Emirates A380 First Class With Dad: So Fun That I Needed A Day To Recover

My dad and I recently flew Emirates’ Airbus A380 first class on the short 6hr55min flight from New York (JFK) to Milan (MXP), for the first segment of our Good Morning Milan, Goodnight Moon trip.

As I explained in the introduction post, I won’t be fully reviewing this flight (since I reviewed this exact segment not that long ago), but instead, I’ll just be sharing some general musings.

The primary motivation for taking this flight was simple — my dad absolutely adores Emirates first class, but hadn’t flown it in over a decade. I wanted to do something special for him, especially as he recently celebrated a birthday — after all, isn’t what what miles & points are all about? I booked this flight for 102,000 Emirates Skywards miles plus $433.50 in taxes & fees per person.

Emirates’ A380 first class is the world’s funnest way to fly

I rank the world’s best first class products (and I’m due for a list update soon — I’m just waiting to try the new SWISS Senses A350 first class), and I consistently rank Emirates near the top of the world’s best first class products.

Actually picking which first class is the best is really hard, because I think it all depends on the vibe you’re going for. Do you just want a seamless and private journey that’s almost comparable to private aviation? Well, then Air France La Premiere is definitely for you.

Do you want an incredible inflight experience with an unbelievable drink selection, and all kinds of amenities and gimmicks, from showers to a bar? Then Emirates first class is of course for you, but don’t expect anything from the ground experience (which is a topic for a separate post).

While Emirates’ new 777 first class probably offers an all-around more impressive experience than on the A380, I’d argue that you just can’t compete with the fun of the carrier’s A380 first class. From the onboard bar, to the shower, to the endless amenities, Emirates is in a league of its own in that regard.

But that’s also the irony — if my goal were simply to sleep and arrive well rested at a destination, Emirates’ A380 first class would be nowhere near the top of my list, since the cabin has 14 seats, so it’s not exactly private or quiet.

But gosh, no matter how often I fly Emirates first class, the experience consistently impresses me. In particular, my dad was delighted, and had an amazing flight, which was what brought me the most joy.

I might’ve had a little bit too much to drink, oops…

The single most impressive thing about Emirates first class (well, other than the shower) is the wine selection. Emirates is in a league of its own when it comes to the quality and quantity of wine that it serves. There’s not another airline that has even half as impressive of a selection as Emirates does.

I have to be honest — I landed with quite the hangover, because I might’ve overdone it a bit. But seriously, I blame Emirates… how can you have such a good selection, and expect people to make the most of it on a flight of under seven hours?! It’s completely unfair!

For what it’s worth, below is what the (published) wine selection looked like on our flight.

I didn’t have anything to drink prior to boarding (I wanted to save my tolerance), so of course we kicked off the flight with a glass of Dom Perignon 2015, as soon as we got onboard. And boarding took a while, so I was proactively poured a refill. And while going to the bathroom, I noticed that there was yet another refill. Oops.

Okay, I figured that would be it for champagne, but after takeoff, I was informed that they also had Dom Perignon 2006 P2 loaded (which couldn’t be served on the ground). That retails for more than double the cost of the Dom Perignon 2015, so it would be rude not to have a glass, right? After all, I have fuel surcharges I need to offset, for mental accounting purposes. 😉

Then with the start of the meal, I was curious to try the Coup de Foudre Sauvignon Blanc 2022 — while not the most expensive wine on the menu, I was intrigued, because by sauvignon blanc standards, it sure retails for a lot!

Meanwhile the crew had already decanted the Chateau Leoville Poyferre 2005, so I didn’t want their efforts to go to waste, so also had a sip or two of that.

Now, as longtime OMAAT readers from over a decade ago may remember, my dad absolutely loved the Hennessy Paradis served in Emirates first class, so of course we had to wrap up the evening with that. We headed back to the bar, and the purser brought back a sealed bottle of it, for the bartender to pour.

Ummm, so… the flight attendant gave us wine-sized pours of the cognac, rather than just small shots. Case in point — below is what the bottle looked like after we were each poured a glass. JKLRJASLKRETEJKORD!

I would’ve probably woken up feeling perfectly fine if it weren’t for the cognac, as I was also drinking plenty of water. But oh my, this is what did me in.

I woke up just under an hour before landing, had a shower and a cappuccino, and then me and my pulsing head stumbled through Malpensa. By comparison, my dad was feeling perfectly fine (he had the same amount of cognac, but a lot less champagne)…

Emirates does such a stellar job with its first class

I’ve been flying Emirates first class with some frequency since 2012, and I’m really impressed by how the product has evolved.

For one, Emirates really has top notch flight attendants. I feel like that didn’t used to be the case, but nowadays I find the first class crews to consistently be excellent, even when the cabin is full (as was the case on this flight). And fair enough — it’s a very desirable job, they’re paid extremely well, Dubai is a pleasant place to live, and in recent years, Emirates flight attendants have all received massive annual bonuses.

Next, I’m always impressed by how Emirates is constantly evolving its first class experience. It feels like there are some airlines that almost never change their first class soft product, while Emirates improves it all the time. For example, this was my first Emirates first class flight of 2025, and I noticed many subtle changes compared to previous flights.

Just to give some examples, the caviar presentation was new…

The first class menu now looks more like a magazine than a traditional menu…

There are new first class pajamas, which are super comfortable…

The turndown service has improved, including a new pillow mist from BYREDO…

It really is nice to see how hyper-focused Emirates is on the first class inflight experience, since there aren’t many airlines that have evolved this much. Contrast that to Lufthansa, where the changes to the first class soft product over the past 20 years have been utterly minimal.

Bottom line

Ultimately my favorite kinds of flights are the ones where I get to enjoy the experience with family or friends, and see how much they enjoy the experience. To this day, my dad talks about our Emirates first class flight from over a decade ago, so I’m happy we had the chance to fly this great product again.

It’s such a treat to fly Emirates on the fifth freedom flight between the United States and Europe — my only complaint is that this flight is way too short to actually enjoy the experience while getting any substantial amount of rest.

Anyone else agree that Emirates first class is the funnest way to fly?