Sam Huang had never imagined his flier miles would literally land him in the most luxurious situation ever. Using all his airline reward points helped Sam fly a $23,000 first class lounge for just $108! Yes, that happened. To fly from Sydney to Abu Dhabi, Sam redeemed 60,000 AAdvantage miles plus paid $108 to reserve a spot on Etihad's "Apartment" on Airbus A380 - the word's largest passenger plane. However, with a wish to tour Etihad's premier luxury "Residence", Sam emailed the airline asking for permission to get a glimpse of the most high-end suite there was. And while an "Apartment" ticket costs $6500, the "Residence" ticket is priced at $23,000. Since asking for permission was the only way to tour the Residence, Sam got much more than just a glimpse. He got to spend half-an-hour of his life aboard the plushest suite ever. Here, take a look at what awaited Sam on Etihad's first class. This was the in-suite bathroom - nothing like the coop found on regular planes.
Soon after Sam checked-in, the butler knocked on his door to take him on the tour of the Residence Sam had requested. And what awaited him was even better than the first-class Apartment.
This first-class bedroom was everything. "Instead of having a sofa that converts into a bed, The Residence is furnished with an actual full double sized bed," said Huang.
And this was the first class living room in the Residence. With a 27-inch TV.
Sam's thirty minutes in the Residence got over too soon before he was escorted back to the Apartment, where he enjoyed a glass of champagne, tucked in for a good night's sleep, took a hot shower, ate breakfast, and watched TV.
And then the dream ended - Sam landed in Abu Dhabi.