ETIHAD AIRWAYS review :  19 February 2008 by Aaron Lim   (Australia)

Customer Trip Rating :

Recommended:

Value for Money:

Cabin Flown:

Economy

BNE-SIN-BNE. First time flying with Etihad and first leg from BNE to SIN was excellent as it wasn't a full cabin, so got 3 seats to myself. IFE excellent and touchscreen. Food was average on both flights. Return leg SIN to BNE was terrible as I had 3 babies in front rows of my seat crying non- stop! Cabin crew on both flights were ok. They didn't seem motivated to work and look bored.

ETIHAD AIRWAYS review :  19 February 2008 by Rohan McCarthy   (Australia)

Customer Trip Rating :

Recommended:

Value for Money:

Cabin Flown:

First

SYD-AUH, First Class. A wonderful experience - at an amazingly low price. Fast, friendly and efficient service at check-in in Sydney. A new trial "fast lane" at Sydney Airport made immigration and security a breeze. Etihad use Qantas Club lounge in Sydney (for First Class passengers), which is starting to look a little tired. Onboard flight attendant ensured absolutely every convenience was offered to me, while the purser even apologised to me that I'd fallen asleep before they'd had a chance to put linen on my bed. Five star wine (limited-range, admittedly, but they had everything in stock), food and amenities - I liked the onboard lounge for First Class passengers. Once transiting in Abu Dhabi, a few cracks started to show - I hadn't ever been offered a hotel room for the nine- hour layover, but was caught in the Catch 22 that, as I hadn't reserved 72 hours in advance, I couldn't get a free one. But the staff in the restaurant style First Class lounge ensured I had a relaxing facial and head massage while they sorted it out.

ETIHAD AIRWAYS review :  15 February 2008 by D Davies   (UK)

Customer Trip Rating :

Recommended:

Value for Money:

Cabin Flown:

Economy

First time flying with Etihad to Australia. Routings good, connecting flight times good, gave you time to stretch your legs and look around. Leg room average unless lucky enough to get bulk head seats. Food nothing to rave about. Refreshment before landing a muffin and beverage, could have been more! The only time I have got off a plane hungry. Thank goodness for Costa in Abu Dhabi! In flight entertainment was good and for children as well. Thats if your lucky enough for your equipment to work - had 3 flights with faulty sound, which is very frustrating on a 7 hour flight. The camera showing the view from the plane was good, which my son enjoyed. I read a review about someone being covered in fluff from the blankets, they were right. I would fly with them again.

ETIHAD AIRWAYS review :  15 February 2008 by J Ashton   (UK)

Customer Trip Rating :

Recommended:

Value for Money:

Cabin Flown:

Business

MAN-AUH-SYD : outward, BMW series 7 pick up on time and great service, check in and fasttrack at Man very good. Need to use better lounge than the Servisair. Good food and staff on outward flight to AUH. AUH lounge would be acceptable apart from the fact they allow smoking in the lounge. A lot of money is being spent to improve the airport and would rather transit at AUH instead of London. AUH to SYD was upgraded at gate to First class and could not fault the level of service! Return trip to AUH very good. AUH-MAN crew let the side down they seemed more interested in getting us to sleep. No meal offered after take off just a light snack, breakfast 2 hours before arrival. Service on this sector did not match the very high levels we experienced on the other sectors. Manchester airport let us down with our bags. it was the only airport where our cases got no priority over economy tickets. We waited 1hr for our cases!

ETIHAD AIRWAYS review :  7 February 2008 by Anthony Clark   (Indonesia)

Customer Trip Rating :

Recommended:

Value for Money:

Cabin Flown:

Economy

CGK-AUH-DUB return. This is my third trip with Etihad on this route. Once again checked in at Jakarta with no problems. On boarding given upgrade to business class to AUH and then on departure from AUH. Etihad seem to be trying hard to promote themselves and even though I really don't like AUH airport and the always interminable 4 hour layovers I will do anything to avoid transit in London. All I can say is give them a go, I'm in no doubt that they know AUH is a mess and whilst never can be another DXB, they will try to make it better soon.

ETIHAD AIRWAYS review :  5 February 2008 by Mark Nuttall   (UK)

Customer Trip Rating :

Recommended:

Value for Money:

Cabin Flown:

Economy

MAN-AUH-BNE return. Overall I would rate as good value. Food ok, IFE excellent, planes clean and seemed pretty new. FAs seem on the whole new into role but trying hard. Would echo all the comments re AUH airport ,they need to sort out and quickly - it is as bad as everyone says.

