Emirates - travel with style and class 
As a fairly frequent traveler between the UK and Bangkok, I have used most of the airlines which operate this popular route over the past three years. For the current trip I decided that I would use Birmingham as my UK departure/entry airport and Emirates as carrier. From the moment I presented myself at the Economy Class check-in desk, having elected not to use the echeck-in facility, I was very quickly reminded why Emirates are consistently voted at or very near to the top in the various quality and service awards. The service from the BHX check in to leaving the aircraft in Bangkok was smooth, professional and courteous; in fact faultless.
Our Boeing 777 departure from BHX (EK 038) to Dubai left on time for this six-and-a-half-hour first sector of my journey. I was, at first, a little surprised that the ‘usual’ after takeoff refreshment service was not offered. However, the overhead call button quickly brought a member of the cabin staff to my seat, and my request responded to with the care attention which became a hallmark of the whole journey. By the time I had worked my way through, and chosen which programmes I would watch, from the vast selection of films, music, news and comedy shows presented by the Emirates ‘ICE’ entertainment system, dinner was being served.
By now my expectations for a comfortable and enjoyable journey had been raised: recent experiences with other airlines had left me jaded and disappointed. This time, clearly, the experience was going to be both different and as enjoyable as international flights permit. The Emirates upgrade programme of its Boeing triple seven fleet providing adequate and comfortable seating, coupled with a menu which was both interesting and well prepared and presented; making the ‘customer focused’ claim a reality, not just a slogan.
Our arrival into Dubai, the Emirates home station, was no less interesting than the flight itself had been. About 20 minutes prior to landing, the captain announced that our arrival would be delayed by about 30 minutes due to poor visibility at Dubai International Airport. Unusually, Dubai was blanketed in cloud which reached the ground and had caused significant flight delays throughout the busy early morning period. After a short hold, we made our descent into DBX: the sight of its magnificent hotel towers appearing eerily through the cloud tops. The ILS put us down on the runway threshold with uncanny accuracy to complete this leg of the flight.
The transfer to the Bangkok flight was entirely uneventful: a quick coffee and freshen up in this elegant and modern airport being sufficient to prepare me for the final stage of the journey, to be taken aboard the new Airbus 380 which Emirates operate to BKK.
Having chosen Business Class for the flight down to Bangkok, (EK 372) I was soon being shown into the upper cabin of this large and equally impressive aircraft. Having located my seat I very quickly settled into the generous space which is provided: with only 4 seats across the wide bodied Airbus A380, the immediate sense of space and comfort was obvious. A welcoming glass of Moet added perfectly to the anticipation of the flight, my first on an A380, and expected to be approximately six hours duration. The Captain’s announcement, informing us that the flight would be delayed to allow late arriving passengers into Dubai, due to the weather hold up, to complete their transfer to the flight, was noted by the cabin and generally welcomed by all.
The flight to Bangkok was completed uneventfully and some 20 minutes of the delay recovered en-route.
The luxurious accommodation of the A380’s Business Class is where Emirates excels in everything it stands for. Each of the seats has direct access to the aisle and converts to fully flat beds with a touch-screen wireless seat controller. Each of the seats also features a 17-inch digital widescreen TV and built-in amenities like mini-bar and privacy panels.
The noise reduction headphones and the large widescreen TV take the Emirates’ award-wining in-flight entertaining system ICE (information, communication, entertainment) to another level. The system provides the largest programming currently available in the skies and offers more than 1000 channels of on-demand entertainment. I was surprised by the up-to-date selection of movies, songs and podcasts.
Each cabin is equipped with an advanced mood lighting system, complete with a starlit sky, which adjusts throughout the flight to reflect the time at the destination and to help combat the effects of jet lag.
Emirates A380 also features an onboard lounge attended by a bartender for First and Business Class passengers. The lounge mirrors the ambience of an executive club and includes a bar with a wide range of beverages and canapés. In addition, there are two sofas and a 42-inch LCD screen showing the aircraft’s position and views from its external cameras.
To end this review here, though, would not do justice to the excellent service provided throughout by the cabin crew. The comprehensive menu and very high quality of both the food and wine served for lunch would have stood very good comparison with the best restaurants around, as would the level of care with which it was served.
The whole experience of this journey of some 14 hours in total only served to confirm my earliest impressions whilst boarding in Birmingham. Emirates have unquestionably succeeded in their ambition to become and remain a world class and award winning airline. It’s no great surprise to me that they have developed a devoted following among seasoned travelers in all classes of travel. Most of their competitor airlines have much to learn and some distance to go, before reaching the standards which I enjoyed on this particular flight, and I am sure, on all the Emirates routes. Well done to them.
From the UK, Emirates operates 98 weekly flights from Heathrow (five times daily), London Gatwick (three times daily), Birmingham and Manchester (twice daily), plus Newcastle and Glasgow (once daily), to Bangkok via Dubai.
Emirates is currently offering Economy Class fares from its six UK departure points to Bangkok, via Dubai from £475 per person. Book by 30th November 2009. Valid for travel from now until 9th December 2009 and 16 January – 25 March 2010. For more information and reservations, please visit www.emirates.com/uk.
