Review of Cathay Pacific flight from Singapore to Hong Kong in Business

A Tale of the oneworld Lounge Safari

On this trip, my wife and I were flying Cathay Pacific (CX) in Business Class from Singapore to Taipei, and then back in Economy Class from Kaohsiung to Singapore. For the journey to Taipei (via Hong Kong), I specifically chose CX714 departing at 1.45am on Sunday, with a specific plan to check in for our flight 12h before departure in order to try the “oneworld Lounges Safari” itinerary in Singapore Changi Airport. What exactly is that? Continue reading!

In This Report…

> Chapter 1: A Half-Failed Attempt at the Jewel Early Check In Facility
> Chapter 2: The Huge Qantas Singapore Business Lounge
> Chapter 3: Welcome to the BA’s Singapore Nightclub/Pub(?)
> Chapter 4: The Most Exclusive Business Class Lounge in SIN
> Chapter 5: A Faraway Land Lounge
> Chapter 6: Finally, It’s Time to Board

This is a loooooong report, use "Ctrl + F" and search for the relevant chapters to navigate to the section you would like to read. I hope you will enjoy exploring Changi Airport's "lounge safari" with me!

(Anyway, I am limited to 150 photos in the report, but I actually have 200+ photos to share with all of you on this trip, so Chapters 2 & 3 will be truncated and you will be re-directed to my personal blog for the full lounge reviews with the full set of photos; sorry about that! Think of it like a "codesharing arrangement"? 😅)

Chapter 1: A Half-Failed Attempt at the Jewel Early Check In Facility

Our trip begins from a bus ride to the airport. As you can see in the photo below, public buses in Singapore do not have luggage racks, and it’s the same even for those bound for the airport. A point to note if you plan to use the public buses when heading to/fro Changi Airport.

From our place in the Northeast of Singapore to the airport, the journey by public bus takes approximately 1 hour. The bus will call at Terminals 3, 1 and 2 (in this specific sequence), and some buses continue on to Terminal 4 while others loop back to their origin. At the terminals (except for T4), the public buses stop at the basement levels.

We were more than 12 hours early at the airport that day, with the aim to get ourselves checked in at the Jewel Changi Airport’s Early Check In (ELCI) service.

The ELCI counters were quite crowded with passengers from various different airlines attempting to get their boarding passes early.

For CX, early check in is available exactly 12 hours before flight.

We were flying on CX714 scheduled at 1.45am (the next day), so when we arrived at the ELCI zone at 1.44pm, the flight was not ready for check in yet, though we just needed to wait for another minute.

In the ELCI areas, not all airlines have dedicated premium counters for high-tier members or business/first class passengers. For example, all CX passengers, regardless of membership tiers or travel classes, are required to use the kiosk to check in.

We were booked on different itineraries, with my wife only booked on an award flight from Singapore (SIN) to Hong Kong (HKG), while mine being the return portion of a round-trip (TPE=HKG=SIN) revenue ticket, flying from SIN all the way to Taipei (TPE), via HKG.

My wife was able to get her boarding pass and lounge invitation card smoothly via the kiosk. But for me, the machine wouldn’t let me check in despite two attempts. A friendly Cathay Pacific ground staff member was assisting us throughout the process, and her conclusion was that the airline probably needed to check my return ticket (separate itinerary) before allowing me to check in.

Unfortunately, she was unable to perform that check and would hence need me to make my way to Terminal 4 in order to check-in at the Cathay Pacific counters. It was definitely not the best outcome, but her service attitude was extremely professional, and thankfully a viable alternative was available. The entire process took just 5 minutes.

My wife managed to get her boarding pass and lounge invitation at the ELCI kiosks, but for myself, I'll need to make the long trek over to Terminal 4.

Off we go to Terminal 4, which was quite a long journey (20-30 mins bus ride).

A shuttle bus service is available round the clock between the main three terminals of Changi and its isolated Terminal 4. It was designed this way in place of a skytrain connection, purely because Terminal 4 is meant primarily for airlines flying point-to-point, and not so much to be part of the “Singapore Hub”.

