Emirates Air Economy Class ~ Packing Passengers like Sardines!

We flew Emirates from Dubai to Victoria, the Seychelles. Not many airlines service the Seychelles and the traveler is limited to two airlines flying out of the UAE, and two others from London and Paris. Due to lack of competition for that route, the fares tend to be high.

Past Experiences with Emirates:

It had been at least three years since I flew Emirates, but I always remembered them as "the airline with fantastic service!" Back then, my flights were only from Jakarta to Singapore and back, on barely-full cabins, and as such, what could go wrong? As a result, flying Emirates was always a very pleasurable event, even in Economy class. The flight attendants were truly charming as they really didn't have to work very hard serving 50 to 75 passengers!

Recent Experience:

Online Booking: Dubai - Mahe - Dubai

I started looking at their fares a few months in advanced, all the way to three months before our trip in August. The price never budged one Dirham. A four-hour flight, cost 4,100 AED or US$1,110. Flights from Dubai to the Seychelles are offered four times a week, once a day; therefore, careful planning is essential.

Booking Online was very easy, and I paid by credit card, and received our e-tickets in a matter of seconds.

~ Watch your Weight (your luggage, that is!)

Emirates weight allowances vary from region to region, and we were dismayed to find out two days before travel, that the allowance from Dubai to Seychelles was only one 20 kg bag (44 lbs), and one carry-on at 7 kg. Having flown Delta business class, we were entitled to three suitcases at 70 lbs a piece, but being conservative, we each brought two suitcases weighing 44 lbs each, but we obviously exceeded Emirates' weight allowance, by 40 kg.

Since we were in Abu Dhabi before flying to the Seychelles, we went in person to the Emirates office, and pleaded our "weight" situation with a very nice Customer Service person. She said only a manager could make an allowance, and that she would contact us in the next 24 hours. Otherwise, it was 18.00 Euros per each excess kilo. Indeed, they called us the next day and gave us an additional 20 kg per person, and since we were going to the Seychelles, they gave us an additional 10kg for dive equipment. That was very nice!

~ Check-in Area

Very chaotic with passengers with tons of luggage, such as huge cardboard boxes, everywhere!
We found the desk for our flight, and there were four, super-long queues. Fortunately for us, a fifth position opened up, and we didn't have to wait long!

Dubai- Seychelles Flight ~ Let's pack them like Sardines on a 777-200!

We flew during the high season, in mid-August, when all of Europe (OK, I'm exaggerating) is vacationing in the Seychelles. Since flights are not offered daily, and there is only one flight a day from Dubai to Mahe, you can imagine that both classes are fully booked... and don't even dream about getting a free upgrade!

If you're familiar with a B777-200, it is a big aircraft, and Emirates' configuration for that particular plane is: 42 business seats and 304 economy seats! Yes, sir, 304 seats! That's a lot of seats, conducive to packing the passengers like sardines!

Emirate's economy cabin seating arrangement is 3-4-3; so, we requested two isle seats, and we were basically sitting together, but without having to deal with who's sitting in the middle seat, etc.

The cabin was very clean and the seat upholstery in very good condition. The seats are small and just plain uncomfortable!

Emirate's 3-4-3 configuration (and 304 seats) means the cabin space is very tight, especially when the person in front of you decides to fully recline their seat, and if you have your tray table open; you'll barely have but a few inches to move around.

Most US airlines configure their B777-200 at 3-3-3 seats. Continental for example, offers a 3-3-3 configuration with 235 seats in economy class and 42 in Business, so clearly, the passengers have more space, even though it doesn't seem like it. Delta, configures their 777-200 at 50 business class seats and 218 economy seats, offering a little bit more room.

Americans: stop complaining about the tight seating conditions on our carriers!! It can be worse, fly Emirates!

~ But How's the Service?

Emirates has a tradition of excellent service and they have received many accolades for outstanding service throughout the years, for "Best Business Airline and Best First Class Service," but I didn't find records of any awards for "Best Economy class."

In my opinion, to test an airline's true commitment to service, one must fly in Economy Class; that's the real test!

On past flights, I found the Emirate flight attendants warm, friendly, smiley, and quite attentive. I think today things are a little different, and I observed that they do not go out of their way to help passengers, unless asked to. The attendants do what they are supposed to do, ensure passenger safety, assist passengers if needed, serve food and drinks.

