Tag: travel

A few weeks ago, I shared with you my first ever flight experience with Emirates on their Manila to Dubai sector. I had a nice & smooth flight even though I didn’t sleep well on that overnight long-haul flight. Today, I will share with you my connecting Emirates flight from Dubai (DXB) to Paris (CDG) Charles de Gaulle on the Airbus A380 superjumbo. Join me in today’s flight report as we go into details on why this flight was an excellent one.

EMIRATES

Emirates commenced operations in 1985 from its home hub in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. 37 years after, the airline is now one of the world’s biggest airlines. The airline is a subsidiary of the state-owned The Emirates Group. Most, if not all, of its flights depart & arrive from the massive Dubai International Airport Terminal 3.

In case you missed it, I post reviews & features of my flights since June 2019. I’ve covered airlines such as EVA Air, Indonesia Air Asia, Singapore Airlines & Cebu Pacific Air. All posts about these flights are found under the Flight Reports category.

The airline flies to over 80 countries & 150 destinations in the 6 habitable continents. It has a fleet of over 250 wide body aircraft with 200 more on order. The airline currently operates only Boeing 777 & Airbus A380 aircraft in their fleet; it is also the largest operator of both aircraft types. It makes use of Dubai’s strategic location in connecting people from all over the world.

Apart from its commercial division, the airline also has its cargo & corporate subsidiaries. Its cargo division is called Emirates SkyCargo, while its corporate & private subsidiary is called Emirates Executive.  Emirates’ frequent flyer program is called Emirates Skywards. The airline is not part of an airline alliance but has codeshare & partnership agreements with airlines like flydubai, Qantas, United, Air Canada & a lot more.

Emirates is a full-service airline. This means that the airline offers services & amenities such as inflight meals & snacks & personal entertainment screens on every flight. All Emirates tickets also include check-in baggage allowance depending on the booking / ticket class where the passengers are booked.

Do you want to know the difference between a full-service & a low-cost airline? Check out my previous post detailing the differences of these 2 types of airlines.

Airfare

I booked my Emirates ticket in January 2020 before all borders closed due to the pandemic. Back then, my ticket was from Hong Kong to Munich, Germany via Dubai & back to Hong Kong via Dubai from Budapest, Hungary. I wasn’t able to use this 2020 ticket, but I was so pleased that Emirates offered the most flexible airline ticket option.

Basically, they extended the ticket validity for 3 years & allowed passengers to rebook the ticket when they are ready to fly as long as there are seats available. The flights tickets should be used within the validity period. On top of this, they also allowed the passengers to change the airports of origin & destination as long as the airports are within the same Emirates region. Emirates also waived all fare difference, rebooking & change fees.

Fast forward to 2022, my friends & I decided to fly to Europe for a 3.5-week holiday. After getting my tourist visa from the Embassy of Italy, I called the Emirates hotline & requested for my ticket to be issued. I changed the airport of origin from Hong Kong to Manila (both in the Far East) & the airport of destination from Munich to Paris (both in Europe). My return flights were also changed from Budapest to Barcelona (both in Europe) & then back to Manila. I got my new ticket in less than 2 minutes after the Emirates agent confirmed my preferred flight schedules & details. The best thing was this new ticket didn’t cost me anything – no additional fees, change fees or airport taxes or whatever. It even included a 20-25 kilograms check-in baggage allowance from previously 15 kilograms.

Believe it or not, I only paid HK$4,039 or ₱27,072.73 for this return ticket. This ticket includes inflight meals, personal entertainment screens & even baggage allowance both ways. Compared to the usual tickets to Europe, this one didn’t cost much. Thank you, Emirates, for this flexible ticket. I know I’ve booked tons of cheap tickets in the past, but I believe this was probably the best-valued to date.

Travel Requirements

Last August 2022, France removed all pandemic-related restrictions & Covid-19-related entry requirements. This means that visitors only need to provide the usual entry requirements such as passport & visa (if needed).

Before the Flight

Emirates sent an e-mail & mobile application check-in reminder 48 hours before my scheduled flight to Dubai, United Arab Emirates. The airline offers free standard seat selection during web or mobile check-in.

I already had my seats pre-booked at the time of booking this ticket so I didn’t bother checking or changing them during web check-in. I checked in for the flights to Paris immediately I received the check-in reminder. Take note that you will need your passport information & other necessary details to complete this early check-in.

