The world’s ‘most exclusive’ first-class seat gives a real view into the lives of the uber-rich
Published on Aug 23, 2023 at 1:20 PM (UTC+4)
by Kate Bain
Last updated on Aug 23, 2023 at 5:56 PM (UTC+4)
Edited by
Kate Bain
A high-flyer has just revealed what it’s like to travel with one of the world’s most exclusive first-class tickets – Etihad’s The Residence.
Immanuel, who describes himself as a full-time travel hacker, just gave us a detailed tour of his first-class seat on board an Etihad A380.
And well, the word ‘seat’ doesn’t exactly do it justice.
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This ticket gives you your own little apartment in the air.
It has a private lounge for two, with its own dining table, and bar.
And in the words of Immanuel, “wait until you see this enclosed double bedroom”.
The Belgian, who lives in Australia, then takes us from the lounge to his private bedroom, and it doesn’t disappoint.
It’s a full-size bed, so you don’t have to contort your body into any weird shapes to get comfortable.
The suite also comes with a private bathroom, which Immanuel takes us through with champagne in hand.
“And yes, there’s also a shower with 10 minutes of hot water to enjoy,” he says.
While he doesn’t reveal how much he paid for the ticket, Etihad’s ‘The Residence’ can cost anywhere between $15,000 and $48,000 depending on your route.
Immanuel doesn’t always gate-keep the price of his travel, in fact, his whole TikTok page is dedicated to flight hacks.
Immanuel has traveled first-class with almost every airline you can imagine, explaining how he got thousands of dollars off the base price.
“I paid just $437 to fly Qatar Airways first class from London to Doha… a flight usually sold for more than $10,000,” he said.
“Here’s how you can do the same.”
He said it all came down to miles and points (which isn’t surprising really) but said the miles you choose really matter.
He urged people to shop around to find the best deal before buying miles with just any airline.
He used his Qatar Airways flight as an example.
“While you can use 89,800 Qantas points or 87,000 Asia miles, the better option would be to use 78,000 Velocity frequent flyer points,” he said.
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Kate is Lead Editor, overseeing coverage across automotive, tech, and lifestyle content on the site. She has more than 10 years’ experience as a journalist and news editor, having worked across a range of major publications including News Corp, Daily Mail Australia, and Sky News. Kate holds a Bachelor of Business Management from University of Queensland and a Postgraduate Diploma in Journalism from Queensland University of Technology. She has been with Supercar Blondie since 2020 and played a key role in establishing supercarblondie.com as a leading automotive news destination.
