Etihad first-class evaluation: The Condo

How much does it cost to book the Etihad first-class Apartment?

The cost of booking the Etihad Apartment will depend on the route you fly and whether you pay cash or redeem miles.

Checking into and boarding Etihad first class

Etihad first-class passengers can take advantage of the following priority services at the airport.

I arrived at JFK about three hours before my flight and made my way to the dedicated first-class check-in counter in Terminal 4.

How comfortable was Etihad first class?

The first-class cabin aboard the Etihad A380 is located at the front of the plane’s top deck with a staircase leading down to the lower deck at the forward side and a large galley and lounge area separating it from the enormous business-class cabin to the aft.

The Residence takes up a chunk of real estate at the forward left side of the cabin and includes a wide seating area, a separate bedroom and its own lavatory. Unfortunately, since I did not upgrade to it, I was asked not to take photos or videos of it during my flight.

The rest of the cabin is composed of nine Apartments spread across four rows in a 1-1 pattern, with seat 1H situated on its own across from The Residence.

Here’s a snapshot of the cabin layout and Apartment dimensions.

Apartments alternately face forward and backward with their armchairs either closer to the aisle or the window and are upholstered in one of three tones of leather: chocolate, caramel, or tan.

Seats in odd rows face aft while those in even rows face front. The Apartments with seats closer to the window for even more privacy include 3A, 3K, 4A and 4K.

Seats with B and H in their designation have their armchairs closer to the aisle, though they’re still separated from it by closing screenlike doors that are 62 inches high, providing a substantial privacy shield.

The partitions between Apartments are about 54 inches high, so while your neighbor might be able to see into your suite while standing up, the reality is that you likely won’t see your fellow travelers during your flight.

If you’re traveling with a companion, the flight attendants can lower the partitions between seats 3A and 4A, and 3K and 4K to create a sort of double suite.

I selected seat 4K for what I consider to be the optimal layout: a forward-facing seat with the chair closer to the window.

Entering the Apartment, there was a long, narrow leather bench to one side and a lighted, mirrored vanity containing various Espa skincare products, an eye mask and earplugs to the other.

Just below the vanity was a universal power plug and a set of drawers, one of which could be used for stowage. The other was a chilled minibar containing sodas and water.

Beneath the bench was a storage space that could hold a small carry-on or large personal item. The crew took larger carry-on bags from passengers to store them near the galley.

Toward the window, the armchair was upholstered in Poltrona Frau leather and could be maneuvered into various lounging positions using a set of seatside buttons, which also operated the electronic window shades. The seat did not recline to lie-flat mode, though, since the Apartment’s bench can be converted into a bed.

On the wall above the buttons, I found two USB-A ports and an HDMI port along with the hand-held, touchscreen remote for the entertainment system. Hidden inside the armrest was another touchscreen panel with which I could control the seat, as well as its lighting, the flight attendant call button and a do-not-disturb indicator.

The seat’s enormous table popped out of a panel along the window and then swung down and into place. From the latter position, it could be adjusted forward and back along a track. Because of how large and unwieldy it is, you’ll likely need flight attendants to help you deploy it.

Also on the window ledge was a lighting fixture that lent the space a touch of elegance thanks to its stylized patterning (there is another on the suite’s aisle wall), and just next to this was a small cubby holding a set of noise-canceling headphones.

Across from the armchair, the entertainment system was a wall-mounted, 24-inch, high-definition touchscreen. Given the dimensions of the Apartment, though, it was more practical to use the hand-held remote to scroll through the entertainment options. It pops out from the wall and swivels around for better viewing when the bed is laid out.

A few hours into the flight, after enjoying a full meal, I asked the attendants to make up the bed. They did so by lowering the bench to its full width of 26 inches and 80.5 inches long. They dressed it with a fitted sheet and a soft mattress pad, then neatly arranged a duvet and both a full-size and accent pillow, plus the faux-fur throw blanket that had been waiting at my seat when I boarded.

This is one of the most comfortable airplane lie-flat beds currently available since there are no odd dimensions, awkward angles or cramped foot cubbies. And though my head was closer to the aisle, I was not disturbed by noise or activity thanks to the closing privacy door. I also wasn’t aware of any movement from the person in seat 3K, whose bed was just adjacent to my own.

One thing to note is that there are no individual air nozzles in the cabin ceiling for passengers. However, due to the large footprint of these suites, flight attendants are able to modify the temperature of individual zones in the cabin. So, when I requested for it to be a few degrees cooler, they were able to do that for me without concern for inconveniencing other passengers.

