Hello from the Etihad Residence Lounge at Abu Dhabi Airport!
Continue reading: Join Me For A Facebook Live From The Etihad Residence Lounge!
Share your questions, experiences, and thoughts below.
How do you know Amal? Really looking forward to read about the rest of the trip!
@ Ole -- I first met Amal the night of the A380 inaugural where I totally screwed up my ticket, as outlined here:
https://onemileatatime.com/etihad-a380-inaugural-is-on/
I've known him ever since, and say hi to him every time I pass through Abu Dhabi. He's a class act.
Does anyone know if Facebook Live videos can be watched after they are created? I can't make it at 11:30 ET, but would love to watch later in the day.
@Lucky- do you already know the butler who's going to serve you on the flight or is that a surprise too?
Also, will you plan to make any last minute request just to see if the concierge can pull it off this late?
Also please (if you don't mind?) have a separate post on how the Residence compares to a Private Jet.
If we can't watch live will you be posting so we can watch at a later time? So excited for you Ben....I'll hopefully be taking that flight next year.
I may not be able to join the Facebook live, but if you can address this question that'd be great:
How does the lounge work if there are 2 parties flying in the residence on 2 different flights at similar times? Will you have to share the lounge, or take turns?
Lucky,
My question is:
Does it feel weird to be in a private lounge, not with other people?
There's quite a difference between being in a very quiet lounge and a lounge by yourself...do you prefer a private lounge, or not?
Looks great but when i travel I value one thing more than anything... SLEEP! Eating and drinking when not sleeping is self-destruction!
I am LOVING this! I cannot wait until one way having the experience as well. However Is it true that you cannot earn EQM from this trip just miles? What program will you be crediting them to?
What happens if there is another Residence passenger on another flight leaving around the same time who wants to use the lounge, is it a first come first serve situation or would you share the lounge?
Amazing! Reading this from my F seat in an AA E175 RJ. While my seat is actually quite comfy, when compared to your story it's certainly an illustration of how wide a spectrum "First Class" encompasses 🙂
Ben I saw your Instagram stories and never have I heard such excitement in your life before, so by all means I hope you have the most wonderful experience on the residence. Can't wait to see your full review of it
Just watched the recorded Facebook Live video. Enjoyed the Q&A. Awesome that you reconnected with Amal!
Ben,
Just wondering if you tipped Amal? Or plan on tipping the butler on board? Curious to get your thoughts on the idea/practice?
Enjoyed the live Facebook post!
Enjoy your flight. I'm surprised your SO passed on the experience, but then again not everyone is willing to travel on such an intense travel schedule to have this type of experience.
Love it that you still get sooo excited. Can't wait to read the trip report. Have fun!
Were you born on the wrong side of the tracks?
Spare us the O.M.G. nelly drama.
Hype gets hits Mark. Either it has to be amazing or a nightmare to get the most engagement. Nothing to do with wrong side of the tracks, just an eye on how to maximise the number of people who will click through.
Mark, who don't you leaver your player hatergade at the door. You need to stop drinking that stuff, it only makes you a miserable individual. If you can't celebrate this event with Lucky then why not just keep your comment to yourself. Really, what kind of question is 'were you born on the wrong side of the tracks?' What if he was, so what? Who cares? Were you born on the right side of the tracks? Are you an elitist snob that you get your rocks off on posting condescending comments on his blog? Grow up.
Lucky, you rock!
@ Cregor
I think a private lounge would be amazing. But I generally hate people so that makes the decision easy.
Mixed about this new website look. Looks a bit boxy, and the font seems a bit odd, but it still looks fantastic! Nice work Lucky!
@ J -- Fun (maybe?) story about the font. Basically it's a Google font, and they made some update to it that deleted all the punctuation marks in certain weights/sizes. So we're punting for a bit until someone in Mountain View checks their email, but didn't want to delay the whole roll-out just for that.
More to come in the next few weeks on the boxiness as well -- have to do some of this in stages, but it will be great at the end.
That looks amazing!
Welcome to sydney
It'd be great if you could check out my website ~ https://3624ben.wixsite.com/sydhkgskl
Ben, i love OMAAT!!
... way to go my American tourist, are we to believe this to be an honest review or an elaborate stunt given all the warnings provided ahead of your traveling dates to the Etihad PR reps to ready them for you. SMART!!
OMG.. YES your readers ARE NAIVE, NO Amal doesn't think you're crazy, he's just amazed at what some of you rave about behind 4 walls while 7k miles from your home, sleepless, half drunk with the world there is to explore how there and all these culture to learn... but who he is to open his mouth and anyone of you could just ruin his life and that of his family, white man world my friend!!
"The traveler sees what he sees, the tourist sees what he has come to see.."
Gilbert K. Chesterton
@Lucky That was my first use of Facebook Live too. I gotta say, you seemed a lot less nerdy than I'd expected. I guess cos of the OCD stuff, etc. I was expecting something different, but you came across quite confident and relaxed. Makes sense, cos you're good at what you do.
Very interesting video thanks for posting. Nice to see what you really look like. I enjoy reading your blog even though I don't comment much. Feel that these residence posts have been entertaining to read and hope the content is worth the $7,000 so you can do more stuff like this in the future.