Review: Etihad The Residence Lounge & Ground Service Abu Dhabi Airport (AUH)

For the next portion of my Iceland to The Residence via Cambodia trip, it was time for what was perhaps the most anticipated flight of the journey, as I was flying Etihad’s A380 The Residence from Abu Dhabi (AUH) to Paris (CDG).

For those not familiar, The Residence is Etihad’s product above first class, consisting of a three-room suite on the A380, which can accommodate up to two people. For what it’s worth, upgrading from first class to The Residence on this flight cost around $1,600.

The Residence experience starts before you even board the flight, and consists of what can only be described as an impressively seamless and high touch experience. I was extremely impressed by how well executed the experience, especially given my limited layover time.

Etihad The Residence Abu Dhabi meet & greet service

I was arriving in Etihad’s A321LR first class from Phnom Penh (KTI). While my layover was scheduled to be around 1hr45min, my inbound flight arriving early meant I had closer to 2hr35min in total. For what it’s worth, I arrived at 11:55PM, and was departing at 2:30AM.

Anyway, the second I stepped off my A321LR flight, I was greeted by Milos, the lovely Etihad agent from Serbia, who would be looking after me during my layover. It’s really nice how there’s one dedicated point of contact, who both picks you up on arrival, and brings you to the plane on departure.

Milos was also joined by a porter who carried my bags. On top of that, there was a golf cart waiting for me, with a driver. Suffice it to say that having a three-person entourage to get to the lounge feels a bit over the top. I mean, people were taking pictures of me as I drove by… heh.

I had to quickly clear transit security, but that’s easy enough when you’re pushed through to the front, and you don’t even carry your own bags.

Milos was awesome, and as we walked to the lounge, he went over the “plan.” He asked if I wanted to board my flight in The Residence first or last. Given the limited time I had, he also told me that he had reserved a slot for me to get a spa treatment. He recommended that I go to my private room, look over the menu and place my meal order, go to the spa, and then be served the meal when I return.

I was delighted to see how detail oriented the service was, and how invested he was in making sure I had a nice time. I was also quite jazzed to be presented with the elusive green The Residence boarding pass holder.

Etihad The Residence Lounge Abu Dhabi private room

Etihad has one primary, large lounge concept in Abu Dhabi. This primarily consists of the Etihad Business Lounge, but then there’s also the Etihad First Lounge, which is essentially a lounge within a lounge.

The Etihad First Lounge is located on the sixth floor (the lounge’s top level), so I was walked there by Milos. The lounge as such is beautiful, with an elegant dining area, and plenty of seating for relaxing.

However, in this case I wouldn’t be hanging out in the main part of the lounge, but instead, would be spending my time in one of the private rooms that are reserved for guests in The Residence. These are located inside the entrance and to the right, not far from the bathrooms.

There are a couple of rooms off the main hallway, and then there’s another door leading to two additional rooms. I was assigned one of those rooms in the back (Abu Dhabi 2, as it was called).

Ultimately the main selling point of this room is privacy. My room featured a dining table with two chairs, as well as a sofa with an ottoman, facing a wall-mounted TV.

The room also had a private bathroom, with a sink, a toilet, and a walk-in shower. It sure is nice to have a private and spotless bathroom!

It’s also worth mentioning that waiting on the dining table was a beautiful amenity, with fresh fruit, baklava, and dates. Yum.

The primary selling point of this kind of a space is privacy, for those who really value that. However, many people may prefer to also hang out in the main part of the lounge, where there’s a bit more of a vibe, views of the terminal, etc.

Etihad The Residence Lounge Abu Dhabi food & drinks

Since my layover was pretty short and they had reserved a spa treatment for me, I essentially reviewed the food menu and drink list when I entered my private room, and then the server who’d be taking care of me took my meal order. He then timed it perfectly, so that the food would be ready when my treatment wrapped up.

Again, I can’t emphasize enough how impressed I was by the service execution. Upon returning to my private room after the spa treatment (which I’ll talk about below), the table was already set for me.

