Etihad Airways

Bangalore to San Francisco and back and faced lot of problems with the 4 flights (BLR-AHU-SFO-AHU-BLR). 1) 2 of the 4 flights were delayed and the AHU-SFO by more than 2 hours. 2) The inflight entertainment is average. 3) Food was ok. Nothing great but not bad either. 4) I fly economy almost all the time. Even by economy standards I found the seats in AHU-SFO sector to be very congested. It was fine in BLR-AHU. 5) The worst part of the entire thing was the staff experience. In the SFO-AHU flight at least 4 times I had the staff lady tell me "I will come back to you" when I asked something and then disappeared. This happened for simple things like water or when I asked her to take a used glass from my seat. Both times I walked to the area and got the work done. I normally choose Singapore Airlines or Emirates. I am sure I will fly Etihad again only if I desperately have to go.

I recently flew from Abu Dhabi to Dublin return on an A330 (SYD-AUH leg operated by Virgin Australia also good). It had been many years since I had made this journey and after reading the predominantly negative reviews I was worrying that long haul travel had deteriorated over those years. Everything was however much the same. I think people need to realise that long haul in economy isn't particularly comfortable but you can make the most of it. I put it in perspective I had 14 hours with nothing to do but watch movies read books and drink wine. People brought me food and I didn't have to do anything for anyone else. No phone emails or pager to distract me. The aircraft was clean seats reasonably comfortable food was fine and the entertainment was good. The staff were friendly and check in and boarding went smoothly. The only glitch was that my bag got delayed by a day on my way there and back however I think that this may have been from the VA side of the operation. All in all pleasant flights.

Etihad Flight from Abu Dhabi to London last week was very poor. Old plane with little legroom (and we're only 5'3"!). Narrow seats and inattentive staff. We had enquired about the cost to upgrade to Business but no seats available. After a splendid Virgin Premium Economy flight Sydney to Abu Dhabi this flight two days later was a shocker. The pre-flight organisation at the airport was chaotic. We're trying to arrange an upgrade for the first leg home (Frankfurt to Abu Dhabi) and look forward to our Virgin Premium Economy Abu Dhabi to Sydney two days later. This poor service at airport and on flight was astonishing because Abu Dhabi itself was enjoyable - neither chaotic or disappointing.

7 Feb 2015 MAN-AUH EY16. 8 Feb 2015 AUH-SYD EY464. 27 Feb 2015 SYD-AUH EY451. 1 Mar 2015 AUH-MAN EY21. For all the hype about their premium products their Economy product is nothing short of dreadful. We chose to fly Etihad with our 2 young boys (3 and 1 years old) from Manchester to Sydney because of their so called "Flying Nanny" service. Unfortunately we felt let down by the lack of attention our children got from this apparent qualified nanny who seemed on most occasions to be missing in action and when this Nanny was about she seemed less than enthusiastic wanting to interact with the children. I thought nannies were supposed to actually like children. Now I know food on airplanes isn't supposed to be amazing especially in economy but the matter they classified as "food" was about as tasty as a smelly sock after football practise in fact a more accurate description of what they were serving up would be slop with a fancy name. I'm pretty sure the sautéed potatoes was cardboard and that kofta isn't a sausage that has had the life shrivelled out of it. The drink selection wasn't better with a smorgasbord of typical commercial larger which leave a disappointing metallic after-taste. In total we flew 4 legs with this lame imitation airline and on each occasion we were delayed by an hour. That's 4 hours in total that. Part of the reason is a lack of staff at the check in counters and the other being the shambolic nature of Abu Dhabi airport where planes are parked willy nilly along the tarmac waiting for a gate to load the latest bunch of impatient and weary travellers while arrivals are ushered into buses like cattle and given a tour of the entire airport before finally dropping arrivals at their intended destination. All in all if you are a parent travelling to the other side of the world with your 2 little bundles of joy only fly this cheap imitation of an airline if it's the cheapest ticket you can find by a long shot.

I have used Etihad for years now but haven't traveled with them for the last 3 years. We booked flight MAN-HKT and PEK-MAN both via AUH. After reading the reviews on here I was wishing I had booked with Emirates or Qatar. I have since returned and couldn't really fault Etihad at all. What people need to realize when adding a review is that Long Haul travel in Economy isn't great its what you make it. All our flights were on time my wife got her special meals and I had one of the best meals onboard a plane. We had exit seats on the return legs that we booked and paid extra for in advance and this really did make a difference. They have introduced and new pillow that's amazingly comfortable and allowed me to sleep when I don't normally. We were very satisfied with Etihad this time the only let down was the congestion in Abu Dhabi airport its far too small now but you can see the new airport is well under way so this issue should be gone soon. Inflight entertainment is excellent lots of choice and many series box sets now.