Aircraft & Flight Information

This Dubai to Paris Emirates flight was operated by a 1-year-old (at the time of the flight) Airbus A380-800 aircraft. The aircraft, delivered to Emirates in December 2021, is equipped with 14 First Class seats on a 1-2-1 configuration, 76 Business Class seats on a 1-2-1 layout, 56 Premium Economy Class seats on a 2-4-2 configuration & 338 Economy Class seats on a 3-4-3 layout. The First & Business Class sections are located in the A380 upper deck, while the Premium Economy & Economy Class sections are found in the A380 lower deck.

This EK 073 flight to Paris departed Dubai International Airport on-time & landed at CDG Airport 15 minutes ahead of schedule. This smooth & non-turbulent flight only took 6 hours & 42 minutes. 

Ground & Airport Experience

I already checked-in for my flight in Manila so I was at Dubai International Airport only for a good 3-hour layover.

DUBAI TRANSIT

Transiting in Dubai is easy. The airport is full of signs pointing passengers to where they should head next. After getting off the plane, I immediately went to the Connections area & looked for my next boarding gate. I cleared security & took the train from Terminal Concourse C to Terminal 3 Concourse A, where my flight to Paris will depart from.

DXB TERMINAL 3 CONCOURSE A MARHABA LOUNGE EXPERIENCE

My recently-acquired Security Bank Platinum Mastercard credit card (not sponsored) comes with 2 complimentary airport lounge access per year at any LoungeKey-affiliated lounge around the world. This is on top of the unlimited Marhaba Lounge access I have in NAIA Terminals 1 & 3 here in the Philippines. I used a complimentary pass & checked out the Marhaba Lounge at DXB Terminal 3 Concourse A.

Terminal 3 Concourse A’s Marhaba Lounge has plenty of seating & has complete food options – salads, sandwiches, breads, desserts & even fruits. Guests can also have coffee, tea, milk, juice & basic alcoholic drinks. The lounge toilets were clean & well-maintained. I arrived at the lounge during off peak hours so I enjoyed some quiet & relaxing time in it.

PRE-DEPARTURE

While at the lounge, Emirates notified me via the mobile application of the assigned boarding gate for my flight to Paris. The notification also included what time boarding will start & what time the doors will close. A few minutes, I got another notification advising that boarding was about to commence soon at our assigned gate. I finished my food, packed my stuff, left the lounge & walked to Gate A16.

The friendly Emirates ground staff welcomed me to the gate, even poked a joke that the flight I am about to take is going back to the Philippines & not France. They advised me to wait for our boarding group to be called & wished me a pleasant journey to Paris.

BOARDING

Boarding process commenced on time at 7:10am. First Class, Business Class & Skywards status holders were asked to board at their own convenience. Premium Economy Class passengers were asked to board the A380 lower deck first. Economy class passengers seated at the back went in the plane next. Passengers assigned at the front economy cabin boarded the plane last.

The boarding process took about 40 minutes & finished exactly at the flight’s scheduled departure time of 7:50am. The flight was almost full, so I won’t blame Emirates if the whole process took some time.

Inflight Hard & Soft Product

SEAT FEATURES

This flight from Dubai to Paris was operated by Emirates’ flagship Airbus A380-800 aircraft. This plane has 4 passenger classes – First Class, Business Class, Premium Economy Class & Economy Class. First class passengers have access to their own enclosed suite with a wide seat convertible to a lie-flat bed. According to SeatGuru, first class seats on Emirates have a seat pitch of 86 inches & a seat width of 23 inches. Business class passengers are seated in the upper deck business class cabin. Each business class seat can be converted into a lie-flat bed. This seat has a seat pitch of 48 inches & a seat width of 18.5 inches. All first & business class seats on the Airbus A380 have a 1-2-1 configuration; with all seats having aisle access.

Premium economy seats on the Emirates Airbus A380 have a 2-4-2 industry standard layout. Each seat has 40 inches of legroom & 19.5 inches (an inch bigger) of seat width. The premium economy seats also offer a generous recline. These premium economy seats are found in the forward lower deck cabin. Economy class passengers on the A380 have access to a spacious 32 to 34 inches of legroom & a seat width of 18 inches. Economy seats have a 3-4-3 configuration & are located in the middle to rear part of the lower deck.

Economy class seats feature a touch-screen personal entertainment screen, a big tray table, a cup holder, a coat hook, a USB charging port, a seat pocket with Duty Free magazines & aircraft safety card, a shared universal power outlet (2 in a row of 3 seats), a pillow, a blanket, a pair of headphones & an adjustable headrest. Every economy class passenger also has access to spacious overhead cabins, individual reading lights & air vents.

