For couples travelling together, I would strongly recommend the centre two seats, and the furthest back in the cabin. Beds could have been wider for sleeping. Have read other reviews about the lounge being crowded, but we were not there at peak times so we had it to ourselves.

I ended up in seat 14J in the rear-most corner of Pearl Business Class. The seat/bed was spacious and comfortable enough, but due to the staggered arrangement it's on the aisle and actually protrudes about 50cm into the Economy section behind. Unfortunately this is where the passengers with multiple screaming kids choose to go, so with the noise and the heads poking round the curtain, not a great overnight flight. I had a window view of sorts, but the section is right over the wing and I didn't get to see the sun rise because the stewardess insisted that I closed the blind. I would recommend online check-in the minute it opens, and reserving the furthest forward window seat.

Comfortable seat, private and flat when you want to sleep. Lounge in AUH nice, but too small during peak hours, so it's almost impossible to find a decent location to rest or eat or work. Only one shower available.

Almaty to Abu Dhabi - not bad. Obviously seat did not recline all the way. TV screen in the armrest between seats, good tray. A footrest was okay but my wife had to ask for more pillows as it did not raise enough for her. Overall not a bad business class seat.

Pearl class lie flat bed seats are excellent, if slightly on the narrow side. Other than that the check in service, lounges, boarding and welcoming atmosphere were beyond reproach. Food and wine was good with an excellent selection. AVOD excellent with a good size screen, a vast range of movies, tv shows, games and music CD's. The in-seat massage facility was a pleasant distraction.

The armrests are pathetic, I wish the designers would have to sit in their seats for 24 hours. The inner arm rest is about 3inches wide at the front, and tapers to 0.5in at the end, but strangely the outer armrest starts at 0.5 inches wide and tapers up to 2inches, so you have a very narrow arm rest for one side, most strange, why not just have a fat comfortable armrest all the way. The seats do go flat, and allow reasonable sleep, but for anyone over 5'9" it would be too small. The footrest includes a small area for your feet, but you cannot put your feet vertical, so is only any good for laying on your side. This is probably the most annoying thing of the seat design. The width of the seats are no where near what one might expect, but because the booth design is such that they are offset from each other, the width was compromised. When laying down, each shoulder was right up against each armrest. So, if you are of slim build and 5'8 or shorter, then fine, if not, then consider alternatives. New Business Class lounge in Abu Dhabi is good, if somewhat crowded for a few minutes here and there.

Sydney to Abu Dhabi and then from Abu Dhabi on to Milan and the same way return. The service was excellent and in flight entertainment expansive. My only complaint is that the centre seats are very narrow in the lie flat position. Upright all is well but lying flat, you are prone to knocking the person next to you. Not so much of a problem if it's your husband/wife/partner but otherwise a bit close!

Flat, very adjustable, nice size table, two lights, effective massage built into seats. We occupied the same two seats from SYD to AUH to LHR and return, in the centre and found them ideal for us.

Flat-beds a little on the firm side so maybe someone could come-up with an idea for some sort of underblanket to soften things up. Excellent new aircraft with well-stocked and clean toilets.

Excellent in every aspect. Great massaging bed seats. Lavatories clean and supplied with toiletries. One of us was upgraded to 1st class for AUH/SYD, which was only slightly superior, mainly the use of the bar/lounge at the front and seats a little wider.

The seats are in little staggered cubicles so all have isle access, and all face forward. Window seats are particularly private. Etihad squeeze eight of these across an Airbus cabin, so they are pretty narrow but they are long and provide defined personal space. The seat reclines to form a horizontal flat bed. There is a large screen on the back of the seat in front for the AVOD system. The only issue I have is that the footrest of the seat diagonally behind is on the same structure as your seat. So if its occupant is apt to tap their feet, you will feel it. The last window seat in the two-class B777 avoids this but it is missing a window and is close to the galley.

We had 7E and 7F on all 4 legs of the return trip. The seats were adjustable and very comfortable in all positions. In the lie flat position the joins were not noticeable unlike some I have used. These centre seats are fantastic when travelling with someone you really like but best avoided otherwise. The A330 cabin, with no centre lockers had a very spacious feel compared to the 777.

We flew business (pearl) class from LGW to Abu Dhabi and then on to Bangkok. Was very impressed with the cabin although the service whilst very good is not what you get in club world on BA. Seats on Etihad were very comfortable and enabled a good night sleep / cabin crew very friendly / food / wine excellent.

For sleeping, the seats are very good but not great, and they are rather narrow. For eating, working and reading the seats are great. Big table, adjustable distance to the table and very large screen.

 
Earlier reviews have been archived (prior to the date of last review above).