This will be a short post, but I wanted to highlight the Etihad Airways chauffeur service and how I made it work for my trip.

When I first booked my flights on Qatar Airways, I planned to fly to Doha, spend the night in the Al Safwa Lounge then take a morning flight to Abu Dhabi where I would get a room at the Andaz and spend the day relaxing at the hotel (or perhaps see a bit of Abu Dhabi) before checking out and going to the Etihad First Class Lounge around 4pm.

One problem with all of this was that I couldn’t guarantee getting a sleeping room at the Al Safwa Lounge as there are only 12 and I would be arriving at one of the busiest times. The other problem was that I would then have to go to the airport (or figure out something else to do) after 4pm when my flight from Abu Dhabi wasn’t until 2:20am the next morning.

So, I rebooked my Qatar flights to include a longer layover in Doha where I could stay in a hotel. For some reason, I couldn’t get the evening Abu Dhabi flight to show up with the Bangkok-Doha flight on one itinerary, but I could piece together an itinerary with an evening flight to Dubai.

Etihad provides chauffeur service for certain paid First and Business Class fare classes, but they also provide it for First Class award tickets booked with Etihad miles. You can be picked up anywhere in the UAE and delivered to the First Class check-in at Abu Dhabi airport. I reserved the chauffeur service online through Etihad and was told that I would get a message via WhatsApp confirming my driver on the day of the pickup.

I received a message from the car service in the morning on the day I was flying to Dubai from Doha. When I arrived at the bus gate, I saw they had provided the name and number of the driver. I let him know I would be out soon as I didn’t have checked bags. When I got to arrivals, I didn’t spot him at first, but he sent me a picture of the Europcar counter which was near where he was waiting for me. I found him and he insisted on taking my bags and leading me out to the car.

I was driven in a six-passenger Mercedes van. There was water, charging cables and nice cold air-conditioning for the ride.

We drove past downtown Dubai. At this point, it was around 9:45pm. There wasn’t much traffic so we got to Abu Dhabi airport around 10:30pm. He dropped me at the First Class check-in area after a smooth and comfortable ride.

If I had taken an Uber, it probably would have cost me around $60, but not only was this a cash savings, but also saved me the hassle of going outside to hunt for my Uber driver. The communication was good throughout as well.

Don’t forget to use Etihad chauffeur service if you are eligible. I was able to re-work my award booking into Dubai and still use the service.

Up Next: Etihad First Class Lounge Abu Dhabi Review

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