rock climbing. Pair that with great food and wine and it’s an easy destination. The only drawback is that it’s over 10,000 miles away.

I have traveled almost every conceivable way to get from the west coast of California to South Africa. My favorite is still BA SFO-LHR-CPT. But I’ve done Varig through Sao Paolo, Singapore with their old nonstop LAX-SIN and Cathay Pacific many times. It’s just hard to beat the CX first class.

For this trip, I booked SFO-DXB-CPT on Emirates in first class and then CPT-AUH on Etihad business class then AUH-SFO on Etihad first class. Etihad only flies two-class service to CPT so they start The Battle at a slight disadvantage. Also Etihad uses a leased Jet Airways 777-300 on the AUH-SFO segment so this might represent a different experience than true Etihad metal.

I’ve flown Emirates First Class quite a few times and know their product well. I’ve even had the privilege to fly as the only passenger in first class on Emirates. I chose them on the outbound because they began flying their newest A380s on the SF0-DXB route last December and I love the shower. I filmed a YouTube video in 2011 showing the shower experience on an Emirates A380. The video recently passed 300,000 hits! I’ll be filming the sequel on this upcoming flight. Sequels are never as good as the orginals. The cast is older. The premise is tired. But I’m hoping to find a fresh storyline. Stay tuned. (http://youtu.be/m9E-0HB_EiI)

I’ve heard many nice things about Etihad Airlines and thought that it would be fun to compare the two mammoth carriers from the UAE that are doing their best to take over the world’s air travel. I want to see how they compare to Emirates and their strong product.

Let the Battle begin. Competitors take your corners!

olafman

Part 1: Emirates #226 A380 First Class SFO-DXB

Emirates Airlines #226
San Francisco, CA USA (SFO) – Dubai, UAE (DXB)
Departure 15:30 (Delayed to 16:30)
Arrival: 19:20 (Delayed to 20:00)
Length: 15:50
Aircraft: Airbus 380-800
Seat: FIRST 2K

The Battle begins on a Friday afternoon. I’ve gone to work in Palo Alto. I lead a big meeting every Friday morning for my team. I figured that I’ll squeeze the meeting in on the morning of my departure and then hold it again on the Monday that I get back. It’s not a great solution but it keeps the ball rolling with minimal disruption.

CHAUFFEURED TRANSFER: (Grade: A)
The limo company called to say they are picking me up at 12:30 for a 15:30 departure. I say this is crazy and told them that 3 hours ahead was unnecessary. We agreed on 13:00.

The morning at work was the typical craziness. In addition one of my team was leaving after four years so we had a nice noon send off including getting the Dosa guy to make lunch in our parking lot. It was great. She was touched. It ended with Pinkberry for everyone.

Just as everyone was adding their toppings to their yogurt, the Town Car pulled up and I was on my way.

The driver was pleasant and the transfer was simple. God bless traffic on the 101 even with Friday light. At midday, we experienced a little slow down but got to the airport in 20 minutes or so.

As we were entering the airport, I could see that my EK bird wasn’t at the stand. I had been checking to see if the inbound flight was on time and it had shown a 30 minute delay. I hate getting to the airport even before the incoming aircraft is there!

CHECK IN: (Grade: A)
In spite of a long line for economy, I was pleased to see the First Class check-in agent waiting for me. I had already checked in online but they needed to check my passport. My bag was tagged with a First Class tag and off to security I went.

SECURITY: (Grade: F)
Emirates do not participate in the TSA PreCheck program. As I approached security, the line for Priority passengers seemed longer than the one for normal passengers. I stood in the Priority line for 10 minutes and barely moved. I finally asked one of the TSA if the economy line might be faster and she said yes. :/

So I moved over to the normal line and then waited and waited. I hate lines. Of course another 10 minutes in, the economy line had moved but the Priority line was finally moving more. The Priority line cleared and I cursed myself for moving lines. I finally decided that I’d return to the Priority line to escape the security madness.

At this point FOUR wheelchair people cut ahead of me in the Priority Line and I decided that the travel Gods were against me today. I wasn’t going to win. Submit and deal with it.

I think the whole thing took 40 minutes and it was the longest security experience I had endured in many years. I don’t want to come off like a travel snob but several times I’ve been personally escorted through security when flying EK First around the world. Even Air India’s Station Manager walked my family and I through the LAX security when we travelled with them. #firstworldproblems

I like the A gates of the SFO international terminal most of all for the lovely staff of the BA lounge. Andrew and his team are delightful. Even when I’m not flying BA, I’ll always pop in and say hi.

LOUNGE: (Grade: B)
At all the Emirates Lounges worldwide save at their hub in Dubai, first and business class passengers share the same lounge. This a benefit for the business class passengers as the food and beverage offerings are better than the average business lounge. I would say that the Emirates Lounge is still the best F&B lounge at SFO even with the opening of the AMEX Centurion Lounge in T3.

It’s just a little crowded for my taste. This is the same complaint I have with the Cathay Pacific Lounge at SFO. When flying first class, I want my own lounge. Today I finally found a pair of seats with some views of the tarmac but unfortunately on the major thoroughfare.

I grabbed a glass of Veuve Clicquot and set in to finish up work emails. I also grabbed a nice prawn and squid appetizer. It was a nice nibbly bits to tie me over until my big meal on board.





After having gotten up at 5:15 and then worked all morning, I was looking forward to a shower in the lounge. One nice thing about The Emirates Lounges worldwide is that they tend to offer a shower. Before a 16 hour flight, it’s nice to shower even if you know that you might be taking a shower on board!



So I went to the restroom and showered off the day’s work. The water pressure was a bit low but California is in a drought so I couldn’t complain. The best part was that the shower room was air-conditioned! Take note British Airways! There is nothing worse than a shower at T5 at Heathrow only to begin sweating immediately after stepping out of the shower!

When I got back to my seat, a gentleman had sat down in the seat adjacent to mine. He was an older Indian man, well dressed and he looked almost familiar to me. Then the parade of people approached him asking if they could have a picture with him. I assumed him to be either an actor or politician. Finally as the fifth person asked to take a photo with him, I decided to figure things out.

