Review of Ethiopian Airlines flight from Dakar to Addis Ababa in Economy

Intro

Rejuvenated and recuperated, it was time to embark on the next portion of my first great African adventure in 15 years. Following a lovely first week exploring West Africa, visiting Nigeria, Senegal, and Mauritania, it was time to head from the most western capital city of the African mainland to the most eastern capital city of the African mainland (first clue).

During my time in Senegal, I stayed at the Baobab Soleil, located about 20 minutes from the airport. I figured since I wasn't feeling well and I had barely slept, I should spend the day resting close by in a bit nicer of a property. At 75 USD per night, this was an okay deal. 

This specific leg would see me flying economy on an Ethiopian Airlines Boeing 777-200LR from Dakar to Addis Ababa with a technical stop in Bamako, Mali. Talk about a fun routing??! Overall, I am extremely impressed with Ethiopian Airlines as a whole. Minus the commotion in Bamako and wifi situation, it would turn out to be a very pleasant overall experience. 

Routing

We're really getting into the thick of the trip now🙂

How I Booked

Ethiopian Airlines is fantastic when it comes to many categories, but two of them proved critical here. The main one is that they tend to release quite a bit of award space for flights all over the world in economy and business class. This was fantastic as I was able to book a reward flight in economy from Dakar to Addis Ababa and onto a mystery destination* for 35K miles and 118 USD.

In addition, the mystery destination I would be connecting onward to is only served by a very small number of airlines including Qatar, Egypt Air, Turkish, and Ethiopian Airlines (to name the main carriers). It also included a free 5-star hotel in Addis Ababa; talk about a deal and a half!

Check-In

The alarm clock went off at 5 am in the morning, and I was oh so excited to be on my way to East Africa for the first time ever. Still a little bit under the weather, I took a nice warm shower, and it was off to the airport. I bid farewell to the Frenchman (owner of Baobab), and it was off on the short 20-minute drive to Dakar Blaise. 

Stepping into the airport, it was night and day compared to the last time I was here (cough cough, Air Senegal😉). 

Check-in on time? Am I dreaming? All jokes aside, it was nice to be flying with, let's say, a more reputable and higher-ranked airline.

Unfortunately, the check-in line took about 20 minutes, and since I didn't have Star Alliance Gold at the time, it meant that I had to wait with the economy line.

The mystery destination I was going to (a bit of a guessing game here) had the agents a little bit perplexed. They informed me that I needed a visa, but after showing my letter of invitation, they eventually checked me in and let me go. 

Ethiopian Airlines has a customer service desk opposite the check-in at Dakar. Out of curiosity, I headed over there to enquire about an upgrade for the flight today. They informed me they had a couple of seats left in Business for 450$, but since it was an award booking, they couldn't process the transaction.

I did think 450$ was quite reasonable for 10 hours of being on a plane… 

A Quick Bite To Eat

Immigration was incredibly efficient at this hour, as within 10 minutes, I was through to the departures area with ample time to grab a quick bite to eat.

Much to my dismay, the incredible pizza place was closed at the airport, meaning I settled on a ham and cheese toastie with a cup of coffee.

Boarding

7:30 am came around, and boarding was announced, with business class customers being offered to board first. As this was a long journey, I decided to wait around a bit and ended up being one of the last to board this beautiful 777-200LR. A 13-year-old 777-200LR named "The Sahara" with the tail code ET-ANR. For those interested, Ethiopian currently has 10 passenger 777s in service, six of those being the -200 variant and the other four being the -300 variant.

Stepping onboard, each passenger was greeted by a smiling flight attendant showcasing which side of the plane to proceed down. 

The Seat/Cabin

Ethiopian Airlines might have one of the most inconsistent business class and economy class products when it comes to an airline's fleet. While the 777-200LR is an old aircraft, the product is at least the same across all six aircraft.

The Business Class cabin is laid out with 5 rows in a 2-3-2 configuration featuring a total of 34 lie-flat seats (row 1 is in a 2-2-2 according to Aerolopa, but I count 4 rows from the picture so I am not so sure). The seat design is vastly similar to what you will find on the LOT 787 (minus the middle) and Turkish Airlines Business (on the 777 and A330). 

Moving back to economy, the 777-200LR features 287 economy seats spread across two cabins. An aspect that shines about the Ethiopian Airlines 777 is how they have kept economy in a 3-3-3 configuration, as most airlines have decided to cram in an extra seat per row. 

A bulkhead seat is always appreciated, but be aware that, just like other carriers, this comes with fixed armrests. 

Settling into seat 16L, I found the legroom to be acceptable for this flight. Nothing quite like JAL, but at 6 feet tall, I wasn't squished.

Lastly, if you are worried that you won't be able to charge your devices, stop worrying. There are power outlets located under and in between seats, while USB-A chargers are located next to the IFE screen at every seat. 

