What a cracker of a price to NY. Shame it's not available at this price from other Australian cities. There's seats available late Oct to late Nov so good luck with your searches. Don't forget to apply coupon HOLIDAY20. Safe travels :)
The B787 is overrated as most economy cabins are in the tight 9 abreast seating layout. The problem is many peoples shoulders aren't fitting into the seats and it is not good for the long haul.
The business class on them is really good, newer seats and layout. Slept very well.
This deal is for economy class. And Etihad operate the tight 9 abreast 787 config.
To add to this, it also only has 4 toilets in economy class, so I wouldn't say is an experience to look forward to for a 10 hour flight. The Airbus380 leg should be much more comfortable.
@odysseus: not really a comment about the deal more the aircraft, negs are a bit enthusiastic.
Economy sounds pretty sucky I'd agree, it always does. would be the newer seats and AV though at least. Anyways, put the flight number into seat guru and pick a decent seat, job done.
Here is the layout for the Etihad fit out ,
http://www.seatguru.com/airlines/Etihad_Airways/Etihad_Airwa…
9 abreast?
I didn't neg you; agree about that being 'enthusiastic.' However, the seating is a reflection on the deal in part - to be aware about the quality of the product. Though unfortunately it's not unique to Etihad.
However your seat plan even shows that is 9 abreast. E.g. row 21: 21a, 21b, 21c, 21d, 21e, 21g, 21h, 21j, 21k…
@mackaxx: You'll be in a bit of a pickle if you do as that's not the seating configuration for the two 787's Etihad operate on this route. They are so new they don't actually have a map on seatguru. As an example, row 42 doesn't have windows. Which of course Etihad don't show you on their seat map when you are choosing yours. http://imgur.com/JISFCxi
@odysseus: And Economy has five toilets in the rear cabin at least (didn't check the front) they squeeze an extra one in down the back.
@wavesgreen:
Looked staggered on that map but if it's as their graphic indicated it seems not to be. I'm going to wander back and have a sticky beak next time.
Is this the same as the older Brisbane -> AD 787, that's the one I took last October, or an even newer config?
@mackaxx: It's a newer config, only two classes: Business and Economy. The BNE<>AUH 787's the three class config. They are only running this new config on A6-BLF and A6-BLG as far as I'm aware, which service PER<>AUH and AUH<>DUS.
I flew on the 787 on Qatar Europe-Melbourne return. I'm about 177cm and relatively slim. Never been more cramped in my life. Don't drop you cutlery during the meal service because there's no chance to pick it up unless you're on the aisle.
Flying Europe to Australia again at Christmas and Easter next year. Flights have been booked specifically to avoid the 787.
The A380 on the other hand is the most comfortable aircraft I've ever flown in. A shame the uptake isn't higher.
I've flown this exact route and on both brand new 787 Dreamliners Etihad use between PER and AUH: A6-BLF and A6-BLG. A6-BLG is the newest plane in the EY fleet, only been in operation since June 2.
They use a different 2-class seating configuration and are so new it doesn't even have a map up on seatguru.
I didn't mind the 3-3-3 seating layout but I did have empty seat(s) next to me. The seats are definitely narrow and it may be a tight squeeze with three decent sized blokes next to each other. The A380 was noticeably roomier by comparison. Exact same IFE and seatbacks. I would definitely prefer to do the 10 hours in an A380.
TIP - On the 787, row 42 has no windows.
IFE is excellent and large windows gorgeous. They give you a sleep set (with socks) on the 787 leg but I've had mixed experiences with onward legs, sometimes they don't give you one if it's say a morning flight to Europe. Which I think is a bit shabby, especially if you're on an A380. Maybe EY are starting to to cut corners. I mean I have my own set of sleep accoutrements of course but it's the thought that counts, anything to make you feel less like an animal when you're packed in for serious long haul.
Feel free to ask me any questions.
Best seats for the 787? Tried seat guru but ended up picking randomly
@perthite: They are all much of a muchness given the 3-3-3 configuration. The usual things to be aware of: seats backing onto exit row having little or no recline, bulkhead seats have more legroom but no floor stowage and fixed armrests, seats near galleys and toilets getting more noise/traffic, etc.
There is Row 42 to avoid as I mentioned before it lacks a window. Another row much closer to the front also lacks a window I think (I didn't check the number) it might actually be in Business Class.
Window seats are good on the Dreamliners because of the you-beaut large window design and I also noticed in K at least there is no IFE router box underneath the seat taking up leg space.
The mind boggles over how many hours this would take, I guess 25.
i would say roughly 30 hours 50 minutes getting there..
Very good guess. 25 hr 20 m total flying time to get there and 23 hr 50 m back. Excluding layover time of course.
But probably quicker with one stop at AUH than having two stops at SYD and LAX…
And probably only one hour more of total time in the air than going on Cathay or China Southern via HKG/CAN.
I did Qantas via Narita (Japan) several years ago, 12 hour layover there and 8 hour layover back. Total travel time was something like 34 hours. Never again.
At least with Narita the terminal has sleep quarters and showers, just a shower makes you feel human again. Narita temple isn't far from the airport so you can easily spend 4-5 hours just around the village, which is what I did.
i actually just wrote down what it said on the screenshot provided by TA :)
not really a guess
Yep I was replying to Foxtail's guess of 25 hours.
Factor in the price of a really good novel
What a status run…. :O
US Customs pre-clearance in Abu Dhabi takes a bit of the stress out of your arrival in the US too….
how does abu dhabi have US customs pre-clearance?
Etihad pays to have US preclearance in Abu Dhabi so their US flights land as if they are domestic. Saw it in action last week; their flights to the US leave from a couple of dedicated gates having already passed the US Customs 'border'.
wow how did Abu Dhabi get that special clearance, i assume there would be US officers doing this and why would they do this in the first place - just curious
[@prankster] i was surprised too but have heard other airports like Singapore do this too. Great idea in my opinion. (/comment/3829959/redir):
Last year I spent over 2 hours standing in customs line at JFK after a 15 hour flight from Shanghai…so this is a massive benefit and I'd gladly pay a premium to avoid
So this goes via Abu Dhabi??
Will probably work out only a few extra hours more anyway, if it were to la only it would make sense to use the direct to la flights.
There's no direct flights to LA from Perth.
That would have been awesome but I can't find those prices now. Looked through all of November.
Plenty still there. I'm guessing you didn't apply the coupon as per the description?
I thought I had…
Let me try again.
D'Oh - I was searching for TWO passengers.
Sorry OP and thanks TA
Sorry OP and thanks TA
On this occasion they are the same person
Wow this is so cheap Im very tempted. And quicker than coming back with Qantas. Ive done the NY LAX SYD PER before 36 hours or more and you dont have to get your luggage off and on again for domestic flight.
Thanks OP, I need to go to NYC in this exact period. However I've just done this particular sector run and am not in a huge rush to go back to it so quickly haha. Mind you, breaking it up with a hotel in Abu Dhabi is always nice. And that pre-clearance can't be beat.
And you get to try the B787 and the A380 ;)