Qantas take note, this is how you do business class on a superjumbo

The airline: Emirates

• The route Flight EK098; Rome to Dubai (en route to Sydney); departs 3.40 pm, on-time.
• Aircraft Airbus A380-800
• Class Business, aisle seat, 26D.
• Frequency Twice daily between Rome and Dubai. Frequency can vary depending on the time of the year.
• Flight time Four hours and 55 minutes (scheduled time is normally five hours and five minutes).

An Emirates A380 takes off.

Checking in

Italy is a country much loved, but not so much for its efficiency. Despite that, the check-in and security process runs surprisingly smoothly. It begins with a connecting domestic flight from Palermo, the capital of the island of Sicily, where the Falcone Borsellino Airport is named, a little chillingly, in honour of two Mafia-assassinated judges. It’s here that most of the formalities are painlessly and seamlessly completed, including the successful forwarding of my luggage to the connecting Emirates flight in Rome. That means I don’t have to collect it from the baggage carousel in Rome and, ehi presto, it also makes it safely to Dubai (Italy, I take it all back).

Baggage

Business class customers are allowed two carry-on bags, seven kilograms each, and two pieces of checked luggage, up to 32 kilograms each.

The loyalty scheme

Skywards. Qantas Frequent Flyer members can also earn points and status credits on Emirates flights.

The seat

The business cabin on an Emirates A380 and its 1-2-1 seat configuration.

Originally 21B, an aisle seat in the 1-2-1 configuration. Before takeoff, I move to 26D, also on an aisle, following a request from the flight attendant to allow an elderly Italian couple to be seated together. The flight attendant is effusively grateful that I agree to the move with the seat shift placing me closer to Emirates signature inflight bar-cum/lounge right at the rear of the cabin. That said, each Emirates business class seat, with a pitch of 48 inches (122cm) and a width of 18.5 inches (47cm) is equipped with its own bar, albeit with a selection of softies, such as Pepsi and Perrier. This being a relatively short flight – roughly the same duration as Sydney to Perth – there’s no real need to convert the seat to a flat bed, the overwhelming benefit of this class.

Entertainment

While Emirates’ codeshare partner Qantas has not yet completed its rollout of Wi-Fi, let alone live-to-air TV, on its international flights (due to be completed next year), the Middle Eastern carrier has long shown how it’s done, and not just in respect to tech. Emirates’ ICE entertainment system, which is delivered on a 23-inch (58cm) HD TV screen, includes a whopping 6500 channels encompassing TV shows, movies, music and games – on demand and in multiple languages. News tragics like me will appreciate the live feeds of BBC News and CNN. Skywards members are entitled to free access to the quality onboard Wi‑Fi service.

Service

Impeccable throughout the flight, as befitting this class, but then again that grateful flight attendant did say she’d owe for my packing up camp pre-flight.

Food

Dinner, with pleasingly varied choices.

Dinner is served on this relatively short-haul route with a pleasingly varied choice of dishes on the menu including Arabian specialities such as a traditional Arabic mezze plate as an entree, and a spicy prawn machbous (the national dish of Bahrain, as it turns out) served with fragrant rice, roasted pine nuts and fried onions, for a main. For the less adventurous, Western selections include roast beef fillet with porcini mushroom sauce and pan-fried chicken with a lemon and thyme jus.

Carbon emissions

1.2 tonnes for a business class passenger*. Emirates doesn’t offer an offset program but its website details a number of emissions reduction initiatives including operating one of the aviation industry’s youngest wide‑body aircraft fleets.

One more thing

Inside the updated terminal in Rome – an efficient airport experience without sacrificing architectural splendour.Credit: iStock

An unexpected star of this flight is Rome’s Fiumicino Leonardo da Vinci International Airport, an international terminal, which with its soaring ceilings and abundant natural light feels far more like an Asian airport, with better coffee, than your average European equivalent. An €800 million makeover of the Italian capital’s airport was completed in 2021 with dining options, as you may expect, top-rate, including some choice espresso bars (sorry again for the besmirching, Italy).

The price

From $11,318 from Sydney to Rome, via Dubai, return**.

The verdict

A relatively short and sweet business class flight that’s typically all class, with the high levels of service, comfort and amenities expected of Emirates’ consistent pointy end offering. Qantas, in its somewhat faltering revival efforts, and with Qatar also breathing over its tail, could do well to take note.

Our rating out of five

★★★★½

The writer flew as a guest of Albatross Tours with assistance from Emirates. See albatrosstours.com.au; emirates.com; myaerotel.com

*For more information about air travel and sustainability, see iata.org

**Fares are based on those available for travel three months from the time of publication and subject to change.