Cathay Pacific, First Class Flight Los Angeles to Hong Kong, March 2016
Details
- Flight Duration: 14 hours
- Seat: 1K - First Class Suite
- Number of seats on plane: 6
- Type of plane: Boeing 777
- Cost: 67,500 American Airlines miles + $110 in fees and taxes
The Seat
The seat is a first class suite/cabin enclosure. 6 1/2 feet long, wide enough for two people to sit in it. It encompasses 3 windows on the side of the plane, and converts into a full length, lie flat bed.
The Cabin
The first class cabin is at the front of the aircraft, and completely separated from the other cabins and even any of the plane entrances. You enter, go left, everyone else, goes right. You never see a soul from the other parts of the plane.
They have 6 first class suites, with 3 bathrooms, one big enough to fold down a bench, sit down, change comfortably into your "flight outfit". There are also 3 flight attendants for the 6 individuals that are in the cabin, if it's full.
Amenities
They offer a Pye brand organic cotton flight sleepwear set (over $200 at the Pye store in Hong Kong) that are so comfortable and just warm enough but breath well. They are very durable, and I still have 4 pairs I use. Also a really spectacular Aesop amenities kit with a human sized toothbrush, toothpaste in a brand you have heard of, mouthwash, Aesop roseseed lip cream, Aesop mandariin facial hydrating cream, earplugs, a screen wipe, a bamboo comb and all in a nice reusable travel pack.
Preflight
They have juice/water/champagne preflight service. I'm sure you could ask for anything you want, you're sitting there for 30 minutes while the rest of the plane is loading, or something. The curtain is closed, you can't tell. They also get your size of sleepwear for you, help you store your goods in your locker that is part of your seat. I don't even recall if there was an overhead storage now.
Dining
The best part is the dining experience. The food and drink offerings are quite unexpected. The food is cooked mostly to order, including eggs, fried, scrambled, over easy? On a plane? Get out! The steak was pretty amazing, and it was at least 16oz. The Caviar ended up not being my thing, I am not a fan. The overnight snack, a pork dumplings bowl, was interesting. I'm not into a lot of Asian food, so it had some taste notes (like onions, which I abhor) that threw me off a little. Then the full english arrival breakfast was really awesome. It had black pudding, which I passed on eating, sausage, sauteed mushrooms, bacon, eggs, fried tomato, toast, marmalead. I had my eggs over easy.
Arrival
So we prepared for landing only 15 minutes before touchdown. We were assisted with collecting our things, and then... then... they made the entire plane wait for the 6 of us to disembark before they even opened the curtains to the other cabins. That's kinda insane.
Summary
Truly an amazing life experience and a helluva way to travel. The cabin was exceptionally quiet, completely isolated, and extremely comfortable, making 14 hours melt away to an experience on a plane that is actually desirable, not just tolerated or even dreaded. If you can swing it, I recommend this whole heartedly!
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