SuiteFlight

I think you'll find that it resets automatically after a set amount of time passes (works on a time out) - so technically you can have unlimited shower time provided you are willing to wait extended periods in-between (I'm a slow dresser so it always resets before I exit). Shower duration is also hard set - there is no manual intervention required.

Personally I find the set water ration more than enough - you just have to follow a "get wet, stop timer, lather, restart and get wet again - rinse repeat" program to make the most of it. The most important thing is to rinse throughly.

HB7

+1

Completely agree with you here. Ground services at AUH are nothing short of inexcusably poor.

HB7

[QUOTE=SuiteFlight;25568245]It's also surprising how worn the A380 First Apartments are starting to get given they are still very young - I've encountered broken doors and drawers, loose seals, patched up dividers, pen marks and things falling off.

Yeh I noticed this as well. Not to mention a non-operational shower on one of my trips.

To a large degree I would agree with you here. For me it wasn't an experience where I walked off and thought that was so amazing I HAVE to do it again.

Furthermore, for an airline with a "chef" onboard - you'd expect the food to be of much higher quality IMO.

VH-RMD

The on-board chef can be very hit or miss. I have had one go beyond and create things not on the menu and others who seem to treat the food like it came from a 7-11.

SuiteFlight

Yes, on-board catering in First - while certainly better than some airlines in First Class - doesn't surpass that of a semi-decent suburban bistro (and that's at it's best), let alone a hatted restaurant. You'll disappoint yourself if you have expectations greater than that.

Steaks are always more cooked than ordered (you can ask for medium rare, but it's never delivered as such), sometimes bread is over-cooked and rock hard, and for some menu items the dish delivered never matches the menu description (the "afternoon tea" is a case in point, the menu describes it as having finger sandwiches yet despite having ordered it on multiple flights it's never delivered with any although they have a weird compulsion to always give you a full tea pot with it even when you've expressly said you don't want any when you've ordered it).

Some "chefs" seem more interested in giving you a great spiel about their CV than putting effort into their food service (and not surprisingly these chefs serve very disappointing food).

HB7

Funnily enough, I have noticed the same thing more than I care to remember.

SuiteFlight

I take no notice of this self-promotion. I let the food speak for itself (as to the cook's skill), which any good chef will do (and honestly, the majority of this food is brought onboard semi-cooked already, with the onboard "chef" simply warming it up and plating it - they only cook the eggs from scratch - making them little more than fry cooks).

The reality is than the catering offering is fairly middle of the road - don't expect caviar, truffles, or 9+ marbled Kobe steaks. The real plus is that Etihad does deliver on dine on demand - you can truly eat when you want to, and as much or as little as feel like (stocks depending).

iluvdoco

How does the food compare to that of Turkish Airlines Business Class, which also deploys on onboard chef and has very good quality food?

MacMyDay

I'm surprised at the way this thread has gone. Each to their own, but I've never experienced any other airliner that has come close to beating their hard product and I have few complaints about their soft product too (on the plane, at least).

stargold

Quite. You can always find faults if you look hard enough, but if we're talking about the Apartments then I just can't think of a different airline I would rather take in F, all other things equal.

SuiteFlight

And you can always gloss over problems in starry eyed fandom. I neither love nor hate Etihad - if anything I appreciate their intentions to shake up the industry, while acknowledging they fall short in more than few areas in trying to execute that.

At the end of the day, you have to fly the airline and come to your own assessment, but anyone willing to give a detailed assessment may be of assistance to others (certainly more helpful than just saying something like it's great or it's horrible). Having flown Etihad's A380 First Apartments 7 times (and 11 times in the Etihad A380 Business Studio), both ultra long haul and long haul, I certainly feel I have enough experience to come to my own assessment. Because people are different, I accept others may have other opinions, but it's an unwise person that presumes to tell me how I should interpret my own direct experiences.

While there are always trade-offs (the question is whether the total sum of the experiences is better rather than focusing on individual elements), I'd rate (from my own direct experience) Air France New La Premiere First Class, Lufthansa A380 First Class, and even Emirates First Class on the A380 - when taking into account all elements of the ground and air experience - as pipping Etihad's First Class. While I've not flown it myself, I also understand many consider CX's First to be a very competitive experience.

Perhaps instead of basic generalisations, you should explicitly list what you think makes the Etihad First (Apartments) experience beyond reproach and unchallenged by any other carrier (those that have posted here highlighting where there were shortcomings certainly have given details).

As I've said here on FT, Etihad First isn't terrible, it's just not the best either. And really I think you're criticism of the shower (with regards that water flow won't start until the door is closed and locked) - if you are going to identify an issue - rather strange (the only other shower in the air works the same - plus all you have to do is step back and stand near the tolietries rack to avoid getting wet from the shower head while playing with the temperature knob - the shower head doesn't throw that far)

MacMyDay

Just to confirm, that was me who mentioned that, not stargold. I was told by the FA that if the door is opened then the water would stop, hence being in the shower when turning the water on and staying there for a few seconds until it warmed up. If that's not correct, then great.

SuiteFlight

You still need to have the door fully closed - you stand inside the shower at the toiletries rack where they put your shampoo, conditioner and body gel (not the one outside). The shower head only throws water in a limited arc, so there are spaces within the shower where you are outside the arc of spray, if you want to test the water before getting wet. Again, both the Etihad and Emirates showers require the door to be closed fully before the water runs (so that's just how it is, given they are the only two passenger airlines offering showers in-flight for First pax). It's a safety thing (you don't want pools of water on the bathroom floor posing safety hazards).

teddy25

EY first apartment is the best hard first product out there.

EY's service is not consistent. I would love to fly EY first with QF's staff.

TheBOSman

Just as good, and for reference I flew TK J and EY Apartments almost back-to-back, BOS-IST-AUH with TK then AUH-LHR with EY. My EY chef also failed to inform me of his CV, perhaps I've been cheated .