Because of this, it was a little painful for Jetstar when Changi Airport requested that they shift their operations from Terminal 1 to Terminal 4 back in end 2022. It was faced with strong resistance from the airline primarily because of its strong reliance on connecting passengers from big partners like Qantas, Emirates and more. They eventually succumbed and made the move to Terminal 4 in mid 2023. (And at the time of writing, Jetstar Asia has confirmed cessation of its services from 31 July 2025; can't help to think that it might have been the shift to T4 that eventually killed the airline 🤔)

Back to our story on CX, I made my way to their counters at Terminal 4 Check-In Zone 7.

Without any further hiccups, I quickly got myself checked in for CX714, scheduled to depart around 11.5 hours later.

Before the check in agent even asked, I provided the itinerary for my return trip, which was also on CX but booked in another itinerary. This was confirmed as the reason why my attempt to complete ELCI earlier in Jewel failed.

Anyway, as a fun fact and side note, there was this interesting notice that informed everyone of the need to present passport and boarding pass for verification before entering lounges as a “requirement of the Singapore authorities”. Most of the time in other countries, the lounge agents will only need to scan boarding passes before granting access.

With check-in finally completed after a short delay of 20 minutes, we began making our way back to Terminal 1, also via the shuttle bus.

We were not the only ones travelling to/fro the isolated terminal and the main airport compound consisting the other three terminals. But thankfully the waiting time was not too long (<10 mins), and we even managed to get a pair of seats for our 15-mins ride back to Terminal 1.

The bus dropped us off outside Terminal 1's departure hall.

We travelled in Sep 2024. At that point in time in the terminals, a sunflower exhibition was taking place across different corners of the airport, one of which located just before departure immigration. It had unsurprisingly attracted many travellers, who were executing some last minute photoshoots before leaving Singapore.

Chapter 2: The Huge Qantas Singapore Business Lounge

Changi Airport is blessed to be home to not one, but five different full scale oneworld airline lounges. These lounges are mainly located in Terminal 1, with the exception of Cathay Pacific’s which is in Terminal 4; where the airline’s 7 daily SIN=HKG flights arrive and depart from.

Here’s the list of all five lounges:

- British Airways Lounge
- Qantas Business Lounge
- Qantas First Lounge
- Qatar Premium Lounge
- Cathay Pacific Lounge

The term “lounge safari” therefore came about, due to this very unique and fortunate situation here at my base airport, SIN.

I have been wanting to visit all of these lounges (except for QF First) in one itinerary since 2022, but have not found the opportunity to do so until recently. So in 2024, here we are finally, 12 hours early at the airport before our flight to check off and visit all of these lounges. Here’s our planned (and actualised) itinerary.

1350-1600 (1435-1640) Qantas Business Lounge
1600-1800 (1645-1905) British Airways Lounge
1800-2230 (1930-2230) Qatar Premium Lounge
2345-0115 (2255-0110) Cathay Pacific Lounge

Let’s get started!

As we were slightly delayed due to the detour to Terminal 4, we could not make it right on the dot when Qantas Business Lounge opened its door for the day at 1.50pm.

Immigration clearance at Terminal 1 was quick, and before we knew it, we were standing in the bustling airside area of the terminal.

The location of this lounge is convenient. After clearing immigration, turn left and simply follow the signs that say “Lounges” with the Qantas logo.

Take note, however, that there are two different Qantas lounges in Changi Airport, one “Business Lounge” and the other “First Lounge”. Identify the correct sign and continue up the escalators.

At the upper level, there will be directions to three lounges, and Qantas Business Lounge is the one right at the end of the corridor.

It is quite hard to miss it, since the Qantas logo is being prominently displayed with the entrance to the lounge featuring a pair of large translucent sliding glass doors.

This is a huge lounge and there are many places to sit, and lots to eat in here. We had a meal and several drinks here, and spent the rest of the afternoon in the lounge catching up on some work.

>> As stated in the introduction of this report, I am limited by the number of photos I can publish per post, and hence will be sharing with you the full set of photos and review for this lounge in a separate article. Read more about this lounge here.