I happen to work for a company that is run primarily by Indians. I took a very sly photo of him and sent it off my boss and our Marketing VP, both of whom are Indian. Almost immediately they both wrote back. He happened to be the CEO of a huge Indian company. My boss and her husband had recently had dinner at his house in Bangalore! She encouraged me to introduce myself and let him know that I who I worked for. Talk about a small world! At this point, I decided I wanted my own selfie with him to send off to my boss and team. We talked about the fact I was on vacation headed to South Africa for a bike race and not on business.

He was very nice and we chatted a bit about our work but I tried not to be too intrusive. Meanwhile my phone was going crazy with text messages as the selfie photo was spreading throughout my company. All of the dev guys were especially impressed. I simply chuckled. He was worried that he was going to miss his connecting flight. We all have the same worries when we travel.

At this point one of my people sent me an article identifying him as one of the 20 most powerful people in the world. Pretty funny. Should I bring up again that Emirates needs a SEPARATE lounge for first class!

BOARDING: (Grade: A)
Normally I am not a fan of going to the gate when boarding is first called. My best friend Robert taught me that you really shouldn’t board until they are personally calling out your name! As our flight was finally called (one hour late at this point), Mr Bigwig didn’t move. So I didn’t either. One of the lounge staff came by to say that they would come get him closer to departure. That was my cue not to budge.

Finally when he and I had been alone in the now desolate lounge for quite some time, I told him that I was going to head to the gate. We said our goodbyes. I somehow knew that we would be seeing each other soon.

I left the lounge and headed over to Gate A9 where a throng of passengers was waiting to board still. I knew that if I looped around, I would miss the craziness. Indeed the First/Business line was empty by this point and I walked right on.

I was greeted warmly at the door and when they saw I was flying First, I was handed off to a flight attendant who guided me to my seat. Almost immediately another attendant came by and greeted me by name. She helped me hang my jacket in the built in closet of my suite.

Right behind me was my new best friend and favorite billionaire. Even though there were only two of us in first class, they put him in 1K and I had long ago chosen 2K. One of the three flight attendants that were attending to us informed me that we were the only passengers! I love that!

Like so many other airlines, they serve the cheap champers on the ground to avoid paying the higher taxes on the good stuff. The flight attendant apologized about this as she filled my glass with Tattinger. My old friend Dom was just minutes away.



The purser of the flight came by and introduced himself to me. We chatted a bit but soon he was off to chat up Mr. Billionaire. He had things to do before we took off.

INFLIGHT SERVICE: (Grade: A)
With a 3:30 p.m. departure, the flight attendant asked if I wanted to delay having dinner. My dosa lunch and the nibblies from the lounge encouraged me to wait. I did welcome a glass of Dom and I selected some warm nuts. They weren’t in a bag and I didn’t have to make the flight turn around to fix that problem. (Sorry, it’s such an easy dig to Korean Airlines.)

I used the in-flight internet for a while to finish up work and get into vacation mode. Emirates provides 10 MB of complementary internet and then only charges $1 per 500 MB. That seems like a great deal for me.

The various attendants did a great job of keeping my glass filled. While Dom isn’t my favorite champers, it is perfectly fine. Finally after a long “cocktail” hour, I decided that I needed to transition into dinner so I could hit the hay and get some sleep.



Throughout the whole flight, I found the service to be excellent. I read a scary article recently that the middle Eastern airlines have strong reprimands when passengers complain. I tend to be an easy passenger so they didn’t have to be fearful of me.

I started dinner with the usual caviar plate which I really enjoyed. The saltiness is perfect for the dulled taste buds of 39,000 ft. Next I had a smoked salmon plate with some delicious caper buds that also tasted perfect. I chose the mixed grill for a main. It was average but the chicken was a bit dry and not worth finishing. The lamb easily made up for it though. Red meats are the best bet on board. I finished the meal with a nice cheese plate. I’m not a fan of sweets so cheese is my favorite end to a meal.










The wines to accompany each course seemed fine but I finished once they cleared the table with a simple pour of Johnny Walker Blue to get me ready for a nice slumber.

I reckon that I slept about 7 hours. The attendant had offered to set up the adjacent suite for sleeping. I always like this so that you can switch back and forth between the sleeping suite and awake suite. I asked that she put down two of the mattress pads which I have found is the perfect about of cushiness.

When I finally awoke, I was surprised that daylight was streaming in the window of the unoccupied side of the plane. Normally they keep the cabin as dark as possible to allow everyone to sleep. Apparently one of the electric shades had malfunctioned and there was no way to override it. Ah technology. The attendants had tried their best to cover up the window by piling up pillows and blankets but it wasn’t entirely successful.

By now it was about 3 p.m. Dubai time and I needed to be awake if I was to get a proper rest that night. That meant it was shower time!!







The highlight of choosing Emirates First Class on the A380 is the opportunity to take a shower. Being the only carrier that offers this feature, it’s still a thrill. A five minute shower is a perfect way to feel revived after a long slumber. I had a little trouble with the shower door lock. There is a small sensor that requires the shower door to be shut that was a bit finicky. I had to enlist the help of the attendant who was waiting patiently outside the Shower Spa door the entire time I was inside. She showed me how to override it if necessary. But finally it ended up working.

The shower was great. It is pure decadence. Yes, I made a sequel video. I just have to find time to edit it and get it online. I can’t say it’s much different from the original: Me in the Shower Spa talking to myself. I did notice that there is a subtle “No Cellphones” sticker next to the controls for the floor heating. I sort of ignored that!

Back at my seat it was time for some more food. I’m not the biggest fan of breakfast food so I ordered a Portabella Quiche from the snack menu with a basket of breakfast breads. Several cups of Earl Grey later, I was ready to start my day.





Emirates is know for it’s ICE inflight entertainment system. I tend to bring my own entertain on my laptop and iPad but I did use it to watch the Airshow and one movie about two guys traveling through Italy. I had brought the Modern Family episode shot entirely on Apple products and it was lots of fun.

