Review: American Airlines Business Class LAX - PVG Review: PVG Cathay Pacific Lounge Review: Dragonair Business Class PVG - HKG Review: Andaz Xintiandi Shanghai Review: Grand Hyatt Shanghai Review: Hyatt Regency Suzhou I have already written about my flight experience on American after being upgraded from Business class to First class on the reverse of this flight (Shanghai to Los Angeles) here, but despite the fact that I've flown this flight in Business multiple times now, I haven't had a chance to review it yet. I took this particular flight back in March and it was my second time flying this route. In all honesty, I do my best to fly Cathay Pacific when traveling to Shanghai, but sometimes it isn't within my budget, so I resort to flying American. American Airlines #183 Los Angeles (LAX) - Shanghai (PVG) Friday, March 20th, 2015 10:55 AM - 4:10 PM (+1) Boeing 777-200: Seat 11H (Business Class) I fly to Shanghai for business quite often and since I am loyal to oneworld, I will often get stuck flying American Airlines metal internationally. I will admit that in some cases, i.e. when a route has a 777-300 or uses the newest American Airlines Business class layout, flying American internationally is not bad, but this particular route is a bit rough with the extremely dated 777-200. American Airlines boards even this international flight directly out of American's terminal 4 at LAX, which is a bit of a nightmare to begin with because none of the boarding areas are really large enough to comfortably support such a large group of people. It's also disappointing because Tom Bradley International is the nicest terminal at LAX and terminal 4 is probably the worst, but I digress. Once boarding, the first thing you will notice is how extremely old the airplane looks. The seats are caked in years of grime and unfortunately, nothing ever looks very clean. American's Business class on this route has a 2-3-2 configuration, which is less than ideal for an extremely long flight when you know you'll either have to disturb your seatmate to get up or they'll disturb you depending on where you're seated. Additionally, instead of being lie-flat, which is the standard for Business class seats on international flights, the seats are angled lie-flat, which is basically the worst when flying more than 12 hours internationally and preferring to spend a majority of the flight asleep. So, not only does every seat not have aisle access (standard in most international Business class cabins), but you'll be sleeping sitting halfway up as well. It should be said that as an objective reviewer, I need to point these things out, but I am honestly really appreciative that my employer will pay for Business class when flying to China - much appreciated! I grabbed my seat in 11H, which is an aisle seat next to the window and settled in. At some point during the boarding process, the flight attendants came by to offer orange juice, water, or champagne. I had some water and perused the menu. Due to the timing, this flight offers a "dinner" served at lunch time in the US shortly after takeoff, and a "breakfast" served in the middle of the night in the US about an hour and a half before landing. While waiting for takeoff, I had a look at the entertainment system and the seat controls. As you can see, everything is extremely dated. The remote controls for the in-flight entertainment are usually somewhat crusty and can be found to the left of the seat. The televisions themselves are pretty small compared to standard international Business class offerings and are completely stationary, so no adjustments can really be made. The good news is that American's movie offerings are quite good and on flights to China, there are usually around 40-50 (my estimation based on flipping through) movies available each flight. As I mentioned, the seats are angled lie-flat and the seat controls found near the armrest in the middle of the two seats are quite complicated given there's not really anywhere for them to go! I usually have a bit of a hard time getting my seat as flat as it will go, but then again, I usually struggle with seat controls, so maybe it's just me! Prior to takeoff, the crew will come by to take meal orders and sometimes will introduce themselves. Service on these flights is usually hit or miss, but I'd say more often a miss. The first time I took this flight, I had service items sit on the table at my seat for no less than 6 hours without being taken away even though I had given all indications they were no longer needed. After ringing the call button, no one came for more than 20 minutes, so I had to wait for my seatmate to get up, then finagle my way out of the seat without knocking things over, then just took the glasses to the galley and put them somewhere because it was clear that a flight attendant was never going to do it. Generally, US airlines never have service on the same level as Asian airlines, which I find very disappointing, but it's something I accept as a given. Shortly after takeoff, drink service began and we were offered warm nuts along with our drink of