As I continued flying west across the globe, my next leg took me on Cathay Pacific A350-1000 Business Class. Color me surprised to find the brand spanking new jet on this short hop, but I sure jumped at the chance. As a reminder, I used 16,000 AsiaMiles plus HKD 285 in fees (~$35) to book this ticket. That’s a good price for a great seat and solid food & beverage, though service felt unusually rushed.
Note: this is part of my trip report series covering my around-the-world trip to Taiwan in January, 2024. Click here for the trip report index and introductory post.
Cathay Pacific (CX) Flight 495
- Sunday, January 28, 2024
- Depart: Taipei Taoyuan International Airport (TPE), Terminal 1, Gate B7, 13:22, 2m late
- Arrive: Honk Kong International Airport (HKG), Terminal 1, 15:21, 4m early
- Duration: 1 hour 59 minutes
- Seat: 14K
- Equipment: Airbus A350-1000
Check-In and Boarding
Cathay Pacific uses Terminal 1 at Taoyuan Airport, which seemed fairly uncrowded at midday. I had separate award tickets from Taipei to Hong Kong on Cathay, and then Hong Kong to Abu Dhabi on Qatar Airways, and with a bag to check, hoped to avoid having to pick it up and recheck it in Hong Kong. Oneworld ended its enforced policy of through checking bags on separate PNRs a couple of years ago. However, I decided to ask nicely to see if I might get lucky. Thankfully, the Cathay agent agreed to through check it to Abu Dhabi, giving me some extra time in Hong Kong. Don’t expect this to work every time, but arrive early and ask nicely, and the agent might accommodate you.
Anyway, Taiwan requires you to watch your bag go through a security screening before leaving the check-in area. That took a few minutes, and then I headed through security and immigration. Expect long lines for the process, though things moved relatively efficiently, and I was through the other side in about 20 minutes. It helps that American passport holders may use the eGates for exit passport control. After spending some time in the Cathay Pacific Lounge, I headed to the gate about 10 minutes before boarding. Boarding began a few minutes late, and then I headed onboard to my Business Class seat on this new aircraft.
Cathay Pacific A350-1000 Business Class – Seating and Interior
I managed to zoom onboard first, giving me a chance to get some photos of the empty cabin for once. This A35K was still quite new, placed in service in August, 2022. And the cabin still very much looked the part. The A350-1000 Business Class cabin consists of 46 Safran Cirrus III seats, mostly in a 1-2-1 configuration. I say “mostly”, because there are two orphaned center seats in the first row, Row 11. Seats measure 20.2″ wide, and fold flat into a 75″ bed.
If you’re familiar with Cathay Pacific, the cabin design represents a simple refresh of what you know. The overall color scheme and such still looks pretty much the same. Like most reverse herringbone designs, the seats emphasize privacy. Even though the center seats face each other, they do so from opposing angles, meaning you’ll have to lean forward to talk to your neighbor. Keep that in mind if traveling with a companion that you hope to socialize with.
One complaint I have is that because the seats angle inward from the aisle, it’s difficult to see out the window, at least in seat 14K. You have to lean forward uncomfortably to look out the front window. And the seat shell blocks the view out the back window. Perhaps other seats don’t face the same issue, but keep this in mind before assigning yourself 14A or 14K.
On the other hand, Cathay’s reverse herringbone is quite spacious for this type of seat. Unlike many reverse herringbone designs, there’s a generously-sied footwell. In addition, the space underneath is large enough to hold a small backpack or laptop bag. I do need to award one demerit for the unsightly liquid stain at the front of the ottoman, though.
Seat controls are on the side wall, and are generally easy to use. Three buttons control recline, the bottom cushion, and leg support. Push buttons also pre-set the seat to upright, semi-relaxed, and flat bed mode.
The seats also provide excellent storage space. Not only does the tray table provide plenty of space for a laptop, there’s a deep cubby on the window side of the seat, in addition to storage space in the headphone cabinet.
Meanwhile, in bed mode, the seat folds fully flat, to a maximum length of 75 inches. On this short flight, passengers only receive a small pillow and thin blanket. That’s more than enough for a barely 2-hour flight. No amenity kit is offered on these short regional flights. Notice that the armrest on the aisle side lowers, allowing for a wider sleeping surface.
While I found the seat comfortable in both regular seat and bed mode, it’s hard to draw conclusions on such a short flight. Nevertheless, I suspect you’ll enjoy a comfortable ride on longer flights. However, if you care about individual air nozzles, the A350-1000 doesn’t have them.
Cathay Pacific A350-1000 Business Class – In-Flight Entertainment
Cathay Pacific’s A350-1000 cabins feature both USB-A and 110v power ports, located inside the headphone cabinet. I appreciate the location up high, which prevents getting cords tangled at foot level.
And of course, the cabinet includes a pair of headphones. Don’t get too excited, though. I found these of rather poor quality, with a tinny sound and mediocre noise-muffling ability. Unfortunately, thanks to the connector needed, you’re stuck with these if you want to watch the IFE.
Speaking of IFE, Cathay does provide a high quality screen, large and with excellent resolution. While the 18″ display is technically touchscreen, good luck actually reaching it while seated. The screen does swivel forward, so you can adjust the viewing angle to your liking.