I got window seat 57K for this flight; I was seated in the forward economy class cabin. The economy seats on the Emirates A380 are by far the most comfortable economy seat I’ve experienced in my years of flying. It offers spacious leg space & a comfortable seating experience.

ONBOARD BAR & SHOWER SPA

Emirates first class & business class passengers have access to an onboard bar & lounge area found at the rear upper deck of the plane. Here, the passengers can enjoy a glass of their premium drink of choice while having some canapes & chatting with their co-passengers or crew.

First class passengers also have access to an onboard shower spa. They can freshen up or even take a shower before they arrive at their destination. Please note that these facilities are only available to passengers flying in the premium classes & only on the Airbus A380 aircraft.

INFLIGHT MEALS

Emirates provides complimentary meals on all their flights. Passengers can access the inflight menu from the airline’s website as early as a week before the flight. They also have the option for passengers to request for or book special meals up to 24 hours before the scheduled flight. The airline doesn’t provide physical menus; instead, they ask passengers to access & browse the menus through their on-board portal.

Emirates offered 2 meals for this flight. 40 minutes after take-off, the crew went around & gave away continental breakfast to all passengers. They first served passengers who requested special meals, then distributed breakfast meals to the rest of the cabin. The continental breakfast meal has a fruit yoghurt, a breakfast cupcake, a cup of water & a choice between a blueberry Danish pastry or egg & cheese sandwich. It also comes with a drink of choice. Drink choices include fruit juices, tea, soda, wine, coffee or water.

Throughout the flight, the crew went around the cabin a few times to offer pretzels as snacks & water or juice as refreshments. Passengers can also request a snack or drink at any time.

2 hours before landing, the crew commenced lunch service. They distributed the special meals first, then followed by the regular meals. They offered 2 options for lunch – chicken in creamy mushroom sauce pasta & beef goulash. These meal options come with a roasted beetroot & couscous salad served with humous, an apple crumble with vanilla sauce for dessert, a bread roll, cheese & crackers, a cup of water, a granola bar & an Emirates-branded chocolate. It also came with a drink of choice – juice, tea, coffee, soda, beer, wine & other alcoholic drinks.

The meal offerings on this flight to Paris were tasty & of good quality. Also, the portions were big enough to fill the passengers’ tummies. These meals were one of the many highlights of this excellent flight.

INFLIGHT ENTERTAINMENT

Emirates’ personal entertainment system, ICE, offers a wide selection of options to choose from. It has thousands of options to choose from; it has movies, television shows, documentaries, music albums & even games which you can play together with your seat neighbor. It even has region-specific movies & television shows. ICE also offers live television coverage of news channels like BBC World News, CNN International, Sports 24 & Sky News Arabia.

ICE also offers access to 3 aircraft cameras installed in the front, under & on the tail of the superjumbo aircraft. It also shows the complete flight & aircraft details & even has 2 kinds of moving flight maps. The airline indeed offers the best entertainment system in the skies – a system every airline in the world should copy.

The entertainment system on this A380 aircraft is probably Emirates’ latest. The entertainment screens are also equipped with Bluetooth connectivity. Passengers with Bluetooth headsets & earphones can connect their audio to the screens & listen from their own devices.

The entertainment screen on seat 57K was fast & responsive. I also noticed that the ICE on this plane offered more options compared to their 777 one I rode with to Dubai.

INFLIGHT CONNECTIVITY

Emirates offers paid inflight wi-fi connectivity on their flights. Rates range from $4.99 – $16.99 depending on the type of use the passengers need. The cheapest onboard internet plan costs $3.99 & is only limited to messaging applications such as WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, etc.

I didn’t try this service during this flight; I don’t need to use the internet during this overnight flight. I think it would be nice if the airline offered complimentary but limited connectivity / data allowance at least for Emirates Skywards members like how Singapore Airlines offers to their Krisflyer members.

LAVATORY

The lavatories on the Emirates A380 were probably the most spacious I’ve seen in my years of flying. The lavatories had the usual amenities like tissue, hand lotion & perfume. The lavatory in the middle economy class section were kept clean & tidy throughout the flight.

CABIN CREW SERVICE

The cabin crew service on this flight was exceptional. The crew greeted me with their best smile upon entering the flight. One even helped me put my bag in the overhead compartment even if I didn’t need the help. The crew were friendly during the breakfast & lunch service; they also attended to the passengers needs one after the other. They also continuously offered snacks & drinks throughout the flight. Before deplaning, the same crew who welcomed me said thanks, bid goodbye & wished me a pleasant stay in Paris.

