Cathay Pacific introduced the first commercial airline in 1983. business class cabinThe Boeing 747s were fitted with wide seats and modern leg rests. They also served the obligatory champagne cascades. Fourty-two years after the Hong Kong The concept of luxury hotel suites may have been perfected by the flagship carrier with its introduction of the Aria Suites. These include privacy doors, fully-flat beds, cutting edge tech, Michelin star meals, and an atmosphere of a design-hotel.
Since its launch in 2016, the new design has earned the airline numerous awards. These include a win for the Crystal Cabin Awards in the category of Passenger Comfort, and a jump from fifth to third in the SkyTrax World Airline Awards in 2025. For the full scoop, I flew from Hong Kong to London Heathrow.
Pre-boarding
Cathay Pacific offers a smooth and easy travel experience. airport. The app is a dream—clear, intuitive, and without glitches. The app allows passengers to select their seats up to three weeks in advance, and check-in online 48 hours prior departure instead of the normal 24 hours. With a self service check-in desk in the town, travelers can drop their bags off. luggage at Hong Kong Station in the heart of Central anytime between 24 hours to 90 minutes before their scheduled time of take-off—a boon if you have to leave your hotel at midday. The Airport Express train is a 24-minute ride on a spotless, Wi-Fi enabled train. Business class passengers can also take advantage of the fast track through HKG’s e-channels. negate the need to remove liquids Laptops. Within an hour after leaving my home, I was greeted at the lounge by staff in immaculately dressed red jackets and standing collars.
Airport lounge
My flight coincided the reopening Cathay Pacific’s flagship airport loungeThe Bridge. It is situated at the end of a main walkway. Two huge wings are spread out: one with a Western-style menu, and the other with Chinese food. The design is by British designer Ilse Craig, which features a blurry mix of warm woods and muted browns with mossy Velvet, cognac colored sofas and swivel chairs in tweed. It is worth arriving early to enjoy the showers, quiet zones and food on offer. The Nook has some great new dishes that I’m willing to try instead of the usual wontons. They have scallion-pancakes, lamb baos (buns) with a spicy kick and sweet barbecued pork rice. All of it is as good as any food you’d find at Hong Kong’s top restaurants. Other than that, you’ll find two hot and cool buffets, both with plenty of vegetarian dishes, ice buckets full of Champagne and wine, as well as a long bar where you can get all the coffee and cocktails.
