Emirates EK 316
Dubai International (DXB) to Osaka Kansai International (KIX)
Premium Economy Class
Airbus A380-800

Ticket

This trip was part of a holiday in Japan, and as I wanted to hit the ground running for my ferry cruise from Kagoshima to Naha, I gladly accepted an upgrade offer that popped up in Emirates’ app a few weeks befor the trip for 320 EUR for the Dubai to Osaka leg. I connected from Frankfurt in regular economy, which I didn’t enjoy, and spent the night in the airside sleep ‘n fly capsule hotel in Dubai (DXB).

Cabin & Seats

Premium Economy on the A380 is located in the forward lower deck. The 56 seats are arranged in a 2-4-2 configuration.

The seats are upholstered in cream leather with diamond stitching. There is a small cocktail table between the seats and the main tray table is stowed in the armrests. The cabin has the typical Emirates look with soft cream colours and wood trim.

There is a footrest in front of each seat and a calf rest in each seat. Each seat has a USB A and C socket and a common 110 V socket. Seat reservations are included and I managed to get one of the two best seats in the house (36 D and G). These are technically bulkhead seats, but the bulkhead only obstructs the legroom in the middle, so the aisle seats have unlimited legroom. In the other rows, the seat pitch is 40 inches / 101.6 cm. Seat width is 19.5 inches / 49.3 cm with 8 degrees of recline. Given the amount of space in front of me, I was very, very comfortable. This is probably as close to business class comfort as you can get without actually buying a business class ticket.

Amenities

After settling in, I checked out the amenities Emirates offers in Premium Economy. The blankets are the same as in economy, and the pillows have scratchy disposable covers.

The amenity kits are well stocked with socks, a toothbrush, earplugs and an eye shield. Pretty impressive that these are also offered in economy. I particularly liked the fact that the toothbrush was a good size, while the eye mask was quite small.

There also is a bottle of water at each seat.

Bottles of Bulgary lotion and eau de toilette are set up in the toilets, which were kept spottles throughout the entire flight.

Food & Drinks

After the plane had leveled off, the crew quickly went around the cabin to serve a hot breakfast with a Western and Japanese main course. There was also a fruit platter and a bowl of Greek yoghurt on the tray. I had the omelette with potatoes, mushrooms and tomatoes. The Japanese option would have been fried chicken with rice and vegetables. While my Western main course was nice enough, the real stars were the side dishes of ripe, juicy fruit and a refreshing yoghurt with cherry compote. Hot rolls and croissants were also on offer. Drinks were again served in real glassware and all food on fine Royal Dulton china. There are even porcelain salt and pepper shakers. The metal cutlery provided also felt very classy, but somehow missed a teaspoon. 

As Osaka came closer, the friendly flight attendant serving my seat called me by my surname and announced that it was time for lunch. This time I opted for the Japanese option: a delicious prawn yakisoba with noodles, accompanied by a plate of bustanica antipasti, followed by a yoghurt and raspberry mouse. I couldn’t believe my eyes when I spotted not only a stylish raspberry glaze on the plate, but even a bit of gold leaf.

I was impressed that Emirates went the extra mile even during this later stage of the flight when many other airlines serve the same snack as in regular Economy – usually a soggy piece of microwaved pastry.

The drinks were of a similarly high quality. The cabin crew had a wide range of soft drinks and juices on their trolleys, including a delicious mango juice. The wines were a French Chardonnay, an Australian Shiraz and Domaine Chandon Brut sparkling wine. These wines retail for around 20-25 EUR, which is pretty impressive for Premium Economy. Tea, sencha and coffee were also available.

Trip Report

Like many flights to the east, EK 316 departs at an ungodly hour. Boarding started around 2:20 a.m., with Premium Economy being called up quite early, as the PE cabin is at the front of the lower deck, so passengers have an almost exclusive jetway, sharing it only with the frontmost Economy cabin. This makes for a very relaxed boarding experience. The cabin crew were quick to offer welcome drinks of water or juice, served in proper glassware, as well as hot towels and menu cards.

The load on this night was very light, so everyone had the opportunity to spread out over two seats, which made the journey even more comfortable.

I dozed off right after breakfast, only to be woken up by a passenger who had an epileptic fit mid-flight. The incident was handled very professionally by the cabin crew, but it was hard to get back to sleep after all the commotion in the cabin. The fact that the poor passenger, still disoriented after her episode, fell over me on her way to the toilet just as I was dozing off for the second time didn’t help.

So I turned to the giant IFE screen in my armrest and checked out what was on ICE – Emirates’ in-flight entertainment. The airline is regularly praised for its system, and perhaps I had my expectations a little too high. While the screen was clear and responsive, and the over-ear headphones from regular economy good, I didn’t find much worth watching. Emirates has a wide range of content, of course, but I missed some good recent blockbusters as well as feel-good staples. I also didn’t like all the adverts for weird things like a ski hall in the dessert. After some lacklustre browsing, I ended up watching a bit of Civil War, but soon gave up on that brutal epos and just followed the flight path on the moving map. The A380 also has external cameras, but their quality was poor, although I could still make out some of the peaks of the Karakorum.

The cabin crew made regular rounds offering juices and water, and cup noodles were available on request.

Service concluded with another round of hot towels before landing.

All things considered
With their Premium Economy Emirates created an independent class of service between economy and business class, situated much closer to the business than economy, with a quiet separate cabin, polished crew, and specifically designed meals.
Unfortunately, it tends to be expensive, but I’d definitely choose it again on long overnight flights.