In general, the Qantas Lounge here in Singapore is totally worth coming to the airport earlier just to spend some awesome time in it.

Chapter 3: Welcome to the BA’s Singapore Nightclub/Pub(?)

Moving on, we headed to British Airways’ (BA) lounge at 4.45pm. The BA lounge is just a few steps away from Qantas lounge on the same level in the airport. Specifically, you will be able to find it right beside the SATS Premier Lounge.

The BA Lounge is easily recognisable with its dark blue lighting, in line with the airline’s corporate branding; you can’t miss it. Entering through the classy looking entrance, guests will be greeted by the lounge staff at a corner. In this reception area, the design further amplifies the dark blue lighting “pub-like” atmosphere. If you remove the BA logo, anyone may mistaken this to be a pub or a nightclub within the airport, instead of an airline lounge.

This is a much smaller lounge compared to the Qantas Lounge, but because of it's smaller size, it is significantly quieter as well. We spent the rest of the afternoon and evening (until 7pm) here, continuing to use our laptops at the proper office tables in this lounge.

>> As stated in the introduction of this report, I am limited by the number of photos I can publish per post, and hence will be sharing with you the full set of photos and review for this lounge in a separate article. Read more about this lounge here.

On that day, we spent a total of 2.5h in this lounge, which was both productive (because of the office table) and relaxing (because of the nice environment).

If you have spare time and have oneworld lounge access eligibility when flying out of Singapore, do schedule a visit to this lounge after you have experienced the Qantas lounge.

Chapter 4: The Most Exclusive Business Class Lounge in SIN

At that point in time it was past 7pm, and with dinner up next, the immediate choice out of all available oneworld lounges in Singapore had to be Qatar’s Premium Lounge located near the C gates corridor.

Following the “Lounges” signage that contains the Qatar logo, we were led to the escalator beside Irvins’ Salted Egg store.

Up the escalator, we were greeted with three different lounges again: Emirates, Qatar and Plaza Premium.

Qatar’s lounge has the tiniest but most elegant entrance.

Stepping in, we were greeted by the friendly lounge staff after checking our CX boarding passes. This lounge only accepts oneworld Business/First Class passengers; high tier oneworld members flying in Economy or Premium Economy are not eligible, which is why this is deemed the most exclusive Business Class lounge in Changi Airport.

On the simple white walls are the Arabic words “marhaba”, which means hello. There is a slight futuristic design at the entrance of the lounge, but with the orchids in the centre of the entrance remind travellers that they are still in Singapore at this point of their journey.

On the wall there is also a flight information display reflecting oneworld flights departing in the next few hours from Terminal 1. Interestingly, oneworld flights departing from other terminals (e.g. Malaysia Airlines from T2, and Cathay Pacific from T4) were not displayed.

A few hours later as we were leaving the lounge for Terminal 4, the list of flights have shortened to only 3 more flights to London and 1 more to Melbourne for the day.

Of the four oneworld Business Class lounges in SIN, the Qatar lounge is the smallest in size, with a seating capacity of only 85. Compare this to QF’s 570! After the entrance area, there is a main corridor down the lounge, with different seating options on both sides.

On the left, there is also a small business area with proper office desks.

On the same side, there are also a handful of sofas and coffee tables. We sat here for around an hour after our meal. The sofa was not extremely comfortable to sit on for long periods of time but a short stay is fine. It is also very quiet here given the small number of seats. There were also drinks and some snacks available just in front of the TV.

Towards the right side of the same corridor, there are some private pods which are likely very popular among solo travellers.

As you can see from this photo, the privacy of these pods are really good.

Looking from the other side of the corridor.

Deeper into the lounge, just behind the dining area, there is the second seating zone which consists of a few more sofas. This area is a little busier / noisier due to its closer proximity to the dining area. But the difference is really just marginal, given how little people actually use this lounge.

Most of the tables in these seating areas come with wireless charging and also traditional sockets. The wireless charging function near my seat was however not working that day.

There are also some Qatari books available for people who want to read. The books are placed amidst some Qatari cultural artefacts, which I cannot recognise but am quite impressed by how they elevate the entire quality of the lounge in terms of its interior design.