choice. The "dinner" menu read as follows: ... Starter Thai Chicken with grilled five-spice pineapple, watermelon, and Asian mint dressing Salad Mixed greens with artichokes, roasted tomatoes and feta cheese Entrees Peppered Beef Filet with thyme jus, smoked mac and cheese and haricots verts Cashew Chicken with ginger garlic sauce, egg fried rice, stir-fried vegetables, and baby bok choy Soy Glazed Halibut with miso sauce, green tea rice, snap peas and baby carrots Stuffed Portobello Mushroom with mixed vegetables, wild rice, sauteed spinach and roasted red pepper sauce Dessert Traditional Ice Cream Sundae with your choice of butterscotch, hot fudge, or seasonal berry toppings Gourmet Cheese Plate Black Forest Mousse Cake ... True to form, I ordered the peppered beef filet as my entree. In general, I somehow think beef is better than chicken on an airplane (up for debate) and I don't eat fish or like mushrooms. The starter was pretty odd. The combination of chicken, fruit and mint was a bit too weird for me, but I at least finished the fruit and some of the chicken - separately. I really enjoy this salad and have seen it on multiple American flights. They love to pile on the dressing, which is more than I would have liked, but it has a lot of flavor with the artichoke and feta, which is great. The beef is honestly never great, but somehow it's the lesser of the evils for me, so beef it is. In this case, it was suspended in a pool of watery liquid and the mac and cheese was a bit too smoked for my liking, but it was edible so I'm not complaining. For dessert this time around, I went with the ice cream, but I've since found that my stomach is happier if I skip dessert while flying for long periods of time - imagine that! As soon as meal service was complete, the flight attendants turned down the lights and straight up disappeared for the next 7-8 hours. Rarely have I seen them stroll the aisles to check and see if anyone needs anything and it's almost always the case that I won't see them again until the lights come back on and it's time for the "breakfast" service to begin. This is disappointing to me as someone who does not like to ring the call button and hates to be a bother, but would definitely appreciate it if the flight attendants came by every once in a while so that I could feel comfortable grabbing them if necessary. About an hour and a half before landing, the lights come on and the flight attendants begin beverage service. "Breakfast" meals are on the cart, so they pass them out after you order your drink. I decided to pass on breakfast on this flight, but the menu read as follows: ... Salad Fresh Seasonal Greens with bell pepper, radish and pepper cream dressing Entrees Broccoli and Red Pepper Strata with smoked chicken sausage and roasted potatoes Dim Sum roast pork bun, chicken gyoza pot sticker and shrimp shumai with e-fu noodles Dessert Triple Chocolate Cheesecake ... I have ordered the Strata before and it's really not appetizing at all. The egg is always over-cooked and all of the items kind of blend together, so it all has the same flavor. In general, I just don't eat anything before landing when flying this route, but I think it would be really nice if they could offer some sort of a la carte fruit or yogurt as an additional option.
Once the meal service is complete, it's usually about 40 minutes until landing, so I'll use that time to freshen up and collect my belongings. It should also be noted that American passes out Bose headsets at the beginning of the flight, which is very nice, but they start collecting them right about now. So a word of advice here is to always have a backup pair of headphones ready in case you want to finish watching that movie that was almost over before landing. All in all, this flight could certainly be worse, but I'm always so underwhelmed. Flying between San Francisco and Shanghai in Cathay Pacific Business is truly a world of difference and it's unfortunate that American doesn't even try to step up their game. Despite this, it should be noted - I have been told that in November, the aircraft will finally be upgraded to a 787, which I honestly think will make this a MUCH more pleasant flight due to the much nicer, newer aircraft and the fact that it offers a 1-2-1 configuration with lie-flat seats in Business. As of now, my recommendation is to avoid flying American international on the old 777-200 aircrafts if you can. American Airlines #182 Shanghai (PVG) - Los Angeles (LAX) Tuesday, August 4th, 2015 6:10 PM - 3:40 PM (-1): 11 hours, 50 minutes Boeing 777-200: Seat 2J (First Class) I've spent the past month in a whirlwind of travel for both business and fun. After a great two week vacation in Norway and Iceland, I headed straight to China for two weeks of work. On the way there, I got very lucky to have Business class essentially empty, (which was amazing given that American currently flies the oldest, worst 777s from Los Angeles to Shanghai and the Business configuration is 2-3-2) so I was able to have the row to myself, which was excellent. On the way back, I was crossing my fingers