After an enjoyable few days in Hong Kong we were excited about our first ever trip to New York City and to start it off we were flying out on an aircraft new to us – the Boeing 777-300ER.  I was also excited about the possibility of flying over the North Pole which I’ve read is one of the routes Cathay Pacific use.

Airline and Flight #

Cathay Pacific CX830

Aircraft

Boeing 777-300ER

Airport and Terminal

Departure: Hong Kong International Airport, Chek Lap Kok, Hong Kong| Terminal 1

Arrival: John F Kennedy  International Airport, New York |Terminal 7

Scheduled Departure Date and Time

Friday 1st July 2016| 09:20am

Flying Time

15 hours 45 minutes

Luggage Allowance

Carry-on: Adults and children travelling in business class are allowed the following carry on luggage up to 7kg per piece:

• 1x115cm bag at 56cm (22in) x 36cm (14in) x 23cm (9in) and
• 1 small item that can fit under the seat in front and be no larger than 15cm (6in) x 30cm (12in) x 40cm (16in).  Such items can include a small handbag, laptop bag, small backpack, camera bag or briefcase.

Checked baggage: Most passengers have the following checked baggage allowances however there are a few destinations where the allowances are more or less depending on how far away they are:

• 30kg (66lb) – maximum 2 pieces.  For this flight we were allowed 2 bags weighing up to 23kg (50.7lbs) each with dimensions adding to 158cm (62 in).
• Total dimensions (length + width + height) = 203cm (80 in)
• If you are travelling with an infant without a booked seat for them, two pieces of luggage totalling up to 10kg (22lbs) plus a car seat and a stroller can be checked in on most flights.
• Infants with booked seats and children are entitled to the same luggage allowances as adults.
• More generous allowances are made for passengers travelling in a higher class or with a higher tier Marco Polo frequent flyer status.

Fun Facts

• Cathay Pacific is a founding member of the Oneworld alliance
• The airline was founded in Hong Kong back in 1946
• The airline commenced service with a single Douglas DC-3 nicknamed Betsy
• The Boeing 777 is the world’s largest twin jet

Website

Cathay Pacific’s website is really well laid out with a great user-face making it easy to use and find what you’re looking for.  You can book one way, return or multi city flights as well as hotels or flight and hotel combinations.  When searching flights, prices are displayed for the dates chosen as well as days either side.  This is handy for when your dates are flexible allowing you to choose to fly on a cheaper day.  The results also show the price of the different class fares.  Clicking on view details brings up further information like airport and terminal numbers and the type of aircraft.  You can reserve your seat but if you’re flying Economy and haven’t reached the required tier frequent flyer membership there is a fee with the amount depending on the country you fly out of and your destination.  The website also contains information on a range of topics including frequent flyer programs, luggage requirements, check-in, preparing for your trip, airport details etc.

Check-in

Check-in can be done on-line, at the airport via the counter or self service kiosk or by downloading Cathay Pacific’s app. When checking in on-line enter your first and last name followed by your booking reference or E-ticket number.  Boarding passes can be sent to your mobile, printed at home or from the self-service kiosks at the airport.  Check-in opens 24 hours up to 90 minutes prior to scheduled departure however if you have purchased your ticket directly from the Cathay Pacific website or are a Club/Asia Miles passenger, you can check in 48 hours prior to departure.

Seating

Layout – The Cathay Pacific Boeing 777-300ER is a long range wide bodied twin engine jet with 275 seats.  These are made up of 6 open First class seats, 53 flat bed Business class seats, 34 recliner Premium Economy seats and 182 standard Economy class seats.  Economy is set out in a 3-3-3 configuration. We were seated in row 61 of 72.

Features – The seats on this plane were older and made from a patterned blue material. Tray tables were folding and contained a cup holder so you don’t have to pull your tray down if you’re just having a drink.  The leg room was decent.

On each seat – There was a pillow and a sealed blanket and a set of individually wrapped headphones.

Specs – Seat pitch 32 inches (81cm), seat width 18.5 inches (47cm).

Cabin Comfort

The 3-3-3 layout on this aircraft makes it less convenient when you need to get out of your seat if you’re not seated in the aisle.  Despite this layout, width and pitch is the same as the seats on the A330 which we flew on our last flight with the 2-3-2 layout.

