EK first class - Is it a "real" first class?
 

Hi boys and girls. I noticed that Emirates has often much cheaper fares in first class than other airlines.

E.g. from ZRH to SIN (prices in EUR according to ITA)
- Air France 9543
- BA 9092
- Emirates 3398
- Lufthansa 8431
- Swiss 5765

Now my first question: Why is Emirates often so much cheaper than their competitors? Is there something "wrong" with EKs first class? I heard so far only good things but the "cheap" price makes me thinking if there is something worse than first class with other airlines. I flow so far only Swiss first class in an A340.

The service and food is supposed to be fantastic in First (never been in EK F yet).

However, the seating and entertainment largly depends on what aircraft you are flying on.

The A340-500 and new B777-300 have first class suites. These are probably the best you'll get in any First class.

The B777-200 have recently been refitted. The first class seat is a flat bed, and I had no trouble sleeping (I got an F seat when a 2 class flight was changed to a 3 class plane)!

The next best is probably the A330.

In last place is the older B777-300.

Cheers,
Rick

Haha, there is nothing "wrong"with EK's first class, but as rkenyon said, the seating comfort largely depends on which plane you are on.

The A340-500 is outstanding (ZRH-DXB flights) probably the best F class out of all of the above choices.

Just a small correction to what rkenyon said... the 777-300ER (77W) is fitted with the same seat as the 777-200 NOT the same seat as the 340-500. I would say that this seat is slightly worse than LH/LX/BA/AF but better than the old AF seats.

On the other planes, the 330/343/773, the first class is not very good. They seat does not become flat, and pitch is "only" ( ;) ) 69"

With that being said, IMHO EK beats the other airlines in other ways. I have found EK's F service excellent, food is definately better than most of the other airlines. I would say the EK F lounge is about as good as the LX/BA lounges but not as good as the LH ones. (All the airlines above save AF have excellent lounges, don't know about AF)

The IFE is excellent on 77W/772/345 and still good on the 773/330 (MUCH better than BA)

The ground services, such as the limo, fast track invites etc are good at easing your journey (though I have had some not so nice experiences with the limo at LHR)

The cabin crew are usually excellent, but again I have had some bad experiences.

At the price mentioned above, there is no way I would consider another carrier.

I like the LX seat the most, the BA bed, the LH lounge and the EK service, but since I can't have it all :o I think EK is overall the best. If i really wanted to sleep and the price difference between BA and EK was more along the lines of 300-400GBP I might fly BA.

Cheers

Also, QR flies ZRH-DOH-SIN though not daily

Fares are around 2528.85EUR in First, return.

The A300 used ZRH-DOH-ZRH is not too nice, but the A330 used DOH-SIN-DOH more than makes up for it

Cheers

I have yet to find a comfortable first class seat (maybe that has more to do with my lower back pain :rolleyes: ), although SQ comes very close (but not on that bloody DXB-SIN route I took recently). Honestly, they need to change that plane :mad: . The flight starts in CAI, stops in DXB (where I picked it up this time because I refuse to go through CAI again) and continues to SIN. That's a pretty long trip!!!

Nevertheless, using EK metal in first is not a bad thing at all. EK is able to offer such good prices because they are heavily subsidized by the Dubai government (no fuel surcharge for one thing :D - not yet at least :p ).

Oh, and another thing to keep in mind... Make sure that the DXB-SIN portion is on a 3-class configured plane (EK348, 344, 352 have only J & Y seating) as they sometimes do not offer first class service to quite a few destinations in the Far East.

Good routing? Leaving the plane on-route at a stop?
 

Strange, strange, strange... Only positive coments about EK... Grrrrr... Nevertheless, I booked my flight to SIN now with my Swiss miles. But there is another upcoming trip this year where I am intending to fly from TIP to KIX and back from NRT.

TIP-DXB - EK748
DXB-KIX - EK316

KIX-PVG - JL795
PVG-DUB - EK303
DUB-TIP - EK747

The price is in this case around the same as in LX.

Big disadvantages for me with EK:
- I must fly back to TIP on the way back, where I can just leave the last segment when flying any European carrier.
- I am not a status member with EK, hence I cannot get an executive bonus.

Is there maybe the possibility to take the flight back via IST or any near-Europe destination? I even guess that the DUB-TIP flight stops either in LCA or MLA. May I leave the plane there?

Is the F class seat on A330-200 comfortable? I'm deciding whether to give Emirates a try. I am currently booked on TG's new F class (very nice bed). For EK, I'll fly on 777-300ER then connecting to A330-200. How would the two compare?

I am not sure if you are returning from NRT or KIX? You say NRT, but your itinerary says from KIX. If you are returning from NRT, it would be better to fly NRT-KIX-DXB... because KIX-DXB is the A340-500, PVG-DXB is not. Even if flying from PVG, I would fly PVG-KIX-DXB.

The DXB-TIP flight seems to have become nonstop (on certain days at least) and is operated by a 3 class Boeing 777-200 on some days ^ and a 2 class A330 on others :td:

Even so, if the plane stopped enroute, you probably would not be allowed to deplane, and if you did, you would create huge complications for EK regarding baggage etc (because your bag is probably in a separate hold than passengers getting off enroute)

Cheers

Stay awake on the 77W and enjoy all the amenities. Sleep on the A332 leg. Unfortunately, if you're coming from BKK, the 77W flight leaves at 2:20am. The 77W is more comfortable to sleep in than the A332, but then again everything else is nicer.

I would stick to TG

Cheers

Are you sure?
Fuel surcharges are not visible in the ticket price, but are hidden in the taxes (and I think EK has a fuel surcharge in effect).

I have a very strong suspicion that the airline is heavily subsidized, even more so because a little battle is slowly forming between the emirates of Dubai and Abu Dhabi to see who will have the "better" airline.

As for fuel, I also believe (for some strange reason :rolleyes: ) that EK gets some generous discounts on it :) . Whether that will last is yet to be seen as Dubai is slowly running out of oil. It is estimated that by 2010, oil reserves in the emirate will be fully depleted.

I just booked EK 418 from BKK - SYD in F which as the OP noted was a lot cheaper than other carriers. Aircraft is listed as 773-ER -- that will be a flat bed, correct? Something akin to SQ SpaceBed?

Any consolidators for first and biz class fares out of the usa for ek?
 

Looking for discount rates for biz and first to dubai and beyond but don't know of any consolidators in the us. Anyone know of such consolidators or travel agencies?

EK F on the 77W is a flat bed, as opposed to the SQ J spacebed which is a lie-flat seat (ie flat, but at an angle)

Cheers