for the same fate, but they really did me one better and upgraded me to First! It was a last-minute upgrade because I boarded the plane and spent a good 20 minutes in my seat anxiously awaiting the moment the doors closed so I knew I didn't have a seat mate. Instead, a flight attendant came up and asked me to come with her to my new seat, 2J. Sweet. As of now, I'm about 10,000 points short of Executive Platinum for the year, so I was super excited that my status was finally getting me somewhere. I moved up to the First class cabin and saw that it was also empty except for 3 seats. Figuring it would be like my flight out where the plane was just mostly unoccupied, I was looking forward to a quiet flight in a lie-flat bed (since American's 777 Business has angled lie-flat). Unfortunately, the pilot announced a few minutes later that this would be a full flight and sure enough, the seats all around me became filled up with other passengers, including a very fortunate little girl and her parents. American's First class on the 777 actually reminds me pretty much exactly of Business class on Cathay Pacific's 777-300 or American's new Business class on the 777-300 (which really sets the tone for what you should expect of American's international "First class" offering) with a 1-2-1 configuration. I certainly wasn't complaining though because there is nothing better than an unexpected upgrade, so I was just grateful I wouldn't have to get up in the middle of the night to let my seat mate go to the bathroom. The seats were comfortable enough, but this plane is as old as they get. Every time I fly this route, the plane just feels so dirty, like the seats never get cleaned well. Unfortunately, First class was no different than Business in this regard. Similar to other first class products I've flown, the foot rest across from the seat actually has a seatbelt, which means a companion could dine across from you if you choose. While comfortable, the seat was literally the most confusing thing I have ever encountered on an airplane. I initially thought my seat was broken because the controls wouldn't work at all. Finally, I called a flight attendant over and she explained to me (as if I were a total moron) that the seat needs to be turned using this tiny invisible latch under the left arm rest into the center of the cubby in order for the controls to work. Um...how on Earth would someone know that's how they work?! Once I got the seat controls worked out, it was a struggle to figure out the television, which pops up when you push a button under the window. That was one thing, but then I couldn't for the life of me find a remote, so I found my first movie by pushing the screen, which wasn't super responsive to the touch. About 30 minutes into my first movie (The Age of Adaline), I finally located the remote under the right armrest - duh. Prior to taking off, the flight attendants passed out pajamas, which is probably my favorite thing about flying in First, because I feel awkward changing into pajamas in Business since no one else does it. The amenity kits were waiting at the seat when we boarded and were American's standard "heritage" amenity kits, but larger and more boring. There was also a Bose headset to use for the flight, but it should be noted that American is ridiculous about the Bose headsets and collects them literally an hour before landing in both First and Business class. As a result, I always remember to put my own earbuds in my pocket so I can finish whatever I am watching an hour before we land. The flight attendants had collected meal and drink orders prior to taking off, so once we leveled off, they began handing out mixed nuts with our drink of choice. It's somewhat interesting that they make an effort not to use carts in First - I guess because it's not as classy and special (and come to think of it, none of the other First class products I've flown do either), so everything was brought individually. I had looked at the menu when I was previously seated in Business and noticed that the First class menu was nearly identical. The only difference was the addition of one choice for a starter, an additional soup course (which I passed on), an additional dessert option (also passed), and slight changes to the wine list - better champagne and 1 additional selection each of white, red, and dessert wine. The dinner menu read as follows: ... Starters Steamed Lobster Claw, Shrimp and Scallop with mango chili lime salsa or Peking Duck Spring Roll with leeks, cucumber and balsamic glaze Soup Hot and Sour Salad Seasonal Greens with Carrot Spaghetti and Tomatoes Entrees Grilled Beef Filet with port sauce, potatoes au gratin, asparagus and carrots Roasted Duck Breast with plum sauce, egg fried rice and snap peas Ginger Scallops with stir fried noodles and vegetable medley Mushroom Wellington with mushroom cream sauce Dessert Traditional Ice Cream Sundae Gourmet Cheese Plate Warm Egg Tart Mixed Berry Tart ... I chose the steamed lobster claw dish for the entree even though I don't really like seafood. It was probably the smallest lobster claw