The trip started on January 10th. We had booked 3 Emirates Chauffeur Cars. Emirates doesn't have their own fleet in Buenos Aires, they do it through a well known (for Airport transport) company here, named Manuel Tienda Leon. The cars were pretty new, but were medium category. They arrived on time, and so we did to the airport. Our (first time) Emirates Business class experience started as soon as we entered the Airport. There was no one on the Business Class check in lane, and we had our Boarding Passes in no time.
Ezeiza's Airport is usually very crowded and security/migration lines can take long. But this time was the exception. We were past everything, and ready to go to the lounge, after 10 minutes. Lounge time.. American Express had a VIP Lounge till about october, and closed it to build a new one. The opening date was going to be January 1st, but some delays scheduled it for January 11th.. yes.. a day after i left. It's supposed to be a very big lounge for Gold and higher members, and with a small lounge inside for Centurion Cardholders. Since it was not open the day we were leaving, we headed to Aerolineas Argentinas (SkyTeam) lounge, the one Emirates offered for their Business Class Passengers. Right in front of it, we found the entrance to the soon-to-be-opened Centurion Lounge. Here's a picture (Looks like the LAS and DFW ones):
The Aerolineas Argentinas Lounge is not very good. Or at least, I dont like it. Its always very crowded because access to it is really easy, and they offer very little food and drinks. Time to Board had come and we headed to our gate. We then saw the beautiful Boeing 777-300ER (A6-EBU) that would take us first to Rio de Janeiro, and then to Dubai. First time on Emirates, and I was very impressed with the Business Class product (I had seen A LOT of videos, but watching it in person was really nice).
I shared the Window/Aisle seat with my little brother. I'm a big person (Rugby player) and was afraid that the seat might feel narrow/not comfortable. But it was really nice, and very comfortable.
The first part of the trip was a 2:30 hour flight to Rio de Janeiro. I noted some problems. First of all, I was a bit disappointed by the crew. More specifically, my flight attendant who was an Argentine and apparently had a bad mood, because he showed no smile throughout the flight. We were offered Champagne for take off and for my let down, it had a disgusting warm temperature. And finally, both the ICE and the tablet were not working, so i couldn't adjust properly my seat (for my luck, all this changed in the next flight, as you will see). Food for the first flight was just Dinner, and was very good.. one of the best dinner's I've had on a flight. I took the pictures of the menu while the Mood-Light was on, so excuse me for the quality.
First part:
Continue:
I chose the Prawns for main, the cheese Board for dessert and some chocolates to finish. Here are some pictures.
The Prawns, delicious.
Cheese Board and Godiva Chocolates, excellent (forgot to take the picture before eating it!)
Not long after dinner, we were arriving to GIG. Rio de Janeiro's International Airport. The Crew announced that we had to wait inside the plane for the Brazilian passengers to get in. For my fortune, all crew left the plane and the new one arrived. I asked one of the new Flight Attendants if she could show me First class, since I had never seen it in person. She took me to the front of the cabin (with a smile) and showed me the Suites. Many of you have been inside them, its something I will have to try eventually.
Old plane, old ICE.
Does anyone really use those cosmetic products? :confused:
Brazilian people were already boarding the plane, so I went back to my seat. Soon, we were offered a new glass of Champagne before take-off. Champagne for this flight was Veuve Clicquot (in Business), and this time was cool. We were given new Menues. The meals for this flight consisted in a Light Bites right after departure, Breakfast and Lunch. Here are some pictures of the menu. Sorry for the bad quality in some.
Right after we took off, one of the flight attendants asked me if I wanted something for the Light Bites. I ordered the Delicatessen Sandwich, which was OK. My brother ordered a Fruit Tart that was really good.
The Delicatessen Sandwich
I was then ready to get some sleep, since I had a long travelling time before reaching Beijing (final destination). The flight from Rio to Dubai is about 14.30 hours, and i had a 4-5 hour stop in Dubai's airport, and then a 7 hour flight to Pekín (Beijing).