Passengers in the Etihad Apartments can use two large lavatories located to the right of the staircase down to the lower deck. These have to be some of the most stylish airplane bathrooms around thanks to mosaic backsplash tiling, geometric lighting features and basinlike glass sinks.

They were stocked with Espa skincare products, and the crew kept them spotless during the flight. It was also nice to have some more elbow room than your average plane bathroom in order to change into the provided pajamas before taking a rest.

One of the lavatories had a shower, too. During embarkation, the flight attendants asked each first-class passenger if they would like to shower before landing in Abu Dhabi and then allotted half-hour time slots based on passenger preferences. I lucked out and got one of the last slots, about two hours before landing, so that I could nap for as long as possible, enjoy a quick rinse and then have a meal before we started our descent.

As is the case when using the famous Emirates onboard showers, each passenger gets five minutes of water with a lighted indicator near the control knob to let them know how much time they have left. This shower felt more spacious than Emirates’ thanks to the more extensive glass walling and the fact that the showerhead was mounted on the ceiling rather than being a hand-held unit docked on a pole.

Espa shampoo, conditioner and body wash were all provided along with a towel, and then afterward, there was a small hair dryer tucked into a wall cubby that I could use to style my hair.

Sure, you could wait to get back on the ground to take a shower with all the water you wanted, multiple showerheads and probably better pressure, too. But there’s just something about soaping up midair and arriving refreshed and relaxed that makes this feel like one of travel’s ultimate luxuries.

Amenities in Etihad first class

If you’re flying Etihad first class, leave a little extra room in your carry-on so you can take all the goodies you get on board with you.

Rather than a standard amenity kit, the airline stocks various items in the Apartment’s vanity cupboard.

During my flight, these included:

• Espa hydrating spa face mist
• Espa rejuvenating hand and body lotion
• Espa nourishing lip treatment
• Espa rest and recovery night balm
• Espa restful pulse point oil
• An eye mask
• Earplugs
• A dental kit with toothbrush and toothpaste
• A fabric pouch to carry them off the flight

The flight attendants came by with a packet of slippers for me to use during the flight, as well as a set of charcoal-gray Giorgio Armani pajamas that were lightweight, breathable and ultra-soft.

As mentioned above, noise-canceling headphones were provided and worked very well with the entertainment system.

The entertainment screens are 24 inches across diagonally, and you can control them either with the touchscreen remote or directly as touchscreens themselves, though they are rather far away from the seatback.

The content was very up to date, with new releases at the time like “Oppenheimer,” “Wonka” and “The Hunger Games: Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes.” There was a wide variety of TV shows as well, including some educational ones about Abu Dhabi, various comedies and dramas, HBO Max releases, musical albums organized by genre and some live TV channels, including CNN and BBC News. I mostly kept the view of the tail camera and the flight path on, though.

On my flight, there were two Wi-Fi packages available: a text-only pass for $4.99 and a full-flight “Surfing” pass with unlimited data for $24.99. You can switch your pass among devices by creating an account and logging in before purchasing the Wi-Fi.

Since I was flying in first class, I was given a voucher for free Wi-Fi for the flight, which came in handy for working on the long-haul. I was able to connect easily and clocked download speeds of 8.27 Mbps and upload speeds of 4.68 Mbps.

How was the food in Etihad first class?

During boarding and while handing out slippers and pajamas, flight attendants offered each passenger a choice of beverage, including water, juice, Champagne or pretty much whatever else they wanted.

I asked for a glass of Champagne, which ended up being Charles Heidsieck 2006 Brut Millesime, and then was also served a cup of Arabic coffee, a ramekin of dates and a hot towel. (I was offered another glass after takeoff, which was served with nuts, wasabi peas and olives.)

That gave me a chance to peruse the menus waiting at my seat, though I waited until we were up in the air to order my meals.

Etihad offers dine-on-demand service in both business and first class, so you can order anything you want from the menu pretty much any time up until about an hour before landing.

My flight departed New York in the afternoon (or late at night if going by the time in Abu Dhabi) and landed in the late morning in Abu Dhabi, so I decided to have my first and more substantial meal shortly after takeoff so I could then rest for several hours in the middle of the flight before having a lighter meal prior to landing.