About an hour from landing I figured that I should top off my stomach and ate a nice open-face sandwich of BBQ Chicken.



Our flight path was a little different that I expected. I though this flight flew straight up the coast to the North Pole. But instead it looked more like a typical European flight.



At one point I walked to the back of the plane and sat at on the bench near the bar. A few people were around but it was mostly flight attendants chatting away. None of the attendants were from First Class but they all knew my name and asked me how I was enjoying First Class. That was a nice touch.

DUBAI GROUND SERVICES: (Grade: A)

Just prior to landing, I changed back into my travel clothes and was soon ready to disembark. Unfortunately, the upstairs jetway wasn’t working so they invited us to deplane down the stairs through economy. I was the first one off the plane.

We landed at 8:00 p.m. and I had passed customs, retrieved my bag and was sitting in the car on my way to the hotel by 8:25 p.m. It all worked very well.

OVERALL:
It was a great flight. Almost hard to fault Emirates on anything. The biggest were a shared First and Business Lounge at SFO and some dry chicken. Other than that, it sets a high standard of what a First Class product should be.

Up next, two days in Dubai including a Culinary Flight Lunch at the Burj Al Arab where you dine on four courses at four different restaurants.

Then it’s off to Cape Town, South Africa and another Emirates First Class flight.

PART 2: Culinary Flight Lunch at the Burj Al Arab:

I had been to Dubai three times prior and had always wanted to see the Burj Al Arab a little more up close and personal. I went exploring on their website and on various other websites to find out which restaurant offered the best experience.

Almost immediately I found that they offered both a lunch and dinner version of a Culinary Flight experience where you eat different courses in different restaurants. We originally booked the dinner flight but found out that at night the main restaurant faces a very dark ocean and there wasn’t much of a view. Instead we booked the four course, four restaurant lunch beginning at 12:30 p.m.

I figured out that one of my long time friends from San Francisco would be in Dubai during my two day transit and he was excited to try the culinary flight with me. Being an avid traveler and foodie, he had also always wanted to eat at The Burj.

We decided to take Uber from our hotel to the Burj Al Arab. I much prefer using Uber in foreign countries over a regular taxi. It’s simple. The money is handled through the app. Plus you get to rate the driver and they know this so there is less of a reason for them to take advantage of the unknowing tourist. I ended up using Uber in Dubai four times and each time the wait was under 5 minutes.

There was a bit of a car jam in front of the hotel as we got out. I had heard that they were letting tour groups into the lobby and there was a large group of Chinese visitors snapping pictures everywhere. If I ran one of the nicest hotels in the world, I would strive for exclusivity.



We found the Culinary flight check-in desks and they said it would begin in five minutes. We walked around the lobby and took it all in. At the entrance you see front facing dancing waterfall. But as you go up the adjacent escalators, the impressive thing is the 32 story atrium. Truly spectacular.



Our meal began with a beautiful table located right next to the aquarium in the Al Muhara restaurant one level below the main lobby. We were offered a menu where we had a choice of welcome cocktail or mocktail, and then we had to choose all the courses for the entire meal. At this restaurant I had some great fois gras and my friend had lobster and prawns. Both were a great start. Also included was bottled water. We both chose to get the wine pairing with each course so the sommelier came by to explain their offerings based on what we ordered. I enjoyed his choices very much.







Next we were escorted down an additional level to the Junsui Asian themed buffet. Of all the restaurants, we decided that we would like to return to this one in the future. The food all looked amazing in spite of being a buffet! Our course here was Peking Duck and Shrimp Tempura sushi. Both were excellent. This restaurant’s clientele was almost all Asian which is a great sign for the quality of the food.





Next it was time for the main event in the restaurant at the top of the building in the Al Muntuha restaurant. Connected to the Sky Bar, this restaurant offered spectacular views. I’m so happy we switched from dinner to lunch so that we could appreciate the incredible vista. We both chose the veal tenderloin here and it was out of this world. Perfectly cooked. My seat faced the Palm island and Steve’s faced “The World”.









We lingered at this course to get the full experience. We were full at this point and had one cocktail and three glasses of wine in us so it was easy to enjoy the moment. Finally we told our usher we were ready for the final offering.

We returned to the main lobby and were given a beautiful table in the open aire restaurant in the atrium, Sahn Eddar. We refused all offers of tea and coffee before they brought out our spectacular desserts. I had an obligatory bite of each but I’m not much a sweets person preferring to enjoy my cognac.

It was a great experience overall. It easily was the most expensive meal of my life (and I’ve had lots of great and expensive meals.) But it was a nice way to experience much of what the Burj Al Arab has to offer.

For those who don’t wish to take out a second mortgage on their house to have lunch, I’d suggest the high tea that they offer in the Sky bar. You will get the experience of the top of the hotel for a fraction of the price. But if you have the money, enjoy the Culinary Flight as an experience of a lifetime. More hotels should offer such a culinary choice to highlight their best restaurants.

Part 3: Emirates #770 B777-300ER First Class DXB-CPT

Emirates Airlines #770
Dubai, UAE (DXB) – Cape Town, South Africa (CPT)
Departure 8:40 (delayed to 8:57)
Arrival: 4:05 (20 mins early)
Length: 9:05
Aircraft: Boeing 777-300ER
Seats: FIRST 2A

CHAUFFERED TRANSFER: (Grade: A)
The second half of my journey from San Francisco to Cape Town on Emirates began at 5:55 a.m. as the driver loaded me into the waiting E-Class Mercedes for the short 20 minute journey to T3 of the Dubai airport. The entire Terminal 3 is dedicated to Emirates Airlines so things are well set up.

CHECK IN: (Grade: A)
The driver dropped me at the First and Business entrance where I was quickly checked in with no wait.

SECURITY: (Grade: A)
The agent told me that I was leaving from the A gates which required me to take a short train ride immediately after passing through security. There was no wait at either passport control or for the security scan. Friendly faces and no hassle.

