Emirates has inaugurated a new, world-class facility in Dubai, offering a luxurious training experience to nearly 25,000 cabin crew members, with a focus on excellence and the art of hospitality. The $8 million training centre features a modern space with a spacious restaurant and lounge accommodating up to 170 people, elegant demonstration kitchens, and eight classrooms equipped with advanced technology. More than 10,000 Emirates cabin crew members will be trained at the new facilities by the end of the year.
The Emirates Hospitality Centre of Excellence offers a range of advanced service training programs, inspired by Michelin-star restaurant standards. These programs cover fine dining techniques, high-level passenger interaction, and impeccable table service skills, enhancing the hospitality experience that defines Emirates. In 2020, Emirates began collaborating with one of the world’s top hospitality management schools – Ecole h?teli?re de Lausanne in Switzerland – to develop a new high-standard hospitality strategy, which proved to be a complete success. Today, the Emirates Hospitality Centre of Excellence is the symbol of this strategy, inspiring crew members to deliver the four pillars of Emirates hospitality in the skies: excellence, attention to detail, innovation, and passion.
Thomas Ney, Divisional Senior Vice President of Service Delivery at Emirates, stated:
“Emirates continues to elevate the ‘fly better’ experience for our valued customers. We have invested in the highest standards of luxury hospitality training for our cabin crew, enabling them to connect meaningfully with passengers and create memorable, unique moments. We are especially proud to offer our crew an experiential training opportunity, where they can personally try the food, beverages, atmosphere, and ultimately, the hospitality that Emirates is known for. This is how we empower a world-class cabin crew.”
Taking hospitality to new heights, the Emirates Hospitality Centre of Excellence offers a wide range of training programs and facilities to enhance cabin crew experience and engagement. The facilities will train both new Emirates crew members and experienced professionals who regularly participate in refresher and upskilling programs throughout their careers.
Fine Dining Experiences for Emirates Cabin Crew
Demonstrating the high level of investment and attention to detail that characterizes Emirates’ cabin crew training, the Hospitality Centre of Excellence offers a unique experience: crew members dine as guests, enjoying a refined four-course gourmet meal.
The fine dining experience is curated by Emirates’ top chefs and features some of the most iconic dishes from First and Business Class. The crew is personally served by Emirates’ elite training team, who showcase the airline’s unparalleled seven-star hospitality, leading by example and demonstrating best practices. Emirates’ seven-star hospitality philosophy focuses on enhanced crew guidance, aiming to embed authenticity, personality, and meaningful connection in every passenger interaction.
Personalized Culinary Workshops with Emirates Master Chefs
At the heart of the Emirates Hospitality Centre of Excellence is a purpose-built training kitchen that blends the features of a professional restaurant kitchen with those of an aircraft galley. There, cabin crew members are trained in the art of food plating by a team of experienced chef-trainers. Balancing textures, colors, and shapes, they learn to create dishes that resemble works of art, offering passengers an elevated sensory in-flight dining experience with Emirates.
Training in the Art of Service
The “The Art of Service” program is a communication-focused training seminar that goes beyond fine service techniques and introduces crew members to the essence of fine dining. Beyond the flawless use of cutlery, impressive plate presentation, and wine service, fine dining is a dialogue between host and guest. The program encourages cabin crew to go beyond the basic steps of service, pick up on subtle cues, listen with intention, anticipate needs, and adapt their approach to create personalized experiences. At the same time, emphasis is placed on developing savoir-?tre – the art of presence, self-mastery, and emotional intelligence – skills essential for effective communication with Emirates’ multicultural passenger base. This training was entirely designed by the Emirates team, following in-depth research and studies of practices in acclaimed Michelin-starred restaurants and leading luxury hospitality organizations worldwide.
Wine Training – L’art du Vin
The Emirates Hospitality Centre of Excellence will also host wine tastings and specialized events led by experienced trainers and sommeliers, based on the success of L’art du vin, Emirates’ wine training program for cabin crew.
Launched in mid-2024 at Emirates’ Cabin Crew Training Centre in Dubai, the program is delivered in a space that simulates a luxury lounge. It includes three intensive wine-tasting courses tailored to different levels of knowledge: L’art du vin – Introduction, L’art du vin – Business Class, and L’art du vin – First Class. At each level, crew members sample the impressive collection of wines served onboard Emirates flights, while also being trained in the history and origin of wines, as well as the art of pairing them with food, so they can offer top-tier recommendations to passengers.
World-Class Cabin Crew Training by Emirates
The Hospitality Centre of Excellence is the latest addition to Emirates’ state-of-the-art training infrastructure for cabin crew. Earlier this year, Emirates also opened the new Crew Zone at the Emirates Group headquarters in Dubai – a dedicated, 24/7 space exclusively for cabin crew. The Crew Zone offers training workshops, tech hubs, round-the-clock staff support, a beauty and wellness center, an interactive lounge, and many other services aimed at fully supporting the cabin crew.
Coming from over 140 countries and speaking more than 70 languages, Emirates’ cabin crew team is a point of pride for the airline, offering outstanding service, safety, and hospitality. Today, Emirates employs nearly 25,000 cabin crew members, all of whom have been trained at the renowned Emirates Cabin Crew Training Centre in Dubai. The initial eight-week training program covers all key aspects of the role, including Corporate Induction, Safety and Emergency Procedures, Crew Resource Management, Group Medical Training, Aviation Security, Grooming and Uniform Standards, and Service & Hospitality Training.
At the impressive training facilities, crew members participate in both theoretical classes and practical experiences, many of which take place in motion-based simulators replicating every aircraft in the Emirates fleet. Throughout their careers, cabin crew receive continuous training and have access to numerous opportunities for professional growth and skills enhancement.
Emirates is actively recruiting flight attendants from around the world. Those interested in joining the Emirates cabin crew can visit www.emiratesgroupcareers.com/cabin-crew
for details and to find the schedule of Open Days in their city.
