Jet Set Go!

Cathay Pacific has always been highly regarded for its incredible in-flight service, but up until 2007 their cabins had begun to lag behind.

A redesign, phased through ’08 has seen a dramatic change to their First product – a change, perhaps most visible in the cabin geography. Cathay have removed 5 First Class seats, moving to just 9 (the lowest of any 747-grade first class, that I know of). What’s left is a truly private, incredibly comfortable and exceedingly luxurious personal suite.

Each ‘Suite’, furnished with its own Orchid, wardrobe (I kid you not), soft pillows, Washkit and custom Shanhai Tang PJ’s is designed without compromise. Another ingenious design feature of note is the omission of overhead bins, as these have been incorporated into the suite, leaving a vertically spacious and airy cabin. As you are ushered into your own personal space, the incredible sense of privacy is the thing that hits you first. Sitting back in your chair, which is some 81 inches long (perfect for us 6+footers), you can’t help but think that you’re the only one on the flight, all but one seat is a window, and all are 80% enclosed, keeping you focussed on what’s important to you: sleep, work, a movie or a delicious dinner and drinks service.

When it comes to bedtime, the typical turn-down service is provided, only once I was tucked in did I realise that this was the first time ever on a plane that I was unable to touch my toes to the end of the bed.

Cathay’s attention to detail is particularly apparent in the bathroom, which is the largest and best appointed I’ve ever seen on a commercial airline. Not only did it have plenty of room, two windows, a porcelain bowl-style sink, it also had a full-length mirror, incredible.

If you manage to defer your attention from the excellent design for long enough you may just get around to enjoying the food and service, for which Cathay has been perennially celebrated. On both times I’ve flown Cathay First I’ve enjoyed the best food I’ve ever had on an airline. The In Flight Entertainment isn’t bad either, with a wide-range of on-demand programming and a huge LCD screen to watch it on.

Let’s not forget that all this is after having spent several wonderful hours in one of Cathay’s award winning lounges. The John Pawson designed Wing and Pier lounges at HKG are some of the best I’ve ever seen: expect typical Pawson-esque minimalist luxury, combined with Chinese hospitality – an excellent kids’ games room, dining room, private washrooms and long bar.

The saddest thing (as so often is the case) about this luxury is that it’s so impossibly out of reach. Both of my trips were on miles, and, with long haul First Class tickets on CX costing $8k+ it seems they’ve scaled the price along with the upgrade to the experience. If you do, however, manage to rack up a substantial (140k LHR – HKG) tranche of miles with a Oneworld partner I can think of no better way of spending them than on a trip to Hong Kong with Cathay. You won’t regret it.