I've ever seen, but it was fairly tasty. Then for the entree (as always), I had the beef. Airplane beef is never really good, but I don't like duck, scallops or mushrooms, so beef it was! After dinner, I watched another movie (Furious 7) and was feeling pretty tired. The rest of the cabin had already passed out, so I decided to get ready for bed. In any other international First class (ok, on Singapore and Cathay - I'm insufferable and spoiled, I'm sorry), the flight attendants practically forced you to allow them to make up a bed for you. Not so on American! At this point, the flight attendants have disappeared, never to be seen again until the "morning", but all the bedding is available in bags on the foot rest and you just recline the bed, then put down the mattress pad and blanket provided and you're ready to go. The bed was pretty comfortable and the mattress pad was definitely appreciated since you don't get that in Business. The thing I wasn't very happy about was the lack of privacy while sleeping. As you can see in some of the earlier photos, there is no barrier on the side of the seats, so when you're sleeping, you're very exposed to the aisle, which I hated. Breakfast came about an hour and a half before landing, but I wasn't hungry and the two choices were not my favorite, so I passed. The "Light Meal" menu read as follows: ... Salad Fresh Seasonal Greens with green peppers and Italian dressing Entrees Pumpkin and Mushroom Quiche with paprika potatoes and grilled zucchini Szechuan Prawns with fried rice, lotus root and carrots Dessert Fruit Parfait ... At some point during the flight, I went to use the lavatory and was confronted with this note taped to the mirror: I have honestly no idea what it meant or why it had any business being in a First class cabin lavatory, but there it was. It seemed like the note was inferring that the water was broken in the sink and toilet, but they worked fine for me, so I have no idea. Quite classy. While the lavatory lacked in class, I think American made up for it by passing out a small golden box of chocolates to everyone just before landing. They were excellent and I was thrilled with the unexpected treat. Shortly after, we landed without incident and proceeded on to the absolute worst thing about flying American internationally into LA - parking at terminal 4, then having to get on a bus to go to the Tom Bradley International terminal to get through customs, then walking back to terminal 4 to resume the last leg of the itinerary. All in all, I was thrilled to be upgraded without even trying, but American's international First class is not really much to write home about. As I mentioned earlier, it's highly reminiscent of Cathay Pacific's Business class in terms of layout and configuration, but comparing anything more than configuration to Cathay would be doing a disservice to Cathay's incredible service quality. American's flight attendants are largely disinterested and hole themselves up in the galley as much as possible (with the exception of only two cases where I have had truly wonderful flight attendants and service). This flight, the staff was definitely nothing special and even made me feel bad when I asked about the seat controls (although, in fairness, I'm sure they get that question all the time). If you get it for free, take this flight. If not, absolutely take Cathay Pacific Business. One thing I did find out at the beginning of this trip is that American will thankfully begin flying a 787 on this route in November. The American 787s actually do not have a First class, just Economy and Business, but given how mediocre my First experience was, I find that to be no real loss and actually look forward to experiencing this flight in the future on a newer 787 with the same 1-2-1 configuration in Business. Review: Park Hyatt Shanghai City Guide: 5 Things to Do in Shanghai Review: Grand Hyatt Shenzhen Review: HKG Cathay Pacific “The Bridge” Lounge Review: Cathay Pacific Business Class HKG - SFO Cathay Pacific Airlines #870 Hong Kong (HKG) - San Francisco (SFO) Thursday, November 20th, 2014 2:10 PM - 10:15 AM (-1): 12 hours, 45 minutes Boeing 777-300ER: Seat 19A (Business Class) After spending a little over an hour in the lounge, I headed to board my flight home after nearly two weeks in China. I was very excited to get home and also quite excited for my flight. I had flown from HKG to SFO just a month prior in First class, so I was looking forward to comparing that experience to Business class. For this flight, Cathay Pacific's Business class featured a 1-2-1 configuration with 40 reverse herringbone seats which can all lie flat - excellent on a long overnight flight. My seat, 19A, was located directly in front of the galley, which I honestly didn't love because there was quite a bit of hustle and bustle going on during the flight. Not only that, but since it was an overnight flight, the light from the galley which couldn't be completely obstructed by the curtain made it tricky to sleep without using the eye mask (not one of my favorite things). Overall though, I was extremely happy