Flying Etihad Airways The Residence (The World’s Best First Class)

The luxury doesn’t stop with Etihad Airways’ First Class apartment, because at the front of the cabin is the Etihad Residence – a three room suite in the sky, featuring a living room, bedroom, and your own private bathroom with a shower. This is the world’s best First Class.

Flight Information

Airline: Etihad Airways (EY)
Flight: EY12
Route: London-Heathrow (LHR) – Abu Dhabi (AUH)
Cabin: The Residence (seat 1A)
Date: July 2023
Scheduled Flight Time: 07h05m
Aircraft: Airbus A380-800 (A388)
Registration: A6-API

Flying Etihad Airways The Residence

Welcome to the Etihad Residence – your three room suite in the sky.

I absolutely love flying, but after this flight I don’t think any experience is ever going to be as phenomenal and as incredible as the six hours and forty-one minutes I spent on Etihad’s A380 in July 2023 – shortly after it was brought back in the air. Needless to say, I was waiting to experience this flight for quite a while, couldn’t sleep the night before, and was definitely more excited than Nicole Kidman; after all, your life peaks when you fly in 1A.

Etihad Airways, based in Abu Dhabi, is a boutique airline with an incredible flying experience in the premium cabins, especially on their Airbus A380 in the world famous First Class apartment; complete with an onboard shower, delicious food paired with world-class beverages, and Etihad’s Arabic hospitality, this is the way to fly.

However, the luxury doesn’t stop with the First Class apartment, because at the front-left of the First Class cabin is the Etihad Residence, a three room suite in the sky for two guests, featuring a living room, bedroom, and your own private bathroom with a shower.

Check-in & Gate

My morning began at London-Heathrow’s terminal 4 where I checked in, received my boarding pass, and checked out the Etihad Airways First & Business Lounge for about an hour before the flight and couldn’t contain my excitement as I finally saw Etihad’s A380 with my own eyes – having last flown it and seen it over four years ago.

The whole world was waiting for the airline to bring back their incredible Airbus jet and in July 2023 they finally did, on their flagship route from Abu Dhabi (AUH) to London-Heathrow (LHR). Prior to 2020, the A380 operated key routes for Etihad including Abu Dhabi to Sydney (SYD), New York (JFK), Paris (CDG), and a few others – the New York route, operated by the A380, is scheduled to resume soon.

Boarding began right on time with guests needing extra assistance and more time to board, promptly followed by The Residence (yes, I had my own boarding group), and then First Class.

A Very Warm Welcome Onboard

Etihad’s A380 First Class cabin is gorgeous; I was warmly welcomed by the crew and offered a glass of champagne along with some Arabic Dates and a hot towel, followed by some strong Arabic Coffee a few moments later.

After settling in, the purser welcomed me onboard, asked if I was familiar with the suite, and offered me a WiFi voucher (valid for the entire flight).

Moments later, my personal flight attendant went over (and customized) the schedule of my time in The Residence to my liking (when I would be dining, showering, resting, and more).

Etihad Airways The Residence Living Room

The Living Room of the Etihad Residence features a double, ultra-wide seat able to accommodate two guests – and just like with the First Class apartment, you close the door for maximum privacy.

The Residence Suite is massive and features a ton of seat controls as well as storage areas for your personal items. Both sides have an In-Flight Entertainment remote, various USB ports, power sockets, safety cards, as well as tray tables (which are located under the armrests, where you can also find even more seat functions). Since I was flying alone, the window side of the seat also had noise cancelling headphones (which were excellent quality).

Under the massive IFE screen, was a huge ottoman with your own personal mini-bar, more storage areas, and very comfy blankets. I wasn’t going to waste any time on this flight by watching movies so I always had either the airshow on or the tail camera, which featured amazing views.

I love collecting airline amenity kits, so I was thrilled to see two of them from Acqua di Parma waiting for me – they both contained the same essentials like socks, eyeshades, a toothbrush, toothpaste, hand sanitizer, hand & body lotion, and Acqua di Parma perfume.

Etihad Airways The Residence Bedroom

Tucked away in the nose of the Airbus A380, behind your own personal bathroom, is the incredible Bedroom which features another huge IFE screen and various buttons to control the bedroom’s mood and lighting. More storage areas are located under the bed and a smaller drawer is underneath the bedside table.

Slippers and very comfy pajamas were carefully placed on the bed once we were in the air.

Etihad Airways The Residence Bathroom

Your personal lavatory does include everything you’ll need. Like with the amenity kit, the hand wash and hand lotion along with the shampoo, conditioner, and body wash are provided by Acqua di Parma. The most exciting part of the lavatory is, of course, your own personal shower, which will be prepared for you whenever you’d like by your own personal flight attendant.

And yes, there is even a hairdryer.

The Lobby – Etihad Airways Airbus A380

Located between the First and Business Class cabin, is The Lobby, which is sort of like a bar area where guests can order refreshments and socialize.

