Emirates has been voted Best Airline Worldwide for the eighth consecutive time at the Business Traveller Middle East Awards 2021. The airline also took home accolades for Airline with the Best First Class and Airline with Best Economy Class.
The Dubai-based carrier says the wins “demonstrate Emirates’ strategic approach to continuously improving the on-board and on-ground experience, offering a safe customer journey across all touch points, leaving no detail behind, while ensuring it meets evolving customer expectations during the most challenging period the air travel industry has experienced”.
The airline has also doubled down on its digital approach to modernise the air travel experience by fully launching and scaling up its biometric path and touch-less check-in, providing further assurance and meeting the evolving expectations of customers for a safer, contactless travel experience. Today, from check-in to gate, customers have the choice to experience the future of travel at over 33 Emirates biometric checkpoints and close to 50 touchless kiosks across Dubai International Airport.
Trialling the IATA pass
Emirates began trialling the IATA Travel Pass in April and will be fully rolling it out to all flights by the end of May. The airline has also teamed up with the Dubai Health Authority for digital verification of Covid-19 related medical records, further supporting a seamless, paperless experience for customers at check-in.
Customers now have more protection when they plan and rebook their trips with a seamless rebooking experience should their circumstances change for up to 36 months. On the Skywards front, Emirates has extended its members’ tier status until 2022, and continues to roll out more ways to earn miles, including online and retail shopping, as well as co-branded credit cards and other brand tie-ups.
The airline introduced free Covid-19 cover to help customers travel with more confidence. The initiative generated positive feedback from customers and the wider industry, with many airlines following suit. Emirates expanded this to offer the airline’s industry first, multi-risk travel insurance and Covid-19 cover.
This generous cover is offered by Emirates on all tickets at no cost to customers. In addition to Covid-19 medical cover, it also accounts for personal accidents during travel, winter sports cover, loss of personal belongings, and trip disruptions due to unexpected air space closure, travel recommendations or advisories, and other circumstances.
Investing in the on-board experience
When customers are ready to get back into the skies, an elevated onboard experience awaits them across every cabin class, according to Emirates. The Emirates first class experience “leads the industry as one of the most luxurious in the skies”. In addition to the much talked about Boeing 777-300ER Gamechanger fully enclosed suites, the latest A380 private suites have been recently refreshed with additional enhancements including wider and taller doors for even more privacy and comfort.
Customers travelling on the airline’s flagship A380 can also look forward to the in-flight shower spa, the on-board lounge and many other touches.
On its latest A380, Emirates has replaced its economy seats onboard with more ergonomically designed seats that come with full leather headrests and flexible side panels that can be adjusted vertically for optimum support, a step up from the version currently installed on Emirates’ Boeing 777 Gamechanger aircraft. Each seat features an elegant wood grain finish on tray tables, as well as a 13.3-inch personal screen to enjoy Emirates’ award-winning IFE offering, with more than 4,500 channels on demand.
Earlier this month, Emirates showcased its premium economy seats for the first time at Arabian Travel Market 2021 (ATM). The seat boasts an abundant pitch of up to 40 inches with a generous width of 19.5 inches and the ability to recline into a comfortable cradle position with ample room for passengers to stretch out.