I observed that the majority of the attendants performed their duties in a rather mechanical manner. And, don't even ask for assistance to put things in the overhead bin... their silent motto must be... "if you can't put it up there yourself, don't bring it onboard." Fair enough!

~ Quality of Food on both flights

No award-winning cuisine on either Dubai - Mahe - Dubai flights. The food was rather average, my lasagna (or something like that) tasted like cardboard, and the bread was rubbery.

~ Beverage Service

On the Dubai-Mahe route, there was one beverage service before the meal, during, and then, after the meal; the attendants went around asking if there was anything else desired to drink. Alcoholic beverages such as beer and wine were complimentary, as were soft drinks.

~ Entertainment

Emirate's 777-200 cabins have the famous ICE entertainment. Wouldn't you know it; I couldn't get mine to work! My husband's ICE worked and he was happy with it.

~ Lavatories

From Dubai to Mahe, the bathrooms were kept spotless and no complaints. From Mahe to Dubai, one of the bathrooms in our section was ruined when apparently someone got sick, but didn't notify an attendant. Of course, I had the displeasure of discovering the mess, and promptly notified an attendant. They sealed the door with a red sticker saying "out of service".

Return flight: Mahe - Seychelles

This is truly a red-eye flight, and we left Mahe at 12:50 am. This time, the aircraft was an Airbus 330-300, and the good thing about it is that seating configuration is much better, at 2-4-2, so this time we sat together! The seats are still crammed-in, as Emirates uses every inch of cabin space and go for maximum number of seats in Economy Class! This flight was also fully booked.

As soon as we had leveled-off, the crew started the dinner-service, with the beverage service right behind. The goal, I detected, was to feed the crowd, and get them to go to sleep, which is exactly what happened. Then, about 45-minutes before landing, they passed a sweet pastry with a choice of a hot beverage, juice, or soft drinks. We landed around 5:30 am.

~ Entertainment

The ICE entertainment was not enabled on this flight, so everyone just passed out after dinner.

Arrival in Dubai

We landed and taxied to a distant tarmac where several buses were waiting to pick-up passengers. The ride from the plane to the Arrivals building seemed endless.

A young woman traveling with her parents fainted in front of me and started having convulsions. Everyone froze, but her mother told everyone she knew what to do, and we just moved back and gave her space!. The driver radioed for help, and as soon as the bus arrived at the terminal, staff was waiting for them!

You'd think at this ungodly hour the Immigration lines would be short... not so!

Overall, Emirates is a good airline. Here are my praises and complaints:

* We were very pleased with the Emirate's Office personnel, how they granted us the extra weight allowance, etc.

* Planes are clean, and in good-condition. The staff for the most part is friendly, but not overly, as I had experienced in past years.

* The quality of the food left much to be desired, but then again, few airlines serve quality meals in economy class.

* The beverage service was very good, as they are not stingy and replenished drinks frequently, if you asked.

* My biggest complaint is the "cabin space" situation. It's obvious Emirates makes full use of the cabin by placing the maximum number of allowable seats, leaving the passenger with very little personal space!

Since I'm already on a roll, please allow me to grumble some more:

~ Partnership with other airlines

Emirates is a member of SkyTeam, and when I purchased our Emirates tickets online, I entered our OnePass membership numbers when prompted, and then again, at checked-in, we gave our OnePass numbers to the Customer Service person at Check-in.

We never received credit for the air miles flown on Emirates.

Emirates does NOT deposit miles flown into customer's partner airline account.

Emirates has several blackout periods (July to September), and other major holiday periods, so, flying free on this airline using partner miles is not easy!

~ Emirates Business Class at a glance

Since we had to walk through business class to exit the plane, I must say I was not impressed with the the size of their business class seats. Having flown business class on Delta, Continental, and South African Airways, the Emirate's business seats are smaller, and are "recline only" seats, as opposed to the "almost lie-flat" seats on business class on Delta or Continental, and flat seats on South African.

Recommend it? Well, if you can afford to fly in Emirate's premium class, you are more likely to enjoy (and even rave about) the "Emirates experience."

Otherwise, their economy class is cramped, seats are uncomfortable, the food is awful,but drinks are plentiful, the flight attendants are young, and most of them good-looking!!

You've been informed!