Maxwell Smart

A family member has a 7-hour connection at AUH as follows, late this month:

Arriving from IAD on EY130 at 1710
Departing to BLR on EY286 at 0240

The traveler has transited AUH once before on a similar routing in both directions, so not new to the airport.

Which lounge/terminal would make sense for paid access? The EY website doesn't give prices, what is the cost (or does it vary by demand level?). Website says can only be purchased on site, but I wanted to see if there was any other mechanism to purchase in advance, e.g. online or during checkin at IAD.

Thanks!

isle11

There is an airport hotel where you could book a single room for 5-6 hrs, which also gives 1 hour access to its lounge area for a quick bite.

I do not know if things have changed now but the paid travellers are not given first preference in lounges if its busy. The time your family member transiting is the busiest time in AUH, so better go with the hotel as the price for 5 hrs in the hotel is almost same as the lounge access.

Flights to BLR could be Terminal 1 or 3, and its quite a walk. by the time your family member lands, the gate details won't be available for the BLR flight, so you couldn't choose the lounge accordingly also.

I been in the same situation several times, and everytime I wished that I booked the hotel in advance.

Maxwell Smart

Thank you for the information!

I saw that another option is EY's Meet and Greet service for transit, for USD 89 a staff member will meet you at your arrival gate, escort you to the Term 1 premium lounge, then escort you from the lounge to your departing gate.

And now the arrival is from JFK at 1950, so total transit time falls to just under 7 hours. I don't think she'd be interested in the hotel, as she'd prefer to stay within the terminal, eat, sit/read/relax for the roughly 5 hours down time between flights.

But curious, what would the hotel or paid lounge cost be? It seems like 89 dollars for escort and guaranteed lounge access with meet/greet service is not too unreasonable.

Dogmatick

Though isn't that per person ?
That is a lot for the group you have, if you don't have a visa issue you could use it towards a very decent evening in Abu Dhabi and then returning for your flight

Maxwell Smart

No, this is for a solo traveller. So 89 would be total cost. US citizen, so no visa issue, but regardless she would not be interested in the hassles/logistics of immigration/security if leaving and returning to the terminal.

Since she has some important academic activities a couple days after arriving into BLR, the main idea is options for a restful and stress-free transit to help minimize jet lag recovery time after arriving into BLR.

Question remains, does anyone know what's the cost of paid lounge access so I can weigh it vs the $89 meet/greet fee?

lento

Al Reem Lounge by Plaza Premium at Terminal 1 charges AED 150 for 2 hours and AED 250 for 5 hours.
Etihad First and business class lounges cost more. First costs AED 735 for just two hours, no idea about business but should be more expensive than Al Reem.

Dogmatick

Should be noted that you can only access the First lounge if flying in Business with Etihad which it doesn't sound like your friend is doing

lento

No, Economy class passengers can also access First lounge. Below is the list of price:

• If you're flying in Business or Economy Class, you can choose from 2, 4 and 6 hour upgrade packages starting from only USD $200 / AED 735.
• As a First Class guest, you can invite a companion to join you in our First Class Lounge & Spa for only USD $100 / AED 367.
• If you're an Etihad Guest Gold member travelling in Business Class, you’ll have a preferential upgrade rate of only USD $100 / AED 367.

Dogmatick

Thanks for the correction I had misunderstood the communication (not hard if you've ever read one from them!)

Maxwell Smart

Thanks to all for your inputs. It appears that meet/greet service that includes Premium Lounge access for a total of AED 325 seems to be a pretty decent option, since I assume it guarantees access to the lounge, regardless of how busy they are. Below is what the website says is included:

1. Personal welcome on arrival at Abu Dhabi International Airport (1 staff for every guest or couple traveling together).

2. Staff will meet you at the arrival gate lounge or bus disembarkation point.

3. Assistance throughout the arrival process, including escort from arrival gate to Etihad Airways Premium Lounge Terminal 1 and escort from Etihad Airways Premium Lounge Terminal 1 to the departure gate.

4. Available for guests who has up to 5 hours transit in Abu Dhabi.

Given the prices provided by lento for paid lounge access, the meet/greet cost actually seems somewhat lower than I would have expected, since it's guaranteed access to the Premium (business?) Lounge as opposed to Al Reem.

Or am I missing something?

Dogmatick

It's certainly a better lounge to use, when you enter stay left and follow it past the toilets to a white area where the kitchen is. This used to be the First Class lounge there and is usually quite quiet