The blankets were a good size were quite soft too which was nice.  I noticed there were no foot rests though which surprised me a bit for such a long flight.

In-flight Entertainment

Electronic devices

• Electronic devices can be used whilst boarding using the aerobridge but not if you’re using the tarmac to board.
• Once doors on the plane have closed you need to then switch your device to flight mode.

Power

• There were two universal power plugs underneath each pair of seats
• USB power is available just below the entertainment screen

In the Seat Pocket

• Discovery magazine – containing articles, travel information and advertising
• Shop – duty free magazine
• Laminated safety card

WiFi

• There was no WiFi on this flight

Entertainment System

• Cathay Pacific uses Studio CX for its inflight entertainment.  This is offered through individual screens with the following menus to choose from:

1. Just added – a selection of new movies that have recently come out
2. Movie – over 100 movies available
3. TV
4. Music
5. Info
6. Game
7. Kids
8. Map – which contained a fairly basic moving flight map
9. Shop

Transfer information was displayed on the screen upon descent.

Catering

Menus

Cathay Pacific’s menus were very much on the plain side.  They were basically a piece of thick paper with Lunch and Refreshment printed on the front and the same on the back written in Cantonese.  There was no indication of when the meals would be served or anything else about the food other than a small note down the bottom to let us know the selection was from the Grand Hyatt Hong Kong along with an apology if your meal choice was not available.  I did notice there was a bigger choice of meals for both the lunch and refreshment to what I was used to with other airlines.

Lunch offered a chioice of:

1. Wok-fried chicken with fresh green pepper corn, black fungus and wing beans, mushroom, carrot, cabbage and steamed jasmine rice or
2. Braised meatball, button mushroom sauce, mixed vegetables and gemelli or
3. Penne, black olives, capers and tomato concasse.

Each dish was served with a carrot, corn, raisin and honey mustard salad, a bread roll and butter, a bottle of water and ice cream for dessert.  Tea and coffee was also served.

Dinner offered a choice of:

1. Braised fish, ginger garlic oyster sauce, jade melon and steamed jasmine rice or
2. Braised pork, pumpkin, green beans, gratin potato and apple-cider sauce.

Each dish was served with fresh seasonal fruit, a bread roll and butter, a bottle of water and coffee mousse cake for dessert.  Tea and coffee were also served.

Food/Drinks

After the seatbelt lights went out crew started serving drinks and packets of peanuts prior to handing out the menus.

Not too long into the flight lunch was served.  I chose the Wok-fried chicken which was just ok.  I did enjoy the strawberry Haagen-Dazs ice-cream though once it thawed out a little.  Cutlery was plastic which seems to be more common these days.

Snacks were available from the self service area beside the galley.  There you could help yourself to potato chips, savoury crackers, packets of dried fruit, peanuts and a few varieties of drinks.  Noodle cups were also available upon request. About half way through the flight Dinner was served.  I chose the braised pork whilst hubby sitting beside me had the fish.  This meal was tastier than the last one.

Pros

• Cathay Pacific offers three choices of meals and two choices of refreshments
• The airline was able to give us our first choice of meal every time
• Bottled water was given out at meal times
• I like how Cathay Pacific offer salads with its meals
• The cup holders were handy so you didn’t have to pull down your tray if you were just having a drink.

Cons

• The food was fairly bland and the presentation was lacking
• The toilets weren’t the cleanest
• Staff generally weren’t very friendly
• 3-3-3 configuration in Economy makes it harder getting out of your seat
• No amenity kits for such a long flight
• This aircraft appeared quite old

 

Conclusion

I was really hoping this flight route would have us fly over the North Pole but unfortunately it didn’t.  As per my previous review of Cathay Pacific from Sydney to Hong Kong, overall the airline didn’t live up to my expectations.  The food wasn’t great, the staff although efficient, didn’t make you feel really welcome and the toilets weren’t cleaned well or often enough.  In saying that I did appreciate a few things Cathay Pacific did like the bottled water at meal times in addition to other drinks served, interesting salads accompanying the meals, a good selection of meals, cup holders so you didn’t need to fold your tray out and quite decent leg room.