May 20, 2019

Review: Cathay Pacific Business Class

I recently flew Cathay Pacific business class from Sydney to Hong Kong on an A330 and then on to New York on a 777-300er.

The Seat

Cathay’s business class seat on their A330 and 777 aircraft is absolutely awesome! The herringbone layout and 1-2-1 configuration allows a fantastic sense of privacy and the storage space and ample surfaces make it really easy to set yourself up and get comfortable for a long flight (HKG-JFK is around 16 hours).

(IMAGE FROM TRAVELLER.COM.AU)

Cathay don’t offer mattress pads like some of their competitors but when flat, the seat makes a very comfy bed. The pillows and blankets are great and I managed a good few hours of sleep on both legs.

As I was travelling with my partner, we chose seats in the middle section of the cabin. The seats can track forward when they’re in the upright position to make conversation easy. When travelling on your own, any seat in the cabin would allow you sufficient privacy. Solo travellers will find that a big plus.

Really, the only complaint I can muster with regards to the seat is that the IFE screen doesn’t tilt. This means that watching a movie isn’t very enjoyable when you have the seat fully flat. A minor gripe though, as there are still plenty of comfortable positions to watch TV in.

The Service

The service was efficient and professional. Meals were offered in courses off trolleys and were fantastic. The drinks menu was pretty comprehensive, with a couple of exceptional options. Cathay serves a couple of signature cocktails that were an unexpected treat and they serve Johnny Walker Gold Label, definitely a step up from the omnipresent Black Label.

Lounges

In Sydney, Cathay uses the Qantas business class lounge, which has a decent breakfast spread that tastes better than it looks and they have a coffee cart set up in the morning. There isn’t any sort of view from the lounge and it can get pretty busy.

In Hong Kong though, the lounges are absolutely stellar! They have four business class lounges (plus an arrivals lounge, which I didn’t use but what a great idea for those heading straight to meetings in the city) and two first-class lounges. I tried out The Wing and The Cabin, both of which served fantastic food, offered panoramic tarmac views and free-flowing Moet!

The Long Bar in The Wing was a killer spot to drink champagne and reflect on a great couple of days in Hong Kong.

Conclusion

I was definitely impressed with my first trip on Cathay Pacific’s business class and certainly wouldn’t hesitate to fly with them again. The hard product was one of the best business class offerings I’ve flown and the lounges in HKG were incredible!

Cathay Pacific can be used as part of Swiss Air and Lufthansa round the world flights, One world round the world airfares and also on their own amazing fares that allow round the world travel. If you’d like to learn more about Cathay Pacific round the world airfares.