Hello from Singapore! I just flew from London Heathrow to Singapore via Dubai. I flew the first leg in Emirates’ A380 premium economy class, which I hadn’t flown before – I was really looking forward to it, and especially wanted to see how it stacked up against the competition.
Emirates introduced their premium economy class in August 2022, and the product is priced consistently higher than the competition – one-way itineraries from London to Dubai can easily go for >£1,200 (>HK$12,000) one-way. I’d heard all sorts of comments about the product, so wanted to try it out for myself, to see if it could actually command the price premium that it asked for.
Well, after flying with them, I’m not quite sure. I thought Emirates had a very good premium economy product, however I didn’t think that they were above par from the competition. Specifically, I don’t think Emirates realises how good the competition is – many aspects of the experience that they upcharge for are met, or even surpassed by airlines such as KLM and Qantas.
Emirates’ A380 Premium Economy Ground Experience
Emirates’ A380 premium economy passengers naturally don’t get lounge access, nor do they get the opportunity to buy into the Emirates lounge at a reduced cost. Actually, rather strangely, Emirates doesn’t advertise priority boarding, either. Emirates typically boards the economy cabin on their A380s back-to-front, and I’ve heard multiple reports of premium economy passengers being the last to board (as they’re seated at the front), which feels quite backwards.
At our gate at Heathrow Terminal 3 we did get priority boarding, but it still ended up being a somewhat confusing boarding concept. All of the economy passengers seated nearer the right aisle (F, G, H, J, K seats) were boarded through the forward door. This makes sense in theory as you get less congestion, though this meant that the right premium economy aisle was clogged up during the entirety of the boarding process, whereas the left aisle was left empty. I’m not quite sure what the solution to that is, though there’s a large walkway behind the rear middle premium economy seats which could be used to alleviate the issue.
Emirates A380 Premium Economy Priority Boarding (?)
You do get 35 kg of checked baggage allowance regardless of what fare you’re flying on. Theoretically premium economy passengers are limited to a 10 kg carry-on, though this was not enforced on my flight – many brought roller bags and big backpacks (I would’ve as well, though I got my parents a nice bottle of wine that had to be checked in).
Emirates’ A380 Premium Economy Cabin and Seat
Emirates’ A380s feature 56 premium economy seats. The side sections features eight rows, whereas the centre section features six rows. The cabin does look quite sleek and elegant – these are Emirates’ take on Recaro PL3530 seats, which are used by Vistara, Air India, Air France, and China Southern, among others.
Emirates A380 Premium Economy Class Cabin
Both seat pitch (40″) and recline in these seats is good, and there’s a fold-up footrest and fold-down legrest, similar to some of the more industry-leading seats in the market.
Emirates A380 Premium Economy Class Recline
There’s a nook for storing phones, passports, glasses, AirPods etc., which I really appreciated. I also really liked that the seats came with USB-C charging, which was genuinely fast – however, very annoyingly, power ports were only available between seats.
Emirates A380 Premium Economy Class Storage Nook
The cabin shares two lavatories, though there’s one immediately behind the cabin for economy which is accessible as well.
These seats are good and comfortable, and certainly really pretty. However, I also really like the Collins Aerospace MiQ seat, which KLM and Cathay Pacific use. I don’t favour one seat over the other, and feel like competitiveness is mainly driven by the subtle customisations that airlines make to these seats. I did notice that these seats were already starting to become a little loose in some areas – for example, neither my nor my seatmate’s adjustable headrest would stay where we wanted to, unless we brought it up to the highest position. That’s a little concerning for a seat that’s just over a year old.
This certainly doesn’t make Emirates’ seat more competitive, though they do feature electronic blinds in premium economy class, probably being the only airline to do so (apart from the 787s, which don’t count).
Emirates A380 Premium Economy Class Blinds
Emirates’ A380 Premium Economy Class Amenities
I found the pillow and blanket at my seat to be sufficient to get comfortable, and the pillow was fairly large, despite the fact that the cover didn’t feel hugely premium.
Emirates A380 Premium Economy Class Pillow and Blanket
Emirates provides some comparatively good headsets for economy class passengers, though the same are used in premium economy, where they aren’t the best in class.
Emirates A380 Premium Economy Class Headphones
After takeoff we were handed amenity kits, which I appreciated – these were on the basic side, and featured eyeshades, socks, earplugs, as well as a dental kit.
