Emirates A380 First Vs. Business Class: How Do They Compare?

This would make a great kick off to a series of articles about first class vs business class series within the same airline or within the same plane. I would love to see a comparison on SQ ( F and suite), AF where I expect first to be big upgrade from business (regular not bulkhead seats), and in BA where first is likely a minor upgrade from J.

Thanks for this article...flying on Emirates' A380 is on my "bucket list!" I watched a YouTube video a while back about flying in First Class on an Emirates A380...very impressive. I was wondering about showering, though...could you feel unsteady if the plane flies through some turbulence...?

@Ben, I assume upgrading from J to F on the day of departure probably wouldn't work out if you don't already have the necessary Skywards miles in your account, correct? For example, it wouldn't be great to be at the airport and transfer X amount of Chase Ultimate Rewards points and have it not be an instant transfer (and therefore not get the upgrade). Or is there a trick or tip that I'm unaware of? Thanks, you're the best!

"...could you feel unsteady if the plane flies through some turbulence...?"

Yes, but it would need to be pretty severe turbulence. The A380 is extremely smooth in bumpy air, mainly by dint of its size. I've never felt unsteady on that plane ever, including in turbulence.

@ Sonofdad -- I've done it both ways. I usually have a balance of Skywards miles in my account, since I know I'll use them eventually. But I've also transfered points on the spot. Of course there's some risk the transfer doesn't happen instantly, but I've had good luck.

@ Shirley -- As noted by TravelinWilly, the A380 is a pretty smooth jet, especially in the front. There's also a bench in the shower, so that you can sit down in the event of turbulence.

@ Dave -- Great idea, thanks! Let me see what I can do. 🙂

Ben, please correct me if I'm wrong . . . the First Class Chauffeur service is only available to revenue tickets and not award tickets. (I might be confusing this with Etihad?) Thanks in advance.

@ Fred Farkle -- Yep, that's absolutely correct. I said "eligible," though probably should have clarified what that means. So the chauffeur comparison is for those paying.

“but that thing is drinkable AF”

Made me lol. Giving Friday vibes

I do not understand why the shower on board this plane would be your favourite amenity. So you leave home or hotel dirty and needing to bathe, despite having fully functioning private bath facilities available. Then you get to the airport skip the lounge showers and wait to get on board to then take a shower. I hope you are not putting on the same clothes you had one. Is this some novelty thing you have going on? Coz after the first time, I don't see the point.

Assume a situation where you have to rush to the airport and gate, are sweaty and simply did not had the opportunity to shower before getting to the plane.

We always have Emirates business class with the chauffeur car, the wife will not fly with any other airline only Emirates because of the chauffeur service.

When flying CPT-DXB-IAD, the CPT-DXB leg is ~nine hours on a 777, very short layover in DXB, and then 14 hours to IAD on (usually) the A380. A shower before landing at IAD is a delight after 24 hours of travel and another connection out of IAD.

Big deal. You're still trapped inside a fat flying pig with a bunch of people who'd be happy to kill you due to your (and my) sexual orientation, Lucky. This is equivalent of the death row last meal.

When I was in First and went back to the business class bar to do a port tasting (I could have done it at my seat, but I wanted to experience the bar and stretch my legs), the FA recognized I was from First and proactively went to the front of the plane to get the better port for me. She then instructed the bartender that the bottle was just for me. The attentive service and attention to detail are really at a different level.

Am I to assume you are coming from the jungle in this scenario? If you are not, I don't care if you have to rush thru the airport or not. That little rushing thru the airport does not necessitate a shower in a cramped shower stall used by other passengers. Unless the shower stall is properly scrubbed after use by other pax, it is disgusting.

Would have to agree with you, Ord

Ben - when will you ever learn that the price of alcohol is completely disconnected from its quality? You are obsessed with measuring first/business class champagnes by their retail price, but retail price is primarily driven by the marketing dollars spent by the distributor, not how good the actual product is. I would urge you to dig deeper to learn more about what actually makes quality alcohol.

All true, TWilly, but there's also the simple delight of being able to do the unexpected or the unusual. Being able to shower on an aeroplane seems almost transgressive!

@Andrew - I don't know if what you state is true. The only way to verify your claim is through research. And since your statement used the general term "alcohol", we must conduct tastings of wines, vodkas, and rums, along with the many styles of whiskey, such as rye, bourbon, and scotch.

Cool, thanks!!

As far as the first class space is concerned, I believe Emirates (EK) is working on a similar product as their revamped 777 first class (FCL) mini-suite., That is to say fewer mini-suites, but higher partitions. That would increase individual first class passenger space, but not necessarily result in larger FCL seats. Overall I found the change on the 777 not the kind of game-changer that it was advertised as.

As far as business class (JCL) is concerned, I have not experienced the new business class on the 777 that is rumored to be similar to the upcoming A350 product, but as far as I know it is more or less a rehash of the A380 business class that has been around for quite some time. Not much wrong with that and the need to be able to move one’s feet when sleeping determines the size of the foot box, which in turn limits the size of the passenger seat in front of you, but I had hoped that the new EK 777 and A350 business class product would include a privacy partition, similar to Singapore A/L (SQ).

I’ve done it the other way around.

I am not such a great fan of Dom Perignon and rather have a Veuve Clicquot. More often than not the cabin crew was obliging to fetch me that stuff from business class when I travelled in first.

I'm 6'4'
I can stretch out in business class but at an oblique angle to the hinge of the seat. This is not comfortable even with a healthy back.
I broke mine a while back so it's a priority for me.
In first class I can lie flat, with my spine perpendicular to the hinge, with room left at the end of bed for my carry-ons. To me that's worth the difference in comfort.
Sounds like a small deal but try it sometime - lying down with your spine positioned obliquely to the hinge of the seat.

@ORD_Is_My_Second_Home

You seem to have a quite high confidency with saying such lie.
No wonder why you like Democrats.

Actually, it doesn't sound too bad that you're spreading such information and make some snowflakes divert from Dubai, so that I'll enjoy my trip in Dubai hypocrite-free.

The ridiculousness of this exchange. This is what I come for to this site. Thanks for making my morning ❤️.

Exactly what am I lying about? The A380 is a fat flying pig manufactured by [insert Simpsons quote here]. It's flown by a bunch of people who execute men for loving another man. And I've been a Democrat since the day I was born and will die that way. We in Chicago banned Republitards in 1931 and it's going to stay that way. Now go fiddle with yourself and spunk into your MAGA hat.

I’m making that trip early next year… how was the leg from DXB to CPT? Any recommendations on seat selection, etc?

The lounge is super different in Dubai, in first the food is much better, of course the a la carte adds, but super high quality.
Business lounge - food felt average, desserts were also not great.