Hello everyone!
It feels great to be back with another report to share with you all. Here goes, my first ever trip on J class of Cathay Pacific!
First thing first, this trip wasn’t exactly planned ahead. My dad is a member of CX’s Marco Polo, and he had accumulated enough points for both of us to get a free trip to HKG. We redeemed the said trip with 36.000 miles + 315 HKD of Tax for a seat in Premium Economy. We opt for a morning departure because it is a rather flexible time for us to arrive at HKG before noon. Oh, and since my Dad don’t want my sister to be left out, he booked her a ticket separately too, since the miles weren’t enough for the 3 of us.
We took a taxicab from our house at 03:00 in the morning, and it took us approximately 50 minutes to reach the airport with a very friendly traffic along the way.
CX operates from Terminal 2D of Soekarno Hatta International Airport. We went straight to the Premium Economy check in.
I already checked in online, so we only need to drop our bags off. We stood in line for 10 minutes because a lady in front of us brought 5 huge paintings to bring back home. Anyway, the friendly check-in agent helped us, and told us that we got bumped to J class since the flight was overbooked!
MAN! What a great way to start the trip!
Anyway, boarding passes were issued, passed by immigration, and we’re off to our gate. Shops were still closed in the morning with the exception of Starbucks and some gift shop. Body checking was a breeze, and boarding was performed 15 minutes late. Still acceptable on my book.
I vividly remembered the last trip with CX I took (which you can read about, here), had it’s J class configured with a 2-2-2 layout. I googled for a bit, and found out that a 3-class regional flight of CX now offers Cirrus seat with a layout of 1-2-1. I’m so excited, I’ve been a fan of this seat since I first read FR intensely, and only dreamt about of flying with one. Until now.
My seat was 17G. Second to last row before the second part of the J class.
Man, this seat was everything I ever imagined it to be. It offers enough privacy without making you feel claustrophobic. Seat was very comfortable. Pillows and blanket were already distributed beforehand. Soon after, a cheerful male attendant offered a choice of welcome drinks, I opt for OJ to kickstart my day.
An Indonesian lead stewardess introduces herself and called me by name in English. I laughed it off a little and told her I was Indonesian. Maybe I look a bit like Pinay/Thai? Who knows :). She handed over the menu. Sadly for wine lovers, no Alcohol was served. At least not on the menu, since later, I saw my neighbor got a glass of Red. For starters, there were fruit, cereal, yoghurt, and muesli. For mains, it was Quiche, Dim Sum, and Chinese Noodle.
Being my first ever trip in J, I spent a ridiculous amount of time playing with the seat control. It’s fun!
After takeoff, pre-meal drinks were offered. I took freshly brewed coffee and a glass of water. Coffee was fantastic. I mean, I only drink Y class coffee all my life, so J class coffee obviously tops it off.
Fruit platter was given for starters; it has Kiwi, Blueberries, Dragon Fruit and Papaya. Everything was sweet, but I don’t like the fact that the fruit was ice cold, making it hard for me (at least) to taste the sweetness of it. No further complaints though, I finished it. Oh yeah, bread basket were brought, and I got myself a Croissant and a Bread Roll. Both of which were mediocre. Even the croissant reminds me of GA’s.
Then, Muesli and milk was my next choice, sadly it tasted average. But at least the milk temperature was just right. Not too warm, not too cold, just perfect.
The stewardess started to distribute mains, and I choose the noodle. The noodles were very tasty, and the meat itself was so tender, I had to use small force to shove it down my throat. In no time, everything is gone.
I played around with the IFE system and I choose to watch some movies.
Landing was on time, and it was smooth.
Great experience on CX!
Thanks for your report,
You're such a lucky guy to try CX in business class!!
Breakfast is so tasty and i'm sure that crew were really nice!
Yes, it was a wonderful surprise on a very good product~!
Thanks for another good report! Congrats on the upgrade to J! That's always exciting....especially when it's your first time and on a great airline like CX!
Great experience on board CX regional J class - Though it is a regional flight, this is the long-haul J class product--the CX Regional Business class product in 2-2-2 configuration on A333 can be seen in a recent FR by NGO85 here: http://flight-report.com/fr/report-11629.html
So you got double lucky! Not only did you get an upgrade to J, but you go the Long-haul J cabin on a regional route!
Beautiful pics throughout the report.
Thanks for sharing!
Yes, it was a great experience.
The long-haul J product is amazing. It's kind of interesting that CX decided to use Long Haul product on Regional flight!
Thanks for this fine report, you were a lucky one :)
Oh, and since my Dad don’t want my sister to be left out, he booked him a ticket
Her, not him ;)
oh my God, i didn't realize i made a typo. I didn't get much sleep while i made this report, no wonder i slipped a mistake :)
thank you!
What a nice report!
I know the feeling of flying Business class for the first time, it is very exciting! so I understand how you felt when you got on board :)
CX's business class seat is one of the best seats in the world, offering great privacy, space and comfort.
I do wish they improve their catering. It is disappointing to see CX and Thai Airways are the few airlines still serving meals in the same reheating bowl that was loaded on the plane, because Eva Air and Singapore and others don't do it anymore.
Even mainland Chinese airlines plate their meals and serve it from the galley, not on a trolley.
I know CX wants to save costs and its easier to show passengers the meals available, but I think it doesn't have a business feel about doing it that way.
Thanks for sharing this report with us!
You were lucky to get the long-haul configured A333 on this route. The Cirrus is much better than the regional product (which would have been almost the same as premium economy). You also got the advantage of getting the long-haul pillow/duvet. The cabin looks a little more squished than on the B77W, but it's still the same great seat. The IFE looks old?
no Alcohol was served
- I think I remember this was also true on a morning flight I had HKG-TPE. I think alcohol is available, but you have to ask for it specifically.
Catering on your flight looks better than average for CX. Your main looks well presented and it wasn't delivered in a ramekin that looks like it just exploded in the microwave.
I have always found the regional crews to be excellent on CX and your flight sounds no different.