Moving on to the dining and bar seating areas.

This elegantly designed in-house bar is no doubt the centre of attention for this lounge. It is manned by two staff members and drinks can be custom ordered and made.

Dining tables are on both sides of the bar.

And there are also a few tables with high stools just beside the bar area.

We took our seats at one of the dining table and immediately it was “restaurant-style” service. A lounge staff came to us to advise that we can scan the QR code to access the menu for the a la carte dining options; which is otherwise known as THE highlight of this lounge.

As we excitedly browsed through the menu…

…what we heard next was quite disappointing.

“Just to let you know that some of the items are not available…”

I thought to myself: "That's fair, let's see what are some items not available"

And he went on to inform us about some items that are available, instead…

“… we have 1 Lemon Coriander Soup, 1 Thai Red Curry with Rice, 1 Nasi Lemak, and Sushi available now”

And that was exactly what we ordered! (There were also some appetisers left, but not much either)

While this is not a serious issue, I was actually quite surprised that so little options out of the entire menu were left at 7.30pm; just 2h after opening, and another 6h more to their closing time at around 1.45am to 2am. I specifically asked the lounge staff if the kitchen will be replenished before the Qatar flight departs later in the night, a question to which he responded “It’s not confirmed. Sometimes yes, sometimes no.”

Don’t get me wrong. Eventually we were still very full from all the foods we managed to order, and they tasted decent/acceptable. But, imagine if we were came over at around 8pm instead? There will really be “not much left”. And this was exactly what happened to the couple who took their seats near us at 8pm, where only some appetisers and sushi were available, which essentially also means that they have ran out of the entire “A La Carte” menu.

This really does not reflect very well when the official selling point for this lounge is, allow me to quote from Qatar’s website, “(An Oasis of Fine Dining) The delectable à la carte dining options at our Premium Lounge offer an array of world-class gourmet cuisines incorporating a fusion of flavours from across the globe. Savour our delicious food options, impeccably served to meet the expectations of every taste and palate.”

Anyway, we count our blessings that we were still able to order a spread! Here’s the brief food review:

> Lemon Coriander Soup - Delightfully tasty with a slight hint of citrus flavour from the lemon, very refreshing and a memorable serving of soup.

> Thai Red Chicken Curry with White Rice - This was nothing too amazing, and easy to forget. The rice was nice, and went well with the curry. But otherwise, for a curry dish, this was quite bland.

> Nasi Lemak - Quite a decent rendition of the local Nanyang dish. I really enjoyed eating the coconut flavoured rice with the Nasi Lemak chilli. The fishcake (otak) was flavourful, but a far-fetched from the fresh ones we manage to get in local restaurants or stalls.

> Sushi - Erm. It was ok.

For drinks, if I remembered correctly, we ordered a Singapore Sling and Sauvignon Blanc. They did not leave any impressions with us either. It is hard to beat Singapore Airlines' Singapore Sling.

In conclusion, from a Business Class lounge perspective in general, the A La Carte options in this lounge outperforms that of other airlines’ Business Class lounges usually serving buffets instead. But this is true only if you managed to order anything. We visited the Qatar lounge with a high expectation because many reviews online raved about its F&B options, so the end result was just a little disappointing.

Anyway, there was an also a buffet serving cold food options. There were quite a few cheese, salad, fruits, cold cuts choices, and the variety is pretty impressive actually. I took a small selection of cheese, ham and salami.

On top of that, coffee, tea, canned drinks and other snacks are also available for guests to grab on demand.

I was trying to make a pot of TWG Chamomile Tea, but before I managed to even peel open the tea packet, a lounge staff came over quickly and took over from me. He was super friendly and professional, and even delivered the pot of tea with two cups to our table.

For the last part of this chapter introducing the lounge, let’s take a look at its toilet and shower facilities.

It was quite surprising (and impressive) to find sinks in each toilet cubicle, along with thoughtful amenities and artwork, which enhanced the atmosphere and elevated the vibe of the space.

