Business class review on Emirates' 777: to be absolutely avoided like the plague

The beauty of being a paying passenger and not a marketeering influencer is that I can always freely express my honest opinion.

Specifications

Aircraft:

777/300

Class:

Business

Treat:

BKK - DXB

Price:

620€

Book

The question I am most asked is "what is the best company in the world?" my answer is always the same "There is no such thing as the best company, there are only the best cabins and no one beats economy class on Emirates' A380".

By the same yardstick, however, the one I am about to review is. the worst business class flying around the world today, including Italy, and I think I even took it on the worst possible route, but I could be wrong about that.

Yes I know Emirates is renewing this fleet. e I have already flown and reviewed on the new business class installed on 777s, but that doesn't take away from the fact that this model still flies and will still fly a lot, and so I thought it was only fair to show in Italian, because obviously the web is full of reviews in all languages, how to fly business class that today regularly leaves from Bologna, Rome and Venice because only Milan Malpensa has only A380-operated flights where, on the other hand, the music is decidedly different.

Reservation

I had to return from one of my usual trips to Asia. and so I set out in search of how to get home. As always on these trips, the goal is to find new experiences to tell about on the site and on the YT channel and then when I uncovered this note I decided to kill two birds with one stone. given that: the first leg was on this 777/300 and the second leg was on the A380, and given that neither of these cabins had yet ended up on my radar, I decided to detach this ticket by paying cash for it.

I also could have redeemed the ticket with Skywards points, but award travel with Emirates has reached really "indecent" costs and surcharges" when compared to pre covid, the comparison is quickly made. If the same itinerary in economy is found at 30k skywards and just under 200€ in surcharges each way, in business they are asked for the 120k miles and almost 750€ in taxes.

In the end, the ticket, which I paid just under €1,300 for, earned me a handful of miles and most importantly it was "full service" meaning I was also able to use the chauffeur in Bangkok and Dubai Connect and I could also have used the private chauffeur service on arrival in Milan, which with points is no longer exploitable.

At the airport

I arrived at the airport, took a tour of the new BKK satellite from which I had not yet departed. Let's say you have to factor in at least an extra ten minutes or so for travel on this terminal if you want to wait for takeoff in the main complex.

Then I headed to the new Emirates lounge, so new that the press release with the ribbon cutting came almost 1 month after my visit. Nothing new in this respect, Emirates operates the largest lounge network away from its borders and that's why, I think, he can't do the upward shot that we see instead, for example, In Qatar's few lounges around the world..

Small sore point there is no direct connection from this lounge through the bridge directly on board, as was the case with the previous lounge and as is the case in many EK lounges around the world.

On board

I knew full well what I would find on board, of course I could also have benefited from a sudden change of aircraft and found myself on one of the few refurbished 777s, but that was not the case. I have flown aboard these 777s several times before, but never in business class. I have reviewed The secret "suite" that Emirates has dubbed Gamechanger., as well as classic first class on iconic routes such as the DXB/MCT i.e., the first shortest class in the world. I have also traveled several times in economy and recounted for example the flight of Fifth Freedom between Singapore and Phnom Penh, but I have always avoided this cabin, and the reason is simple: it is not worth what it costs.

Whichever way you look at it this cabin is really bad, especially since we are in 2025 and until last year EK never thought of disposing of it. Of course there are also those who put 8 passengers per row as British Airways does on its A380s, but at least then you have a "modicum" of privacy and if you choose the right chair you don't have to step over anyone, Instead, here you are like in a sardine can where everyone sees everything.

The configuration is 2-3-2, this means that 3 out of 7 passengers do not have direct access to the aisle, while 4 out of 7 passengers will be forced to wake up if their neighbor wants to get up or be bypassed at night.

Then there is one seat that is the worst of all and that is the middle seat, in the middle row. That is, all the E seats in business class. You are the slice of cheese between the two slices of bread, you are locked in your loculus and you have to hope that your neighbor has taken a shower And don't eat the spicy menu.

In the narrow and with the cm exploited at 100% there is everything EK offers on other business classes, but what is lacking is personal space, storage, privacy, and even a few inches to stand a little wider. The small divider can be raised/lowered via the appropriate buttons, but if you are traveling alone you don't even have peripheral vision, you can only look ahead.

A kind of topper/ sheet is also offered to insulate from the seat when it turns into bed mode.

The chair reclines, but in this position it feels like being in the CT machine, to say the least. One is confined to a small box.

Legroom is essential and as in all other positions, you have the option of watching 3 programs at once, or if the neighbor leaves his TV on and you want to sleep you are obliged to use the mask.

Except for the area under the footboard and the seat pocket, the only storage available are the 4 cubicles (for three passengers) in the structure where at most you can put shoes.

Food&Beverage an absolute disappointment

I know, it's a night flight, but it doesn't count, when I found out that there was no dinner or light snack service available, a myth collapsed in my mind. I couldn't believe it when the attendant told me, "We only serve breakfast before landing," it had never happened to me and never again did I think it could happen to me on board Emirates. On a similar flight even Turkmenistan Airlines brought me dinner.

Of course now you could say "Barbone why didn't you have dinner in the lounge" had I known I probably would have, but I honestly didn't think there could be such a flight without catering on board. I basically had dinner with a small plate of peanuts, some chips and a couple of glasses of champagne.

Nothing to say about the breakfast, of course, however, the eye also wants its share and service by the tray and not by the plate was a further disappointment.

IFE

ICE is a guarantee, certainly in this configuration attention is at risk, since the two screens around are so close together that it is easy to get distracted and end up looking at someone else's screen.

Excluding security video, everything else is at the highest level. Content, live TV, free wi-fi, in this respect, it is better to fly on the 777, as A380s often do not have working wifi.

In conclusion

The service is always impeccable, too bad that EK on this route has decided to save on food.

The verdict

Emirates is (unfortunately) not just A380, the gap between this business class and the one on the iconic 2-story plane is embarrassing. The point is that there is no price difference between this business and the A380, so my advice is to avoid flying on this one and book the other.

4.5

Service

6

IFE

7

F&B

3

Cabin and Armchair

3

Pro

• The staff

Against

• No dinner
• The chair