A glass of champagne was immediately poured — 2006 Charles Heidsieck Brut Millesime was on offer, which I believe is slightly better than their standard champagne in the lounge.

To start, I had a delicious scallop and sweet potato appetizer, which was as tasty as it was beautiful.

For the main course, I had a spicy prawn dish, with cashews and carrots, which was also ridiculously good.

While I tried to skip dessert, the friendly server insisted I had to try the dark chocolate tart.

The food was phenomenal. This is definitely lounge food that actual feels restaurant quality, unlike some other lounges, where you feel like they’re just running a microwaving operations in the back. I was also delighted by the service pace, as all the dishes were brought out quickly, given my limited time.

For those curious, you can find the wine list for Etihad’s The Residence Lounge below.

Now, here’s what’s embarrassing, and I owe you all an apology, because I’m apparently so incompetent. I photographed the food menu, only to later realize that I photographed the breakfast menu, rather than the lunch and dinner menu. So I’m really sorry, as that’s a major failure on my part.

I was so rushed to maximize everything that I just took the picture while looking at the overall framing, rather than verifying that I was photographing the right pages. For what it’s worth the menu was very similar to what you’ll find in the Etihad First Lounge, and includes a large variety of appetizers, main courses, and desserts.

Etihad Lounge Abu Dhabi Be Relax Spa

The Etihad Lounge Abu Dhabi has a Be Relax Spa, which can be accessed without leaving the lounge.

The spa offers paid treatments for all, but also offers select passengers complimentary treatments. Specifically:

• Etihad The Residence passengers receive a complimentary 30-minute signature facial, or two 15-minute services, with options like a chair massage and manicure
• Etihad first class passengers receive a 15-minute treatment, with three options to choose from
• Etihad Guest Platinum members receive a 15-minute back massage

I decided to take advantage of the 30-minute Valmont facial, which was performed in a private room that felt like a “proper” spa treatment room.

I found the spa treatment to be relaxing and soothing. I didn’t necessarily get the sense there was much science or skill to the facial, as it felt more like the therapist was just randomly rubbing creams onto my face so that she could keep massaging it… but hey, I enjoyed it!

By the way, I was escorted between my private room in the lounge and the spa, and on the way, the Etihad employee explained that for being in The Residence, I could also grab a free cigar from the humidor. I’m not a smoker, so I passed, but others may appreciate that. For what it’s worth, the cigars on offer retail for 50-100 AED (13-27 USD).

Etihad The Residence Abu Dhabi escort to plane

I certainly stayed busy during my brief layover, And at 1:40AM, 50 minutes before departure, Milos was back in my private room to inform me that it was time to board. As mentioned above, when I first landed he asked if I wanted to board first or last. I figured I’d board first, since I wanted to maximize the experience in The Residence as much as possible.

My flight was departing from gate D43, which is one of the gates that allows boarding directly from the lounge, which sure is convenient. So Milos and the porter walked me through the first class lounge, and then through the business class, to the gate within the lounge.

I have to say, for better or worse, they really make you feel like a VIP when traveling in The Residence. For example, when I was asked if I wanted to board first, that’s a request they very clearly honored. As I was being walked up to the gate, there were dozens of first and business class passengers waiting, and as soon as I boarded, the boarding process otherwise started.

Milos walked me all the way down to the door of the aircraft, where I was introduced to the cabin manager, as well as the flight attendant who would be taking care of me.

Bottom line

Etihad’s ground experience in Abu Dhabi for passengers traveling in The Residence is exceptional. The airline really goes above and beyond to make it a seamless, end-to-end experience. The only other ground product like this is what you’ll experience when flying in Air France’s La Premiere first class.

For one, it’s nice how you’re looked after throughout your time on the ground, as you’re assigned an “entourage” of sorts, on arrival and departure. In addition to that, you get attentive service in your private room, plus an extended, complimentary spa treatment.

Ultimately the private room is nice for those who value privacy a lot, but otherwise, I might prefer hanging out in the Etihad First Lounge (which you can obviously access at will, since the private rooms for The Residence are within that lounge).

What’s your take on Etihad’s The Residence Abu Dhabi ground experience?