ETIHAD AIRWAYS review :  5 February 2008 by V Kahramanian   (Australia)

Customer Trip Rating :

Recommended:

Value for Money:

Cabin Flown:

Business

SYD-AUH-SYD Business Class. Chauefur service to airport in a BMW 7 series. Pick up right on time and straight to the airport. Check in at the airport was 5 mins. Qantas lounge was adequare in Sydney. Flight to AUH was fantastic - cabin crew were great. Good food selection, comfortabe seats, friendly services. Luggage came out very fast at AUH and car took us to Dubai promptly. AUH to Sydney. Car was on-time from the hotel in Dubai to the airport in AUH. Record check in time. Took 5.5 minutes. Will admit the Business lounge in AUH isn't the best. Needs to be made a lot bigger, but I was happy to work on my laptop. Had a one hour delay, however we were notified in advance. Boarding fast. Consistent service on board. Priority tags worked effectivley.

ETIHAD AIRWAYS review :  30 January 2008 by K Burnie   (UK)

Customer Trip Rating :

Recommended:

Value for Money:

Cabin Flown:

Economy

We checked in online only to find out when we got to the airport that there was no baggage drop, so that meant we had to queue for another hour as check in desks were not open. London to Abu Dhabi, plane was nice and clean, my boyfriends entertainment system did not work so they gave him a small portable TV to use. We were delayed for 2 hours once we got to Abu Dhabi - the worst airport I have been to - not enough seating for an international airport. On our flight to Sydney we were sitting about 20 rows from the back and they had run out of certain meals on the plane.

ETIHAD AIRWAYS review :  30 January 2008 by Alistair Higgins   (UK)

Customer Trip Rating :

Recommended:

Value for Money:

Cabin Flown:

First

First Class (Pearl) London to Sydney. Staff on plane very good, as was food, cabin and inflight entertainment. Everything ground side was an absolute shambles. 2hr delay on outbound flight due to mechanical problem (can happen to any airline). Everyone kept at gate including business and first class passengers with no updates provided. 2 of 4 limo transfers were misbooked by Etihad resulting in wrong pickup locations and/or time. On return leg there was 15hr delay at Abu Dhabi airport. 9hrs of this was due to airport being closed (understandable) the other 6hrs was due to Etihad having no aircrew to man their planes (this is at their home airport, so really inexcusable). New York bound passengers had had their flights cancelled two days in a row, so many New York passengers had been at airport in excess of 48hrs waiting for onward connection, which Etihad seemed completely incapable of booking (Etihad was unable to provide hotel rooms for the majority of these passengers as well). Only one stewardess manned the lounge for the majority of the 14hrs I spent in it, and had no information to provide. Lounge very crowded with no seats available and includes a smoking section which contaminates the whole lounge. No announcements made in lounge to go to gate, so aircraft was prepared for take off with no business or first class passengers yet boarding. Only by luck did people find out that plane was ready for takeoff. Arrival at Heathrow was followed by another 1hr30min wait for luggage as Etihad had forgotten to arrange for unloading of aircraft at Heathrow due to late arrival. A ticket in Diamond (first) at peak time is about 2/3 the price of business on other major carriers. If everything goes smoothly you'll be fine, but the airline is incapable of dealing with the slightest of problems, and their ground crew are understaffed and incompetent.

ETIHAD AIRWAYS review :  27 January 2008 by Andrew Marshall   (UK)

Customer Trip Rating :

Recommended:

Value for Money:

Cabin Flown:

Business

MAN-AUH-BKK Business Class (Pearl) return. Great car for the pick up and return. New Airbus MAN-AUH, and 777 AUH to BKK. I had seat 7A, window very private with no one at your side. I must admit the staff were better on MAN-AUH return than AUH to BKK. For the price, service, flat bed, limo service and Etihad frequent flyer programme I will use this airline again to Bangkok. AUH airport isn't great but there is work going on to improve it.

ETIHAD AIRWAYS review :  21 January 2008 by Beverley Mitchell   (UK)

Customer Trip Rating :

Recommended:

Value for Money:

Cabin Flown:

Business

LHR-AUH-KUL return in Business Class. LHR-AUH sector planes and staff generally better than the those on the AUH-KUL sectors - space between seats on AUH-/KUL sectors was smaller. Toilets good did not appear to be checked during the flight. Cabin ambience good with mood lighting on the LHR-AUH sectors. Good check-in at LHR was good with access to fast track at Security. SAS Lounge at LHR is not the best and only served snacks. Excellent food on all sectors, plenty of choice. The seats are very private, although the aisle seats are not quiet so. Every other seat is aisle either for window or centre, the 2 seats in centre are excellent for those travelling with a companion. The AUH Lounge is small and feels crowded when busy, and can seem quite smokey. Washrooms are limited, ie the is only 1 cubicle in each ladies. Access to MH Golden Lounge in KUL, so excellent. IFE good on all sectors, although choice and flexibility on LHR-AUH sectors was better. They do turn the IFE off at least 1 hour before landing!

