After twelve wonderful days on the Seychelles we had to leave. Our sadness was lessened somewhat by the fact that we still had a few days of vacation in Dubai ahead of us. At the airport in the Seychelles we had to park our rental car for lack of other alternatives in the no-paking zone, but we never heard something negative about it.
At the check in there was a first class counter which was crowded, and the staff wasn't very professional. I'd been a bit worried because I'd read that there was no lounge in the airport, but we got vouchers for the Vallée de Mai lounge. The lounge belongs to the Air Seychelles and is the only one in the small airport. The lounge itself is nicely furnished and big enough. Drinks were available, but only a small selection of snacks. While the women's restrooms were okay, the men's restrooms were dirty.
Some confusion ensued when we wanted to board the plane. It started with a thirty minute delay and we were told that we had to line up at a separate entrance as first class passengers (as well as the other premium passengers). But nothing happened in that line, that wasn'T really one since there was no staff and really nothing indicating that someone would take care of us. So while we watch the economy class board the plan, we and other premium passengers waited. After a while, someone opened our entrance, only to make us join the other passengers. That was one of the stupidist things I'Ve ever seen.
The A340 was just like the plane we'd had on our flight to the Seychelles. This time the crew was much nicer. The flight was okay, but the food wasn't very good. There was a small breakfast. We had not so tasty waffles and a boring fruit plate. That definitely wasn't first class.
Once we arrived in Dubai, we had to wait a long time in the line for immigration. When we finally left the immigration behind, our luggage had arrived in the baggage claim area. Now we had to find the chauffeur service which proved more difficult than it should be, since there were absolutely no signs in that regard. We had to ask at the info desk. When we finally found the right place, we were told that we had to go into the chauffeur office to pick up some kind of paper. Since we were already outside, we had to use the exit doors to sneak back in and get the stupid paper. After that, we could finally line up for a car. While business class passengers are picked up in Volvo Stationwagons, first class passengers were picked up in a Mercedes E class. Nothing special. Most taxis in Germany have the same standard. Nevertheless, it was complimentary and quite useful.
The Lounge
The plane/ view from lounge
Suite at A 340
First Class meal