Emirates A380 Premium Economy Class Amenity Kit
Emirates also doesn’t offer free WiFi in premium economy class – a full-flight package on my flight cost US$16.99. All Skywards members get free messaging on Emirates, so I took advantage of that on my phone without buying a separate package on this overnight flight. Do note that WiFi on Emirates tends to be really slow, however – they use OnAir as a provider, which most airlines have stopped using due to how slow their services tend to be.
Emirates’ A380 Premium Economy Class Food, Beverage and Service
Emirates offers a separate food menu for premium economy passengers, and almost unnecessarily, they offered two meals on this six-hour flight. I was amused that they provided “regionally inspired” cuisine on a flight out of the UK, though to their credit they did manage to make it work.
Specifically, I had a Cumberland pie as my first meal, which was flavourful. It was served with a delicious beetroot and quinoa salad, as well as a chocolate mousse for dessert.
Emirates A380 Premium Economy Class Meal
For breakfast they provided a simpler, though still tasty continental fruit plate.
Emirates A380 Premium Economy Class Meal
We were also provided menu cards, with a simple wine list to accompany as well. The cabin crew came around with a drinks service both before and after each meal service, which was appreciated.
Emirates A380 Premium Economy Class Menu
The meal was good, though there is one huge negative. Our flight left London at 10:15 PM (we were wheels up by 10:35 PM), and was slated to arrive in Dubai at 8:05 AM (that’s 5:05 AM UK time). On this eastbound redeye service, a drinks service was done, followed by a meal service. The drinks service alone took half an hour to pass through the cabin, and the meal service took a similar amount of time.
By the time I received my meal in the last row of premium economy class, it was 12:40 AM, over two hours from wheels-up, and just under a third of our total travel time. That left us with about three hours to sleep, especially bearing in mind there was a second meal service. Emirates needs to find a way to optimise their service flow – I can’t imagine when the last passengers in economy class are served on this eastbound redeye flight. I contrasted this with a subsequent redeye flight on Cathay Pacific, where the meal service was completed and my tray was taken an hour after takeoff.
There were a few touches that attempted to make the service premium. For example, I cheekily asked if I could have both the sparkling wine and the Shiraz red wine during the meal service, and the flight attendant poured small tasters for me and asked which one I preferred. There was no on-demand service available between meals on this six-hour flight, though I believe on longer flights they do offer some pastries and a snack basket (similar to what some other airlines would offer – Cathay Pacific comes to mind – but less than Emirates’ partner Qantas, which offers fresh hot food on demand between meal services).
The Problem with Emirates’ Premium Economy Class
Emirates’ premium economy was fun to fly on this route from London to Dubai. I’d be happy to see the product be rolled out onto more routes, and I’m glad that their new 777s feature premium economy as well. It’s a step up over economy, and I’d sure hope that competitors Etihad and Qatar Airways will come up with their own premium economy products as well.
My main concern with this product is how inaccessible it is. Even as of September, Emirates will only offer their premium economy to 18 destinations, including three in Europe and six in south/southeast Asia. It’s often priced higher than other premium economy products (the absolute cheapest I could find was around £1,500 roundtrip from Europe-Asia), and award space is inconsistent. There’s just barely any opportunity to find a “sweet spot” with this product. My one-way flight from London to Singapore cost £1,160 (HK$11,509), and the second leg was even in economy, though in a fare bucket where I could easily upgrade with Skywards miles (which is what I did).
Additionally, on Europe-Asia flights, there’s no denying that a ticket through the Middle East does cut your sleep time in half. Emirates is unable to offer advantages either on price or product to make the lack of sleep worth it. The cabin was mostly full on my flight, and I suspect that their brilliant marketing is what holds the product up at this rate.
Conclusion: Emirates’ A380 Premium Economy
I enjoyed my flight in Emirates’ A380 premium economy class. The seat was good, I enjoyed the meal service offered, and there were some elements that made the service feel refined. The experience felt as good, but not better than premium economy class on some Asian and European carriers.
While Emirates’ premium economy class was fun to fly, it certainly didn’t feel elusive onboard as the cost to fly it suggested. Mainly, Emirates only offers their premium economy cabin on certain routes, and the price is more often than not prohibitive and higher than its competitors. I think that quite a few of the leading Asian and European airlines offer just as good of a product as Emirates, without the need to cut your sleep time in half on long flights.
As mentioned I’ll have a full review in the coming days, though for now I wouldn’t hesitate to fly them again. I’d wholeheartedly recommend flying Emirates in premium economy if the price is right, though I struggle to find times where that is the case.