ETIHAD AIRWAYS review :  21 January 2008 by H Gray   (UK)

Customer Trip Rating :

Recommended:

Value for Money:

Cabin Flown:

Economy

LHR-AUH-BKK Flight was delayed 2 hours, but given a meal voucher for £5.00. Plane clean, entertainment system really good, plenty of movies, music, games to play. Touch screen did not work very well nor did the control. Food average, was quite lucky because our connecting flight was delayed to wait for all passengers like us who were delayed at Heathrow. AUH to BKK pretty much the same, had a bus from the plane to the terminal, and the bus driver got lost on route! BKK-AUH had a choice of 3 meals as before, they ran out of the one I picked, after serving only about 20 people. AUH-LHR : Abu Dhabi airport is so cramped. Entertainment system didn't work properly they had to re boot the entire system. at first my brothers system wouldn't work, one of our reading lights kept flashing on and off. Food was worse than ever and not particularly warm either.

ETIHAD AIRWAYS review :  13 January 2008 by D Hiralal   (Switzerland)

Customer Trip Rating :

Recommended:

Value for Money:

Cabin Flown:

Business

Geneva to New Delhi outgoing C-Class, inbound Y-Class. Everything went according to plan on all legs. I enjoy the international mix of cabin crew. Food is good and the return in economy was surprising comfortable. The overnight stay in Abu Dhabi was taken care of by the airline. Slightly long transfer but very helpful ground staff. Will use them again

ETIHAD AIRWAYS review :  13 January 2008 by Justin La Grange   (UK)

Customer Trip Rating :

Recommended:

Value for Money:

Cabin Flown:

Business

LHR-AUH-BKK return in Business Class. Chauffeur pick up punctual, check-in at LHR was good with not too much of a wait at Security. However, the SAS Lounge is not the best and does not serve hot food. Priority boarding for Business and First Class. Food great on all flights, the seats are very private (only sit in the middle seats if you are traveling with family/friends) a little narrow on the shoulders but not too bad. LHR-AUH flight crew were coming through the cabin constantly offering drinks and food. AUH lounge is very small and the shower facilities they mention means 1 shower - which is not well catered for. AUH-BKK great, but AVOD played up throughout, so went onto reading a book instead. Food and service we could not fault. Arrival into BKK quick and 1st to get off the flight and to security, where our bags were the 1st off and the Chauffeur car was waiting. BKK-AUH check-in efficient, however security took forever, so if you want to shop get to the airport early. Lounge was KLM/Air France only OK, no hot food was served. AUH-LHR straight from 1 plane to the other, but with the service and seats it was no problem as you were well looked after. Arrival in LHR on time and baggage 1st off, through immigration and straight to awaiting Chauffeur car and home.

ETIHAD AIRWAYS review :  8 January 2008 by Noel Collins   (UK)

Customer Trip Rating :

Recommended:

Value for Money:

Cabin Flown:

Economy

LHR to BNE. It was 300 pounds cheaper than Qantas or Singapore Airlines to fly over christmas. The biggest IFE screen I have seen in economy with a good selection of films. I thought the staff quite helpful. Food neither here nor there. The worst thing about flying with them is the lay over in Abu Dhabi which is a terrible airport; boring, crowded with nausea inducing colour scheme! Lots of people sitting around looking bored and fed up. Given an upgrade to business on the last leg home - fabulous flat bed with lots of privacy near the window - wish I could afford this every time! Also, the reward scheme is excellent and you can use points to buy things like digital cameras - I used mine for a £100 discount off! Overall, not perfect; but really good value and =better than BA or Emirates.

ETIHAD AIRWAYS review :  8 January 2008 by N Whitman   (UK)

Customer Trip Rating :

Recommended:

Value for Money:

Cabin Flown:

Economy

Heathrow-Sydney. FAs seemed pleasant and food was fair but the main criticism was the state of the toilets on the plane after about two hours. They were never checked and cleaned for the 17 hour journey and the situation got worse as time went on. The carpets on the plane looked very dirty. The entertainment was good. On my return journey Sydney-Heathrow, Abu Dhabi airport was seething with insufficient seating and scruffy / dirty. The toilets were horrible. I won't want to travel by Etihad again or stop off at Abu Dhabi airport unless there is no alternative. I did appreciate the travel pack and blanket / pillow. This wasn't a cheap trip but just about adequate for the money paid.

