Premium passengers on Emirates are once again able to socialize onboard as the airline has brought back the onboard lounge on the Airbus A380 for first and business class passengers.
The exclusive onboard experience is what sets Emirates apart from other A380 carriers. It was closed in the beginning of January 2022 during the surge of the Omicron COVID-19 variant, when the airline’s hub of Dubai experienced as high as over 3,000 positive cases per day. The airline resumed the onboard lounge service on February 11, 2022.
At the height of the pandemic, the onboard lounge reopened in October 2020 with additional health and safety measures. At the time, the lounge transformed into a take-away bar with limited seating capacity and social distancing protocols in place. Drinks and bar snacks were pre-packaged for passengers to enjoy from their own seats.
image source: emirates.com
The airline seems to have relaxed its protocols for the onboard lounge, as Emirates’ website said this about the onboard lounge of the A380: “Enjoy drinks and light bites while you share stories around the table, stand at the bar, or relax on the sofa.”
The onboard lounge’s reopening came after plenty of A380 flights have resumed its pre-pandemic schedules, the latest being a second daily A380 flight from Dubai to Sydney.