Hello from the UAE, as I just flew Emirates’ Airbus A350-900 business class on the 7hr10min flight from Ho Chi Minh City (SGN) to Dubai (DXB). The A350 joined Emirates’ fleet a little over a year ago, and it’s the carrier’s first new aircraft type since 2008, so it’s a pretty major development for the airline.
Emirates opted not to go for a cutting edge business class hard product on this aircraft, which many of us found a bit puzzling, as the airline instead installed an evolved version of its existing staggered product.
However, I’ve gotta be honest, I think Emirates’ overall A350 business class experience is stellar, and I walked away with a more favorable impression than I was expecting. On paper, Emirates’ business class might not look that impressive — there are no doors at seats, no dine on demand, etc.
What makes Emirates special, though, is the totality of the experience. Emirates has the Gulf’s best flight attendants, an excellent drink selection (with real cocktails!), good food, incredible entertainment, and extensive amenities. And I have to say, while Emirates has long been known for its gaudy interiors, the updated cabin finishes are super elegant, and I think the aesthetics of the cabin might be among the nicest out there.
In this post I’d like to share some initial thoughts, and then soon I’ll have a full review.
In this post:
Emirates’ A350 business class seats are better than expected
The version of the Emirates A350 I flew on featured 32 business class seats, spread across eight rows, in a 1-2-1 configuration. Emirates has a staggered layout, with seats produced by Safran, and it’s essentially an evolved version of the popular A380 product.
Despite the lack of some bells and whistles, the seats are supremely comfortable. I found the seat to be quite spacious, well padded, and since I was in a “true” window seat, I had enough privacy so that a door wouldn’t have really made a big difference (take that, OMAAT readers who claim I’m obsessed with doors!). 😉
In bed mode, I found the seat to be cozy as well. And Emirates has individual air nozzles on the A350, so that’s a plus!
But the seat’s tech is phenomenal, including a tablet for controlling seat functions, two USB-C outlets, one USB-A outlet, and one AC power outlet, plus wireless charging.
Emirates’ cabins also finally just look and feel really elegant (compared to the 1990s Las Vegas aesthetic the airline used to be known for), and as the airline describes it, the interiors are “inspired by the Mercedes Benz S-Class.” For example, how cute is it that when you lower the window shade, the blinds have a picture of an Emirati ghaf tree?
Emirates’ A350 entertainment & Wi-Fi are amazing
Emirates’ ICE inflight entertainment system is known for being among the best in the sky, and the A350 features an updated interface of that. Business class has 20″ 4K screens, with incredible picture quality, and bluetooth audio. The selection of entertainment is truly endless.
Another exciting thing about Emirates’ A350s is that they feature Viasat Wi-Fi, which is free for business class passengers (and all Emirates Skywards members, for that matter). This is a massive improvement over Emirates’ previous OnAir system, though in the meantime, the 777s and A380s are getting Starlink, so will have an even better setup.
Emirates’ soft product is among the most well-rounded
Emirates strikes such a good balance with its soft product. For one, the airline has among the most generous business class amenity kits, with seemingly endless products, plus slippers and more. On slightly longer flights there are also pajamas, but this flight missed that cutoff.
Emirates also has the best drink selection of any airline in business class, in my opinion. Yes, the wine is very good, but what stands out to me is how the airline serves “real” cocktails, including in martini glasses.
This might sound minor to some, but I think this is such a small but smart investment on Emirates’ part, as it’s not something you’ll find on many carriers. For example, I had a negroni, served with mixed nuts and olives. 
I find Emirates food to be very good, though admittedly the menu typically isn’t as huge as on Qatar Airways, and there’s also not a full dine on demand concept.
On this flight from Vietnam, dinner was served after takeoff, with a snack service later in the flight. To start, I ordered the beef with fish sauce and papaya salad, which was delicious. That was also served with a side salad, and a bread selection.
For the main course, I had the shrimp and vegetable rice noodle rolls, which was phenomenal (it may not look that amazing, but it was very well executed).
For dessert I had the muscovado tart, with mango and passion fruit compote.
Then for the pre-landing meal, I opted for the barramundi with lemongrass and chili, served with fried rice. It was simple but satisfying.
Honestly, in some ways I like Emirates’ lack of dine on demand, since the cabin actually stays fairly quiet during the flight, rather than the constant sounds of the oven being opened and closed, cutlery being placed down, etc.
Emirates flight attendants are pretty special
I’ve been flying Emirates pretty regularly for close to 15 years, and I feel like over time, service has only gotten better. This flight was no different, with a great crew, and a lovely Russian-Ukrainian flight attendant working my section of the cabin.
Emirates of course has flight attendants from all over the world, and there’s no denying that Emirates gets its pick of applicants. When people apply to work at Gulf carriers, they almost always apply at Emirates first (for good reason).
