Cathay Pacific Business Class A330-300 Review

• Route: Perth – Hong Kong
• Airline: Cathay Pacific
• Cabin: Business Class
• Points Used: 80,000 Asia Miles + around $250 in taxes for a return trip
• How to earn these points: Sign up for the Amex Explorer credit card.
  It comes with 50k bonus points which can be converted to Asia Miles. Or if you have an ABN (don’t need to run a business) you can sign up for the Amex Business Explorer which comes with 100,000 bonus points!

Cathay Pacific’s business class has always been high on my to-do list. Since I had planned to meet some friends in Hong Kong for the long Easter weekend, I figured this would be the perfect opportunity to try our business on the 7.5h flight from Perth to Hong Kong. Cathay Pacific’s (CX) A330-300 features 39 reverse herringbone flat-bed seats in a 1-2-1 configuration.

The front section of the aircraft runs 7 rows back 11-18, leaving out 13 because of tetraphobia. Behind the main cabin is a “mini” section which contains rows 19-21 containing 2 popular seats which offer more privacy due to the extra leg room on the bulkhead. Although the A330 isn’t the newest business class product, it’s still top of the class compared to some other carriers. I decided on 15k for the outbound flight which is right in the middle of the main business cabin.

Cathay Pacific Business Class Seat 15k

CX middle seats on the A330

Cathay Pacific’s business class seats uses the popular reverse herringbone seats offering privacy and seclusion while giving each passenger direct isle access. The A330 seats are slightly less wide than the seats found on the 777 but even than, there’s plenty of room, even for the tallest passengers. When transforming the seat into bed mode, the arm rest goes down giving some extra width so you can spread out a little. Each seat comes with a big and comfortable blanket, pillow and amenities kit which includes all the essentials for a comfortable flight.

Not the newest product but @cathaypacific A330 is most definitely one of the best business class seats in the sky. #businessclass #cathaypacific #frequentflyer #avgeek #travel #a330 #x70 #fujifilm

A post shared by Flight Hacks (@flighthacks) on Apr 15, 2017 at 3:22am PDT

Which seats to avoid on Cathay Pacific A330-300 Business Class?

When given the choice, it’s always best to select the best seat on an aircraft. Even though all seats on Cathay are pretty much equal, one might try to avoid those next to the toilet or galley. Those seats are: 19g (close to the toilet), row 18 (next to the galley) and row 11 (galley and toilet combo…).

CX Business Class seat 15A

What are the best seats on Cathay Pacific A330 Business Class?

One of the best seats on board Cathay Pacific is 20k, due to it’s position on the bulkhead there is no seat in front so it provides the passenger with extra leg room and storage space under the footrest + added privacy. The second best choice would be seat 15A and 15K, both offering a good distance from the toilets and galley. My recommendation would be to go for window seats even when flying as a couple. Window seats always feel more private and spacious, after all; unless you’re planning to hold your partners hand for 7.5 hours there really is no need to get the middle seats.

For the most private seat you can’t go past 19A which is close to the Galley but you won’t be able to see your fellow passengers.

CX J on the A330-300

Sit back and relax!

Once you’re off the ground, kick off those shoes and enjoy the personalised service Cathay has to offer. Even with a full cabin, Cathay staff will always address you by name and pro-active beverage top ups are the norm. Movies and entertainment are enjoyed on the StudioCX system which features a 15.4″ TV screen and noise cancelling headphones. I found that the movies on offer where good enough for a 7.5 hour flight and from memory the library is 150 titles strong. Your seat also offers international/usb power ports for all your gadgets or if you prefer to do some work on the go.

Cathay Business Seat Controls

Cathay Pacific Business Class Bedding:

The business seat on board the A330 turns into a very comfortable flat-bed but unfortunately Cathay does not offer any mattress padding or cover. Whilst the pillow is big enough, I do prefer to have something covering the seat before putting my face near it (especially if you sleep on your side or stomach), it just feels more… hygienic?

The blanket on offer is very thick and pretty nice, no cheap synthetic economy blanket here that will make you sweat like crazy!

The CX Business seat in bed mode

Cathay Pacific Business Class Food:

Having seen many picture online of the Cathay Pacific business class meals, I was rather surprised (in a good way) about the food offering aboard my flight. I realise that cellphone cameras with a flash enabled make for really bad food photography so I was happy to find CX food looks way better in real life than it does on Instagram 😉

For breakfast I was offered orange or apple, pear and strawberry juice, a mango and passion fruit smoothie, fresh seasonal fruit and Greek yogurt with spiced plum compote. Followed by: scrambled eggs, chicken chipolata, peperonata spinach and potato rosti with assorted breakfast bread, preserves, honey and butter.

Cathay Pacific Business Class Breakfast

For Lunch On Board Cathay Pacific Business Class:

Since my flight departed around 7AM with an arrival of 3PM I was served both breakfast and lunch. Lunch started with a nicely presented antipasto platter consisting of prosciutto, artichokes, mixed olives and sun-dried tomatoes followed by a white fish (I can’t recall what it was) with baked potatoes.

CX Business Class Lunch Antipasto

Cathay Pacific Lunch

For dessert I had a cheese platter and some mixed berries in an orange liquor.

Cathay Pacific Dessert

Followed by some more Deutz champagne 😀

On the way back from Hong Kong I enjoyed the same great Cathay Pacific service followed by the dinner service which consisted of the following:

Octopus Entre

Cathay Pacific Pork Belly

Cathay Pacific Cheese Platter

Cathay Pacific Cake

The crew on the return leg where much more attentive and pro-actively topped up champagne whilst addressing you by last name. The food wasn’t exactly memorable but nothing to complain either. This also might have been due to the couple of hours I spent at the Cathay Pacific business class lounge in Hong Kong (The Pier) beforehand. The lounge is so amazing that any food/beverage options afterward kind of “pale in comparison”. For my full Cathay Pacific The Pier lounge review, click here.

Cathay Pacific Business Class Amenity Kit:

Cathay Pacific offers a rather good quality amenity kit to its business class passengers, it’s got all the essentials such as: socks, eye mask, toothbrush+toothpaste, earplugs and also includes Jurlique beauty products: revitalising face mist spray, hydrating serum and lip balm. What more can you expect?

Cathay Pacific Amenity Kit

In Summary

I thoroughly enjoyed my Cathay Pacific business class experience and it’s an excellent way to get from PER-HKG in comfort. I booked this trip using Asia Miles, for 80,000 points and just short of $250 in taxes it really offer great value. Even though the seat on the A330’s is not the newest, it’s stood the test of time and still stacks up with some of the best out there. Now I can’t wait to fly Cathay Pacific Fist class from Paris to Hong Kong in August… stay tuned 🙂