Disembarkation & Baggage Claim

The disembarkation process at Paris Charles De Gaulle Airport was quick, in order & efficient. Premium economy passengers deplaned first. Economy class passengers disembarked next. Immigration queues were fast.

Baggage claim took 20-30 minutes after I cleared immigration. This was due to the big volume of passengers & luggage onboard this superjumbo flight. On top of that, we arrived at the same time as another large Qatar Airways flight.

Final Thoughts

As the title says, it was an excellent flight with Emirates on their flagship Airbus A380 aircraft. Everything fell into place for this flight – from the time I entered the boarding gate, to the time I stepped into the aircraft & until disembarkation. I said this on my Manila to Dubai flight & I will say it again here. Emirates flight experience in economy class is worth the hype.

I have a long list of ‘likes’ for this flight. First, the ticket price was out of this world. Imagine flying 4 sectors to the other side of the world with baggage, meals & entertainment system included & in a modern & comfortable economy class cabin for only a little over ₱27,000 – it was definitely a steal! Second, the airline made sure that passengers in Dubai were informed of the real-time updates of the flight. They sent mobile application notifications where the assigned boarding gate is & when the flight is about to start boarding.

Third, Emirates offered world-class & modern economy class cabin on this Airbus A380 aircraft. The cabin was well-designed & even included wooden finishes from the lavatories to the tray tables. The seats were spacious & comfortable; it provided enough legroom & generous recline even with the 4-3-4 configuration. Fourth, the Airbus A380’s entertainment system had plenty of options to choose from. It was modern & very responsive; it even had Bluetooth technology for those who wanted to use their own audio pieces.

Fifth, the quality of food onboard this Emirates flight to Paris was exceptional. I know I raved about the beef tapa offered on my Manila to Dubai flight, but I seriously think the beef goulash & houmous served on this flight was on another level. The meals on this flight, particularly the lunch service, were delicious & full of flavors. The food portions were also bigger than the usual airplane food servings. So far, Emirates’ onboard food is worth raving about. Also, the meal service pace was just right – not too rushed & not too slow.

Sixth, the lavatories were clean & well-maintained throughout this 6-ish hour flight. The wooden finishes add to the class & premium feel of these lavatories. Seventh, the Emirates ground & cabin crew made a difference in my passenger experience from the time I arrived at the boarding gate up to the time I left the plane. They were all friendly, hospitable & very customer-oriented. Hats off to the crew on this EK 073 flight to Paris last 16 November 2022!

I know I’ve described this as an excellent flight, but I think Emirates still can improve on some aspects. First, I don’t know if it was just me, but my seat kept on going back to the normal upright position every time I moved towards the screen. I didn’t know how to keep it reclined for a long time. Second, it would’ve been nicer if the lavatories had additional amenities like toothbrush & toothpaste. Lastly, I hope the airline provides limited Wi-Fi access at least to Skywards members. The limited access could be something like 1 hour of free messaging or a consumable complimentary data allocation which passengers can use.

Overall, it was a fun first flight with Emirates’ Airbus A380 aircraft. I don’t mind flying the A380 every time; I hope that’s even possible. Thank you, Emirates, for this memorable flight! I already miss it & I can’t wait to fly with the airline again in the future.

Allow me to share the technical details of this flight to you:

Airline: Emirates
Flight Date: 16 November 2022
Flight Number: EK 073
Route: Dubai, United Arab Emirates (DXB) to Paris, France (CDG)
Duration: 6 hours & 42 minutes
Seat Number: 57K (window)
Aircraft: Airbus A380-800
Aircraft Registration: A6-EVR
Engines: 4 x Rolls Royce Trent 972
Age (at the time of the flight): 1 year old
Delivered: December 2021

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Have you ever flown with Emirates on their Airbus A380 aircraft? How was your experience? I enjoyed my first ever flight with the superjumbo but I also want to hear about your experiences. Feel free to share them in the comments section below. Do you have any questions about this flight or the experience? You may also send your questions via e-mail  to contact@thewkndtravel.com.

Thank you for joining me in today’s Emirates flight report from Dubai, United Arab Emirates to Paris, France. I hope you had an excellent time reading just like the flying experience I had with the global airline. This is just the start of our journey around Europe. Watch out for the upcoming posts regarding France, Italy & Spain. Before you go, can you visit my social media channels –Facebook & Instagram – and like or follow them? Thank you & see you in the next one!

PS. Photos were taken using my OnePlus 9 Pro.