LOUNGE: (Grade: A+)
I have so say that I much prefer a short train ride than a collection of multiple moving sidewalks like the ones in the new Terminal 2 of LHR. Whoever designed that should be shot. A twenty minute journey of walking and moving sidewalks is not a modern solution. The Queen should be embarrassed to be the namesake of T2.

Stepping off my soapbox, I arrived the A gates and quickly found the First Class Lounge in that area. As many of written, it is a HUGE expanse of a lounge offering luxury and privacy. There are two formal dining rooms so I chose the one close to my gate. There is a private duty-free area within the lounge and got rid of my remaining monies on some nice scotch.

I’m not a big breakfast food guy. Given a choice, I’d much prefer interesting proteins over eggs and pancakes. I knew from previous experiences that the entire menu was on offer in the restaurant and not just the items from the breakfast menu. I chose some scallops as a first course and then roast duck as the main. Because it was 7 a.m. the waiter apologized that there would be a wait of 20-25 minutes since the kitchen was set up for breakfast. I gladly filled this time by strolling over to the buffet and selecting some balik salmon which was very tasty.



The scallops arrived after 15 minutes and were perfectly cooked. I liked the crusty cornmeal on top of each. They were beautifully presented and tasted great. Next came the duck which was also nicely done. These sure beat a plate of scrambled eggs and yogurt.



In all this is one of the top lounges in the world. Even the First Class section of The Wing seems a little cramped in comparison to this EK FC lounge. The food and beverage offerings are top notch. They even have complementary offerings in their Timeless Spa. I was not in the mood for one but it’s a nice feature.

BOARDING: (Grade: B)
When I heard that the gate for the flight was A7, my dander went up a bit. I feared that we would be bussed to a remotely parked aircraft. I’ve often complained about having to bus at DXB. In the earlier days of the airport, all classes of passengers were jammed into the same busses.

Now they have different busses for each First, Business and Economy. The First bus has large seats but I was disappointed to see that there were 6 people. I thought that I might be alone. On board they filled all eight seats with an obvious upgrade of some delighted Business Class passengers.

The whole bussing thing is the least exciting way to board a plane. I’m okay if you are at Lilongwe, Malawi where there are NO jetways. Plus there you can turn around and wave to your wellwishers who are waving their final goodbyes from the observation deck. It’s a beautifully romantic moment. At the modern Terminal 3 of DXB it’s just another growing pain of an airline determined to take over the world.

For once, I turned down the offer of some bubbly as a pre-departure drink. A hydrating glass of water with lemon seemed much more sensible. I was in 2A for today’s day flight to South Africa. I prefer this row to the first row which does get more galley noise. The only snag was I saw an infant in his mother’s arms in the first row of business class. Having travelled extensively with our son during his infant and toddler years, I felt the parent’s pain and simply flashed a reassuring smile to her. Luckily I barely heard the young child throughout the whole flight.



INFLIGHT SERVICE: (Grade: A)
The purser today was a lovely woman from the Philippines. She came by to introduce herself and the rest of the staff. One of the three of them was a male from South Africa! That was a first for me on EK. All three of them did a great job throughout in spite of being full at the front of the bus.

I spent a good portion of the flight catching up on some TV series that I brought with me. I didn’t actually watch anything on EK’s ICE entertainment system. I’m sure there were things to see but I was excited to see what was happening to now President Frank!

Having eaten in the lounge, I only had a cold meat and cheese plate to start with. It was nice but missing a nice piece of ham. EK doesn’t serve any pork in their lounges or onboard. Veal bacon just doesn’t do it for me. It’s kind of like light mayonnaise. Not really worth it if you don’t have the real thing.



I thought that I might doze at some point. The cabin was dark and I had gotten up at 5 a.m. Dubai time. But I was well enough rested that I continued to plow through my series.

At about six hours into the flight, I thought it was time for lunch. I could hear the soft clinking of china in the distance and knew some of my fellow passengers had decided on the same thing.

For lunch today I order caviar, the French onion soup from the “light bites” section of the menu and then a nice beef tenderloin. I finished with my usual dessert of cheese. While everything was very tasty, the cheese course was the actual winner. All four of the cheeses were fantastic.









I took a walk after lunch to the back of the bus past the tilty business section and into the throws of economy. I was surprised to see that the latter was only about half full. A number of people were reclined over multiple seats. It’s the best way to travel economy!

I knew my friends would have a great dinner planned for me in Llandudno so I declined topping off my stomach towards the end of the flight. I was impressed that every time that opened my suite doors and stepped out, they managed to run in and top off my Dom. It was a fun game to play.

I finally managed to doze off about two hours before landing and was please to be awakened with the landing announcements. The flight down to Cape Town had flown by nicely.

CAPE TOWN GROUND SERVICES: (Grade: B)

As we pulled into the gate I could tell that the only jetway would be back at 2L so I quarterbacked it through three rows of unsuspecting business class passengers to get pole position number one. I laughed when I saw another first class passenger do the same thing. A flight attendant said that we would have to hold while they let the first class passengers off first. The other gentleman laughed and said, “Well, this chap and I both are from First.” I added, “This ain’t my first time at the rodeo.” in my best southern twang.

When they redid the Cape Town airport before the World Cup, they managed to make everything a long walk. I was first through customs but my bag had other thoughts. I think they must have sent out all the business class bags before I say any first bags. Mine finally arrived and soon I found the driver holding my name. Once again it was LONG walk out through the terminal to the holding area for the cars past all the car rental offices.

The pilot had said that it was 40 degrees but I somehow didn’t believe him. It was late summer. The waiting black E-Class Merc was cooking nicely in the late summer heat. I even told the driver that he should take off his black jacket. He declined saying that the A/C would soon offer relief. We landed at 4:00 and I was finally at my friend’s place at 5:10. Not bad.

OVERALL: (Grade: A)
Emirates had a rock-solid First class product. With a full first class, having doors on the suite helps provide a calmer, more intimate experience. I’ve never been a fan of the fake gold and fake wood trim that accents the suites. I much prefer the understated look of the Cathay Pacific seat. If this were a battle between EK and CX, I would be in a tough position to decide a winner. The main advantages that EK has are the shower on their A380 and a slightly better lounge. I actually prefer the comfort of the CX seat and thing their meals are better.

