Etihad Airways has just cut some services from its cheapest business class fares, as flagged by Vielfliegertreff. Or in airline speak, Etihad is ”giving customers more choice.”
Continue reading: Etihad Business Value Fares Lose Lounge Access, Seat Assignments
Share your questions, experiences, and thoughts below.
It's the airline version of "resort fee" or "destination fee" that hotels charge!
I haven't used Etihad in over a year. I do recall an email telling me to select "custom benefits" such as lounge access and free seat selection. Wonder what happens now. Must keep an eye out for the next Etihad email which will no doubt have some "exciting" news to share with me 🙂
Bottom? They are charging $7,000 based on the pic Ben showed. That's hardly a bottom price.
Rich people will just pay the $100 extra.
The only ones this hurts is OPM flyers who have to buy the lowest fare, but have no money of their own to fly business.
I m very ok with excluding those who don't pay for their own tickets from my lounge.
Some corporate travel policy require travelling long haul in J but mandate taking the cheapest option within +/-12h of desired departure and give allowance of max 250 USD more than the cheapest acceptable routing (which can include up to 1 additional leg than the most direct routing). On a usually >5-10k ticket 0.25k is a ridiculous leeway. this means the cheapest fare wins the deal. No provisions are made for seat selection or lounge access. I guess those fares are designed to capture this kind of market against lower cost carriers.
Before 2022 you could thankfully always object travelling on Aeroflot, as it was often the cheapest option.
Weird to nickel & dime at the $7000 price point.
Include it and bump the fare to $7124??
Yup, my thoughts exactly. The gain of $124 is so SMALL financially to Etihad, but it makes the airline look HUGELY petty at the same time. This is something I expect from lowly Qantas or low cost carriers. Not a premium airline like Etihad.
What can consumers do to push back on this ridiculous trend? I don't fly Middle East carriers enough to vote with my wallet here, but I would hate to see this trend spread to the American and European airlines.
This was one reason why I’ve booked Etihad long haul the past few years from London to Bangkok and Singapore. I might look elsewhere if no lounge access is included and costly seat selection fees are added. They are reducing a competitive advantage in one go. Once again, not in the interest of the customer.
In June 2025 I paid over $9,937.04 for a Business Value Class. In November I had to change my departure date (due to a death in my family) To my horror, I had to pay an extra $1,657.20 and to further rub salt into my wounds, upon on checking in at Melbourne Airport I was informed that the Business Class ticket I purchased did not include Lounge access. I was totally gobsmacked and in disbelief. This was the very time that I required some "compassionate quiet time" for myself and to process what was ahead of me when I landed in Dublin.
I still can't comprehend their rules, terms & conditions, and in cases like mine, no compassion whatsoever, particularly when you end up forking out $11,594.24
A very very disappointed customer, and I will "NEVER" entertain or fly with "ETIHAD AIRWAYS" again.