EY Apartments vs. LH First Class

[boomy]

Looking at EY food menu, while it was extensive, there was no caviar nor any lobster, two dishes I'm looking forward to when flying F (along with good champagne). The FA said there used to be caviar and lobster once but EY decided to "refresh" the menu. Oh well, plenty of other stuff to select from.
Some of my choices from both flights:

Mezze



Trio of fish with lobster sauce



Chef's special - mackerel



Grass-fed beef tenderloin



Overall the food was ok but not amazing for what is expected in first class. The only outstanding dish was the steak (which I ordered twice). I appreciate it's not easy to serve tender medium-rare steak on a plane (EK for example could never do it properly).

 

[lmere12]

Looking forward to the next updates

 

[boomy]

For most part of the flight I had just the Bolly and lots of it
Can't have good steak with champagne so had it with French red which wasn't too bad.



There is a nice lounge located between F and J cabins on the upper deck.



I would assume some J pax would use it but it didn't seem to be very popular as I was the only one there. The crew seemed glad someone is finally utilising the lounge and encouraged me to get a drink and loaded the tables with fruits, snacks and baklavas.

 

[boomy]

Tried to ask for wifi voucher and was told there is no voucher and everyone must pay. I was prepared for that (some reports say the CSM can give complementary vouchers at their own discretion but it's not guaranteed).
Didn't mind paying $25 for 24hr considering it covers both sectors. Unfortunately the speed was so bad and apart from some basic WhatsApp chats it was useless.

 

[boomy]

After all that F&B it's time to go to bed, not before using one of the coolest features on a plane these days - the shower.



It felt a bit cramped compared to EK (the residence takes most of the space in the front upper deck) but EY "compensates" by allowing up to 8 minutes of running water which is 60% longer than EK!

By the time I finished with the shower the bed in my apartment was already made.



Although they put a mattress underneath it still felt a bit hard but at that stage I was so tired and managed to sleep very well.

 

[kpc]

I recently flew Syd-Auh return in the Apartments, and agree with a lot of your comments, Boomy todate....don't get me wrong as I think EY F on the A380 sets the benchmark for F travel currently, and it is an absolute thrill and privilige to fly it. My nitpicking negatives....poor ground service in both Syd and Auh, in partic. lack of separate F lounge, no lobster / caviar options on board, bed is a little hard and narrow, shower room is a bit tight size wise, an F passenger having to pay for WiFi.....so really only "minor" issues and overall EY F Apartments is the WAY to fly....PS I did sneak a few photos of the Residence as on the way back from Auh, I was in 2C, which is directly behind the lounge area of the Residence, and by standing on my bench, I could look over the Divider and had a full view of this part of the Residence!

 

[boomy]

PS I did sneak a few photos of the Residence as on the way back from Auh, I was in 2C, which is directly behind the lounge area of the Residence, and by standing on my bench, I could look over the Divider and had a full view of this part of the Residence!

The lounge area was open so no problem taking photo of this part of the Residence.



Going past the closed door (fully closed, floor to ceiling) is where photos not allowed.

 

[boomy]

EY lounge AUH

 

[boomy]

Some more photos of the lounge:

 

[boomy]

EY don't have F lounge in AUH, instead they have an F section inside the very big J lounge.



I was very hungover after the 14hr free-flowing champagne flight so all I had in the lounge was lots of coffee and water trying to recover

The lounge has Six Senses Spa inside which offers a list of complementary treatments.





First class pax can also enjoy complementary haircut, shave or manicure at the Style salon.



This is the first time I've seen a beauty salon inside an airline lounge, very cool!

Unfortunately I had my haircut and shave just before the flight so the only thing left was manicure. I've never done that before and after finally trying it I can say for sure I'll never do this awkward thing again! Lol

 

[boomy]

The short layover finished. Seems I had enough water, coffee and pampering to reset my body and go into the second leg as good as new

Our plane AUH-LHR



Same apartment 4A.



Each flight starts with a glass of champagne, welcome letter and bowl of dates.



