Most of us dread long haul flights, the 13-hour journey, the 2-hour layover, the severe lack of foot room and most of all, the rock-hard seats that may as well have been crafted out of scraps from Stonehenge. In general, life on a plane sucks, and we wouldn’t wish it upon our worst enemy. So, when we heard the announcement from Etihad about a cabin that might put an end to all our gripes, we were definitely intrigued… and minor drooling, yes, a little salivation happened.
Featuring all the amenities of a small apartment, ‘Residence’ is now what they’re calling it – a first class cabin complete with your own full-sized bed, a living area (!), a private ensuite bathroom, and even a lobby for social gatherings and some champagne since you know, we party in the air like we just don’t care.
For those wondering, (and we know you are!) the price estimate for a Residence will cost about USD20k for a trip from Abu Dhabi to London, which is 6 hours and 41 minutes, to be precise. Not exactly long haul, but not exactly super expensive either, especially when you hear that the seats feature the same leather as a Ferrari and you get your very own butler.
According to the airline, there will be only 10 planes to offer the Residence come December, and there will only be one Residence per plane. Is it akin to getting your own private jet? Well, no. Taking some figures from privatejetcosts.net, where a private hire will cost you anywhere from USD5k/hr for a small jet to USD12k/hr for large jet, the Residence starts to look quite affordable, depending on your needs.
However, if you are more a solo traveler, consider their First Class apartment instead with lots of legroom, a full-sized bed and even a mini chaise lounge for kicks.
If you must settle for either Business class or even (gasp!) Economy, fear not. The airline went for an equal opportunity upgrading and did up their Business class to look like this:
And their Economy seats now are ‘smarter’ with an ergonomic, adjustable headrest.
While we don’t expect to collect enough miles for a Residence in this lifetime, we do look forward to living vicariously through the likes of Madonna and Beyonce, the ones who are more likely to use it.
What of it, nomads? Would you splurge for a Residence?
Main photo credit: 1
Photo credits all from here.