But this battle is between Emirates and Etihad Airlines. So the fight continues next week when I take my first ever Etihad flight. They will have a tough challenge to beat the high standard set by EK. This showdown of the Middle East is coming to its climax.


Sunset view from my friend’s house in Llandudno

olafman

Part 4: Etihad #602 A330 Business Class JNB-AUH

Etihad Airlines #602
Johannesburg, South Africa (JNB) – Abu Dhabi, UAE (AUH)
Departure 9:55 (delayed to 10:20)
Arrival: 8:23 (just a little late)
Length: 8:28
Aircraft: Airbus 330
Seats: BUSINESS 7B

I had a wonder time down in South Africa. The best part was hanging out with my best friend and doing lots of outdoor activities together. In addition to that add on seeing lots of old friends, good food and lovely wine. It was a perfect recharge my batteries vacation.

My last couple of trips to South Africa, I had been avoiding Johannesburg. During our trip around the world for our son’s fifth grade we spent a month in South Africa. I had always been very close to my best friend’s family especially his mom. She stepped up as a surrogate mom once my parents died and we always shared a special bond.

By the time that we arrived for our month in South Africa in 2010, she had been battling cancer for many years. It turns out that she planned her life perfectly. She stood up and hugged us all on the first day of our arrival and then rapidly declined and died ten days later. It showed that the will to live is huge. She wanted all her family to be together and that’s the way it happened.

Without her in Johannesburg, I’ve been only visiting Cape Town where my best friend lives. His sister lives in Joburg but would come down to Cape Town for my visits. But I knew eventually I would have to return to Johannesburg and face the fact that she wasn’t there anymore.

So this is the trip where I finally returned. I was fine until my last night. I really felt sad. I’ve experienced with my parents that I still get sad from time to time and have decided that this is okay. It’s part of honoring them. Robert’s sister and I shared tears together talking about our sadness of missing our Resi.

Resi taught me two traditions that I carry on to this day. The first is that when people arrive from overseas, their arrival is celebrated with champers. Most of the European flights arrive in the early morning in South Africa so this meant popping the cork mid-morning. It made it feel like a celebration since we normally don’t drink bubbly in the morning!

The second tradition is that on the departure, you always call once you have arrived at the airport, checked in, passed security and were in the lounge waiting for the flight. It was often a short call but a final opportunity to say thanks for a great visit and a final goodbye. I always look forward to these short conversations as the final button on a trip.

CHAUFFEURED TRANSFER: (Grade: FAIL)
I had originally booked a transfer to get to the airport but it turned out to be easier to rent a car while in Johannesburg and then return it the morning of my departure. From Cape Town, I flew into the “other” airport Lansaria which is much more convenient. It’s a small private airport but now has scheduled service by two airlines, Mango and Kulula. It’s nice to avoid OR Tembo International for domestic flights.

I knew that I needed to cancel the limo transfer but hoped that they would call me to confirm. But by 3:00 p.m. I hadn’t heard from the limo company so I called Etihad and cancelled it with them. In South Africa, Etihad and Emirates both use Avis to handle these transfers.

So in the morning around 5:30 a.m. I was just stepping out of the shower when the guard from the front gate called saying that Avis was here to pick me up and they were driving up to the house. Ugh.

I quickly threw on some clothes and ran out to give the driver the bad news. He asked me to wait while he tried to call to get clarification. I explained that I called at 3 p.m. and cancelled it. After two minutes he was still having me wait but I needed to get back inside and continue getting ready. I told him to knock at the door if he still needed anything.

Five minutes later he knocked and passed the phone to me. No one was there but I could hear typing on a keyboard. After several attempts to say hello, I passed the phone back. He continued by speaking loudly to see if the dispatcher would respond. Since it was early and most of people in the house were asleep, I asked him to be quiet and return to his car.

Three minutes later the knock arrived again and I got to explain the whole series of events to some manager. I also pointed out that I had not received the confirmation text or phone call like they normally do.

The whole thing was not a great way to start my day or first introduction to Etihad. My guard was up.

My “self-driven” transfer to JNB was nicely guided by the traffic/navigation app, Waze. Traffic in Johannesburg has gotten crazy and the app got me to the airport in plenty of time but not on the route I would have chosen. The rental car drop off is quite a schlep from the check-in counters but I knew I would be sitting for much of the next 30 hours.

CHECK IN: (Grade: B)
Etihad’s check-in desks are at the furthest end of the long, horizontal row of desks. I was greeted warmly and quickly processed. I was given a letter and asked to sign a confirmation showing that I understood that I was forbidden to purchase any duty free in South Africa. I would be able to buy in the UAE for my destination of the USA. I had never heard of this before but who am I to question it. The Minister of Transport in South Africa has come under lots of attack recently because he decided that domestic carry-ons could no longer be over 7 kg. They were being very strict with this rule and angering many. So I blame the same Minister for this duty free restriction but he probably had nothing to do with it.

Since I was flying Business class to Abu Dhabi and then First on to San Francisco, I expected my bag to be tagged with First Priority tags. Unfortunately she confessed that they were out of them. :/

She also asked if I wanted a smoking or non-smoking lounge. It caught me off guard as I didn’t understand at first what she was asking. I have visited several times the shared lounge that Etihad uses and it’s nothing special. I thought that maybe Etihad’s new alliance with South African Airways might mean I could use their lounge but no go.

SECURITY: (Grade: B)
The international flights are not affected by the 7 kg carry on rule and all my kit made it through without concern. In fact no laptop came out and no shoes or jacket needed to be removed. More concerning was the fact that I watched the screener the whole time my bags were on her screen and her eyes never once looked at the screen. I understand the job might be boring but at least pretend to look for my sake! The winner so far in all of my travels was leaving Madagascar and the screener was texting on their phone the entire time and didn’t even attempt to look interested. Even my son noticed it and made a comment.