Getting ready to sleep, really comfortable seat.
I asked the Flight Attendant to please wake me up for breakfast, and so he did. I was asked to choose form the menu, and I ordered the Cold Cuts. Im not a very big fan of eating eggs on a plane, and much prefer something cold for breakfast right after I wake up.
The Cold Cuts were OK, the missing croissant was the best one I've had on a flight.
After breakfast I tried to get some more sleep. A few hours later I was once again woken up, but this time.. to have lunch. Before ordering lunch, I was asked if I wanted any drink. I asked for a Campari with Orange Juice and gave the FA kind of an instruction of how i wanted (quantities, etc). He did an amazing job, and brought an amazing Campari with some warm nuts. For lunch, I chose the Palm Hearts and Roasted Pepper salad to start, and then the Lamb and the cheese board again.
The Campari Appetiser and nuts, were excellent.
The Palm hearts starter, it was good. The salad was one of the best salads I've had on board.
The Lamb main course was great, and even better with a glass of Red Wine
Dessert, again the cheese board.. excellent.. best cheese selections in a flight, ever!
We arrived to Dubai's international Airport on time. First class passengers got off first, and boarded their exclusive Bus. Business class passengers followed.. The bus was great, no one had to stand up.. seats for everyone. After a long (to be inside the airport) ride, we arrived to the security checks, a few moments later we began our long walk to Concourse A. Once we arrived there, we went to the Business class lounge, to wait for the next flight. The lounge is Amazing.. its something I had never seen before.. Huge, clean, and lots of food and places to rest. Amazing.
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Verdict
Emirates
9.4/10
Cabin9.0
Cabin crew10.0
Entertainment/wifi10.0
Meal/catering8.5
Condor Aerolineas Argentinas
4.4/10
Comfort5.0
Meal/catering5.0
Entertainment/wifi2.0
Services5.5
Buenos Aires - EZE
8.8/10
Efficiency9.0
Access8.0
Services8.0
Cleanliness10.0
Dubai - DXB
10.0/10
Efficiency10.0
Access10.0
Services10.0
Cleanliness10.0
Conclusion
1 LIKESLIKE TO THANK THE AUTHORTHANKS ! FLIGHT-REPORT LIKED
Awesome first report on a route that not been reported before! It's really nice that EK offers a car service to their J pax...many other airlines don't offer that for F! I've heard a lot of people complain about the Aerolineas lounge, so it must really be bad. Too bad the Centurion lounge was not open yet! Good thing there was a crew change at GIG since your first FA was grumpy--a bad crew would have made for a bad flight. Man they sure feed you a lot on this flight! I guess because it's such a long flight! The seat is angled-flat on 77Ws right? No sliding down the seat during the night? Thanks for sharing this report!
Thanks Kevin! It is really nice that they offer the car service. Those are one of the many little things that Emirates does over competition and makes you feel really well about it. The Aerolineas Lounge is not good at all. It was full, catering was really mediocre, wifi was not working, etc. It was really bad luck from us that the new Centurion Lounge opened the next day.. We wanted to try the new area, which is a lot bigger and even offers showers and really good catering (so i've heard). We were very happy about the crew change at GIG, crews can make a flight.. and even make you want to come back or not. A lot of food!!! and even when there was nothing from the Menu to eat, there were carts near the Galleys, full of snacks. From Sandwiches (different types, and they were gourmet ones, to toblerones, godivas, etc) They are angled flat. I didn't really mind at all. the seat can be adjusted amazingly, so you won't have troubles finding a comfortable position. I didn't slide down at all. Thanks again for the comment!!
Muy apreciado el ensayo del vuelo! It is very easy to chill a bottle of champagne. Tell the FA to grab a bunch of duty free plastic bags, throw ice inside, water and chill for 15 minutes. My guess is that after near 20 hours of continuous work it was a miracle the FA didn't play rugby using the bottle against you.