After Departure

As with most flights from London-Heathrow, we had a long taxi to the runway and held for a few minutes before we could depart. Once in the air and past 10,000 feet, another glass of Champagne magically appeared in my suite – this time the Rosé, and it came nicely presented with some cashew nuts, wasabi peas, and olives.

I explored my suite for a bit after we departed and turned on the airshow and tail camera on the IFE screen.

Etihad Airways The Residence Dining & Cellar Menu

The menu is very extensive and you can dine whenever you’d like. Since this was a morning departure, there was a small breakfast section in addition to the main dining choices, as well as some snacks and light bites. Drinks included wine, champagne, cocktails, spirits, beer, mocktails, coffee, tea, various mixers, and much more.

 

Etihad Airways The Residence Dining Experience

My personal flight attendant inquired as to when I’d like to dine and I let her know about an hour after departure would be perfect.

Dining began with the Signature Caviar Service; the entire experience was phenomenal – all of the food was fresh, delivered at a leisurely pace, and took a little bit over two hours.

The appetizer followed, for which I selected the Arabic Mezze and the Pumpkin Soup, both of which were mouthwateringly delicious.

After the appetizer and before the main course, was a palate cleanser consisting of a sorbet. For my main, I decided to order from the Lounge & Grill section of the menu and went with the Atlantic Salmon.

By now, I was beyond full so I saved the dessert for later and instead ordered some Moroccan Mint Green Tea; it arrived beautifully presented with real mint leaves and chocolates.

I enjoyed the tea, saved the chocolates for later, and relaxed a bit after the dining experience.

Etihad Airways The Residence Shower Experience

With only three and a half hours of the flight left, my flight attendant set up my shower. In addition to multiple towels, there was a comfy bathrobe provided. The shower temperature and pressure were tremendous and you can start and stop the water whenever you’d like.

Shower amenities include shampoo, conditioner, body wash, body lotion, a toothbrush, toothpaste, a shower cap, and a comb; some of these were already included in the amenity kit, so I ended up with a bunch of these items after the flight.

Most of the amenities are for you to keep after the flight – I couldn’t fit all of them into my carry-on and thankfully Etihad does offer a First Class bag for the items you can take with you.

Time for Bed in the Etihad Airways Residence Bedroom

My shower in the Etihad Residence bathroom was an incredible experience – I was blasting some tunes while showering at 38,000 feet in the air… life really doesn’t get better than this, does it? I changed into the comfy pajamas and put on the slippers – it was now time to go to bed. As you’d expect, turndown service was of course completed while I was showering; a bottle of water as well as earplugs were also waiting for me.

I closed the door to the Living Room for total privacy (the door between the aisle and Living Room remained closed throughout the entire flight). I was really only able to nap for thirty minutes as we’d be landing in two hours – the London to Abu Dhabi flight is way too short to experience everything. I really hope Etihad brings back the Airbus A380 on the Sydney route, because that’s 14 hours and the best way to fly this (and my favorite way to fly to Australia).

The bed is insanely comfortable and I had no trouble resting for about half an hour; my life was literally a dream… and I wasn’t even asleep yet. I couldn’t believe that I had just showered at 38,000 feet in the air and was now relaxing in my own bed with the most comfortable bedding and pajamas ever. My life peaked at that moment because there isn’t anything that can ever top this experience.

Afternoon Tea & Dessert in Bed

As you may recall, I hadn’t had dessert yet – and there was still so much to try. About an hour and thirty minutes out of Abu Dhabi, I asked my wonderful and amazing flight attendant (who was from Spain), to bring me some dessert and Afternoon Tea (a selection of freshly prepared finger sandwiches, scones, cakes, and pastries) in bed, as you do, when flying the Etihad Residence.

As if that wasn’t enough, the dessert was a delicious cheesecake and ice cream. For my beverages, I had Earl Grey Tea, a Mango Mojito, and Baileys on the rocks.

Still being full from dining just a few hours before, I wasn’t able to finish all of the dessert items, but did my best and tried as many as possible. All were delicious and fresh.

The Final Note

The flight was slowly coming to an end, at only 06h41m flying time, it is definitely not enough time to experience everything the Etihad Residence has to offer. This was literally the best flight of my life (and I’ve had some incredible experiences in the sky). Etihad Airways The Residence is truly the world’s best First Class (technically, a step above) and there really isn’t a better way to fly.

Redeeming miles and points for First Class is literally the best thing you can do – there are other amazing First Class products out there, obviously, like Singapore Airlines, Qatar Airways, etc., but I honestly don’t believe there is any other First Class out there that is better than Etihad’s. When you put together all of the components and when you’re flying the A380 (whether the Residence or the First Class apartment), Etihad Airways First Class really has it all and is of the highest quality.

“Occasionally, people come along who are not content with simply moving things along – they want to take things further, tear up the plans and start again. Then, take another brave step, they will see the future and knock down the walls to reach it. Insist a dream is possible – overcome all indecision and take a running jump into the uncharted; bored by reinvention of the superficial kind, they want more. Because their goal isn’t to improve on what has been done before, but to totally reimagine it.” – Etihad Airways