Etihad adds a 4th daily London Heathrow to Abu Dhabi service for Christmas

Etihad is adding a 4th daily service from London Heathrow to Abu Dhabi for the Christmas peak period.

Between 15th December and 13th January, there will be a Boeing 787-9 service daily.  On most days this will leave Heathrow at 12.50 (arriving 23.45) with the return leaving Abu Dhabi at 07.05 (arriving 11.00).

There is no First Class on the 787-9.  It has 21 Business Class Studio seats (see the Etihad site here, it is the same as the A380 Studio which I reviewed here) and 271 Economy seats.

Additional capacity increases are being made to other destinations such as the Maldives.  You can book at etihad.com here. In addition, if you are not already an Etihad Guest member, you can sign up here and receive 500 bonus miles.

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How to earn Etihad Guest miles from UK credit cards (April 2025)

Etihad Guest does not have a UK credit card.  However, you can earn Etihad Guest miles by converting Membership Rewards points earned from selected UK American Express cards.

Cards earning Membership Rewards points include:

• American Express Preferred Rewards Gold (review here, apply here) – sign-up bonus of 20,000 Membership Rewards points converts into 20,000 Etihad Guest miles. This card is FREE for your first year and also comes with four free airport lounge passes.

SPECIAL OFFER: Until 27th May 2025, the sign-up bonus on the ‘free for a year’ American Express Preferred Rewards Gold card is increased from 20,000 Membership Rewards points to 30,000 points. Points convert 1:1 into Avios (30,000 Avios!) and many other programmes. Some people may see even higher personalised offers. Click here to apply.

• The Platinum Card from American Express (review here, apply here) – sign-up bonus of 50,000 Membership Rewards points converts into 50,000 Etihad Guest miles.

SPECIAL OFFER: Until 27th May 2025, the sign-up bonus on American Express Platinum is increased from 50,000 Membership Rewards points to a huge 80,000 points. Points convert 1:1 into Avios (80,000 Avios!) and many other programmes. Some people may see even higher personalised offers. Click here to apply.

• American Express Rewards credit card (review here, apply here) – sign-up bonus of 10,000 Membership Rewards points converts into 10,000 Etihad Guest miles. This card is FREE for life.

Membership Rewards points convert at 1:1 into Etihad Guest miles which is an attractive rate.  The cards above all earn 1 Membership Rewards point per £1 spent on your card, which converts to 1 Etihad Guest mile.

The American Express Preferred Rewards Gold card earns double points (2 per £1) on all flights you charge to it, not just with Etihad but with any airline.