Emirates announced on November 9, 2026 that it is opening its Centre of Hospitality Excellence in Dubai to companies in the United Arab Emirates. UAE organizations can now book courses of one to five days at the center, and according to Emirates, government entities, universities and regional companies have already taken part since it began running external programs. The US$8 million facility was unveiled in October 2025 as a training facility for the airline's roughly 25,000 cabin crew, with more than 10,000 expected to train there by the end of that year.
The center sits within the Emirates Crew Training Centre and includes a restaurant and lounge for up to 170 guests, presentation kitchens, eight classrooms and a training kitchen modeled partly on an aircraft galley. It grew out of a 2020 partnership with Switzerland's Ecole hôtelière de Lausanne, which helped Emirates define its service approach around four values: excellence, attentiveness, innovation and passion. It opened seven months after the airline launched a 24/7 Crew Zone at its Dubai headquarters in March 2025. Organizations can choose from modules on hospitality fundamentals, fine dining service and etiquette, wine taught by WSET Level 3-certified trainers, culinary techniques with Emirates chefs, team-building, and leadership sessions with Emirates executives. Tours of the airline's training facilities, including its aircraft simulators, are also offered, and programs can be customized; Emirates did not disclose pricing.
Cabin crew remain the center's core trainees. Thomas Ney, Divisional Senior Vice President Service Delivery at Emirates, said the airline wanted to share expertise built up over decades: "Delivering exceptional hospitality requires more than technical training." All cabin crew complete an eight-week program at the Crew Training Centre covering safety, security, medical care and service; at the hospitality center, crew are also served a four-course meal of First and Business Class dishes as guests, practice plating, and take part in a three-level wine program introduced in 2024.