I recently made a lightening trip to and from New Zealand to attend my mother's funeral. I did get rather confused at Heathrow and ground staff at Heathrow were extremely helpful they must have notified ground staff at Abu Dhabi as someone was there to meet me take me through security on to a lovely lounge and escort me back later to the aeroplane. This also occurred on my return trip when I touched down at Abu Dhabi on Fri 24 April. I will use Etihad when possible in the future.

Recently flew economy from Sydney-Tehran Istanbul-Sydney with Etihad and overall was not that impressed. On my first flight Sydney - Abu Dhabi I had selected my seat months in advance as I prefer the aisle then the day of check in I saw that I had lost my aisle seat and had been placed in the middle. I managed to get an aisle seat by checking online the next day but only by chance as my several calls to Etihad staff said that there was nothing that they could do about it. Check in staff was okay but pretty cold. In-Flight service terrible barely saw attendants and only two drinks services on a 14 hour flight. Entertainment system was okay but not as good as Emirates. Flight from Abu Dhabi-Tehran was better but only because I got upgraded to business. Return flights from Istanbul-Abu Dhabi and Abu Dhabi to Sydney were also pretty bad and the service left a lot to be desired. One thing that really annoys me is that on all of my flights they stated that the boarding time was one hour before departure but then you would get to the gate and only board 30 minutes before. Overall I would choose Emirates over Etihad.

I booked a flight to Tokyo at a discounted price an offer by Etihad Airways I came to know later that the fare price did not include the Chauffeur service which was bizarre and unprecedented. The seat I selected when I checked in online was given to an another guest which eventually they gave me the seat reluctantly. The seat was unbelievably congested for myself a medium sized person and I did not receive a personal care kit. The menu offers mainly Arabic and Japanese selections which I found lacking. It took the flight attendant literally an hour to serve me a bottle of water. I selected a Japanese breakfast and they served it promptly however the dishes tastes were bland compared to Japanese dishes I experienced later on my trip. Hence I was really underwhelmed by the experience but maintained my composure throughout the flight and really felt sympathetic towards travelers who were seated in the Economy cabin for 10 hours and surely they had their share of inconveniences. A disappointment for an airline who strives to be the best.

I had a return flight from Tokyo to Abu Dhabi and I was upgraded to a First Class seat. The 12 hours flight was my best experience to date as I was greeted by the flight manager seated and instructed to relax and enjoy. The seat was comfortable and spacious later on the flight attendant prepared the seat to be a bed which was on par with hotels beds and I spent 8 hours sleeping out of the 12 hours flight. The menu had exquisite selections and the in- flight chief made sure that the food was served promptly and perfectly. The food was a delight to have and memorable to experience. The flight manager was attentive and a good listener he literally meant his instruction to relax and enjoy. Ultimately the experience was overwhelming and sublime. I have had flights on First Class cabin and Business Class cabin but this is the first time I had really met with an outstanding hospitality. I am looking forward experiencing the same treatment and I hope Etihad Airways can make it happen on all of their flights.

Horrible travel experience to Toronto. Seat change multiple times. When I booked the ticket I reserved the 44A Window Side Seat and it was Confirmed. Boarding Pass confirmed and showed that I got that 44A. When I boarded the flight in Abu Dhabi I got Seat 44A and I was settled and waiting for take off. A few minutes before take off another passenger came and claimed that he had reserved seat 44A. Finally they asked me to vacate this seat just before takeoff. I was given another seat which was not a window seat. The new seat did not have the sound system working for the entertainment. Finally I was placed in seat 55A in the very last row seat close to the toilet and food preparation area. When the flight took off I tried to watch a movie the audio was not working for this one too. I moved to the adjacent seat 55B which was unoccupied however the audio did not work there either. I informed the flight attendant to reset the audio or do something about it however they looked helpless and were unable to resolve this problem. After the meal I tried to move to yet another seat (54F) this time to try to watch a movie but had to get up to make way for the original user who wanted to spread out and sleep using all the 2 seats I was once again forced to leave this seat. This entire experience was very frustrating. Entertainment system is a very basic and fundamental thing on any flight. Looks like there is no procedure to ensure that this basic functionality is available to all the guests.