The overall rating of a review is different from a simple average of all individual ratings.
Advantages:
Award winning Airline of 2001, efficient service, excellent in - flight entertainment with live on - board cameras showing front views, comfortable flight, plenty of Emirates stop - over offers
Disadvantages:
none really& # 8230;hope it expands its fleet faster and adds the US sector sooner !
Recommendable
Yes:
Detailed rating:
Food Quality
Customer Service
Punctuality
Space
Value for Money
Class flown most frequentlyEconomy
How often do you travel with this airlineRegularly
In current times of economic recession and a slump in the airline industry when many US airlines declared bankruptcy it is a pleasure to fly with growing International carrier; like Emirates; the airline. Although some budget airlines may be showing normal levels of tourists flying many such airlines do not fly out of Europe and choices are more limited with long haul flights. I recently enjoyed a pleasant journey with Emirates from UK via Dubai onwards to India and have no hesitation in recommending this airline for any part of your journey.
Emirates is the international airline of the United Arab Emirates. It is currently expanding its fleet that consists of mainly Boeing 777’s, Airbus A330’s, A310’s and A300’s with more Boeing’s and a super jumbo A380 which is meant to carry more than 500 passengers! At present Emirates flies to 56 destinations worldwide ranging from Europe, UAE, Asia, Africa and Australia. From UK it flies from 3 major cities; London, Manchester and Birmingham with direct flights to Dubai; making it the ideal choice for many passengers who may wish to avoid the rush and chaos at London Heathrow’s airport for long haul flights. This expansion in fleet will allow it to expand its operations to include flights to the US and Pacific Rim and this is sure to secure its place as a major International carrier
for many years to come. Its excellent safety records and its efficient service have made it win the Airline of the Year Award 2001.
Flight Route : UK – INDIA (Hyderabad via Dubai)
Emirates excellent service record and the launch of new direct flights to Hyderabad in July 2001 made me book this airline for my recent trip to India. The launch of direct flights to Hyderabad in India has made this route very popular with travellers looking for direct flights to Indian cities such as Hyderabad, and Chennai for example. Normally when I fly to Hyderabad, I am required to take a flight to Bombay and then take another internal connecting flight to Hyderabad.
Flight Frequency ~
Emirates operate daily flights 7 days a week direct to Dubai. To avoid the rush at London Heathrow I flew from Birmingham. All flights depart at around 13.00 (which is great as it means you don’t have to get up at some ridiculously early hour as most flights bound for Asia normally require). The flight time is 7 hours, which means you reach Dubai at midnight. There are 4 flights a week from Dubai to Hyderabad with a flying time of approx. 3 hours.
Check-In and Ground Staff Service ~
Arrived at the airport approx. 3 hours prior to check-in, but due to some last minute changes I had made to my Economy ticket I had to have my ticket re-issued at the Emirates ticket desk at the airport; thereby delaying my check-in. It took Emirates some time to re-issue the ticket, as it appeared my travel agent had not correctly amended my booking 24hours earlier when I’d asked for an alteration. There were several check-in counters and all queues were moving swiftly and smoothly. It was unfortunate for me being one of the last to check in due to a ticket re-issue, however all the ground staff were most helpful and sympathetic towards us and although the aircraft was fully booked they released 2 extra seats so we could sit together.
Baggage ~
Though the stated weight allowance on economy flights is 20Kg, most long haul passengers tend to carry significantly more (especially one’s bound for UAE or Asia!) I was carrying 32kg and that was ok and checked –in without any problems. [Please note - I somehow have managed to be lucky with all my over weight baggage check-ins …however, I would not recommend that you carry more than 28Kg if you’re flying Economy Class.] My hand baggage was also about 11Kg (opps!) but Emirates let it go as long as I didn’t add more weight to it. So, I was a happy passenger boarded on the flight sitting in a window seat with all my goodies safely on board!
In-Flight ~
The flight boarded on time and once inside the plane a pleasant interior cabin finished in delicate pastel colours awaited me. The aircraft was an airbus A330, capable of cruising to an altitude of 41,000 feet. The seating was spacious and seats even in Economy allowed adjustment to lumbar support as well as reclining. There is also an additional footrest in front, which can be pulled out if needed. On one sector of my journey; (Hyderabad-Dubai) I managed to get seats in Business class; these seats allowed even more adjustments to lumbar support. Electronically you can move your seat and legs upwards or backwards and tilt your angle; a great way to amuse yourself if you are bored! The cabin crew were pleasant, charming, and helpful when help was required. In these modern and busy times of air travel, it is a pleasure to receive attention and be welcomed; something, which seems in short supply in the age of budget travel and increased air traffic. (Ah, my favourite is still Singapore Airlines!!)