LOUNGE: (Grade: B)
Most of the midday flights in Johannesburg connect it to other parts of Africa with an occasional Middle East or Asian flight. International airport still have a thrill for me and I enjoy checking the main board as I walk past to see where the current flights are destined. I’m not a jaded enough traveller to pause and appreciate this moment. I have written before that I remember being a young kid and staring up at the big board at the beautiful TWA terminal at JFK. I was amazed at all the destinations and I often credit my travel bug to the first moment that I saw that big board.

Near gate A7 is the Shongolo Shared Premium Lounge. The décor hasn’t changed since its opening but it holds up well. My strategy in any lounge is to find the under populated corner that provides the most privacy. Indeed the far back corner became my installation. The food and beverage offerings were far better than any US carrier lounge. Full warm and cold breakfast food was available including sushi! I remember this from past visits and took advantage of this unique offering in Africa! I love fish for breakfast. Pickled herring is my favorite! The Scandinavian in me lives on.

I love a flakey croissant but theirs fell into the bready variety. Not that anyone would have wanted but only beer, wine and sparkling alcohol were out. I was perfectly happy with what was on offer.

The only negative of the whole lounge was a loud group of Air Botswana employees sitting in the TV area having their breakfast. Their fluorescent yellow vests with their company name gave them away. For over an hour they were hooting and hollering. I don’t think I’ve ever seen employees hanging out like that in a premium lounge.

BOARDING: (Grade: A)
Today’s flight was from Gate A6 and by the time I arrived to the gate, it was mostly empty and easy to pass through. I could see my Etihad A330 waiting for my first flight with this carrier. The travel geek in me also sit enjoys experiencing a new airline.

I must have been the last passenger arriving into a very full business class. With no overhead bins in the center section, it had an open feeling. The staggered seating provided some privacy but I was surprised that I could still see all the heads of my surrounding passengers. So I would call this “low-profile” staggered business seating.

Since it was a longer flight, I immediately changed into my comfy flight clothes and hung up all my travel clothes. The bathroom was comically small for me to change in with my rolley suitcase. I felt like I was on a Japanese game show.

Immediately getting settled into my seat, I was confronted by my neighbors naked feet! While many of the people from warmer cultures have embraced the wearing of sandals instead of shoes, I was still surprised to be so close to the feet of the man across the aisle due to the staggered nature of the seats. I had chosen seat 7K which is against the wall and has a mini table area between the aisle and the seat. This is my favorite seat with this configuration of seats.


My neighbors feet. Classy.

A simple amenity kit, blanket and menu were preset on the ottoman of the seat. In all I would give the seat very high marks for comfort. My only complaint is that it is a bit narrow for sleeping on my side like I prefer.

I enjoyed a nice glass of champers and soon we were on our way. Note my neighbors feet at this point were covered by his blanket. Phew.



INFLIGHT: (Grade: B)
The first person to come by and introduce herself was the Food and Beverage Manager. I’m not sure that was here exact title but she told me I could eat at any time throughout our flight. While this has always been a feature of First Class, I like it when you can choose when to eat in Business. I do realize that the flight attendants don’t have as much down time with this service. I would not have wanted to eat lunch at 11 a.m. so it was great. The interesting thing about this woman was that she was the low point of all my interactions with Etihad employees.

I’ve read several articles that the Middle East airlines severely punish employees for negative feedback. The day I interacted with her, she was robotic, insensitive and uncaring. We all have days like that. The consequences for her actions are big and I would never want to influence her advancement. I simply smiled and tried to encourage her.

I thought about her and transferred those thoughts to the team I manage. I think a big part of what a manager does is to positively influence and encourage the team. Bad days happen. Some days we don’t feel at the top of our game. I come from the management perspective of encouragement rather than consequence. At the end of the flight, I went back to galley and told her that it was a great flight. I am concerned for all these people that leave their friends and family to work at a great opportunity. I just wish it wasn’t such high stakes for them.

The champers was perfectly fine and I enjoyed the warm nuts with them. I also want to complement Etihad on the fact that they use a standard sized champagne glass in Business. In general I really like the stemware and china used on Etihad. It’s modern and feels like a popular restaurant.

Overall the food was just average. Nothing was well seasoned or stood out. I don’t mean to sound like a travel snob but I wondered if I just didn’t travel enough in Business instead of First. My starter was a cold fish course that barely had any taste. The highlight was a tomato carrot soup. The main was an overcooked hockey puck with potatoes and veggies. Even Delta’s hockey puck has more flavor.


Tasteless seafood starter


The best course: Carrot and Tomato soup


Overcooked hockey puck

I ended with the cheese course but all of them weren’t ripe and eatable. I love cheese but this was not good.



Later I had some Melba Pudding cake that at least had some flavor. Before landing they offered another meal which I sampled but finally gave up on. This catering was not working for me.


Pre-landing meal of beef pie and parsnip puree

ABU DHABI GROUND SERVICES:
We landed at Terminal 1 and I got lost. I consider myself to be a seasoned traveller so when I can’t find my direction I get frustrated. The airport seemed to be bursting at its seams. I tried to follow the sings to Terminal 3 but kept getting misdirected. Part of me longed for the gate meet and greet of Thai Airlines to help with the transfer. I would have loved to be whisked in a golf cart to the lounge instead of the convoluted route I took. I walked for what seemed days. The Etihad Premium Lounge is in the back corner of T3.

OVERALL: (Grade: B-)
I have to say that this first experience with Etihad was not great. Granted I flew Business since no First was offered. There is always a difference between First and Business. But for one of the leading carriers in the world, I felt like I had been mistreated. In this Battle of the Middle East, Etihad had not convinced me that they are in the fighting.

Luckily my next flight made up for this.

Part 4: Etihad #183 B777 First Class AUH-SFO

Etihad Airlines #183
Abu Dhabi, UAE (AUH) – San Francisco, CA USA (SFO)
Departure 2:30 (delayed to 4:30)
Arrival: 9:00 (a lot late)
Length: 16:00
Aircraft: Jet Airways B777-300
Seats: FIRST 1A

GROUND SERVICES ABU DHABI: (Grade: FAIL)
My time on the ground in Abu Dhabi would have been fine if I was flying Economy. The problem was that I was flying First and THIS IS THEIR HOMEBASE. It’s hard for me to excuse poor treatment.