I find that Emirates flight attendants have a lot of personality compared to crews at other Gulf airlines, and I really like that. They’re people you can actually have a conversation with, and for the most part, they take a lot of pride in their jobs, and do a good job upholding the company’s high standards.
Just to contrast that a bit, I find Qatar Airways has very good service as well, but the flight attendants almost seem to work too hard due to the dine on demand concept, to the point that I can feel how stressed they are. It feels like they’re constantly running around, and I almost feel bad asking for something, because I know how much they have on their plates (no pun intended).
I just find Emirates flight attendants to be fascinating, and I always enjoy learning where they’re from, etc., so to me that’s a fun aspect of flying with the airline.
Bottom line
While Emirates’ new A350 business class hard product is nothing cutting edge, I was very impressed by the overall experience. Emirates’ evolved staggered seats are comfortable, have excellent tech, and also have very nice aesthetics. On top of that, I find Emirates’ soft product to be very good, from the amenities, to the food and drinks, to the service.
Sure, there are splashier airlines out there, and airlines that might have more impressive talking points on paper. But I always find that Emirates actually delivers, and rarely do I walk off an Emirates flight with anything but a great impression.
What’s your take on Emirates’ A350 business class?
The Emirates (EK) first (FCL) and business (JCL) premium products are indeed excellent and JCL choices mirror in some ways (menu and wine list) some of the choices in FCL.
I was considering picking EK A350 flights to experience the A350 business class product, but it would have meant a 4 hr detour and three instead of two sectors to reach my destination.
When it the A350 business class (JCL) was first shown, I...
The Emirates (EK) first (FCL) and business (JCL) premium products are indeed excellent and JCL choices mirror in some ways (menu and wine list) some of the choices in FCL.
I was considering picking EK A350 flights to experience the A350 business class product, but it would have meant a 4 hr detour and three instead of two sectors to reach my destination.
When it the A350 business class (JCL) was first shown, I (as a CPAP machine user) regretted the absence of a privacy door in the JCL suites, but I may well get used to it.
Instead of an A350, I experience the new first class (FCL) suite on their 777-300ER. It gives the airplane a fresh appearance, but unlike in JCL there is nothing really new in these 777 FCL suites.
As per Sir Tim Clark, EK will become more active in upgrading and producing their own cabin interiors and regrettably I must say that they still have to some way to go here. On my flights it seemed that the FCL facelift in the FCL went at the expense of durability and strength. Both mine and my seat neighbour’s suites had issues. The older 777 suite that I experienced on one sector as well worked better in that respect.
Travelled from Dublin to Dubai on way to Adelaide. Was amazed to discover no amenity kits given as we were a daytime flight. Yes to socks and eye mask but nothing else.
Were you in Business or Economy? In Business amenity kits are handed out on both sectors. In Economy you get socks and eye mask and toothpaste and toothbrushes are available in all bathrooms or on request. What else do you need?
BNA EWR DXB SGN, SGN DXB SIN. I flew SGN DXB too. Great product on the a350. Great crew.
I asked Claude bot if I needed a visa to SGN. It said no. So I went. The customs in SGN said I needed a visa. I told them Claude told me I didn’t. I told the BNA agent that I’m legit. She said I wasn’t. She was was correct, my bad.
Long story short....
BNA EWR DXB SGN, SGN DXB SIN. I flew SGN DXB too. Great product on the a350. Great crew.
I asked Claude bot if I needed a visa to SGN. It said no. So I went. The customs in SGN said I needed a visa. I told them Claude told me I didn’t. I told the BNA agent that I’m legit. She said I wasn’t. She was was correct, my bad.
Long story short. I was buzzed on EK Hennessy and I have bad rrms. So I looked like a disaster, in SGN , walking sideways into walls.
Got deported back to Dubai in j cab. Idiots. Then I went to Singapore ,sober ,same day and lost 10g at marina bay sands.
Moral of the story is that emirates was kind to my idiot self and the business a350 product is top notch. And Hennessy is magic.
No thanks. Won’t go anywhere near Emirates or the UAE given their closeness to Epstein and their human rights record.
Excellent review! I’ve been considering flying up to Montreal to then try out EK’s a350 as they’ve been using it for YUL-DXB. However, the rates are not cheap in J; even then, there may be a decent Special fare, but it doesn’t include lounges, advanced seat selection, or chauffeur service, so, you get what you pay for, I guess. At least these don’t have a middle-seat in Business (older 773 has 2-3-2).
1990Bot, have you retired your High Class American login, or, are you going to alternate between the two? …. :-)
I am the real 1990 and the greatest leader the world has ever seen President Trump will confirm.
