Reasonably, yes, and thank u for the suggestion. Mrs AF did ask, and the request was politely but firmly denied.

However, it did prompt someone to do something, at least. Having asked, Emirates then finally arranged a room for her at the International Hotel in the terminal, albeit having spent some 14 or so hours in the Biz Lounge. So at least she got a safe place for her stuffs and some uninterrupted sleep. For that, I am thankful. But I shouldn’t need to be thankful because it was an expectation from the start.

What is so disappointing is that 1) the original J ticket cost was at a premium of some 300€ with the shorter 4h connection. 2) the connection was then changed for “operational reasons” - which we wouldn’t have considered as an option if we had any inkling about it - to 22h. This was the 300€ cheaper option. 3), of course, the ticket cost didn’t get reduced accordingly, did it? 4) having been offered Dubai Connect, we accepted that - our choice, I agree - but we also made Emirates doubly aware that she could not leave the terminal - info that is clearly written in black and white on their own website page for travellers to PH. And when push came to shove, they didn’t have it covered as they reassured us they did.

Now, I accept that we are living and travelling during the new reality which is Covid-19, with all the stress, inconvenience, hassle, delay, cancellations and unforeseen cost that are quite possibly going to come your way. But Covid-19 is here to stay, live with it. And the airline experience really, really, should not be this hard on the traveller, especially when this Dubai Connections restriction had been made clear from the get-go - from Emirates to us, and then from us back to them.

Getting Mrs AF back onto an Emirates plane in the future will be very difficult. Because, for once during this pandemic, a lot of the messing about, stress, hassle, worry and inconvenience has been caused by Emirates, not the PH Govt (for a change).

Thank u to all for your suggestions, replies and support (even if I did get a bit grumpy with DYKWIA sorry Sir), it’s been most helpful to have been able to call on your input and guidance.

Merci

AF

P.S. whilst Mrs AF’s flight DUS-DXB was around 2/3 full, I talked with her whilst she was boarded for MNL. It appears, no more than 50 people max on the flight. J socially distanced full, one seat occupied next one empty and so on (a lot of upgrades methinks?). And she could only see 2 pax in the whole of Y .

Whilst it is understandable she may want to avoid EK in the future, I would certainly be sending a complaint to them once she is home. She will need her flight ticket number for the online form and you can detail exactly what happened. At the very least she should expect some points from EK, which may or may not be of value for the future but better than nothing.

Pre Covid, I was flying a specific route monthly and with quite a tight connection either myself or my luggage often missed the second flight. On each occasion EK provided points as compensation, which isn't perfect but came in handy for subsequent flights.

At least she doesnt have to climb over any one to visit the bathroom on this flight!

I do sympathise with your situation, someone dropped the ball multiple times here at EK on this one. Yes, we are living in uncertain times for travel, but thats no excuse not to do their best for a passenger who has been inconvenienced through no fault of their own.

Are u sure u didn’t have too much Chateau d�Yquem last night and mistake Emirates for BA?

So I have just read this thread from start to end, and wanted to get opinions from those with more than casual relation with EK..... It seems like EK caters to flyers proportionate to the fare class they are flying in. While the enhancement in perks from one class to another is certainly understandable and justified (given you are paying for them), but it seems like maybe the quality of EK's interpersonal interactions also correlate to fare class. I appreciate the fluidity of the environment which the employees operate and in which we fly these days, but one would expect that there would be more empathy, not less, towards the challenges that flyers must deal with these days.

I am hoping to fly EK for the first time from ORD to Asia, and because I intend to fly F, I expect I will have a wonderful experience, but am a bit disillusioned by what I read about EK. Not sure any other airline doesn't have the same challenges, and maybe the same flyer experience problems, but I had formulated in my mind that for a truly luxurious trip to Asia would entail EK, SQ or CX..... My trip has been pushed back 3 times already, and will keep getting pushed until it is truly safe to travel to SE Asia and mainland China, so maybe the flying experience will straighten itself by the time this specific trip occurs, and I should stay the course with my choice being between EK, SQ and CX

Thoughts?

I've generally had good service whichever class I've flown. I can't recall ever having an issue (other that one miserable FA who was so bad/not suited to her job she ended up having a stand up row with one of her colleagues in the A380 lounge).

I can remember *lots* of great service... some even in Y

You get a degree on increased consistency by flying F, especially in terms of the hard product. If you end up having a route which is an a380 and then a 777 you'll be comfortable in either whilst seated. The main difference being increased engine noise, no bar and no shower on the 777.

