Etihad's Maria Lorraine Fernandes, Tanya Concessao & Sandhya D'Mello
James Mueller, Etihad's SVP Global Sales
Huntington's Kiran Budhdev & Surjit Babra of SkyLink
One of Etihad's beautiful flight attendants
Live entertainment & the iconic backdrop
GTAA's Selma Lussemberg, V.P. of Governance & Howard Eng, President & CEO
We were promised a special visit from Etihad Airways’ President & CEO James Hogan. But unfortunately, with some last minute changes, the man of the hour was unable to attend the airline’s VIP appreciation event held at Toronto’s uber luxe Four Seasons Hotel. No matter, the show must go on… and it did! It was quite the celebratory evening.
150 guests were in attendance, including government officials, ambassadors, corporate partners, members of the travel trade and trade partners. The festivities quickly picked up as drinks from the open bar were flowing and guests helped themselves to dainty hors d’ouevres and a sweet table. The musical entertainment was superb and it was all set to an iconic backdrop featuring both our CN Tower and the Etihad Towers – a great representation of the airline’s relationship with the city.
I bumped into Huntington Travel Group’s Kiran Budhdev who recently returned from a short business trip to Abu Dhabi and experienced the airline’s renowned service in its Pearl Business Class. “I would never fly any other way,” he said. “For me, I’m always working. My business trip was only 2 days, but during the 13½ hr. flight, I had time to relax; I watched 4 movies; drank good wine and read a book. The flight itself was a vacation for me.”
“If you’ve never been to Abu Dhabi, you must come and visit. If you’ve been before, you must come again because it is constantly changing,” said James Mueller, Etihad’s Senior V.P. Global Sales. “Abu Dhabi is the gateway to the Middle East and surrounding regions, and Etihad is linking Toronto to the rest of the world. Not just Toronto, with our codeshare partner Air Canada, we are linking all of Canada to the rest of the world.”
Toronto was the airline’s 1st North American destination when the route launched in 2005. And this May, premium passengers or guests holding Gold Elite cards will be invited to enjoy YYZ’s Air Canada Lounge. Later this year, the airline is expected to take delivery of both its 1st Boeing 787 and Airbus A380.
I too get to experience Etihad's Pearl Business Class. Too bad, Abu Dhabi is not my final destination.