The product is flawed and your review is clearly biased. If you are sat in the middle seats you have no privacy and are exposed to your neighbour and every passing passenger. The lack of suite doors is a real mistake as it feels less classy than other carriers now. The attendant button is where your elbow sits and I hit it at least 8 times accidentally so is clearly in the wrong place. Yes...
The product is flawed and your review is clearly biased. If you are sat in the middle seats you have no privacy and are exposed to your neighbour and every passing passenger. The lack of suite doors is a real mistake as it feels less classy than other carriers now. The attendant button is where your elbow sits and I hit it at least 8 times accidentally so is clearly in the wrong place. Yes you get a Chaffeur and good food but as a new A350 it is lacking the intimacy that other carriers give you.
That aesthetic is really polished, I like it. Especially the bottle holder nook, something a little different than the generic business cabins we see on US airlines.
This all ties to yesterday’s post regarding ranking business class amenities. Based on the pics, these seem less private but more comfortable than many other airlines’ J offerings. Most airlines have by now overreached and overreacted. And how about those window seats? One row has two windows and the next row seems to have 1/2 a window.
I recently flew on their A350 for a 6hr flight and I happy it wasn’t any longer. I find the fixed armrests on the business class seat make the seat tighter than it should.
My arms had to sit on top of them in lay down position as I couldn’t tuck them under.
Only a few mention about the armrests. Makes one wonder what prevents others from disclosing this including Ben. As another mentioned maybe biased?
Maybe the armrests weren't much of an issue for Ben, but he'll discuss it in the compete review?
I am probably in the minority BUT...I find that many business class seats are rather narrow ( I am not a big guy ) and I find a number of them confining. I do not really like doors. In fact I leave mine open.
Remember (LOL !) I am the old guy that remembers when Pan Am "Sleeperette Seats" wide open and no privacy were the very thing !
I’m with you, bro. They are all too narrow (coming from an old guy with a narrow body type). From the pics, it appears the seat could and should be wider and all the other plastic and faux wood narrower.
Does the human rights record of the UAE toward LGBTQ+ people bother you, even in the slightest?
I believe Ben has addressed this before. However, this is a blog about airline seats and hotels and points, and Ben tries to provide such reviews without going into the local politics.
This is about airline seats.
Why don’t you ask the thousands of crew who work for the airline and live in Dubai (many who identify with some of those letters) how they feel about it. I think you’ll find you’re very misinformed.
Too narrow a seat armrests don't go down.
Aren’t these basically the same seats as the ones on the A380?
Look very similar.
Emirates is the best. Why would you spare a hundred bucks to go to an inferior airline for 5+ hours flight. Splurge yourself, yolo
a hundred?
Curious about the martini glass... Wouldn't the slightest but of turbulence cause that to spill?
Speaking about the “door obsession”, I think the problem is not with the true windows seat. The point is the level of exposure in the aisle…which in this case is a thing I just can’t wrap my head around
Isn't Emirates significantly more expensive, in points and miles terms, than its competitors on all routes it serves? My impression is that as a points flyer, It takes more spend to get enough points, it takes more points, the surcharges are significantly higher, etc. So unless I'm paying cash (which I rarely do), saying Emirates is lovely is like saying Krug is nicer than Prosecco, without mentioning the price. Am I missing something?
When I have compared prices of the ME3 from NYC to the Maldives, Emirates has always been $1,000 up to $4,000 more expensive.
Right now for my trip, it is $5K+ more expensive than Etihad and $2K+ than Qatar.
Likewise. In pricing an upcoming U.S. east coast to Southeast Asia trip, the ME3 are all $$ thousands $$ more than the Asian carriers. That makes our selection easy. It’s not like the alternative is say, Delta, masquerading as a premium international carrier.
One thing I like about Emirates along with Cathay is they really customize their seats from the ground up and not use something "off-the-shelf" which I really appreciate. While Singapore's upcoming business class seat looks to be bespoke as well, their current regional business class product along with Turkish is based on the Stelia Symphony platform with their own fabric colours and trim.
I still remember vividly your friendship with Toby who has since left the company, and I hope he is doing well wherever he is.
How do the headrests on a new plane look that battered already
“Beef with fish sauce…” is a new one for me. Looks tasty.
"Looks tasty."
Why did I read tasty as nasty?! Ha!
Fish sauce is another umami flavour. You have soy sauce, oyster sauce, and now fish sauce.
Fish Sauce = Nuac Mam in Vietnamese. Strong, smelly … delicious.
"smelly"
I think "pungent" would be the word you're looking for in this case.
An interesting article 1990Bot, thank you.
(I'm going to assume 1990 wrote something that was deleted)
Fake Aero = juvenile 1990 = juvenile Penile = juvenile Jack Mehoff, who is not an equity law partner earning 8 figures.
There’s no way Penile=1990.
Penile was the funniest commenter on here by far. I don’t think 1990 has ever made me laugh once
So true, Harry!