Departure

Boarding was wrapped up by 7:50 am local time, and the captain came on to announce our flight time of an hour and a half over to Bamako. The cabin crew came around to give me my hotel accommodation for the night. All passengers on connecting tickets receive a free hotel for the night regardless of whether they paid cash or miles. The only catch is that the layover must be between 8-24 hours. 

I also appreciate when an airline is punctual, and today, ET gained my respect. We pushed back a minute early and were wheels up to Bamako a minute ahead of the scheduled takeoff time. 

Talk about some views over Dakar Blaise, huh?! That 777 wing is gobsmacking.

Drinks Service

This was my first time flying with Ethiopian Airlines, and my first time in a long time flying with a technical stop where passengers stay on the plane.

The cabin crew came around after departure to offer passengers a simple choice of juice/water/coffee/tea. It was pleasant to have a refreshment on a flight that is only 600 miles from door to door.

It interests me that Ethiopian Airlines doesn't offer a meal service or even a snack on these shorter technical stop flights. Even in business class, which I learned very recently…  

IFE+Wifi

Once the drinks service was completed, we still had about 50 minutes before landing in Mali. This was the perfect opportunity to check out the IFE.

There were plenty of options in terms of movies and the map, but unfortunately, the screen was responsive, which meant I had to use the remote located on the armrest.

There are enough options where you won't get bored…

IFE Remote, located on armrest. 

If you fancy getting some work done, feel free to open up the emergency exit door, skydive your way down to the internet cafe, and you can get your work done there (I'm joking; don't mess with the emergency exit door). Unfortunately, there was no wifi working on the flight today, as seems to be a frequent trend with ET. 

Bamako, Mali

In the past, I have heard amazing things about Mali and, more specifically, Bamako. Unfortunately, I wouldn't be getting off here, but I did get to witness some beautiful views of Bamako as we landed 18 minutes early into the capital city of Mali. I am already planning a trip to Bamako…

Once on the ground, I switched my phone off of airplane mode and found that the Verizon travel pass works in Mali. How about that, huh? I checked the expert flyer seat map and saw that the plane was going to remain empty for the flight to Addis Ababa. How lovely this is going to be!

For some reason, the cabin crew only gave out headphones when in Bamako and not on the ground in Dakar. Weird. 

Nope, expert flyer, and I was wrong. As it turns out, every seat was filled as there was a tour group, and Ethiopian Airlines kept a widebody as unassigned seating😂. This is the first time ever that I saw a widebody being boarded with unassigned seating, and it was a colossal f*** up.

Thankfully, due to our early arrival in Bamako, we somehow pushed back right on schedule at 11:00 am local time. 9 minutes later, we were wheels up for the 6-hour and 47-minute flight to Ethiopia.

Meal Service

Once the captain leveled us out at cruising altitude, the cabin crew came around to dish out meals to passengers. There were two choices of meals, and I decided on the chicken, which turned out to be fantastic. It was flavorful and extremely moist (but not undercooked). 

In addition, the cabin crew came around twice during the meal to offer passengers drinks. Well, I never say no to a cheeky glass or two or three of red wine😂.

The Clif bar was mine… 

Within an hour and a half, the trays had been picked up, and I observed the beautiful day that we were flying. 

Lavatory

Sitting in a window seat on a flight of this length, you probably get about one chance to go to the lavatory. Seeing as my seatmate was going, I decided this was my time. I love the lavatories on the 777s, as they are so much roomier than almost any other aircraft. 

Nap Time

Once using the lavatory, I ransacked the galley for more wine (I'm joking; I asked, and they said, please have as much as you want). Nightcap in hand, I dozed off for the next 4 hours as we cruised our way over to Addis Ababa. 

Hmmm

Arrival

Due to favorable headwinds, by the time I woke up, we were on the final approach to Addis Ababa. We touched down on 7R 12 minutes ahead of schedule and taxied our way over to… 

A friggin remote stand. Really? I guess the only good part was that I got to see the 777-200LR up close, which is actually my favorite aircraft. 

Immigration took an hour, which was an absolute mess, and it was off to the Skylight Hotel! Ethiopian runs a bus to the Skylight Hotel. If you are in business class, there are dedicated buses as well, but thankfully, there weren't too many people waiting for the economy buses at this hour (the next report was a mess). 

Welcome to country number 94 

ET Skylight

The rooms are beautiful, and while room service wasn't included, I did decide to order a burger for about 20 dollars since I didn't want to walk across to the other building because I needed to mentally prepare for the next day. Here are some pics! 

A burger and a bath, nothing makes me happier.

Thanks for reading, sorry the report was a bit lengthy as it was basically two flights. Hope you enjoyed, and stay tuned for a very special review next!