In terms on interactions with staff this is completely pot luck regardless of cabin class flown. You can get great crew in Y, J and F whilst equally getting terrible crew across all classes as well. There is an argument that you get more experienced crew the higher the class you fly but this is not always a good thing.

Despite in this occasion being Miffed, it’s a first with Emirates really, and I do have to offer a more positive side to the coin.

Some years ago I was flying J on a 777 in seat 7K.

Stewardess comes round taking orders for drinks after take off, asks the gent next to me in aisle 7J:
”Mr…(looks at clipboard)….Smith. Welcome aboard. Can I offer u something to drink once we have departed?

Mr Smith digs into his menu, after a few seconds places his order.

Stewardess turns to me:
‘Mr…..(looks at clipboard, only they can never pronounce my surname so always use my first name)….Simon. The usual, Sir?”
‘Well, thank you!” I replied…..

Gent in 7J looks at me mouth wide open.

In all my years of flying and there have been plenty, ONLY Emirates have achieved this feat. Someone on the crew had noticed and added to my traveler profile that I always and for years used to have a G&T after take off. Now, if that’s not attention to detail I don’t know what is.

As you say you�ve read the thread entirely, I�ll add my two penneth worth.

I do think that in my case, someone dropped the ball. Now, that�s not excusable or acceptable, but it happened. I flew Emirates for years and years in J and up to now Mrs AF still does even though we have prioritised SQ. I�ve never paid for F with any airline, but Emirates have upgraded me to F and I�ve had that privilege. Only, I was so tired that all I did was sleep so I never really benefitted. But it was given.

I�ve never been able to knock the Emirates overall product except for this one time. But, in knocking it, let�s not forget that we are still in a Global pandemic and that Governments, not Airlines, dictate the rules of flying. As you have said, you hope and intend that this will not be the case when you fly.

I don�t think that right now is the right time to be able to judge the empathy levels of any airline serving SEA simply because they are all getting severely disrupted by the countries which they are trying to serve. Getting in and out is bad enough. Then they have to contend with flying their metal 20% full inbound and maybe less outbound. You have to ask why in fact they are still doing it, when the result is that they lose yet more money. If I was an airline CEO, I wouldn�t do it. I�d have stopped this nonsense long ago.

I�ve flown SQ, CX and EK frequently and I would say that in F, with my very limited experience, I don�t think any of the 3 would disappoint. All have pluses and minuses. Mrs AF has flown CX F and says it was mind blowing. But all in all, I would say it�s a fine choice/decision between the three. I�d be more focused on which airline best suits ur itinerary in SEA, and from there, getting u home. For that, we chose SQ but we could have equally chosen EK. They both do the same.

You can always PM me if u think I can help u plan. Happy to be of assistance.

On y va

AF

[QUOTE=DYKWIA;33432187I can remember *lots* of great service... some even in Y [/QUOTE]

Thank you each for your comments and insights. My international travel has always been sporadic, mostly to Europe, and always on my dime (or pts) and I favor LH for those flights. Since this is a milestone anniversary trip, I wanted to make the journey as memorable for Mrs B as the destination. Originating from ORD limits my choices somewhat (no SQ service without a positioning flight to NY or the west coast) and CX dropped F and not likely to return even after pandemic. EK seems the likely choice, especially the return from either Hong Kong or Beijing (since I would travel with the clock, so to speak).... SQ and CX make sense on the outbound, since I would also travel with the clock .

Armchair Flyer... I may take you up on your offer.... always good to have a sounding board.... and you may have some insights for me related to various cities we plan to visit.

Ive visited every country in SEA, of the ones you mentioned, Beijing via the trans-Siberia (about 15 years ago) and Hong Kong for the purpose of going to Macau for the AJ Hackett Bungee jump. In the unlikely even you are thinking of doing any of these let me know...!

You definitely get the prize; me, not. And more, since this pandemic started all I�ve gotten to see is the boundaries of my house!

I was wondering if you have had the chance to fly REP to SGN? I am looking at a new cruise date/itinerary, and would have to do Siem Reap mid-cruise using a third-party tour outfit. To make best use of my time, I need to fly REP - SGN either late afternoon or early evening. It looks like Cambodia Angor Air and Viet Nam Airlines are the two likely choices that have direct flights. Given both airlines are currently grounded on this route, I was wondering if you had any sense of their frequency of flights during normal times. And any ideas how I could find what the times of their flights might look like in normal times. Thanks