CATHAY PACIFIC AIRWAYS review :  16 June 2009 : by P Verma   (India)

I flew Delhi to Hong Kong and back. The service was good, right from the check-in till the arrival. But there was nothing so special about the experience that would set apart the airline from equally good options in south-east Asia. I feel that 5-star service should be applied in all cabins accordingly if the airline has to compete with other airlines of its status.

CATHAY PACIFIC AIRWAYS review :  9 June 2009 : by H Lacey   (Hong Kong)

HKG-NRT Cathay Pacific Regional Business Class. This is in reality little better than premium economy. Seats very strange configuration and to lie anywhere near comfortable you need to be a contortionist. Why charge so much for so little? Food average and FA attentive.

CATHAY PACIFIC AIRWAYS review :  9 June 2009 : by V Tran   (Canada)

YYZ-HKG-SGN return in economy. Outbound to HKG (15hr flight), 2 meals were given plus a snack bag including water, apple, and granola bar. New seats on the 773 are terrible - hard back and no recline as others have stated. Leg room is OK so long as you put nothing under the seat in front of you (not that much can fit now anyway). Flight attendants did not come around with extra water much. AVOD system is superior, as long as you do not get a unit that freezes. Outbound to SGN in a dated A340 but at least it was only a 2hr flight and seats did still recline. Inbound from HKG to YYZ same service except the snack bag was not distributed, making for an extremely dry flight.

CATHAY PACIFIC AIRWAYS review :  6 June 2009 : by J Lim   (Singapore)

Singapore to Tokyo via Hong Kong. Was disappointed with meals provided on all sectors. No appetisers or a dessert like ice cream/cake or even cheese n crackers etc on a full lunch/dinner service. Pillows and blankets were not preset on seats unlike SIA and got to request from crew. Service average with crew just doing what they are supposed to do - nothing more. Inflight Entertainment was non AVOD and selection was terrible.

CATHAY PACIFIC AIRWAYS review :  3 June 2009 : by N Nasev   (Australia)

PER-HKG-LHR return. I would rate them no better than 3-star. One positive is that the new- style seats are better, giving feeling of more legroom and space, and adequate support is given to the lower back. Another positive is that the seats I selected upon booking on the website were all honoured. Service on all legs was rushed and at times rather brusque. B747s and regional A340s are showing their age. IFE on retrofitted aircraft quite fine but not the best, while on the older aircraft not AVOD - but that doesn't stop CX encouraging pax to vote for them for Avion IFE awards. Overall, a little disappointing.

CATHAY PACIFIC AIRWAYS review :  1 June 2009 : by Derrick Barden   (Australia)

Hong Kong to Rome was fair. Service efficient but not really friendly. Seating wasn't comfortable for the overnight flight as back rest didn't really recline. Rather the bottom section slid forward so very little support for the lumbar.

CATHAY PACIFIC AIRWAYS review :  29 May 2009 : by Ben Lord   (UK)

LHR-HKG-BNE. Going out, the schedule said that we would have a 747 aircraft which I look forward to as they are more comfortable and better leg room. However, we had an A340 to HKG. The meal was OK and generally it was a comfortable flight allowing me to get a fair bit of sleep. Had a 6 hour wait in HKG for connecting flight to BNE. The only problem with Cathay's service to BNE is that if you go on the wrong day, you have to stop in Cairns (CNS) first as well. Likewise if you want to go to CNS but go via. BNE - all in all can add around 5-6 hours on your journey. The return trip was OK between BNE and HKG but between HKG and LHR the food selection was very poor. Very Chinese-orientated and not a lot of alternative for Westerners. I will consider other airlines before flying Cathay in the future!

CATHAY PACIFIC AIRWAYS review :  27 May 2009 : by Pete Hanley   (Canada)

Vancouver-Hong Kong-Manila return : all but the Manila-Hong Kong trip were flown with Boeing 777's, which I disliked. The new seats are not comfortable for me, because of poor lumbar support. The usual magazine etc storage pouch which has traditionally been located under the tray, has been eliminated on this aircraft, and is now under the front of ones the seat. Despite several attempts, I was unable to reach it, so I have no idea what was in it. Because of this, I had nowhere to store my own paraphernalia of magazine, book, earphones etc, which was very annoying. On the right hand part of the seatbelt there is now a bulky cover, which I found quite uncomfortable. The fact that the seat does not recline and only slides forward, is not a comfortable innovation for me as the typical seat. The sliding headrest could be a good addition, except that every time I adjusted it for the back of my head, it later slid downwards on it's own if I moved a little. Another very annoying fact is that not even a regular sized carry-on will slide under the seat, as the design of the seat will only allow a slim briefcase to fit. Sitting by a window, or in a middle seat and having ones carry on stowed in the overhead bin, does not allow any ready access to ones carry on. All in all a very badly designed seating arrangement which I shall avoid like the plague!

