Trip Report: Hong Kong and South Africa on Cathay Pacific (CX) First | Part 3

Part 1: How I booked it

Part 2: Kingston YGK-Toronto YYZ-New York City JFK AC Y

Part 3: New York City JFK-Hong Kong CX F

Part 4: Life in Hong Kong

Part 5: Hong Kong HKG-Johannesburg JNB CX F

Part 6: South Africa

Part 7: Going home! JNB-HKG-ORD CX F and ORD-YYZ AA Y

---

BA First Class Lounge – JFK

Cathay puts their First Class passengers in the BA First Class lounge at JFK. Note that BA First Class passengers actually use the Concorde Room, not this lounge.

On the whole, this lounge is ‘meh’. It’s a good business class lounge, but is not fit for First Class. Their food offerings were sparse, mostly fruit and some stale sushi, and they had no hot food. The liquor selection was decent, with Grey Goose and Laurent-Perrier on offer.

The business class lounge attached also has a dinning facility and a spa, but those aren’t staffed until 4PM, which is after the Cathay 2:50PM flight leaves.

Cathay Pacific First Class: JFK-HKG

To start, let me just say WOW! This flight was excellent: the service was extremely attentive, the food absolutely wonderful, and the hard product (i.e. the seat) is the most comfortable in the sky (even better than the separate LH 747-400 seat&bed!).

We were welcomed onboard the Boeing 777 with a glass of Krug ($278 at the LCBO) and a ramekin of warm nuts. We were then handed PYE Organic Cotton pyjamas, which are incredibly comfortable. The pyjamas come with a coupon to redeem for a free gift at a PYE location in Hong Kong (six handkerchiefs). The flight attendant was wonderful enough to give me a second pair as a gift.

The amenity kit is made by Ermenegildo Zegna, and is sturdy with genuine leather. It was bare-bone, but contained all the essentials for a long flight.

What’s awesome about Cathay’s First Class seat is the ability to convert the ottoman into a second seat, and you can have a proper meal facing your travel companion, like you’re at a restaurant. My partner and I spent hours drinking fine wines and eating the delicious food. I highly recommend the Hong Kong Milk Tea, which is addictive.

After two extravagant meals, I tried to get some shut-eye. The bed is absolutely amazing. I was able to snatch a second pillow (full-sized down) from a nearby seat, and the added mattress padding made this bed incredible. I must have slept for a solid 4-5 hours, and woke up and watched some Big Bang Theory on Cathay’s huge media library.

We landed in a stormy Hong Kong. Immigration/customs was a breeze, and our earlier through-checked luggage was one of the first pieces out. We then went to Cathay’s Arrival Lounge, which is located in Terminal 2 pre-security. It was small, and we didn’t spend much time there. I took a run for the shower, which was clean and spacious. Didn’t get any photos of this lounge, as I was only there for 20 minutes… sorry!