Etihad Reviews 

If we could, I would give no stars for this awful company. We’ve booked our trip to go to the Maldives and have since received a refund for our holiday provider. We were due to travel 2nd May from London Heathrow And we had paid and pre-booked our seat selection £374 directly with you . After many phone calls to yourselves it’s been agreed that we can have a refund but it will take 45 days to get this refund. That is absolutely outrageous. We will never fly with you again .

May be the flights are luxury, but the customerservice is more than bad. They changed my itinery to a flight schedule what eas impossible for me so I had to rebook to another airline. Their chatservice guide you in a loop from messenger to their ownchat and back. Also very difficult to tell them what happens when a flight is rebooked to another airline, the original flight with Etihad is than no longer active and out of the system, so they can not help you because they can not find your data/booking. I just want a refund for the seats I reserved, Etihad made me rebook the flight because they changed the itinery. So whos is to blame!

Appalling airline. you book a flight thinking it will be a nice new plane, instead you get a Vamos plane from God only knows what year ? You could at least warn passengers that is is not Etihad? when you check in the system forces you to buy a seat, if you dont buy a seat it will automatically assign the middle seat. It is basically the new Ryanair of the middle east. When i boarded Vamos, the toilet was black, literally black! then to finish things in style when I go to use the folder where the magazines are kept my hand touches a massive chewing gum that someone else had left and something that looked like cheese. I will avoid as much as possible

Fail to mention they don't have a dedicated lounge at Manchester Airport, the lounge doesn't open till 3am. Then wanted to charge for WiFi even for Business Class tickets on newer aircraft. Again something else that is hidden in the small print somewhere, but not mentioned when booking a ticket. No transparency. Then it's impossible to contact them for answers.

Booked and paid directly with Etihad for a business class return trip from London Heathrow to Denpasar via AD. Outbound trip was cancelled due to Iran / US / Israeli conflict, but managed to get to DPS using Thai Airways, and returned on Etihad.

Cannot get a refund from Etihad at all for the cancelled outbound flight. No calls returned, no emails returned, nothing. Have used Etihad for years, but never again.

Re booked my ticket staff was very friendly
In Hyderabad specially Rajeshwari support
Overall staff was so friendly
Thanks Eithad
Ramesh Ragula

A crew member called Chonlada went above and beyond helping an elderly lady on our business class flight. We flew from Sydney to Adu Dhabi on 25th March 2026.
Chonlada was very patient and helpful with everyone on board, but her kindness to the elderly lady made me want to write this review.

I am extremely disappointed with Etihad Airways. My flight was cancelled due to the situation, and I requested a refund for my unused ticket portion.

I have been waiting since March 8, and still there is no proper response or refund update from the airline. The communication is very poor and there is no clear timeline given.

For an international airline, this level of customer service is unacceptable. Passengers are left completely in the dark after cancellations.

I expect better transparency and faster action, especially when the issue is not caused by the customer.

This has been one of the most frustrating experiences I have ever had with any airline.
My father’s checked bag has now been missing for over a week and despite repeated attempts, there has been virtually no support from the airline. Calls to both listed Chicago numbers (773-231-0778 and 773-598-4260) go unanswered, and voicemails - despite leaving dozens, have not been returned even once!

At the airport, it’s nearly impossible to find an open counter or any Etihad staff. I had to visit 4 separate times just to speak to someone. Even after clearly explaining that the bag contains prescription medications my father needs daily, there has been no sense of urgency or accountability from the airline.

We were told the bag had been located and would be routed back, but there has been zero follow-up or any communication, forget proactive communication. Promises are made and not kept.

While baggage delays can happen, the complete lack of responsiveness and ownership from Etihad is absolutely unacceptable! This has been an extremely stressful and disappointing experience!

Appauling customer service- flights cancelled and zero sh**s given about the inconveience or stress.

Vouchers offerred only, but wouldnt even cover one flight with etihad- Avoid and do not use

Etihad cancelled my flight. Left me stranded & I cannot get ANY response from them. Several weeks later & nothing.
At Abu Dhabi they were conspicuously absent & the only rep I spoke to was very rude & dismissive.
I have tried to email them, phone them but it is impossible to reach them.
Disgusted with their "service".
Beware if you travel with them.

Cancelled flights and left us abandoned in Male. 6 weeks later- still waiting for our refund for choosing our own seats on 2 flights which we never flew on. You expect this sort of penny pinching from Ryan air not Etihad but they are behaving like a budget airline. Emirates from now on. Just refund my money please.

Terrible terrible customer services with added disability discrimination.
Be mindful of that before you pay out your money .

Due to the situation in Middle East our flight from Amsterdam - Seychelles was postponed and cancelled. although Etihad need to provide you an alternative, and of course with respect for the situation, it took us at least 10x calling and more than 6 hours before the provide us an alternative. also alternatives of other companies they need to provide (European law) but they didn't. Our alternative was later than normal trip and from London off. So we had to book extra tickets ams-london and also our hotel that was already booked and our trip, we lost days and costs because it was already paid. so extra 1100 euro. Also for this they prommissed a compensation and solution but after weeks of waiting, all the info they asked me to deliver, they didn't compensate anything. Than at least save me all this work and don't promise... If I don't have to I will never fly with them again. experience with emirates is 10x better.

I am extremely disappointed with my recent flight from Abu Dhabi to Cyprus with Etihad Airways.

