I flew premium economy on my long-haul Emirates flight. It was cheaper than flying coach at a better time and way nicer.

My Emirates preimum-economy flight was expensive, but it was cheaper than flying economy in this case. Ash Jurberg

• I secured a great deal on a premium-economy seat on a long-haul Emirates flight.
• This was my first time in premium economy, and I was surprised at how upgraded the experience felt.

I had to fly from Melbourne, Australia, to Dubai with only a few weeks' notice, and unfortunately, airfares for direct flights were expensive.

Emirates has three direct flights from Melbourne to Dubai a day at 9 p.m., 2 a.m., and 5 a.m. I wanted to get the 9 p.m. flight as it's the most convenient time to depart, but the airfare was over $1,400. The 2 a.m. flight was a similar price.

However, the 5 a.m. flight didn't seem very popular or full, and I found a premium-economy ticket for about $1,250, which was cheaper than economy seats on other flights that day.

Although my flight was expensive, it seemed like I got a solid deal for a premium upgrade. Rates vary, but I've seen many of Emirates' premium-economy seats cost $800 to $1,500 more than ones in coach.

Plus, I was actually looking forward to my 14-hour trip since Emirates recently placed third in Skytrax's overall world's best airlines of 2024 awards — and its premium-economy class came in second.

Here's what my first premium-economy flight was like.