Emirates Rolls Out Enhanced Services For Passengers Observing Ramadan

As the Holy Month of Ramadan commences, Emirates has announced a series of initiatives designed to cater to fasting passengers, both onboard and at the airport, reflecting the spirit of togetherness and generosity characteristic of this period. The airline has laid out plans to offer thousands of meal boxes for fasting passengers, screen an extensive collection of religious content along with popular TV shows on ice, its award-winning inflight entertainment system, and serve traditional Ramadan dishes in its lounges at Dubai International Airport (DXB).

In the Emirates lounges at DXB, passengers will be treated to traditional Arabic sweets, dates, and coffee throughout Ramadan. The First and Business Class lounges will serve a variety of hot and cold Arabic mezze, lentil soup, and main courses like Arabic mixed grill with tahina, and chicken kabsa with dakous and raita. Desserts will include kunafa pistachio cream, basboussa saffron, and walnut kathayef ashta, among others. These lounges are also equipped with dedicated prayer rooms and ablution facilities, providing a peaceful environment for worship.

Emirates Iftar Boxes at Boarding Gates

For fasting customers at select boarding gates during iftar time, Emirates will provide complimentary iftar boxes. These boxes will contain essentials for breaking the fast, including water, laban, a banana, and dates, ensuring a nutritious start after a day of fasting.

Captain Announcements of Iftar Time

Emirates employs a unique tool to calculate the exact timings for imsak and iftar while in-flight. This tool considers the sunrise and sunset times based on the aircraft's location, using its longitude, latitude, and altitude. The captain will inform passengers of the official iftar time at sunset, ensuring accuracy for fasting Muslim passengers.

Emirates Ramadan Meal Boxes Onboard

From 11 March, passengers across all cabin classes to select destinations will be offered specifically designed Ramadan meal boxes. These boxes, inspired by the Emirati heritage of the Al Sadu weavers, will include a variety of light bites and sweet treats such as hummus with spinach and Arabic bread, tabbouleh with baba ghanoush, and almond chocolate or Arabic baklawa. These special meal boxes will be served in addition to the regular hot meal service.

Supporting Emirates Customers on Umrah

Emirates will serve these Ramadan boxes on flights catering to Umrah groups travelling to Jeddah and Medina. Additionally, passengers will be entitled to check in one bottle of Islamic holy water 'ZAMZAM' of up to 5 litres per person at DXB and various airports in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

Ramadan Content and Popular Series on ice

Throughout Ramadan, Emirates' ice will feature special religious content in both Arabic and Urdu, including programs like Rehlet Hayat and Ramadan Mah e Rehmat. Over 6500 channels of on-demand entertainment will be available, including more than 550 channels of Arabic movies and TV, ensuring passengers have a wide variety of viewing options.

Ramadan Awareness Training for Emirates Staff

Emirates is also providing Ramadan awareness training for its cabin crew and on-ground teams in Dubai and across its network. These training resources are designed to ensure operational teams understand the cultural significance of Ramadan, recognise specific practices that Muslims engage in, and are prepared to offer the highest levels of service throughout the travel journey of customers during this Holy Month.

Emirates' comprehensive approach this Ramadan not only caters to the practical needs of fasting passengers but also enriches their travel experience by embracing and respecting the cultural and religious nuances of this period.