CATHAY PACIFIC AIRWAYS review :  25 May 2009 : by J Watts   (France)

CDG-HKG-Phnom Penh return. Checked in online and flights on time. Menu given with choice in economy which I appreciated, food was excellent. IFE excellent, flight attendants attentive and I felt safe. Only drawback was the seats which didn't recline, the base slides forward and that's it - leaving lower back unsupported so that did spoil an otherwise perfect trip!

CATHAY PACIFIC AIRWAYS review :  22 May 2009 : by B Leung   (Hong Kong)

HKG-BKK-HKG in economy. Outbound flight pleasant on the regional 773 with good service. Return journey on a newer 773 with the shell seats. I find this more comfortable then the old seats with more legroom. However, the AVOD system was not working on my seat. The crew first claimed it takes time to load the system and asked me to wait (all the seats beside me has no problem though). Waited for 10mins and it's still the same, but as the crew are carrying out meal service, they doesn't seem to be interested to take care of this issue. The problem wasn't fixed for the whole flight, luckily it is only a 2.5 hour flight. It's also a shame to see the cost cutting on the meals, both flights with a few pieces of fruits and a hot dish only; I remember before they also have bread and dessert as well. I will say CX is an above average airline but it is not as good as a 5-star. Considering they charge the highest among other airlines on this route, will probably give Thai Airways a try next time.

CATHAY PACIFIC AIRWAYS review :  12 May 2009 : by D Tao   (USA)

JFK-HKG-BNE, CNS-HKG-YVR-JFK. JFK-HKG and HKG-YVR-JFK on new 777 with new seats, which I am impressed with. Outbound flight delayed by 2+ hours, but I got an email and text from CX 12 hours in advance telling me it was OK to show up two hours late. Try getting an American carrier to tell you this. Seat padding is kind of thin, and there is a weird lump on the seatbelts, but those pale in comparison to the guaranteed personal space from the shell seat, adaptorless, AC in-seat power and AVOD options. Great selection of movies, good TV shows and OK games. The headphone jacks have 3 prongs though, although you can use your own headphones if you plug the connector in just right. HKG-Australia-HKG flights on an old-style A330 and merely OK. I found the new seats more comfortable than old ones if you can get a pillow for some extra lumbar support. FA's polite and helpful; I appreciated the 'snack bar' set up in the galleys for transpacific flights. Food excellent on all legs. HKG a pleasure to transit through, especially if you can score CX lounge access.

CATHAY PACIFIC AIRWAYS review :  12 May 2009 : by T Kwan   (Canada)

I am booked to fly CX Business Class Vancouver to New York, but this review is about the frequent flyer program the Marco Polo Club. I made a reward BA miles booking for a family member to take the flight with me. I wanted to contact the Marco Polo Club to try to arrange for us to sit together and thought it should be no problem since that family member if a CX Silver member in Marco Polo Club. However, after two days of trying to contact the Marco Polo Club I have given up. I called the North American line on Sunday night and after many rejections of my Marco Polo Club number, I finally got through only to be told due to call volume to leave my number and I would be contacted back within one business day. It is now beyond the end of the next business day and I have not been contacted. I used the on-line message system on Cathay Pacific's website to request someone contact me and that has not resulted in any action. I called again on Monday evening both the North American number and the Hong Kong number. The North American number ran busy many times. The Hong Kong number ran busy a couple of times and I think I finally got through on the third try where I was then put on hold. I hung up after listening to music for 25 minutes. I have not been able to contact the Marco Polo Club in two days. I cannot imagine an airline, in the current difficult travel environment, seriously thinking it can maintain frequent flyer loyalty with this level of lack of service. I may fly Cathay Pacific again, but it will be on one of my OneWorld alliance partners frequent flyer program and not on the Marco Polo Club.

CATHAY PACIFIC AIRWAYS review :  12 May 2009 : by F Andrews   (USA)

SFO-HKG in newer 747 seat configuration. The new seat design is horrible and I am of normal height. FA's didn't seem to know how to handle a crowded flight. Onboard entertainment system froze and FA's tried rebooting 3 times to no avail.