This week we have expanded Cathay Pacific business class reviews. Expanding the reviews confirmed Cathay Pacific’s status as a great choice for long-haul business travelers looking to reach Hong Kong and beyond. Although there are many positive aspects of Cathay Pacific business class, there are several things that travelers should be aware of based on the reviews.
As a reminder, Premium Travel Insider aggregates reviews from around the web and scores them on a 1-3 scale. A 3 indicates that a given category exceeded reviewer expectations, a 2 indicates it met expectations, and a 1 failed to meet expectations. We evaluate a variety of categories, the most important of which we call the “Big 5” that are most important to a premium travel experience: seat, food, drink, service, and in flight entertainment. You can learn more about our methodology here.
Cathay Pacific Top Line
We now have 11 reviews from seven different sites. Cathay Pacific business class scored a 2.41/3 overall, and a “Big 5” rating of 2.27/3. These ratings were not as closely correlated as usual, which indicates a discrepancy with how people felt about the overall flight compared to the specific amenities. This means that the overall “vibe” of Cathay Pacific was more positive than the sum of individual parts. Our overall “level of detail” rating increased to 2.18/3, which means we have confidence in these ratings due a high quantity of quality reviews.
What Changed the Most?
The biggest change, by far, was the drop in bedding from 2.67/3 – a great rating – to 1.43/3 – a poor rating. Why is this? Multiple reviewers revealed that Cathay Pacific does not offer a mattress pad – a significant discomfort for an airline that routinely flies ultra-long, 12-hour-plus flights. Additionally, the pillows provided are considered subpar by many. Together, this led to a number of reviewers who were disappointed with the quality of bedding, resulting in the substantial drop.
IFE also dropped, but this was a smaller decline, from 2.50/3 to 2.25/3. A key driver in this drop was the lack of good selection of entertainment options on the flight. Service dropped to 2.44/3 from 2.60/3. Amenity kit dropped to 2.00/3 from 2.20/3. WiFi also dropped to 1.17/3 from 1.33/3.
On the positive side, seat increased to 2.45/3 from 2.33/3, driven by overall satisfaction with the Cathay Pacific reverse herringbone seat. Lavatories also increased to 2.17/3 from 2.00/3, driven by appreciation for the cleanliness of the bathrooms.
What (mostly) didn’t change?
Most importantly, the overall rating stayed near constant, at 2.41/3 from 2.42/3. The “Big 5” overall rating dropped a small amount – to 2.27/3 from 2.32/3. Food stayed fairly consistent at 2.00/3, and drink increased a very small amount to 2.22/3.
Is Cathay Pacific Business Class Worth Flying?
Based on our expanded Cathay Pacific business class reviews, we can definitively state that Cathay Pacific is a good, if not great, product. Although there are some rough edges – notably the poor bedding and WiFi – the overall strong hard product, combined with great service and solid food and drink makes Cathay Pacific a good choice. Ultimately the overall rating of 2.41/3 and “Big 5” score of 2.27/3 mean you’re in good shape – although you’re not in Qsuite territory.
Looking for more details? Check out the full Cathay Pacific business class page or look at our full business class reviews.