As I wrote in the previous section, it took me a while to finally arrive at the Etihad Premium First and Business Class Lounge. Apparently Etihad is constructing a new First class lounge so in the interim, we are all shucked together in the one lounge. When I arrived, the lounge felt like a beehive. It was heaving with passengers. At one point I even asked if there was a separate area for First class passengers. She pointed to an equally but unsigned area.

After a long trip from South Africa, I thought a shower might make me feel “fresher”. I arrived at the spa and was told it would be a 30 minute wait. When I asked to be put on a list, I was told that they don’t do that. I had to be physically present in order to maintain my position in the queue. ...?

I left saying I would try back later. I found a vacant seat and used the Vodka/Soda therapy to make me feel better. The lounge dragon had mentioned that I was entitled to a free haircut/shave/manicure so I went to book a manicure. The first available slot was three hours away at midnight.

A bit later I tried back at the shower and was told I was first in line but I had to wait. I dutifully sat in preparation for a shower. When I finally got in the shower room, I barely had more room than on the plane! Opening my rolley suitcase was once again a challenge.

Once I showered, I immediately broke into a sweat since there was no air movement in the room a la T5 LHR.

Honestly, I hate ranting trip reports. Sometimes these people sound arrogant and stupid. I am trying to be positive but it was difficult. Mama wasn’t a happy camper.

In spite of the offer of A La Carte dining, only a buffet was available. I’m not a fan of buffets in general. Growing up, we would often celebrate our birthdays at a place called “SmorgiBobs”. We kids liked it for the soft serve ice cream bar. But I think it cured me of buffets for my lifetime. This year my husband and I both turn 50 and we will be celebrating our 25th anniversary of being together. I’m still fighting the idea of a buffet rather than a served dinner. With 200 people coming, buffet would be cheaper but I HATE buffets.

The highlight of my lounge visit was the manicure. The woman was super sweet and I really enjoyed my 30 minutes with her. Seated next to me was a boisterous American getting a shave. I was embarrassed for my people. Why do Americans have to speak so loudly and with such posturing? If you are not a person who gets manicures, I would like to say that it’s a wonderful experience. Even the butchest of men can appreciate well groomed nails. I recently took our son to Hand Job in the Castro of San Francisco for his first manicure. He loved it. He even suggested that we create the tradition of doing it together twice a month.

My boarding pass stated that I needed to present myself at the gate at 1:00 a.m. for our 2:30 a.m. departure. The extra time is needed because Abu Dhabi offers USA Pre-Clearance. This sounds great but in the end really pissed me off.

At 1:00 a.m. I checked the monitor in the lounge and it said the gate was open. I even asked the lounge dragons if our flight was on-time and they said it was. So I left the lounge and made my way toward gate 61.

The security check was fine but I found it interesting that they made me remove my shoes, jacket, laptop, iPad and two cell phones. Also the “TSA” guy removed all my liquids (from the amenity kits) and put them in a plastic bag. Of course, I flew through but I wondered who was making them do such a search.

Since I have Global Entry, I quickly passed security and was redirected to Gate 59 as our gate had changed. I arrived around 1:30 which was supposed to be the boarding time of our 2:30 flight.

BOARDING: (GRADE: FAIL)
The gate area had a reserved area for First and Business passengers. I could see the aircraft but the lights were all out and it didn’t look like we were going anywhere soon. At 2:15 a Business class passenger asked when we are boarding and the gate agent said the flight was delayed with a departure of 3:20. Ugh.

At 3:00 a.m. nothing had happened and I approached the gate agent. I normally am not a big person on confrontation but I had to ask why I was requested to leave the lounge at 1:00 a.m. for a departure 150 minutes later!!?!?! She said that normally they will announce the delay in the lounge. For the second time today, Etihad had a breakdown in communication that was pissing me off.

Soon after the distinctive yellow outfits of Jet Airways Flight Attendants could be seen entering the plane. Finally the pilots arrived and it looked like a departure was imminent.

Today’s Etihad flight was service using a leased Jet Airways 777-300 with a crew that was mixed of Etihad and Jet Airways. This is the same plane that has been used by Thai Airways and Turkish Airlines. The first class has a nice set of suites with doors that shut for maximum privacy. When I asked the Purser about the staff, she said that half were from Etihad and the other half were from Jet Airways.

Etihad finally became a contender in this Battle of the Middle East once I boarded my First Class flight to San Francisco. I was escorted to my seat and finally felt like I was a valued passenger. A stream of people came by to introduce themselves to me. A nice man from South Africa took me to the rather large restroom to change my clothes.

Once I got back to my seat the F&B manager came by and asked me what I would want after takeoff. I was exhausted and only wanted to sleep. I asked how full the first class cabin was and he said that he expected that I was the only passenger. SCORE! I love having the run of the cabin to myself.

He really wanted to serve me something so I agreed to a Johnny Walker Blue and some warm nuts. He said he would prepare the suite behind me as my sleeping suite as soon as we were airborne. I could barely keep my eyes open.

We sat at the gate for an hour. Abu Dhabi Ground Services totally failed. Not once were we told about the delay. After they shut the door and pulled back the jetway, we still sat there.

INFLIGHT SERVICES: (Grade: A+)
Finally at 4:30 a.m. (two hours behind schedule) we pulled back and were on our way. As soon as we were in the air, I put my seat back anticipating that the suite next door would be made. Soon enough the male flight attendant came by saying that it was ready for me and that my drinks were there. After a couple of quick sips of Mr. Johnny Blue, I slept soundly for five hours. My subconscious could hear that they kept turning on the fasten seatbelt sign but that didn’t bother me.

Honestly, the highlight of the trip was the service on board. I will be writing the customer relations about the entire Etihad experience. I will be glad to praise the staff on board while offering concerns about all their other products.

