Flying to Phuket onboard Etihad's 787 Business Class

Welcome back to the Cinematic Flight Reports and to part two of my journey from Amsterdam to Phuket on board Etihad Airways Business Class. My connecting flight to Phuket is bound to leave Abu Dhabi at 1.05 am, flying through the night and scheduled to land in Phuket at 20 past 10 in the morning with an estimated flight time of 6 hours and 15 minutes. Enjoy! Phuket. With its lush green islands and dreamy beaches, the so-called Mountain Jewel sits on Under the Phuket Sandbox Programme, international travellers were able to make their return in 2021. After arriving from Amsterdam on board Etihad's Dreamliner, I was left with around 45 minutes until boarding for my flight to Phuket would commence. Etihad purposefully scheduled its on-board connections in this manner so that passengers still arrive at their destination fairly quickly, compared to a non-stop flight. Once in Etihad's Business Class Lounge, I enjoyed another glass of Margot at the bar, which was stocked with a great variety of wines and other spirits. Shortly after, I proceeded to Gate 58, where another Dreamliner was already docked, a 787-9 in the blue Citizen's Livery. The gate area was already full of passengers, and everyone who had not used Etihad's Verified to Fly service now had to provide all of the at least 7 different documents required to enter Thailand. This was one of Etihad's more popular routes, as the plane would continue on to Bangkok after making the stop in Phuket. Despite deploring additional personnel, staff was quite busy clearing everyone ahead of boarding, leading to a roughly 20-minute delay. On board the aircraft, with the now dark outdoors, the warm colour palette came into full stride, and the lamp's golden light gleamed over every one of the 28 seats. With a slim divider in the middle, the four honeymoon seats add to the cabin's versatility by offering families and couples a bespoke experience with lots of personal space. Once again, I chose a forward-facing seat, cocooning next to the window for maximum privacy, and was greeted by both the amenity kits, as well as a glass of Etihad's Lemon and Mint welcome drink. Before leaving our parking position, a member of the crew came by to take my order. As this flight would leave Abu Dhabi in the middle of the night, Etihad offered breakfast with a choice of four mains, as well as ice cream. The beverage list remained unchanged from my previous flight, listing the same wines and various spirits, and non-alcoholic drinks as before. The menu, though listing breakfast, still offered total flexibility, so in case you're still hungry after dinner on the previous flight, you can choose the dish of your choice from all the available options, and create your desired combination to enjoy after takeoff. As for me, I craved some dessert and ordered fruit, as well as some ice cream, accompanied by a glass of Do's Colieta Port. All set with a fresh mask, the traditional travel prayer indicated that we were about to push back onto the tarmac. Etihad's Dreamliner was now born for Phuket, and we were ready to depart into the clear sky above. With sights of the illuminated construction site of the Midfield Terminal, we took off into the night towards Thailand. Departing Abu Dhabi in the dark always tends to carry something special. While daytime arrivals promised views of Ferrari World and other sites, today's climb towards cruising altitude meant looking down at the unmistakable mix of white and orange lights of the UAE's capital. After just a few minutes, I was served my pre-ordered menu items, alongside the classic mix of warm nuts. Etihad even had three flavours of ice cream loaded for this rather short flight, and I chose vanilla over chocolate and strawberry. Following my opulent dinner on the flight from Amsterdam, this sweet dessert combination made a great match before I got ready to sleep. Fruit, ice cream and port pair well anyways, so the 2002 Vintage did not only convince as a standalone. Surprisingly, even the Haagen-Dazs was soft and creamy from the start. You may laugh that I point this out, yet many airlines struggle with ice cream on board, especially during the first half of the flight, and tend to serve it as frozen brick that needs at least 15 minutes before you can start eating it. As for the bed, I once again freed the pillow and blanket from their plastic seal and put the seat into its fully flat position, revealing an even and 52-inch wide surface. Mattress pads and duvets aboard Etihad are long gone, so in order to make yourself comfortable, you won't have any additional items compared to a day flight. As you can see, only the seat's headrest is covered in poltron of leather, while the rest has a fabric finish. That really helps during the night, as the fabric is a lot more breathable and keeps you from breaking a sweat as you sleep. For additional comfort, I snatched an extra blanket and pillow from an empty seat and created my own DIY mattress pad. By choosing between the cool or warm side of the blankets, you still have temperature control when you decide to sleep. I then ordered a mug of chamomile tea and settled into the bed. Contrary to many other business class products, the back panel behind the seat actually has a purpose after the seat has been converted to a bed, as the clean and non-curved surface can be used similarly to a bed's headboard. This not only gives you an extra seat position, but also makes the space feel a lot airier than it actually is. Certainly a clever way to make the most out of the space available. And before I turned off the lights, I took a look at Etihad's e-books entertainment system. Both their remote control, as well as the 18.5 inch monitor and touchscreen, and browsing through the live TV options and 1000 plus hours of entertainment available, you will find a regularly updated selection of new movies, as well as some cinema classics. One does not simply browse through all available movies on each flight, and that's why Etihad offers a downloadable catalogue, so you may pre-select your favourites in advance, which I think is a nice touch. Lying down on this seat, although very comfortable, had one minor downside for me. Depending on how you position yourself, your left arm may slip off the bed, as it will not find any support on this side. Closing in on Phuket, the crew manually brightened the shades a little and let some light into the cabin. With a few extra taps, I was able to bring that window to full brightness and take a look at the clouds passing underneath. With about an hour of flight time left, the crew now started with the intended breakfast service. Following through on their wellness measures at the time, Etihad preferred to serve all choices together on a single tray, avoiding any unnecessary contact. For me, that included my pre-selected choice of stir-fried shrimp with egg noodles and bok choy, alongside the prepared warm breakfast bakery, another selection of cut fruits, as well as granola yoghurt. I'm a big fan of coffee specialties in the morning, so I was happy to order a cappuccino alongside a glass of mango juice. I absolutely enjoyed that with the shrimp, Etihad offered a dish that corresponded to the destination, instead of only sticking to the classics. And with the touch of a button, I brought my seat forward and got ready to dig in. Breakfast in business class for many flyers is an instant pass, due to the dull and often repetitive selection. Therefore, I must really say that by steering away from an often feared plain egg dish and offering both sweet and savoury choices, as well as a well thought of tray, Etihad today served a better breakfast in business class than some airlines do in first. Also, even this main course was plated by the crew in the galley, instead of just heated in a pot altogether. This extra care simply makes all the difference and speaks volumes about Etihad's service standards. And today, the result was a delicious, well prepared breakfast that I'd order again without a second thought going forward. In the meantime, we had already started our descent and passed the first layer of clouds. Time to take care of the final formalities before landing in Phuket. The arrival card made the eighth document on the list, and I really hope that going forward, this kind of bureaucracy will not come back. And since I already had some work to do, I took a few final notes in my own calendar, getting that out of the way as well. I ordered a final mug of hot water and made another tea just in time before the cabin was cleared for a final approach. For today's flight, I feel that Etihad has delivered a near perfect hard and soft product for the occasion, as far as perfect goes. I was able to effortlessly schedule all orders to my and could rely on fast, dedicated and personal service. On significantly longer routes,