The IFE controller is next to the seat controls, and is your typical joystick-type controller. I found the controller generally responsive, and the arrows actually did move the cursor in the direction expected. You’d be surprised how many glitchy controllers I run across these days.
All Cathay flights feature the same StudioCX entertainment system, which is excellent. StudioCX features a wide variety of movies, TV shows, and games, with plentiful western and Asian selections. You certainly won’t get bored, even on an ultra long-haul flight.
Kudos to Cathay for including classic gems like Pac-Man and Yathzee on the games list. Too bad this was only a 2-hour flight, or maybe I could have tried them out. Maybe when I try out that new nonstop flight from DFW…
StudioCX includes some unique content, including streaming content like YouTube Red. For this flight, I choose a documentary, “Kedi”, a show about – what else – cats. This documentary chronicles the ubiquitous street cats of Istanbul, which operate in a no-man’s land between domesticated and feral. As an aside, on our first trip to Istanbul in 2009, we saw cats literally everywhere in public areas.
If you don’t want to watch movies, there’s also a pretty fantastic tail camera. This camera provides both forward facing and top of the airplane views.
And of course, there’s a moving map with a variety of views and zoom options.
In addition to the IFE system, Cathay offers WiFi on its A350-1000s. Prices ranged from $3.95 for a messaging pass, to $12.95 for a full-flight pass. Cathay does place a data cap on its messaging plan, but not on the other passes.
Cathay Pacific A350-1000 Business Class – Food & Beverage
Upon boarding, waiting at each seat was the menu for the flight. Lunch on these regional flights consists of a common appetizer and dessert, with a choice of western or Chinese main course.
There is also a complete wine, cocktail, and spirits list. You can also order the airline’s signature mocktail, the “Cathay Delight”. I tried it in the Cathay Pacific lounge in Taipei; definitely not my thing.
And lastly, there’s quite an impressive tea selection, along with soft drinks.
Service began with a pre-departure beverage offering of water or orange juice. So no #champagneselfie this round, but OJ made do just the same.
The FAs took orders on the ground, and wasted no time delivering meals once in the air. Just 15 minutes after take-off, meals were delivered with a choice of beverage. I went with the Chinese option, the stir fried scallops and prawns. To drink, I ordered the white Burgundy.
I do think this came off as a bit rushed, and found the resulting single-tray presentation a bit sloppy. The main course, for example, had sauce spilling over the sides of the dish. Also, no mixed nuts or other canapés accompanied beverages, which weren’t even offered before the meal. Granted, with only 90 minutes of air time, and a large Business cabin, I get why they chose an “express” service on this flight.
But I found the food itself quite good. The veggies were crisp, the sweet sauce a good match for the seafood, and the seafood itself was tender with a good flavor. I actually enjoyed the taro cake more than I expected. After some heavy eating at the night markets in Taipei, it was a welcome light dessert. And the crisp white wine accompanied the seafood well.
After lunch, the FAs offered a coffee and tea service. I ordered an oolong tea, which really hit the spot in the midst of a really long stretch of air travel. On slightly longer flights, such as Hong Kong to Singapore, Cathay offers a dessert trolley with ice cream, fresh fruit, and cheese plates. However, this wasn’t provided on this flight.
As mentioned, while everyone I encountered, from the check-in desks to the FAs, were friendly, service on board did feel a bit rushed. Again, I get why given the large cabin and short flight time. But something just felt – off – about everything, as if the crew just wanted to hurry up and finish.
Flightseeing
One thing I love about flying through Asia is all the exotic planeporn and fantastic landscapes. This trip didn’t disappoint, at least with the planeporn (poor weather largely hid the landscapes). First up, as we taxied to the runway, a Jetstar 737, followed by a Thai Airways A330-300.
As we pulled away from the terminal, you could see the giant Taiwan flag on the building.
Later, we saw China Airlines’ “Pikachu Jet CI”, the airline’s Pokémon-themed A321neo and answer to EVA’s “Hello Kitty” plane. The “Pokémon Air Adventures” plane offers a similarly immersive experience, with special Pokémon-themed check-in, amenities, and merchandise. Currently, the Pikachu Jet flies on select short-haul itineraries from Taiwan to Korea and Japan.
And finally before reaching the runway, an EVA 787-10 in standard livery.
The weather wasn’t great at Taipei that afternoon, but I did manage a couple of photos through the low clouds and haze as we departed.
Most of our route went over water, but we sighted land again through the haze shortly before landing. On initial descent, we passed some of the outlying islands of Hong Kong through the clouds.
On final descent, we passed close to Lantau Island, with the Macau Causeway in the foreground.
After landing in Hong Kong, we passed several exotic planes, including an HK Express A321neo, Great Bay Airlines 737, and Batik Air 737.
And last but not least, a Singapore Airlines A380 passing behind our A35K after disembarking.
Final Thoughts
While service felt unusually rushed, Cathay Pacific offers a nice product overall on this regional route on the A350-1000. Comfortable seats and very good food and beverage is really all you need for a short flight. I’d gladly pay the 16,000 miles for the upgrade over, say, a recliner-equipped A330 at the same price.