When I woke up I had some water and tea. Then about 45 minutes later, I had my version of breakfast. The menu was a mix of Jet Airways and Etihad. It definitely had a strong Indian influence. When I took my obligatory stroll through all the cabins, I figured out that 90% of the passengers were Indian. So for breakfast I ordered Masala Dosa as a starter and then scrambled eggs with sausage. The dosa was amazing while the scrambled eggs were just typical. I could have eaten two of the dosa plates. Yummy. My breakfast was served by one of the lady flight attendants since the chef was on his break.


Delicious Masala Dosa


Scrambled eggs and chicken sausage


Nice cuppa



After my breakfast, I actually started in on some work. Our Jet Airways 777 was not equipped with internet so I had to stay away from the real work. The In-Flight Chef stopped by when he was back on duty asking what else he could cook for me. I told him that I’d have the big lunch in an hour or two but was fine for now.

The crew did a great job of keeping my beverages full. Throughout the flight I would pop back to my “sleeping” suite and then back to the “sitting” suite. Each time they would tidy up the other suite and replenish the beverage there. The service was outstanding. Every time I pressed the flight attendant call button, they came instantly.

Finally I called the Chef over to order lunch. Etihad is one of the international carriers that does not offer caviar in First Class but the rest of the food sure made up for it. I ordered a great smoked salmon, beet, feta and walnut salad to start which was very nice. Next a mushroom soup with truffle oil which was also great. For a main, I simply told him to create a plate of their best Indian food which he said he could easily do since there was so much variety of Indian food on the menu. He said that he had a nice smoked lamb that was excellent. In addition he included some Tandoori chicken, also very good. The Indian main was one of the best airplane meals I’ve been served. The strong spices match the dulled taste buds of eating at altitude. The food was served with both naan and pampadam.


Smoked Salmon, beet, feta and walnut salad: delicious!


Cream of Mushroom with Truffle Oil


Wonderful main of Indian food and breads

At this point I was stuffed and super content. I told him that I’d do some dessert later but was happy for now. About an hour later as I watched a movie, he brought me some popcorn in a cute popcorn container and I ordered some more JW Blue.


JW Blue and Popcorn: perfect for movie watching


Lots of space in the Jet Airways Suite

Finally he came out and offered a plate of freshly baked cookies with a scoop of really creamy ice cream. As I have said before I’m not a big sweets guy, but this really hit the spot. I like that the chef tried to anticipate what I wanted instead of just waiting for me to order it.


Ice cream and freshly baked cookies

The Jet Airways suite is definitely roomier than the Emirates A380 suite. I really like a wide seat like on CX and SQ. The width really makes me feel more comfortable. At some point I’d like to try a EY 777 suite for comparison.

The Jet Airways 777 also has a slightly larger bathroom than your average airplane bathroom. I really appreciate this and it helps make things more comfortable. After each use a flight attendant would tidy up like on other international carriers.

The staff kept trying to offer more but I was entirely satisfied.

SFO GROUND SERVICES: (Grade: FAIL)
I was first off the plane after saying my goodbyes to the staff. Because we had cleared customs in AUH, we were deposited in the main level with all the international departures of the A gates.

Immediately after security, I spotted the line of EY chauffeurs and the first one was holding my name. He took my bags and took me downstairs. He said normally EY comes in on baggage carousel #12 but yesterday the flight used #3. None of the electronic boards listed any information about the EY flight from AUH. Finally after 15 minutes a large crowd of passengers had formed and the driver suggested that he return back upstairs to find an EY representative.

He came back about 5 minutes later saying that the EY representative outside security said it was carousel #3 and that she had been telling all the drivers and passengers. Well neither he nor had been told this information. This really pissed me off. Nothing like being detained at the end of a 30 hour journey.

When we made it to carousel #3, many people were also there and it was chaos. My bag was there along with so many others from passengers that hadn’t figured out which end of the airport their bags were going to come.

OVERALL:
Etihad Airlines has a long way to go before they figure out the entire experience. Luckily my 16 hour flight from AUH to SFO was one of the best flights I have ever experienced. They just need to polish up all the other parts of their product.

olafman

So who won this Battle of the Middle East?

The bottom line is Emirates has a better overall product. My future dollars and mileage redemptions will stick with them. The interesting thing is that if I was just comparing the super long haul flight, it would have been a tough decision to name a winner. Etihad definitely won on the service department. While a shower is nice mid-flight of a 16 hour journey, it's not the only thing to consider.

I'm interested in sampling The Residence, the First Suite and Business Suite on Etihad's A380. All of those products look cutting edge. But to match them with bad experiences on the ground and it might not be worth it.

Both airlines are growing at incredible speeds and growing pains are inevitable. Emirates has maintained high standards around the world through their network of lounges, modern fleet and great staff.

It's good they have some competition though to keep them on their toes and fighting.

Up next:
My son and I are traveling on Singapore A380 in First from LAX to Tokyo, Japan this summer to go hiking up Mt. Fuji with six friends. This will be my first time on SQ in First on the A380. I'm looking forward to it.

chongl

Subscribed for updates

HLT1904

Definitely along for the ride. Only been to CPT once and it was great, this will probably inspire me to go back.

OMGImInPattaya

This should be epic...eagerly awaiting the blow by blow commentary. Too bad Qatar isn't fighting Emirates as it would have been a more even match but still a great fight.

Glensea

Really looking forward to this forthcoming report, especially since I've been thinking about giving both airlines a try for the first time, and in first class. I still remember your fascinating "Fifth Grade Around the World" from several years ago.

Bretteee

Please tell us also if CX remains the best.

Thanks.

TOMFORD

How long do I have to stay tuned for? Why isn't the TR up yet???

Madone59

This is going to be great - can't wait ^

injian

Is it up yet? Is it up yet? Is it up yet? Is it up yet?

whimike

I think for a true battle you need to test out the EY A380 in F. Any chance to route through LHR on the way home?

akersnl

QF First is the best.

offerendum

If CX is the best I will never fly again. Without joking, I´m absolutely not impressed with CX F. Flew with them and don´t see any reason to fly again soon. Very mediocre experience.