Departing Abu Dhabi



As soon as we took off I've asked the FA to make the bed so I can lie down and chillax.



This is basically the biggest advantage of this appartment - massive amounts of space.

 

[exceladdict]

By the time I finished with the shower the bed in my apartment was already made.

Although they put a mattress underneath it still felt a bit hard but at that stage I was so tired and managed to sleep very well.

I'm enjoying this report almost as much as I'm sure you're enjoying the real thing!

Out of interest, how did it feel sleeping perpendicular to the direction of travel?

 

[boomy]

I'm enjoying this report almost as much as I'm sure you're enjoying the real thing!

Out of interest, how did it feel sleeping perpendicular to the direction of travel?

Thanks!

Didn't feel any different sleeping perpendicular. It wasn't the most comfortable bed I've slept on in the air but it was more due to the softness (or lack of) the mattress rather than position.

 

[RooFlyer]

<snip>
Although they put a mattress underneath it still felt a bit hard but at that stage I was so tired and managed to sleep very well.

I recently flew Syd-Auh return in the Apartments, and agree with a lot of your comments, Boomy todate....don't get me wrong as I think EY F on the A380 sets the benchmark for F travel currently, and it is an absolute thrill and privilige to fly it. My nitpicking negatives....poor ground service in both Syd and Auh, in partic. lack of separate F lounge, no lobster / caviar options on board, bed is a little hard and narrow, shower room is a bit tight size wise, an F passenger having to pay for WiFi.....so really only "minor" issues and overall EY F Apartments is the WAY to fly....<snip>!

Whew. I'm sort of glad it wasn't just me re the hard-ish bed and paying for wi-fi. I was a bit backward in coming forward in my commentary, fearing I'd come across as a spoiled brat (I am spoiled). But its not as if anyone isn't going to fly apartments just because some folks thought the bed was a bit hard!

 

[Kangol]

Thanks!
Booked using LMs (115,000 + $US114).

Awesome. I've got something similar for next year - EY F booked but LH F as a hopeful option.
What was your backup plan if LH F didn't open up at T-14?

 

[boomy]

Whew. I'm sort of glad it wasn't just me re the hard-ish bed and paying for wi-fi. I was a bit backward in coming forward in my commentary, fearing I'd come across as a spoiled brat (I am spoiled). But its not as if anyone isn't going to fly apartments just because some folks thought the bed was a bit hard!

I know exactly what you mean, try telling normal people you just flew on one of the apartments and it was great BUT... and you will most likely get that look saying: how dare you complain about something most of us will never even get to experience!!

This is exactly why I love FF forums like AFF and others where you can bring up all kinds of 1st world problems among like minded people without being crucified

 

[boomy]

Awesome. I've got something similar for next year - EY F booked but LH F as a hopeful option.
What was your backup plan if LH F didn't open up at T-14?

Actually my original booking was LHR-NRT-SYD on BA/JL F but as soon as a seat opened on LH F I immediately booked it and then called and canceled the BA leg.
It was the easiest decision I ever made

 

[exceladdict]

Actually my original booking was LHR-NRT-SYD on BA/JL F but as soon as a seat opened on LH F I immediately booked it and then called and canceled the BA leg.
It was the easiest decision I ever made

Not bad for backup at all.

 

[boomy]

Overall service was hit and miss.
On the SYD-AUH leg service was mediocre, FAs weren't very attentive and seemed a bit tired but on the AUH-LHR leg the British crew was much better.

In conclusion the hard product is unbeatable, private room plus shower onboard, It's a dream to fly in such luxury.
The soft product however was not the best I had in F. It just wasn't on par with some of the Asian airlines.

At 100K AA miles EY still offers the best value traveling long haul F from Australia to the UK.

I have two more bookings for next year and hoping to squeeze at least one more for 2017 before the major devaluation in March.

 

[rotuma1]

Well done, looking forward to FRA F lounge and Mercedes: Porsche transfer to plane. Also your report on 748