with the fact that I had a very comfortable seat and more than enough room to stretch out for the long flight. The beauty of the reverse herringbone is the fact that you really don't see much of your neighbors, especially if you're sitting in a seat on the window, since the seats all face away from each other and are staggered. The seat controls are intuitive and conveniently, you'll find a plug right there as well to charge electronic devices in-flight, which is always appreciated. Each passenger in Business class also has a set of Bose headphones to use during the flight and the televisions are quite large and swing out when you're ready to watch. Shortly after takeoff, amenity kits were handed out. The kits featured bags and accessories by agnès b. with toiletries by Jurlique including hand cream, lip balm, and day care cream. At the end of the flight, I also managed to grab an unopened men's kit while deplaning, so I was able to get a look at that version in addition to the women's. Just a short while later, it was time for the lunch meal service to start. Not long after takeoff, the attendants had all come by and introduced themselves, while referring to each of the passengers by name, which is always a nice touch, and asked for our entree selections. Once the service began, the flight attendants first passed out warm nuts and offered drinks to start. The lunch menu read as follows: ... Starters Cajun spiced prawns with green mango salad Mixed salad w/Italian vinaigrette Mains Sautéed pork spare ribs with Chinese sauce, steamed jasmine rice and choy sum Grilled Australian prime beef tenderloin on braised lentils with roasted pumpkin and French beans Yellow curry halibut with steamed rice and spicy green beans Mezzi rigatoni tossed with parmesan, zucchini cream, carrot and artichoke Dessert Pecorino, St. Paulin, Camembert, crackers and spiced pear paste Fresh seasonal fruit Sacher cake Coffee and assorted teas Pralines ... I decided to try the vegetarian rigatoni dish, which was pretty good. It had good flavor and was cooked well, which I appreciated and which can be difficult when eating an airplane meal. I also had to have a couple of pieces of Cathay's amazing garlic bread on the side. For dessert, I guess I was feeling gluttonous, so I had both the fresh fruit and the Sacher cake, which was great. After lunch, I watched a few movies, but I knew I wanted to get at least a little bit of sleep on the flight since I was arriving home at 10 in the morning in San Francisco and would need to stay up all day long to get back on Pacific time. I made the seat into a bed, which indeed does become fully flat, and situated myself away from the galley so as not to be distracted by the light or activity coming from it. The pillow and blanket you get are pretty nice and keep you warm while you sleep, which is something I always struggle with on airplanes - they are always either too hot or too cold. After a few hours of sleep, I woke up as the lights were turned back on with about two hours left in the flight. It was time for "brunch". The brunch menu read as follows: ... Orange or apple juice Mango and passion fruit smoothie Fresh seasonal fruit Natural or fruit yoghurt Assorted cereals Followed by Omelette with pan-fried streaky bacon, Lyonnaise potatoes, sautéed shimeji mushrooms and roasted vine ripened tomato Dim sum with chili sauce Shredded kwai fa chicken with bean curd skin congee, served with stir-fried rice roll with dried shrimp and spring onion in X.O. sauce Bread Basket Assorted breakfast bread served with preserves, honey and butter ... I chose to have some more fresh fruit, a croissant from the bread basket, and the omelette with bacon, potatoes, and tomatoes. You really can't expect much from in-flight eggs, to be honest. I never find them to be great, but I never feel like anything too savory in the "morning", so the other choices were out. The meal was fine and I was just looking forward to being back home in the US. Overall, there really isn't a better way to fly from Hong Kong to San Francisco than flying Cathay Pacific. Service is always prompt, friendly, and attentive, which is definitely different from flying a US carrier like American, where I have literally had hours pass without anyone stopping to remove extra dishes or glasses. The added bonus of lie-flat seats is perfect for a long-haul flight and makes everything so much more comfortable. I now quite literally go out of my way to book all of my travel to and from Asia on Cathay and I'm always happy I've made that choice.