Happy to read you enjoyed thoroughly the halal cheese selection. Just FYI cold cuts are the number one reason for food poisoning. It is safer to have them heated to reduce pathogens collected during processing. Have a memorable trip with the family!
@Caribel thanks for the answer! The warm temperature Champagne was on the first flight. Its a 2 hour flight to GIG :). The cheese selection from deserts was the best one i've had on a plane, even better than some First class selections. Cold cuts this time meant cold pieces of cooked food. They were not the type of cuts that are cooked in salt (or whatever the process is). So any pathogens would have been killed in the cooking process. We came back home a few days back :( but it was the most amazing trip we've ever done!!
This is quite a route from BUE to PEK ! have done the same part (the EZE-GIG one) recently and took the very same dish, but I didn't find it so great. Another difference, I liked the AR lounge (ok, nothing to compare with EK lounge in DXB). Proof that every one's view is important to build a solid comparison.
@Pititom Thanks!! To be completely Honest, that plate from the way to GIG was so much better than the one i had (same) from GIG to EZE.. For some reason.
Regarding Aerolineas Argentinas' Lounge. Although it was not my first time there, as you said, it's very nice to see different views and impressions from people. Every day is a different day in there and different things can change the view from the lounge. I am used to going to the American Express lounge in EZE, where they serve Veuve Clicquot champagne, really good cold cuts and some nice sandwiches and salads (amongst other things). So maybe inside me, i just compared both experiences. Aerolineas offers packaged sandwiches (own brand) which had 85% bread and the rest of cheese and a bit of ham. The times I visited it, there was a lot of people inside, we all had to split to get a seat, and the other section was closed (like every time i visit). The thing about this lounge, is that access to it, is not that hard. And a lot of people get in. Thanks again for the answers!!
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KevinDC - Flight-Report
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It is really nice that they offer the car service. Those are one of the many little things that Emirates does over competition and makes you feel really well about it. The Aerolineas Lounge is not good at all. It was full, catering was really mediocre, wifi was not working, etc. It was really bad luck from us that the new Centurion Lounge opened the next day.. We wanted to try the new area, which is a lot bigger and even offers showers and really good catering (so i've heard). We were very happy about the crew change at GIG, crews can make a flight.. and even make you want to come back or not. A lot of food!!! and even when there was nothing from the Menu to eat, there were carts near the Galleys, full of snacks. From Sandwiches (different types, and they were gourmet ones, to toblerones, godivas, etc) They are angled flat. I didn't really mind at all. the seat can be adjusted amazingly, so you won't have troubles finding a comfortable position. I didn't slide down at all. Thanks again for the comment!!
Happy to read you enjoyed thoroughly the halal cheese selection. Just FYI cold cuts are the number one reason for food poisoning. It is safer to have them heated to reduce pathogens collected during processing. Have a memorable trip with the family!
This is quite a route from BUE to PEK ! have done the same part (the EZE-GIG one) recently and took the very same dish, but I didn't find it so great. Another difference, I liked the AR lounge (ok, nothing to compare with EK lounge in DXB). Proof that every one's view is important to build a solid comparison.
Thanks for sharing this first great report !
@Pititom Thanks!! To be completely Honest, that plate from the way to GIG was so much better than the one i had (same) from GIG to EZE.. For some reason.
Regarding Aerolineas Argentinas' Lounge. Although it was not my first time there, as you said, it's very nice to see different views and impressions from people. Every day is a different day in there and different things can change the view from the lounge. I am used to going to the American Express lounge in EZE, where they serve Veuve Clicquot champagne, really good cold cuts and some nice sandwiches and salads (amongst other things). So maybe inside me, i just compared both experiences. Aerolineas offers packaged sandwiches (own brand) which had 85% bread and the rest of cheese and a bit of ham. The times I visited it, there was a lot of people inside, we all had to split to get a seat, and the other section was closed (like every time i visit). The thing about this lounge, is that access to it, is not that hard. And a lot of people get in.
Thanks again for the answers!!
I wonder why EK is sending old J seats' aicrafts for such a long flight
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