As I mentioned in another thread :-

MAN-DXB - £2.4K
MAN-SIN - £2K

I think, just to try and directly answer the question this thread poses, that there are several answers depending on the circumstances. It possibly depends how blasé you are as a traveller, and it surely depends a lot on your travel class too. Having had my solitary first Emirates experience yesterday, in the economy class cabin, I can say the experience was excellent. Having completed a number of business class flights this year, I greatly feared being back in the economy cabin for this trip. But having completed this flight (on the A380) I have no fear about future flights on Emirates in economy, even though my flight back to DUS will be on a 777 which apparently has less pleasant seating in Y. I wrote about it in a new thread, hoping to attract a few other first impressions of Emirates.

Important, too, is that each flight happens to be a unique experience, so there are any number of factors that could lead it to being a less than good flight (delays, a poor meal, a less pleasant cabin crew member...although I find the latter hard to imagine). And then anybody is entitled to think that Emirates is overrated. For me, in summary, Emirates is offering a quality of service not seen since the 1980s - in the economy cabin. And that is pleasant, because a lot - and I mean a lot - of the other airlines have dropped to a level from which they can not drop any further, offering abysmal service in all respects. So much so, that I begin to worry if their maintenance and safety is becoming as rubbish and as cost cutting as their service.

CPT-DXB-SFO in F $2800
DXB-SFO in F $8000
SFO-DXB in F $24,540 !!!!!!!!!!!!!
This would fit perfectly my definition of ridiculous :D

You got it right.
"blasé". That's exactly it.

Quite eye opening...must be all that tech money. The last time I checked, EK "F" BKK-DXB-SFO return was about $10,000.

All of the USA-DXB O&D F fares (as opposed to DXB-USA) are absolutely extortionate and at a similar rate. You see things like 10k for J as well.

Those are the people EK are desperate to get! That said, the percentage of DXB O&D pax that EK carry is of course similarly small and the DXB O&D market is pretty much captive considering all other options in the US are via ATL or IAD (which incidentally has more reasonable USA-DXB fares!) on DL/UA.

Just my humble opinion re the original question: I am certainly not a heavy user of EK, but never the less have flown them about 8 times over the past 2 years between Europe and the Antipodes in a mix of F and J. I can compare with SQ, QF, BA, TG. I have never had a bad experience - on the ground or in the air - with EK. On one flight the crew was clearly not that experienced, but they really tried their best, and I still had a pleasant flight. I have never had an EK employe be rude or indifferent to me - on the contrary. I for my part also try my best to be polite and say please and thank you etc. I believe in most interactions you get what you give.
The Dubai connect is fantastic when you fly the route I do.
So to answer the question: No, I do not think EK is over-rated. I get a good product for the money I pay, and I have been pleased so far. Maybe I have lucked out, maybe not.
Just my 2 cents for all it's worth.

...delete...

Well having been happy to defend Emirates I do wonder if they are beginning to get complacent. Just got off a LHR-DXB flight in F and have been moved to complain to EK:

'Very poor inflight service - the worst I have experienced on Emirates. No greeting (or any contact at all during the flight) from the purser for either myself or my wife. Other passengers were greeted and received menus, wine list and drinks orders taken. I waited 75 minutes after take off before having to request a menu and wine list and ask for a post departure drink. In the end I opted for canapes only as it was too late to wait for a meal.
Service was very disorganised throughout and no staff seemed at all pro-active. First my wife and then I made up our beds and staff walked past without offering to help. I stowed my own bedding prior to landing.
One last comment - why when tidying the shower area do the attendants not lock the door - it gets embarrasing when you walk into an occupied toilet for the fourth time.

Overall I think we would have received better and more timely service in J, the fact it was a full F cabin shouldn't have made a difference.
Hopefully our onward flight to Auckland will be better.

Waow. Complain is definitively justified.

Hi pomkiwi - am pleased to hear that you have lodged a formal complaint.

I don't take any delight in saying that ; and I still like to think that in the vast majority of cases (certainly in F anyway) EK get things right onboard far more often than wrong.

But this is the perfect example of what I have long believed and indeed found from personal experience : it's always the crew, more so than any peripheral facilities, that make the vital difference on any specific flight.

HQ can of course instantly identify the crew rostered for this flight - and given the very substandard service you received, they should be 'put in the dock' so to speak. They have let down colleagues who work hard to protect the brand.

They won't care - they don't care about F pax. Trust me I'm trying to get a downgrade refund - 10 days I got 300AED quickly now nothing.

They should have:

1. Called me and told me

2. Offered me alternative flights

3. Immediately refunded the cash and apologied

4. Offer compensatory miles for the invonvenience.

The only plus is usually the service on board....

But these are all complaints about the F cabin, where expectation levels are (justifiably) much higher. I always begin a premium cabin flight with a certain level of expectation, I just can't help that. And I am more often than not disappointed, that's the way it goes. Emirates, in the economy cabin, offers (in my limited experience, 2 sectors so far) an above average flight experience compared to other airlines, so I think it is not overrated.

To pomkiwi 4 posts above, I hope you put in a complaint form as soon as possible, while the whole thing is still fresh in your mind. Remember to make the letter as brief as practicable, otherwise they won't read it all.

Not sure I agree with that. I'm not slow in criticising EK where warranted, but I do think the assertion that they only read brief letters is rather harsh.

The one & only written complaint (so far !) which I lodged regarding onboard service was - out of necessity - fairly long. But the nature of the response (and compensation) I received was clear indication that they had indeed read it in full.

I have also had occasion to complain about administrative issues - but that's another matter entirely !!

Re your wider point regarding expectations wrt quality & service standards in F : I agree that such expectations should be set high, given the cost involved. And I agree also that with most carriers, including EK, the expectations are not always met. We tend to accept something of a compromise but in truth no F class service provides what should be provided in return for the cost of the ticket.

I think this is the key point regardless of cabin.

In April I was very disappointed about the chaotic and inaccurate service in Y (even starting with fairly low expectations). On flights last weekend, the service in Y (first leg) was significantly better than it had been in April, and the service in J (second leg, opup) was really outstanding even given higher expectations.