However, it does appear that not all shower cubicles included attached toilets. The one I used did not have this. While the space in the shower cubicle is not huge, it is definitely spacious enough for one to have a comfortable shower and to freshen up before his/her next flight.

Apart from yet another artwork, I was also quite intrigued by the details captured in the tiles of the shower cubicle.

Here are the amenities included in this shower suite:

- Body towel
- Floor mat
- Clothes hanger
- Hair dryer
- Make-up mirror
- A tray containing hand soap, body lotion, cotton bud, hair cover, shaver, toothbrush/toothpaste, a disposable towel

The shower heads came in two designs, and the shampoo, conditioner and shower foam are from the French luxury brand Diptyque. I checked out their website; seems like their products have quite a steep retail price!

Also, since Qatar Airways is from an Islamic state, a prayer area is also included in the lounge, in the same zone where the toilets and shower rooms are located.

With this, we conclude our first visit to the “most exclusive” Business Class lounge in Changi Airport! Will I be back? Definitely; and probably at an earlier timing next time so as to try the rest of their A La Carte menu. But apart from trying out their F&B options, is this a lounge I personally think we can spend extended duration in while waiting for flights? Unlikely. The Qantas and British Airways’ Business lounges are actually more preferable options in my opinion.

It was around 10.30pm by now, time to embark on the trek back to Terminal 4 (again) and check off our last oneworld lounge of the day!

Chapter 5: A Faraway Lounge

Cathay Pacific is the only oneworld airline operating from the faraway Terminal 4 here at Singapore’s Changi Airport. According to The Straits Times, the official reason for shifting all the way to Terminal 4, away from other oneworld counterparts largely operating from Terminals 1 and 2, was to “provide customers with better service”, specifically by running a dedicated Cathay lounge in Singapore, as well as to tap on new technology that were introduced during Terminal 4’s opening.

Putting aside the inconvenience of being physically separated from the rest of the airport, the departure experience from Terminal 4 has always been very pleasant for us, since its opening back in 2017.

On our trip this time, we experienced the “inconvenience” for ourselves, traversing the distance between Terminals 1 and 4 for not once, but thrice in a day. Was it truly inconvenient? I beg to differ.

While travellers will definitely need to factor additional time to catch the shuttle buses between Terminal 4 and the rest of the airport, I personally think the airport has still devised a relatively acceptable and functional shuttle bus system to make such connections as seamless as possible.

From Terminal 1’s airside area, the shuttle bus to Terminal 4 is situated at Gate C21. And the directional signages leading passengers to the shuttle bus waiting area are all clearly marked.

There is also a simple app reflecting the bus arrival times, which we can easily access from our phones. The shuttle bus services are available in both the landside (public) and airside areas.

For transit passengers, the service loops between T4, T1 and T3. There are probably very few itineraries requiring a T4 to T2 transit, which explains why the service does not call at T2. By far, based on my assumptions, most passengers using this service would be those transferring between Qantas/Emirates (T1) and Jetstar/Jetstar Asia (T4) flights.

In case the wait is too long, further time can be killed by doing some simple duty-free shopping in Uniqlo, located just beside the C gates corridor.

Once in the shuttle bus waiting area, the abundance of seats ensures a comfortable wait for the bus to arrive. There are also charging points and large TV screens displaying the estimated bus arrival timings. Honestly, the number of sofa seats here appeared like quite an "overkill" because passengers usually won't be waiting here that long for a bus to arrive. These sofas actually look like nice beds for overnight transits.

When the bus arrives, airport staff will first ensure all passengers arriving from Terminal 4 have disembarked before signalling those travelling to Terminal 4 to board the bus.

A simple route map is displayed in the bus for passengers to refer to. There are also luggage spaces and relatively comfortable seats for the 20-mins journey.

After arriving in Terminal 4, security checks on cabin bags will be conducted first before passengers are being allowed into the departure airside area.

This is one part of the airport’s airside operations that is probably quite complicated backend. In Terminal 4, there are two major differences as compared to the rest of the airport: (1) Departure and Arrival Airside zones are segregated, and (2) Aviation Security Checks are conducted before entrance into Departure Airside zone. This differs from the other three terminals where (1) Airside zones are not segregated, i.e. Departing and Arriving passengers use the same airside area, and (2) Security screening happens only before entering each gate / a small zone of a few gates.