The menu choices included appetizers like:

• Gourmet House osetra caviar with traditional garnishes
• Burrata with burnt orange, sumac-spiced heirloom tomato salad and pomegranate
• Arabic mezze
• Harira soup with vermicelli, lentils, chickpeas, dates and lemon
• Clam chowder

The main courses included:

• USDA beef tenderloin with fondant potatoes, courgette, carrot, sunchoke mousseline and shallots
• Chicken breast with truffle polenta and purple Swiss chard
• Lamb shank bukhari with basmati rice
• Chilean sea bass with za’atar mousseline, leeks and asparagus
• Mushroom cappellacci with courgette, tomato and panna sauce

And for dessert:

• Caramelized apple hazelnut financier with berries and vanilla sauce
• Mocha mascarpone tarte with raspberries, salted coffee and chocolate sauce
• A cheese selection
• Haagen-Dazs ice cream

You could also order “lounge and grill” style, which was basically a mix-and-match option featuring various proteins, sides and sauces, as well as items like:

• Steak frites
• Beef sliders with apple-fennel slaw
• Quinoa and roasted vegetable salad with lemon labneh
• A steak sandwich with cheddar and caramelized onion
• New York cheesecake

Passengers could request snacks at any time including:

• Potato chips
• Baklava
• Madeleines
• Various cookies

Then, for the breakfast menu before landing, the choices included:

• A selection of pastries and cereals
• Mixed berry smoothie
• Cheese-herb omelet with chicken sausages, mushrooms, tomato, spinach and potato rosti
• Fresh fruit platter

I started with the caviar service because, well, why not? It was beautifully presented in the tin with a quintet of blinis and multiple garnishes, including chives, red onion, creme fraiche and diced egg white and yolk, all served on the airline’s bespoke Nikko fine bone china. It went wonderfully with a glass of Billecart-Salmon 2016 Vintage Cuvee (the rosé Champagne on board that day was Duval-Leroy Prestige Premier Cru).

Next, I had the Arabic mezze, which included kibbeh, hummus, tabouleh and baba ghanoush, with a glass of crisp Laurenz V Singing Gruner Veltliner from Austria.

For my main, I couldn’t pass up the steak, which I requested medium rare after the flight attendant warned me it would be slightly more cooked than an equivalent order on the ground. It was still tender and juicy, and the veggie sides were flavorful and fresh. I paired it with a glass of Domaine des Senechaux Chateauneuf-du-Pape, which was redolent of blackberry and licorice notes.

Finally, for dessert, I had the hazelnut financier, which was fluffy and light.

Then I took a glass of the Dow’s single-harvest 1992 tawny port back to the lounge area behind the galley, which is shared between first and business class. Here, there’s a self-serve bar with spirits, wine and other beverages, as well as some snacks.

The centerpiece is a six-seat booth around an ornate table with power ports so you can work or relax over a meal with friends and colleagues. There are seat belts, too, so you can remain even if there is turbulence.

This is a popular hangout for groups traveling together. In fact, it was only clear of passengers after the main meal service in business class had been finished for quite awhile.

After a snooze and a shower, I requested my breakfast about 90 minutes before landing. I had the pastries, the fruit platter (which was surprisingly fresh) and the omelet. The latter was hearty and savory, as were the mushrooms and rosti. The cappuccino I ordered was piping hot and nicely frothed as well. It was not quite the full-octane strength you might expect on the ground, but it was a good prelanding jolt nonetheless.

The service on my flight was, in a word, impeccable. Although flight attendants moved through the first-class cabin regularly to see if passengers needed anything, passengers mostly used the flight attendant call button for service since Apartment doors are mostly kept closed during the flight. Whenever I pressed mine, someone was politely knocking at my door within 15 seconds.

The cabin manager and all the flight attendants I interacted with (five in total) were extremely polished but also exceptionally personable. They enquired about my travels, were happy to tell me about their own backgrounds and checked in throughout the flight not only to ensure that I was comfortable, but that I was enjoying the experience to the utmost (I was). And it was always in a manner that felt genuine and unforced — they seemed authentically invested in my enjoyment, which made me appreciate the experience and the flight all the more.

Would you recommend Etihad first class?

Even a decade after its introduction, the Etihad Apartment remains one of the most exclusive, innovative and luxurious airline first-class experiences in the world, and it feels even more special considering that it was unclear whether Etihad would reactivate its Airbus A380 fleet after the pandemic.

Not only are the suites huge, but their privacy and comfort features, including closing doors and benches that transform into long twin-size beds, make for an excellent inflight experience. The soft touches, such as Espa amenities, dine-on-demand service and world-class hospitality from the airline’s crews all set the Etihad first-class experience apart even further.

What’s more, you can frequently find Etihad first-class award space (albeit for a bucketload of miles) both with the airline’s own frequent flyer program and those of its partners, including American Airlines AAdvantage.

All those elements combine to make this a memorable yet achievable travel experience. It had been eight years since my first Etihad Apartment flight, but I’ll be sure not to let so much time pass again before my next trip in this truly singular first-class cabin.

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