Travel Planning: Fall in Asia Review: LAX Star Alliance Lounge Review: Singapore Airlines Suites Class LAX - NRT Review: Park Hyatt Tokyo Recap: Time in Tokyo Review: HND JAL First Class Lounge Review: JAL Business Class HND - GMP Review: IP Boutique Hotel Seoul Recap: Time in Seoul Review: ICN Cathay Pacific Lounge Review: Cathay Pacific Business Class ICN - HKG Review: Hyatt Regency Tsim Sha Tsui Recap: Time in Hong Kong Review: HKG Cathay Pacific “The Wing” First Class Lounge Review: Cathay Pacific First Class HKG - SFO At the beginning of our trip, we flew Singapore Airlines Suites class to Tokyo, so I drew a lot of comparisons between that and the Cathay Pacific First class experience during the flight home. Singapore Airlines has gotten a massive amount of attention lately for their Suites class, but you might be surprised when you find out which I preferred between what are considered two of the best First Class products in the world. Background We knew we wanted to visit Asia last fall since I had never been, and we had a few ideas of where we would like to visit, but in the end, we booked our trip solely around the premium award availability we were able to find on Singapore Airlines and on Cathay Pacific. We worked with Alex over at Points Pros and he did an amazing job - he booked us on our top two preferred awards - Singapore Airlines Suites class and Cathay Pacific First class. Both are consistently chosen as the best international first class products in the world, so we were extremely excited, to say the least. For this award, we were able to reserve two first class seats from HKG - SFO for 67,500 AAdvantage miles + $56.60 taxes each. Honestly, this was quite a bargain and I was very happy to be flying directly in to SFO rather than having to connect via LAX. However, the availability is what you will find most tricky when booking this award. Per Alex: "It’s been a LONG time since I’ve seen two first class seats this far out, and these are the only premium cabin award seats on HKG - LAX/SFO for the entire month of October," so we got really lucky! The Flight Cathay Pacific Airlines #872 Hong Kong (HKG) - San Francisco (SFO) Thursday, October 7th, 2014 12:30 AM - 10:15 PM (-1): 12 hours, 45 minutes Boeing 777-300ER: Seat 2A (First Class) We arrived at the airport quite ahead of when we needed to be there because our flight was so late at night and we had run out of things to do while we were waiting. We headed straight for the First Class check-in area, which is located all the way to the left when entering the HKG international terminal. The First Class check-in area is very large and has more agents to help than you could ever need. When we checked, we noticed that somehow I had been bumped from my confirmed seat, 2A. Since Chris was in 1A, this was a bit of a problem because we did want to sit near each other on the flight. The reason for the bump, I expect, is that Cathay typically reserves 1A and 2A for Oneworld Emeralds and I was but a mere Sapphire. However, Alex had worked some magic for us after we made our reservation and confirmed me into seat 2A regardless of my lowly status. After bringing up the issue during check-in, the agent was able to correct things and gave me back my original seat. We received our boarding passes and our lounge invitations and were on our merry way. We spent several hours in The Wing First Class Lounge prior to boarding which was luckily right by our gate by the time we were ready to board. A rather annoying aspect of boarding flights to the US from HKG is the need to go through a secondary screening once arriving at the gate so that it can be ensured you are bringing no liquids on-board the aircraft. Once we had cleared the screening, we waited for about 10 more minutes and then were allowed to board. This flight is flown on a Boeing 777, so it's not as exciting as the A380 double-decker we had flown on our way to Tokyo, but the first class section was set up very nicely. For this flight, Cathay's first class is set up in a 1-1-1 configuration with only two rows, so there are only six first class passengers. On our flight, four out of the six seats were full, so the middle seats remained empty. One of the reasons we pushed to get my seat switched back to 2A is that 1A and 2A are arguably the most private seats in first. The middle seats face the other side of the aircraft, so 1A and 2A each face a wall, which means you won't see any of the other passengers at all. The seats were large and plush with a footrest directly across from the seat and a TV, which could be pulled out, to the right of the footrest. The footrest could also be used as another seat if you want to dine with another passenger at their seat. It's also possible to place small items underneath the footrest so that you don't have to store them overhead, which I always appreciate since I don't like having to get up if I want my Kindle or some other device. The fresh flowers placed in the small vases above each seat were also an extremely classy touch. While these seats were not fully enclosed suites like Singapore Airlines, they were still extremely comfortable and since we were in 1A and 2A, we still experienced plenty of privacy. Despite how late at night it now was, we were both energized for the flight and were excited to get underway. Shortly after we boarded, the first class crew came around and introduced themselves and welcomed us aboard by name, which was very nice. A few minutes later, they passed out our pajamas, which came in a nice matching tote bag, and amenity kits. Unlike the Singapore Suites amenity kits, I thought these ones were much more useful. Instead of being filled with perfume and lotion, the kits had things you would want on a long haul flight: a brush, toothbrush, face cream, etc. Before takeoff, we were also offered a pre-departure beverage and an amuse-bouche, which had mango and some kind of shellfish along with a cracker. I don't like shellfish, but it was admittedly pretty good. I tend to nurse my drinks, so since I knew I wouldn't have much time, I just went with a water to start.
