There are a lot of amazing first class products in the world, though arguably nothing in commercial aviation is quite to the level of The Residence, which is Etihad’s private three-room suite, exclusively on the Airbus A380. In this post, I want to take a closer look at this. What exactly is The Residence like, how much does it cost, and what’s included with it?
In this post:
What is The Residence on Etihad’s Airbus A380s?
The Airbus A380 is a joy to fly in general, though Etihad has especially nice premium cabins on these jets. First class is located at the front of the upper deck, and consists of nine seats, in a 1-1 configuration. That’s right, there’s just a single aisle, even though this is a wide body.
Etihad refers to its A380 first class as First Class Apartments, and these suites are incredibly spacious. Each suite features a separate chair and bed, so you have lots of flexibility with getting comfortable in this cabin.
What’s even more exclusive than First Class Apartments is The Residence, which is located at the front left of the first class cabin. The Residence is a private three-room suite that occupies 125 square feet. It includes a living room, a bedroom, and a private bathroom with a shower. There’s simply nothing else like this in commercial aviation, and it can only otherwise really be compared to what you’d find in private aviation (and even then, you’d need to have a pretty big private jet to get this level of comfort).
The Residence can be occupied by up to two guests, though truth be told, the bed will be a bit tight if both people want to sleep at once. Meanwhile if you’re traveling alone, this is basically a palace.
For what it’s worth, I reviewed The Residence several years back on a flight from Abu Dhabi to Sydney. It was the most amazing flight of my life.
Which Etihad routes feature The Residence?
You’ll exclusively find The Residence on Etihad’s Airbus A380s. For context, Etihad grounded its Airbus A380 fleet at the start of the pandemic, and everything was pointing toward those planes just being retired prematurely. Fortunately the airline had a change of heart, and Etihad brought back its super jumbos as of the summer of 2023.
The bad news is that only seven of the original 10 A380s have been brought back into service, so the footprint isn’t as big as it was pre-pandemic. The planes currently fly regularly from Abu Dhabi (AUH) to London (LHR), Paris (CDG), Singapore (SIN), and Toronto (YYZ).
How do you book The Residence on Etihad?
Over the years, Etihad has changed how it monetizes The Residence. Pre-pandemic, The Residence was a completely separate product from first class, and was typically priced at $25K+ one-way. The Residence included all kinds of special services, and there was no way to upgrade to The Residence.
The economics of The Residence were always pretty questionable, since it was empty a vast majority of the time. It almost seemed like Etihad had The Residence for the halo effect, as it got a ton of attention globally.
Since the A380 was brought back in 2023, Etihad has taken a different approach to The Residence. Nowadays the airline sells The Residence as an upgrade option for select first class passengers, and you can no longer book it directly. The pricing is much more reasonable than in the past, but the soft product also isn’t quite as differentiated.
How expensive is an upgrade to The Residence on Etihad?
Upgrades to The Residence are available to those confirmed in first class on the Etihad A380. You can either upgrade at the time of booking (during the seat selection process), or after the fact, through Etihad’s booking management function.
One major restriction to be aware of is that you need to be booking directly through Etihad in order to upgrade. It’s fine if you paid cash for your ticket or redeemed Etihad Guest miles, though a partner award ticket (booked through a program like American AAdvantage) wouldn’t qualify.
Etihad doesn’t publish the costs for upgrades to The Residence, but based on doing some searches, the pricing is currently as follows (this is different than in the past):
- Between Abu Dhabi and Paris, an upgrade from first class to The Residence costs AED 5,840, or $1,590 USD
- Between Abu Dhabi and Singapore, an upgrade from first class to The Residence costs AED 5,840, or $1,590 USD
- Between Abu Dhabi and London, an upgrade from first class to The Residence costs AED 8,780, or $2,391
- Between Abu Dhabi and Toronto, an upgrade from first class to The Residence costs AED 11,720, or $3,191 USD
It’s possible that the upgrade cost will differ based on the type of ticket that you book, though I find the above to be the standard prices for the upgrade, based on when I’ve searched. As you can see, upgrades to and from Paris and Singapore represent the best value. Meanwhile in terms of the time spent in The Residence, Toronto represents a better value than London.
Note that you can also upgrade tickets from first class to The Residence using Etihad Guest miles, though it’s not a very good deal. You’ll consistently get under one cent of value per point, which isn’t how I’d be looking to redeem my points.
There have been some reports of passengers being called up by Etihad, and being offered discounted upgrades to The Residence if they agree to upgrade on the spot. There doesn’t seem to be any consistency to that, though. There are also sometimes reports of operational upgrades to The Residence, for situations where the flight is overbooked.
Also note that the upgrade cost is the same whether you’re upgrading one or two passengers. You’d think the cost would be less if upgrading two passengers, since you’re making two first class seats available, rather than one. In terms of spaciousness, you might almost be better off just upgrading one person and keeping a second first class seat.
However, note that only people confirmed in The Residence can use it, so if you’re traveling as a couple and only upgrade one person, don’t expect that you’ll both be able to use The Residence. However, I imagine the crew has some discretion there, and reports seem to be mixed as to how strictly that’s enforced.
What’s included with a ticket in The Residence on Etihad?
While The Residence is amazing physically, back in the day the soft product was differentiated equally, and could really be customized however you wanted, from the food, to the amenities. You even had a private butler.