Anyway, security screening at Terminal 4’s transit zone had no queue at all, and we were through within seconds.

This terminal has a very simple layout. The G gate zone contains 17 narrow-body aircrafts and 4 wide body aircrafts boarding gates; all equipped with aerobridges. On top of that, there are another 8 bus gates in the H gate zone (which I've never used before).

In terms of lounges, the terminal only has two lounges: (1) Cathay Pacific, and (2) Priority Pass - Blossom Lounge. Both are located one level up from the gate area.

The Cathay Pacific lounge is impossible to miss, with its iconic Cathay logo and background colours prominently standing out.

At the welcome desk, a hardcopy Cathay Pacific schedule is displayed, showing the daily 9 Cathay departures/arrivals (the schedule has since changed a little; refer to the airline's website for latest schedule). There is also another electronic flight information display near the entrance of the lounge; which uses the standard Changi Airport layout, but reflecting only CX flights (something that I always find very fascinating and interesting to watch).

In a stark contrast to Terminal 4’s interior design using a lighter colour scheme, featuring white and some purple around the terminal, it is immediately clear that Cathay’s lounge is designed with its signature dark brown theme once we stepped into it.

Immediately after the entrance, guests will first be greeted by a table with some reading materials (incl. Cathay’s magazine).

The lounge is not enormously sized, but still carefully segregated into several different zones.

There is the famous and well-loved Noodle Bar, where chefs are on duty to serve made-to-order meals.

Here’s a snapshot of the menu available that night.

Next, there is the “Food Hall”, where the buffet spread and drinks counter are located.

These were the hot food options on offer that night:

Salads, cheese, biscuits, fruits and dessert (Ondeh Ondeh, Osmanthus Jelly, Pandan Cake, Red Bean Soup etc.) were available too.

The drinks choices were pretty impressive too. There were several tea flavours and a coffee machine.

A water dispenser which can dispense cold/hot water, and sparkling water as well.

Several fruit juices, more wines, and water choices.

And even Moet Champagne free for all guests to pour for themselves!

By this hour of the day, my wife was totally not hungry at all. So I was alone enjoying yet another round of food & beverage in the Cathay Lounge; these were my picks:

Moving on to other areas of the lounge… For guests who are not intending to eat, the main lounge / rest area is located towards the left side of the lounge after entering. (i.e. Turn left after entering the lounge and walk down the walkway in the photo below)

There are sofas in various shapes and sizes, as well as coffee tables and some seats with leg rests. All of which are very comfortable to sit in.

We fell asleep on one of these sofa seats while waiting for boarding time to approach.

The last few photos are for the dedicated washroom within the lounge, which was spotlessly clean.

As well as a small office area with two desktop computers and a printer.

That’s about it for this lounge. Did you realise what is missing? Yup, shower facilities.

Unfortunately, Cathay Pacific has decided against including showers in their Singapore lounges. But it does make sense since Cathay only flies regionally from Singapore, the number of guests who would want to shower in the airport should be minimal.

Chapter 6: Finally, It’s Time to Board

If you have survived to this final chapter of the report, I thank you for reading all the way!

We are finally (almost) done with Changi Airport, and going to set foot on our aircraft bound for Hong Kong.

Terminal 4 only has four gates for wide-body aircrafts, and they are located right at the end of the G gates corridor, which is quite a trek down from the main airside duty free shops and lounge area. As we approached the end of the corridor, there is an arcade area that can be a good distraction for families travelling with young kids.

Boarding for our flight to Hong Kong this morning started 10 minutes after schedule at 1.15am.

The boarding signages in Terminal 4 are displayed also in Korean because of Korean Air’s daily flights to/fro Incheon Airport.

Flying us to Hong Kong would be B-LQF, a 4-years old A350-900 that joined the Cathay fleet during COVID-19, back in Oct 2020.

The A350’s cabin looks extremely new, and no matter how many times I have flown in Cathay’s Business cabin, I still adore their seat colours and minimalistic design in the cabin.

