I flew 35 hours in economy on Etihad. My flights were surprisingly luxurious, and I’d gladly book with the airline again.

• My kids and I flew from the US to India in economy on Etihad Airways.
• The seats were comfortable, our meals were good, and there were plenty of entertainment options.
• It was a great experience, but I’d do things a little differently next time.

When my two kids and I went to India, I knew we’d be flying economy. However, I wanted to try to make the long-haul experience a little more enjoyable, so I splurged on flights with Etihad Airways.

The airline is known to offer luxurious, comfortable flights and famously has planes with first-class “apartments.” I knew flying economy wouldn’t match that experience, but I still expected an above-par journey.

Since I booked close to our travel date in December, which is already a popular travel time, our tickets were fairly pricey — almost $10,000. Luckily, I was able to use credit-card points to cover three round-trip economy flights from Washington, DC, to New Delhi.

Our trip was divided into four legs: 12 hours and 40 minutes from DC to Abu Dhabi, three hours and 25 minutes from Abu Dhabi to New Delhi, four hours from New Delhi to Abu Dhabi, and 15 hours from Abu Dhabi to DC.

Here’s how our 35 hours in Etihad economy went.