Nowadays the soft product isn’t as special as it used to be. So, what perks do passengers in The Residence receive, which those in first class don’t receive?
- You receive an escort through the airport
- You receive a private room in the Etihad First Class Lounge
- You receive enhanced tableware and glassware onboard
- You receive premium bedding and a private shower
So you no longer receive a much more extensive food and drink menu, a private butler, or the ability to customize the experience to the same level. Still, expect the entire experience to be lovely.
Bottom line
The Etihad Airbus A380 has made a comeback, with six of the jets back in service. They’re flying from Abu Dhabi to London, Paris, Singapore, and Toronto.
While the Etihad A380 offers a great passenger experience across the board, the highlight is The Residence, which is the three-room suite at the front of the first class cabin. There’s nothing else like this in commercial aviation.
Nowadays The Residence can be booked as an upgrade option for those who are traveling on an Etihad-issued ticket, whether booked with cash or miles. Upgrades cost roughly $1,600-3,200 one-way, depending on the route, and the cost is the same whether one or two people are upgrading.
What do you make of The Residence on Etihad’s A380?
Hi Ben, flew the apartment on 23rd June for CDG-AUH route. I had booked using AA (less than 14 days before) and can confirm that got option to upgrade to Residence for ~1200 Euros, while selecting the seat.
So the part where partner awards can't be upgraded is incorrect.
"Also note that the upgrade cost is the same whether you’re upgrading one or two passengers."
I think you mean upgrade cost PER PERSON, but it certainly is not obvious from anything you have written here.
We have enjoyed the two leg flights from LHR-SIN in EY first. One had to try it once before falling off the twig. As nobody was booked into the Residence we asked for a tour when we left LHR. To be frank we could not justify the Residence on several counts.
No: 1. The additional cost simply could not be justified.
No: 2. The French bed was totally inadequate for two people who...
We have enjoyed the two leg flights from LHR-SIN in EY first. One had to try it once before falling off the twig. As nobody was booked into the Residence we asked for a tour when we left LHR. To be frank we could not justify the Residence on several counts.
No: 1. The additional cost simply could not be justified.
No: 2. The French bed was totally inadequate for two people who need to access the other ‘facilities’, mid flight. (We have discounted other airlines too with one sided access to the sleeping surface).
For us the two separate suits/beds work best all round SQ being our favourite non-stop carrier. However, we are looking forward to our next SIN trip with AF in the New La Premiere. This will be my wife’s first AF flight and mine too since Concorde in ‘82.
The bed in the Apartment looks like what they strap you into for lethal injection
The A380 also appears to be flying to JFK.
Not anymore. As of June 24, they switched the A380 to Toronto instead of JFK.
FYI there was one differentiation as far as I could tell from First - we had a bottle of femme de champagne 2002 and I think apartments was 2016 billecart salmon
Not sure if that’s still true - a recent Insta story from a known avgeek suggested he also got the Billecart in the Residence. Duval Leroy Femme de la champagne was the regular F champagne one or two years ago. Pretty sure they just used their remaining inventory of it for the Residence. Might be used up now.
On another note I asked for the Macallan Enigma in the F lounge in AUH. While officially not on the menu anymore, they still had some left.
Booked my first class flight with points last September. Originally to New York, but when the route was changed to Toronto, got my points refunded and rebooked. Just upgraded to the residence, so I can confirm the AED 11,700. Don't know how much longer A380s are going to be around, so I figured I better do it now before it is too late.
The cost to upgrade for AUH-YYZ or YYZ-AUH is $3,990 for two people. Not sure where you're getting the lower amount?
Ben, not sure how to send you a tip, so commenting here.
Apparently Grand Hyatt Playa Del Carmen is rebranding as an adults-only AI as of July 31, 2025. Per the website and a thread on Reddit started by someone who had their wedding cancelled. This is a terrible development considering (a) the glut of AIs in the area, and (b) the terrible value proposition of an AI located in the middle of an urban...
Ben, not sure how to send you a tip, so commenting here.
Apparently Grand Hyatt Playa Del Carmen is rebranding as an adults-only AI as of July 31, 2025. Per the website and a thread on Reddit started by someone who had their wedding cancelled. This is a terrible development considering (a) the glut of AIs in the area, and (b) the terrible value proposition of an AI located in the middle of an urban area full of amazing and cheap restaurants! IMO, AI only makes sense when you don't want to leave the hotel - but isn't that the point of staying in the middle of downtown PDC instead of at one of the many secluded beachfront properties along the Riviera Maya?
FYI new rules regarding Etihad Guest redemption tickets are in place since 19 June 2025, including revised rules for cancellation and changes (no more 75% refund penalty!). Worth looking into.
Where can I find this. I googled it and can only find the old rules. I was not aware they have eased the cancellation policy and have a trip where I’ve been eyeing to book 1st and upgrade to the residence but the cancellation policy is brutal.
If you go to book a reward ticket there are now 2 options. The lower option has the same old cancellation policy and the higher one is now more flexible. That flexibility comes at a price. For a flight that used to be 200k in first class it’s now 170 for the less flexible and 230 for the more flexible one.
Not saying I am itching to spend the extra $ but it's a bucket list kinda item and these planes won't fly forever. So I'm very tempted to try this if it ever works out.