EMIRATES INFLIGHT Entertainment ~
This is one area that deserves 5 Stars, as Emirates does not compromise on in-flight entertainment! Each seat features its own fully interactive liquid crystal touch-screen TV, located in front of your seat. Not only do you have access to up to 18 TV channels including at least 5 that are dedicated to Movies including recent releases, there is also a Comedy Channel showing old classics such as Charlie Chaplin, Laurel & Hardy etc in a multitude of languages. There are also at least 20 Audio channels to listen too. For me the most interesting and useful piece of information I could view on the tv screen had to be the “Airshow” – this shows you at least 2 live views of the on-board Emirates camera located at the front of the aircraft (so you can see what’s ahead-pilots view) this is called Front-Flying camera. From here, you can watch every inch of take off; monitor the touchdown on landing, and see how accurate the pilot’s landing was. There is also a downward camera that shows you the downward view, i.e. when parked on the runway you will only see the airport tarmac! But once in the sky you can watch your progress through the clouds. In addition to the forward and downward cameras you can watch the progress of your journey from starting point to destination as is seen in most aircraft these days, with flight time and altitude. If this isn’t enough to keep you occupied there are a host of games that can be played on the interactive screen or via the remote control using the jog buttons to navigate and go from left to right. I attempted a game of Chess against the computer but each time the Computer beat me! I then decided to stick to watching the live camera views of the scenery below –far more satisfying!
Furthermore, should you need to stay in touch with home or business there is a satellite phone on board each seat though it is pricey at US$ 5 a minute. Emirates also offer stationery finished in cream with gold font on –board should you need it. There is sufficient reading material on board with plenty of newspapers and the Emirates inflight magazine. The magazine is packed with plenty of interesting reading material and local facts about Dubai and many other exotic destinations on the Emirate network, high quality photography, as well as a useful section of gentle exercises to perform whilst in the air to maintain good circulation.
Cuisine and Bar Service ~
Emirates award winning cuisine offers a choice of 2 main meals; one is normally oriental such as an Arabic lamb stew or chicken biryani the other choice is a European choice such a baby chicken breast or fillet of salmon topped with herb butter served with sugar snap peas, carrots and spicy potato wedges. There are vegetarian options though these need to be booked in advance. Selections of both alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages of your choice are available with the compliments of Emirates free of charge. Only champagne is not free in Economy Class (If you love Champagne its free in Air-France!)
Overall, I have no hesitation in recommending Emirates the award-winning airline of 2001. The airline offers weekly competitions on each flight allowing passengers to win a fully expenses paid holiday to Dubai staying in a 5-star hotel. All Emirates passengers also get special negotiated rates with major 4 and 5 star hotels in the city of Dubai, and sometimes there are free stopovers, e.g. last month Emirates gave ‘all’ their passengers 1 night’s free accommodation in their 5-star associate Hotel Le Meridien! Otherwise, there are plenty of offers available..so why not take a break on route and stop over in Dubai? For frequent flyers there is also a miles reward program called Skywards. Finally to summarise Emirates; the service is efficient, the flights punctual, the in-flight entertainment is excellent and it offers you the chance to make a free stop-over in the shopping capital of the exotic city of Dubai!
I always fly Emirates to Australia and have never been disappointed. This is an excellent review, covering lots of different aspects of the topic and good background information. Well-done!
CarolB 15.10.2003 16:41
This sounds like an excellent service. I can't imagine BA doing this!! Carol
atlantis140 15.02.2003 13:56
A well written and informed opinion. Im glad you had such a nice trip!
I fly Singapore and I am sure you will agree that the quality of them is fantastic. Well done Dave
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Advantages: Not having to fly from London Airports, nice food, entertainment choices Disadvantages: Aircraft getting a bit old, longer journey times, shopping temptation in Dubai
pinseyt 23.04.2004 (23.04.2004)
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful
Review of Emirates Airlines - UAE
Jan 18th, 2002
(Jan 25th, 2002)
very helpful by (100%):
