Emirates

I was flying Emirates back to Kuwait in Economy Class from Mumbai post minor surgery. There was a long queue at the online check-in counter and therefore approached the Duty Manager to facilitate expedited check-in for medical reasons. I was almost immediately guided to the Business Class counter and was through in minutes. Boarding was smooth and almost on time. Aircrafts (B777) throughout the itinerary looked tired with none having Wide Screen IFE. On Board services were good with cabin crew attentive throughout the flight. Fare was possibly the lowest in spite of last minute booking. Great value for money. Quality and services can be attributed comprehensively on request or when having an issue. Will continue to fly with Emirates as I have been for the past decade or so especially considering the courtesy extended at check-in.

Flew Dubai to Bangkok with Emirates. Second part of a long flight, seated in front cabin of economy class. Good unobtrusive service which helped the cabin stay quiet. Offered cold drinks several times and food was good. Cabin was full and space was at a premium especially in luggage bins, this may be due to people bring on two or three bags. Good entertainment on ICE service. Toilets freshened during the flight.

Madrid to Dubai with Emirates. Sat in front cabin of economy row 42. One problem of this row is that because of the curve of the plane the overhead luggage compartment is smaller and normal wheeled cabin bags do not fit in them so bags have to be put further back. Reasonable leg room and very good service from stewards. As the flight was not full we were advised to go to the rear of the plane as there was lots of space there. Excellent selection of entertainment to enjoy. The front cabin is quiet. Ordered special meals and these were delivered promptly and were very good.

In December last year I flew Business Class with Emirates from Brisbane to London with my daughter, her husband and three children - a three year old and twelve month old twins. I knew this was not going to be easy, but in my worst imaginings I hadn't dreamt it would be such a nightmare. Let me apologise to our fellow passengers if they suffered on our account. The babies were booked on bassinet seats with their parents, but were too big to be able to use them. I was a few rows back with the 3 year old, but shared baby duties through the night. Right from before take-off, I could see we were not welcome. As the attendant near me gave the safety demonstration, one of our babies whimpered a little. She rolled her eyes and groaned at the prospect of the voyage ahead. Even with the comfort of lie-down seats, it was very difficult to keep the little ones asleep. So we would take them to the bar area so they could crawl around a bit without disturbing too many people. On two occasions when I was their with our little twin with cerebral palsy, her fingers were stepped on by the same hostess who had made us feel so unwelcome. Towards the end of the long flight to Dubai, we were all exhausted, but not once was there any offer of relief or assistance from the attendants who were standing around chatting amongst themselves. The seventy-two year old granny must have looked a fright as I walked in circles trying to lull the baby off to sleep! Believe it or not, the next leg of the journey was worse, as the seats I was in with the three year old would not recline. On two occasions I sought help. The attendant said she would 'reset' the equipment. This meant the video system also went off for 15 minutes, much to the distress of my little autistic grandson! I didn't see this attendant again. His seat did recline after this, but mine still did not! I tried again - different attendant - same story! I was forced to sit bolt upright all the way. Having outlaid almost $10,000 for Business Class, I was not happy! I would probably have been more comfortable in Economy! I would have thought that an Airline that advertises a high quality experience should be able to do better. They would have known our party was coming on board. One would have thought that for the sake of the other passengers the staff might have offered to help. Emirates always boast about how many different countries the attendants come from. Perhaps they would do better to choose staff with a bit more empathy towards their passengers instead!

Phuket to Amsterdam via Dubai. A less interested crew than my outbound flights, but still efficient and friendly. On all 4 legs we arrived early. Food and beverages of great standard. Lounge in HKT not the best but you are escorted from check-in to the lounge and avoid horrendous queues at all stages of security. We arrived at a quiet time in DXB and the staff in the lounge were proactive, refilling drinks. A380 on DXB-AMS leg empty in Business Class which made the bar experience less fun but still a great trip.

Perth to Brussels via Dubai with Emirates. Great flight, enough legspace, food was average : more diversity would be nice (two flights and both times chicken and two times eggs (other option was not available). Drinks service was okay. Friendly crew, who were dedicated to their job. During the flight was it very cold.

London Heathrow to Sydney via Dubai and Bangkok with Emirates. We were not offered enough water and when we asked staff for water it was a constant battle to get any, yet they were more than happy to give the drunk man constant alcoholic drinks and encourage him. The seat wouldn't recline and TV wouldn't work. We asked staff for support and were told they would come back yet they didn't! We paid extra and specifically chose to fly with Emirates, a decision we can never take back. A once in a lifetime holiday started off awfully. One of our meal choices was chicken or beef and after asking for two beef were told only one left - en they went to the two rows behind us and offered beef or chicken. A complaint submitted and would hear within 30 days - 29 days later we got a reply, what a joke for an award winning service.

I flew Emirates from Karachi to Dubai and onto Frankfurt on 07 Feb 2016. Flight was at 5.30 in the morning and check in started at 3.00. Obviously passengers expected some breakfast after takeoff but when the breakfast arrived I did not see anyone eating it because what was served was stale. I am surprised why even the airline bothers to serve any food on this sector if there is nobody to check on what is being served. For an airline like Emirates I expect a better standard than other airlines. The connecting flight to Frankfurt was at 8.40 on the A380 and I was pleasantly surprised on the good service by the cabin crew, as well as good food.

Emirates Amsterdam to Phuket AMS-DXB on brand new A380 just a few weeks in service and a great crew in Business Class. No Emirates lounge at AMS so took the 35 euro voucher for food and drink airside each instead of using the shared lounge. Great food and drink and early arrival with fast-track. Indeed we were in the complementary chauffeur before the STA of the flight arrival. Everything was well organised. Return chauffeur at DXB on time and another good flight to HKT on a much older 777 but again friendly crew who really wanted to be there. After some negative reviews we were concerned that Emirates had grown too fast and had deteriorated but this was not our experience and we would highly recommend.

Munich to Perth via Dubai with Emirates. Slow and bad Business Class Service. The first drink on MUC-DXB and DXB-PER took ages. Don't ask for a refill - you won't get if because the cabin crew is not able and/or not willing to cope with extra requests. Particularly bad was the meal service on the DXB-PER leg. Food came without any drinks - not even water. When I used the call button a flight attendant showed up after a while and took my order. However, the order never arrived. She came back after - believe it or not - about 30 minutes and explained that thy have not been able to serve my order because "they were busy with serving the food". This is ridiculous given the fact that they have a large number of flight attendants in Business Class. Emirates might have a young fleet of aircraft, but their in-flight processes are a disaster and they have no service attitude. They are entirely inefficient. I can only recommend to use the Asian carriers or maybe Qatar Airways when you fly between Europe and Australia.