ETIHAD AIRWAYS review :  8 January 2008 by M Baldini   (n/a)

Customer Trip Rating :

Recommended:

n/a

Value for Money:

n/a

Cabin Flown:

Business

London to Abu Dhabi in Business class. Lie-flat seats very narrow. I was literally touching shoulders with the passenger next to me - when arranged into the lie-flat position, bed was woefully short. Therefore, I could not extend my legs. I am amazed that Etihad has been awarded Best Business class by someone (although I think it is quite an obscure publication that gave them their award), but they should not have won anything, their business class is terrible. They seemed to play a self-congratulatory advert of their best business class award over the PA and on the TVs every hour or so - not only did it disturb and annoy me, but I thought it was very arrogant of them, especially when there is nothing to justify them having won the award.

ETIHAD AIRWAYS review :  8 January 2008 by Gary Marsh   (UK)

Customer Trip Rating :

Recommended:

Value for Money:

Cabin Flown:

Business

LHR-AUH-BKK return Pearl class. Fast check in. Fast tracked at LHR. FA's on LHR-AUH and AUH-LHR very attentive offering drinks throughout flight. Very professional and cheerful. Seat comfortable with massage facility and recline to bed - albeit slightly narrow. In flight entertainment good and varied choices. Food good and good selection. Cabin ambience good with mood lighting. Transfer painless. AUH-BKK and BKK-AUH. Quite different -an older plane, inflight entertainment system not working properly. Flight crew, although friendly were not quite as attentive and appeared somewhat indifferent to the needs of the passengers with the exception of the flight manager who went overboard to be helpful to passengers. Drinks service not as free flowing and not offered at all prior to landing. Bumped to a later return from AUH despite booking in February requiring an overnight stay in AUH with no explanation or offer of accomodation. Overall a very satisfactory flight on LHR-AUH route legs and would use Etihad again.

ETIHAD AIRWAYS review :  5 January 2008 by Andrew Estefan   (Malaysia)

Customer Trip Rating :

Recommended:

Value for Money:

Cabin Flown:

Economy

LHR to BNE on New Years Day in Coral (Economy) class. I checked in online and when I got to LHR there was no bag-drop, meaning around 40 minutes in the check-in queue just to leave my bags. Check-in staff pleasant. Boarded efficiently and A340-600 clean and spacious and mood lighting was nice. I was seated at the back of the plane. The entertainment system is excellent although from AUH to BNE on their B777-300ER the sound in my seat did not work. Food was tasty but not the best and the portions were very small. "Continental breakfast" was a refrigerated muffin and a warm cup of coffee. Without fail, on each leg, I was not able to get my choice of meal because they had run out. Service slow and disorganised with FAs up and down the aisles with trolleys and trays, but not actually achieving any service. Some elements of the service are good: nice blankets and pillows, warm smiles and printed menus, but other aspects fall short - no offer of another cup of coffee after dinner for example. FAs seemed inexperienced. There was considerable turbulence on the AUH to SIN leg of the trip. One flight attendant cried "this is really scary", perhaps a little unhelpful to people who might be nervous fliers. The timing of the flights was good. When we boarded in London they informed us they were concerned about fog in Abu Dhabi. We were told they had taken on an extra hour and a half's worth of fuel so they could circle before needing to be diverted, but there was no explanation of what would happen in such circumstances. This caused a number of passengers to be concerned about their connections and given the seemingly regular occurence of fog in Abu Dhabi at this time of year it seems to be something Etihad need to get sorted out. The airport at Abu Dhabi is horrible - smoky, small and extremely noisy with airport announcements assaulting your ears every few seconds.

ETIHAD AIRWAYS review :  2 January 2008 by Iyngaran Ravindran   (Malaysia)

Customer Trip Rating :

Recommended:

Value for Money:

Cabin Flown:

Economy

KUL-LHR-KUL via AUH. KUL-AUH on board A330-200 which was a little uncomfortable. Seats small and limited leg space. A 2 hour transit on the onward journey was nice as it gave us enough time to look at the airport and stretch our legs. Second leg on A340-600 with wider seats and more comfortable. Food was good and five star service. IFE good and the large touch screens very impressive. Check in on both the onward and return journey was smooth and flights on time. But the 7 hour transit in AUH on the return journey was a nightmare. Limited places to sit and people were sitting on the floor. Overall, it was a good flight and the service excellent even though their tickets are much cheaper than other airlines.