Travel Planning: Fall in Asia Review: LAX Star Alliance Lounge Review: Singapore Airlines Suites Class LAX - NRT Review: Park Hyatt Tokyo Recap: Time in Tokyo Review: HND JAL First Class Lounge Review: JAL Business Class HND - GMP Review: IP Boutique Hotel Seoul Recap: Time in Seoul Review: ICN Cathay Pacific Lounge Review: Cathay Pacific Business Class ICN - HKG Review: Hyatt Regency Tsim Sha Tsui Recap: Time in Hong Kong Review: HKG Cathay Pacific “The Wing” First Class Lounge Review: Cathay Pacific First Class HKG - SFO Cathay Pacific #0417 Seoul (ICN) – Hong Kong (HKG) Saturday, October 4th, 2014 10:20 AM – 1:00 PM: 2 hours, 40 minutes Boeing 777: Seat 14A (Business Class) Cathay Pacific is consistently ranked as one of the best airlines in the world, so I was really excited to try them out with my first of two flights on this trip. To book this flight for two of us, we redeemed 40,000 British Airways Avios and paid about $104. We boarded the plane and noticed that unfortunately were flying on an older regional configuration, which features 45 business class seats in a 2-3-2 configuration. It wasn’t terrible, since it was a short flight and I was sitting next to Chris anyway, but this route sometimes features a three class A330 with a reverse herringbone 1-1-1-1 configuration, which would have been very nice. The seats were also older and looked a bit worn, but they did recline and they were quite large, so they weren’t terrible. Anyway, the seats were fine, so we settled in. Within a few minutes, we were greeted personally by one of the flight attendants and we were greeted by name. Initially, I thought she must have looked at a piece of paper right before greeting us, but as the flight went on, and the same attendant addressed us by name over and over again during the meal service with no chance of checking our names - I realized she had them memorized. Somehow, she had memorized at least 22 names of complete strangers on a less than 3 hour flight. It was astounding considering that I often forget someone’s name within .5 seconds of meeting them. Shortly after leveling off, the flight attendants served drinks and presented both a wine list and a menu along with some warm nuts. I selected a white wine while Chris ordered a “signature” drink - a Cloud Nine. The Cloud Nine was described in the menu as “a refreshing combination of Vodka, Cointreau, and Sprite with a refreshing touch of lemon flavour” and was really good. The meal service began right after the drinks were served and we were offered quite an extensive meal for such a short 3 hour flight. Forget JAL’s one plate “get what you get” meal - this was a real meal! The menu read as follows: … Starters Korean ginseng and pear beef roll with mustard dressing Seasonal salad with balsamic vinegar olive oil dressing Main Courses Chicken bulgogi with steamed rice and Korean mixed vegetables Braised spare ribs, steamed jasmine rice and pak choy Pan-seared cod with tomato caper butter sauce, sweet pumpkin potato mash and sauteed spinach with garlic Cheese and Dessert Cheese Selection Fresh seasonal fruit Flourless chocolate caramel cake with whipping cream Tea and Coffee Pralines … For this flight, the meals were served from a cart, but the food was presented nicely and everyone seemed to get their selection without a problem. I tried to pass on the Korean ginseng and pear beef roll and just get salad, but they gave me both anyway. It had an interesting flavor, but I’m not a huge fan of ginseng or cold beef, so I didn’t eat much. The salad was also very basic, so there wasn’t anything too exciting there. Chris went for the chicken bulgogi and I had the spare ribs, which I really enjoyed. Admittedly, they were a bit hard to eat with chopsticks, but they were still quite tasty. Finally, we were offered both fruit and cheese which was followed by dessert - we both chose the flourless chocolate cake and it was absolutely excellent. After the meal service was over, we probably only had about an hour and a half left in the flight, so we both did some reading. Since the flight was so short, I didn’t try using the entertainment system, but Cathay has a decent selection of movies and TV shows as well as games.
Before we knew it, we were landing in Hong Kong and were itching to explore another new city. I really can’t recommend Cathay Pacific enough for an intra-Asia flight like this. It was comfortable, the food was great, and the service was impeccable. All in all, I was very impressed and was looking forward to our First Class flight home from Hong Kong in a few days. Happy Travels! |
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