On the seats were F&B menus, which we shall take a closer look at later on.

A bottle of Evian water and noise cancelling headset were set in place even before boarding commenced. 

Soon after, cabin attendants promptly came through to pass us warm towel and welcome drink; I took a glass of orange juice.

I always appreciate airlines that allow usage of in-flight entertainment screens from gate-to-gate. Thankfully, Cathay is one of these airlines. I took a quick look at the flight map and started watching A Quiet Place: Day One with my wife. (The photo I took of the movie was a little gruesome, hence I censored it)

Our movie was momentarily disrupted by the captain’s welcome announcement, but I did enjoy his detailed rundown of our upcoming short flight to Hong Kong.

Just another round of brief photo-taking session of the “lack of individual air vents” + sparkling clean washroom before I settled in for the flight.

It is nice also that Cathay Pacific has not joined the “magazine removal” league of airlines who are doing so in the name of “reducing contact points to ensure safety of all passengers”, when the truth is definitely none other than “cost-cutting measures”.

I enjoyed reading Cathay’s September issue of their in-flight magazine, which had extensive feature on their newest destination to Riyadh (it’s actually a resumption of an original route). Felt very inspired to visit Saudi Arabia one day after reading the featured articles.

It was also a pleasant surprise to be prompted with free wi-fi for Business Class passengers; I did not use it however, given that this was a super red-eye flight and I just wanted to sleep after eating my Round 2 Supper. To use the wi-fi, passengers will need to key in “last name” and “seat number”; similar to Singapore Airlines’ system.

It was also possible to switch devices and use the wi-fi interchangeably on both your phone and laptop.

There are quite a few other wi-fi packages available for Premium Economy and Economy Class passengers too. USD12.95 for a flight pass on this short journey to Hong Kong may be a little pricey, but it may very well make sense on a long haul flight.

Meal service on this super red-eye flight commenced 20 minutes after takeoff; extremely efficient on the part of the cabin crew.

Cathay Pacific has very nice menu design, super worth collecting for memories in future.

Anyway, it was a “simple” supper service on this flight, with two choices available for selection.

The drinks menu was however still the full list, consisting of one choice of champagne, red wine, white wine and dessert wine for the alcoholic beverage options. There were also beers, cocktails and hard liquor options available.

Other drink choices included juices, soft drinks, tea and coffee.

My wife selected the roasted chicken option, while I chose the baked barramundi dish. It was hard for the chicken option being a Chinese dish to go wrong on a Cathay flight… As for the barramundi mains, the tomato sauce with cauliflower, zucchini and chickpeas was quite refreshing too.

This was a meal light enough to serve as supper without making us to full from all the food.

As for dessert, a cheesecake was served on the same tray to speed up service, and while I finished it, at this moment while drafting this report, I actually can’t quite remember anything about it. Probably nothing too memorable.

The entire meal service concluded at 2.45am, around an hour since pushback and 45 mins after takeoff. At this point, we were cruising at close to 39,000ft, and with 2.5h more of flight time to go, it’s finally time for a short catchup on sleep.

The business class seats on Cathay’s A350 are very comfortable, and I had a good sleep all the way till just before descent. Checking out the flight map again. With just 85mi/133km more to go, I took another quick washroom break and as I got back to my seat, the seatbelt signs came on again. It’s also nice that the flight map can be easily toggled between metric or imperial units of measurement.

(UTC+08:00)

0504 Signs On
0515 Crew be Seated for Landing
0521 Touch Down
0527 Arrived

As we approached Hong Kong, connecting flights information started to be made available in the IFE system too.

I couldn’t, however, find the information for my next flight as it was too long later. If your flight is shown, it actually provides some very useful information such as the duration between flights, gate number for the next flight, est. departure time etc.

Weather in September’s Hong Kong was relatively warm and humid, as seen on the window shortly after touch down.

We arrived at our gate more than 20 minutes ahead of schedule.

And that’s the end of our very “oneworld” journey; taking us around lounges in Changi Airport, and then on a comfortable short flight to Hong Kong.