Etihad Premium Lounge, Abu Dhabi, UAE

If you’re flying from Australia to Europe via Abu Dhabi with Etihad, and travelling in business class, you’ll likely find yourself wiling away transit time in this impressive lounge.

The Airline: Etihad Airways.

The Lounge: Etihad Premium Lounge, Abu Dhabi.

Location: Terminal 3 (inside security).

Other Airlines: The lounge is open to Etihad Business Class guests, Etihad Airline Partner Business Class guests and Eligible guests from Etihad Airways Partner airlines. If you’re travelling in economy you can pay to use the lounge, and Etihad Guest Gold members also have access.

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Overview

After a long flight from Brisbane to Abu Dhabi, and with a couple of hours transit time to kill before boarding my next flight, I was more than thrilled to have a place to escape to. In spite of it being late at night, and my connecting flight departing in the wee hours of the morning, the terminal was absolutely packed. It is a reasonably nice terminal with plenty of duty free shopping, but it was nice to have somewhere to escape the crowds. This lounge is open 24/7 and intended for business class passengers - first class passengers have a dedicated lounge of their own. That said, the lounge was also busy; I was told by someone in business class on the flight that it empties out after 2am, but I’d already be on my way by then. The lounge was nicely appointed and staff were ]welcoming, and once I’d passed through the minimalist white and chocolate coloured reception area, I could see plenty of places in which to set yourself up for the wait, from large, spacious areas to cozy nooks. The decor was ultra modern, using a palette of natural colours from cream and white to chocolate and various grey tones, and a few splashes of colour including orange and aubergine. The seating was plush, there was lots of rich coloured dark wood, and there were nice decorative touches including globe glass chandeliers and shiny copper pots. 

Food And Drink

My last meal was some hours before, and it was my intention to sleep my way to Europe so I was more than happy to eat and drink something. As I explored, the food offerings didn’t disappoint, from light snacks such as wraps, sandwiches and fruit, to full meals which you self-serve from an international style buffet. Seriously you could eat a three-course meal here without any problems. This impressive buffet was coupled with a formal dining area and more casual seating. There was also a full-service bar, which was very tempting, and coffee stations offering cappuccinos or espressos, but I stuck to water to keep hydrated. In the end I tucked into generous salad to start, and followed it with some hot Indian dishes with roti and rice. I didn’t make the dessert table, but passing them by they looked delicious.

Facilities

Showers were available although there was a wait to use one. When I finally got my turn, the individual shower room was beautifully appointed with a shower, toilet and every amenity you could think of including toiletries and a hair dryer. Unfortunately, however, it was hot; it was over 40C outside, even at night, and the air conditioning was clearly struggling in this part of the lounge. Beyond the shower rooms, the lounge had the usual lineup of top notch facilities including a good selection of newspapers and magazines, fast and free Wi-Fi, plenty of wall mounted TVs, power sockets if you needed to charge your phone or tablet before your flight, monitors for checking flight statuses, and for business people, a business centre with individual desks and computers, along with printers and photocopiers. What was a little more unusual was the den with individual TV pods, which I discovered too late to experience, also a clothes pressing service and shoe shine service. There’s also an opportunity to re-energise and relax if you have time, with a range of treatment for a small fee including massages and facials in the Six Senses Spa.

UltimateTravelMagazine.com Loves 

• The choice of seating, especially the TV pods. 
• The facilities - they have thought of everything a traveller might need.
• The food, both in terms of the choice and quality.

Insider Tips

• There are a couple of Etihad Lounges in Terminal 3, and if you are arriving it would be a mistake to head for the closest one. The one I used was closer to my departure gate, which is around a 10-15 minute distance away.