Emirates has opened its Centre of Hospitality Excellence to external organisations across the UAE, making available the same training infrastructure it uses to prepare its 25,000-strong cabin crew for programmes that companies, universities and government entities can now book directly.
The facility sits within the Emirates Crew Training Centre in Dubai and cost USD 8 million to build. It includes a restaurant and lounge for up to 170 guests, presentation kitchens and eight technology-enabled classrooms. Courses run from one to five days and can be tailored to individual organisations.
The programme catalogue spans several modules: a foundational hospitality workshop benchmarked against Emirates’ own service philosophy; a fine dining module covering table settings, etiquette and guest interaction; a wine programme led by WSET Level 3-certified trainers; a gastronomy workshop run by chefs with international kitchen experience; and bespoke team-building formats built around culinary challenges. Conference sessions featuring Emirates executives on leadership and operations are also available, as are behind-the-scenes tours of training facilities including aircraft simulators.
“Delivering exceptional hospitality requires more than technical training, it demands a deep understanding of people, culture and service excellence. At Emirates, we have spent decades refining our approach to hospitality through continuous learning and innovation, delivered to millions of global customers. By opening the Centre of Hospitality Excellence to organisations across the UAE, we are proud to share this expertise and help inspire the next generation of hospitality professionals,” Thomas Ney, Divisional Senior Vice President Service Delivery, Emirates said in a statement.
Emirates traces the centre’s design philosophy to a 2020 partnership with Ecole hôtelière de Lausanne, one of the world’s leading hospitality management schools, which helped the airline develop a customer experience framework built around four principles: excellence, attentiveness, innovation and passion.
For Emirates’ own crew, the centre remains central to initial and ongoing training. All cabin crew complete an eight-week programme at the facility before their first flight, covering safety, medical, security and hospitality modules. As they progress through cabin grades and into leadership roles, the training continues.
One feature of the internal programme places crew on the guest side of service, experiencing a four-course lunch prepared by Emirates’ master chefs so they can observe best-practice delivery from the other side of the table.
