Review: Emirates New Boeing 777-300ER Business Class from Hamburg to Dubai

Many of you probably saw my first batch of guest reviews, featuring Delta and Korean Air business class. Due to the success of the guest reviews, I am continuing them with the fourth guest review. Recently, a (different) person I know (who has wished to remain anonymous) flew on Emirates Business Class from Hamburg to Dubai.

With this review (and probably most guest reviews), I will write the review in the third person. How do I do that? The person who flies on the flight takes pictures of their experiences and reports back to me on how the seat was, how the airport was, how the meals were, and more. I then put the grand experience into a final report on my website in review form. What made this flight special is that the reviewer flew (unexpectantly) on one of Emirates’ new 777s, which features fully flat bed seats in a 2-3-2 configuration., which makes the review all the more interesting. I hope you enjoy the review!

The Flight At A Glance:

Pre-Flight:

After check-in and security, the reviewer headed to the Emirates lounge in Hamburg. Despite being the only long-haul carrier to serve Hamburg, Emirates still operates two daily flights there, one on a 777, and one on an A380. They, therefore, operate a lounge there, to serve their two daily flights. The reviewer said that the lounge there was the best business class lounge that he is aware of in Germany. Emirates offered a large selection of seating. There was a large selection of food available at the lounge there, and it was well presented and delicious. After visiting the lounge, the reviewer headed over to the aircraft which would be flying to Dubai.

Entrance to the Emirate

Entrance to the Emirates Lounge

Emirates Lounge Hamburg Seating

Food Selection at the Emirates Lounge

Emirates Lounge Hamburg Food

The Emirates Boeing 777-300ER

The Flight:

After boarding, the reviewer entered the aircraft. As I mentioned earlier, this was one of Emirates’ new 777-300ERs which got delivered just this year. That means that the aircraft had the new aircraft interiors. First class features Emirates’ newest seat. It features fully enclosed suites (with doors to the entire ceiling, which allow complete privacy) in a 1-1-1 configuration. The seats in the middle of the aircraft have virtual windows, so no one is left without having a window in the cabin. Overall, the first class on the plane is definitely within the top two first class seats in the world because of its amazing privacy. Because passengers only boarded through the forward door, the reviewer got to take a look at the first class section, which looked terrific.

Emirates New 777 First Class

Emirates New 777 First Class

The business class cabin also featured Emirates’ new seat. However, unlike most airlines that offer seats with direct aisle access for all seats on new planes, Emirates opted to go for a configuration without all aisle access. Yes, the seat was very high tech and probably is the world’s best business class seat without all aisle access, but one still had to step over someone else to use the restroom if you were seated in a window seat. Emirates even opted to have a middle seat in the center of the aircraft, as it was in a 2-3-2 configuration, which is even more unacceptable!

The reviewer noted that due to having someone sitting next to him and having a window seat, that it was challenging to climb over the neighboring person due to not having direct aisle access. Especially for the massive amount of money spent developing the seat, it is unacceptable for Emirates (which has an amazing reputation) to not put in seats with direct aisle access on their newest planes. 

However, despite not having all aisle access, the reviewer notes that the seat was comfortable, could lie fully flat, and that it was easy to operate. The seat didn’t have a footwell like many airlines where you have to put your feet in, but rather had an ottoman where you could put your feet on while laying flat, which makes the seat more spacious. The seat also had a minibar, which had a small variety of drinks, which is unnecessary due to the crew being able to get any drink you want at the touch of a button; realistically it was just a space waster.

The seat also came with Emirates’ latest ICE entertainment screens, which in addition to the main screen on the seat in front of you also had a remote with a touchscreen and a tablet where you could view entertainment selections. The touch of a button could also control the window shades. The seat was comfortable and high tech, but it is a shame that Emirates didn’t install seats with all aisle access. The bedding consisted of a plush pillow and a blanket, and amenity kits were waiting at the seats upon boarding. After boarding, the plane pushed back from Hamburg, and took off, with a flight time of approximately 6 hours 20 minutes.

Emirates 777 New Business Class Seat

Emirates 777 New Business Class Seat

Entertainment Selection

The Unnecessary Min-Bar

Window

Iberia A320 in Hamburg

Rossiya A319 in Hamburg

Air France A319 in Hamburg

Eurowings A320 in Hamburg

German Countryside

German Countryside

Shortly after takeoff, meal service began. Emirates offers a dine on-demand option; passengers get to choose the exact time when they receive their meals onboard, which is especially helpful for passengers who may want to sleep at different times on board. The reviewer chose the braised duck for starters, the roasted salmon filet for the main course, and had the fruit plate for dessert, which was also served with a small box of chocolates. The reviewer described all courses as being fresh and tasty. Regarding service, the crew was friendly, competent, at the same time as not being pushy, which is what you expect from an airline with such an excellent reputation. 

Flight Menu

Drink Menu

Starter – Braised Duck

Main Course – Salmon

Dessert – Fruit Plait

After the meal, there were still multiple hours left for the flight, which went by relatively quickly. There was no second meal service onboard the flight, which makes sense as the plane arrived near midnight, and it would have just taken up more time that passengers would want to use to sleep. The aircraft landed just after midnight at Dubai Airport and taxied to a remote stand. Passengers then boarded a bus to ride to the main terminal, which took around fifteen minutes. There was a specific bus for premium cabin passengers to take to the terminal, where then they were left at immigration. The reviewer wasn’t bothered about needing to take a bus as the bags arrived right around the time they cleared immigration, showing that to business class passengers, the bus ride didn’t cause any delay. 

First View of Dubai

An Emirates 777 in a Special Dubai Expo 2020 Livery

Dubai Airport Terminal

Conclusion:

The reviewer described the flight as being one of his best flights he had ever taken and the overall experience being excellent. This was due to the fantastic lounge, great food, and fantastic service. Emirates’ room for most improvement is its business class seat, as not having all aisle access on their newest planes isn’t acceptable for such an airline. However, despite it not having all aisle access, the seat was very comfortable and extremely high tech. Overall, Emirates does offer a great experience in their business class, mostly due to their phenomenal soft product/service.

Have you ever flown on Emirates? How does your experience compare to the one documented above?