For a 6–7 hour flight, I received:
- NO functioning in-flight entertainment (even the QR system did not work)
- Air conditioning was NOT turned on at the beginning of the flight
- Seats were extremely uncomfortable, with visible damage and exposed foam
- Food consisted of ONE sandwich only (cheese or chicken). I do not eat cheese, so I was effectively left without a proper meal for the entire flight

This is not a low-cost airline. Tickets on this route are expensive—yet the service was worse than budget standards.

What is even more disappointing is how Etihad handled the complaint. They dismissed everything by saying “no issues were reported onboard” and refused compensation without proper investigation. Then they simply closed the case.

This level of service and customer care is completely unacceptable for an airline that claims to be among the best in the world.

I have photographic evidence of the seat condition and the overall situation.

I would strongly advise others to reconsider before flying this route with Etihad.

I am sharing my experience regarding a recent booking with Etihad Airways (reference 96%%HC), which I made in good faith based on the information presented during the booking process.

To be clear, I fully understand and accept the Stopover Programme Terms & Conditions, which indicate that complimentary stays are limited to two nights. My concern is not about the rules themselves, but about how the offer was presented at the final stage of booking.

During the final payment summary, the page clearly displayed:

A 3-night stopover in Abu Dhabi
A specific hotel (Grand Hyatt Abu Dhabi / Emirates Pearl Residences)
The hotel marked as “Gratuit” (Free)
No additional charge shown for the third night

Based on this final page, I reasonably understood that all three nights were included. This presentation directly influenced my decision to proceed with the booking. I also captured screenshots at the time to document exactly what was shown.

After booking, I was informed that only two nights were complimentary and that the third night would incur an additional cost (approximately €539). Customer support later explained that the screen referred only to flight information, despite the hotel being displayed and marked as free.

My concern is therefore about the final booking page presentation, which created a clear impression that the 3-night hotel stay was included, even though the Terms & Conditions state otherwise.

To illustrate: if a final checkout page shows a product included at no extra cost, customers naturally rely on that final representation when making a purchase decision. That is what happened in my case.

Despite several exchanges and an escalation, the responses have remained unchanged. I remain hopeful that Etihad Airways will review this case and provide a fair resolution.

After 3 months of discussions in loop without proper escalation, I am sharing this experience so that other travellers carefully review stopover offers and consider taking screenshots during the booking process.

I will update this review if a satisfactory resolution is reached.

Had to create an account just to share this.

This is, without question, the worst experience I’ve had with an airline in over 35 years.

On the day of our departure, my pregnant wife suddenly developed severe pain and premature contractions at the airport. Within hours of the flight, we were forced to rush to the emergency room.

At the hospital, three different doctors examined her and confirmed she was not fit to fly. They made it very clear that if she had boarded that plane, she would have been at serious risk of losing our baby due to imminent premature birth and complications such as preeclampsia. They also emphasised the fact that my wife herself could have died too. This was not a minor issue. It was a life-threatening emergency requiring immediate medical attention.

We informed the airline from the very moment this happened and provided official medical documents detailing the situation and the risks involved.

Despite this, Etihad refused both a refund and any form of rebooking.

My wife is still in the hospital as I write this.

I am genuinely struggling to understand how a situation involving a pregnant woman at risk of losing her baby can be dismissed as “not a valid medical reason” for a waiver.

This is not a minor inconvenience or a simple no-show. We are talking about a medical emergency where two lives were at risk. I am genuinely questioning whether Etihad considers it acceptable to risk a scenario where a pregnant woman and her unborn child could die onboard, rather than simply offering a refund or a reasonable alternative.

Completely unacceptable.

Horrible customer service. Hours on the phone a zero help always needing to pay more ! Choose any other airline

I had a great trip with all details working and a great staff energy

I recently traveled from London to Kochi (via Abu Dhabi) with Etihad in January, and it was, without exaggeration, one of the most disappointing and stressful travel experiences of my life. As a traveler with an infant, I chose a "full-service" airline specifically to ensure comfort, but what I received was a masterclass in deceptive service and cost-cutting at the expense of passenger well-being.

The "Bait and Switch" Outbound Leg:
Upon arrival in Abu Dhabi, I was shocked to find that my connecting flight to Kochi was operated by Akasa Air, not Etihad. There was zero prior notification of this switch. Being moved from a full-service carrier to a cramped, low-cost budget airline is a massive degradation of service. For a parent with an infant, this was unacceptable. The aircraft was tiny, with virtually no legroom, making it physically impossible to manage the needs of my child. Etihad essentially sold me a premium ticket and provided a budget product—a textbook "bait and switch."

The Return Leg: Paid for Comfort, Received Misery:
For the return journey (Kochi to Abu Dhabi), I decided to pay extra for specific seat selection to ensure we had the legroom required for my family. Despite the flight being operated by Etihad, the experience was just as poor.

Cramped Conditions: Despite paying for a "preferred" seat, the legroom was restricted and uncomfortable, mirroring the low-cost experience of the outbound flight.

Substandard Catering: The food quality was abysmal, falling well below even the lowest expectations for international long-haul travel.

The "Loot": It is disheartening to pay a premium price for "premium" services, only to be forced into an environment that caused genuine trauma while trying to care for an infant.

Etihad’s business model in this instance feels like "organized looting"—charging high-end prices while cutting every possible corner on comfort, transparency, and service quality. If you are traveling as a family, or if you expect the service level that Etihad’s brand promises, do not trust their booking.

I have formally requested a refund for my paid seat selection and an explanation for this decline in service, but I am warning other travelers: Etihad is no longer the premium carrier it claims to be. Save your money and book with an airline that actually values your comfort.