Konichiwa from Osaka! I’m at the InterContinental right now, which is nothing short of amazing, from the rooms to the service…more to come on that.
InterContinental Osaka Deluxe Twin
In August, I flew on Cathay Pacific’s 777-300ER to London and Paris in business class. It was a really nice experience, even if the seat had a few flaws in itself.
Cathay Pacific Boeing 777-300ER Business Class Cabin
Well, the time to fly Cathay Pacific’s A330 business class, which has basically the same seat design, has finally come, and I’ve definitely had a great flight, even if it was just slightly short of three hours. I’d really like to share my first impressions on the flight as I normally do.
Cathay Pacific Airbus A330 Business Class Seat
The A330 is a little narrower than the 777, so obviously the seat Cathay has on the A330 is a little narrower than on the 777. While it was rather obvious, I didn’t find that much of an issue, and found the seat still really nice and spacious. While there are faults to the seat, structural design isn’t one of them.
Cathay Pacific Airbus A330-300 Business Class
Cathay Pacific Airbus A330-300 Business Class Seat 15A
While the foot cubby is restricted for middle seats, it juts out a bit in the window seats, so it’s actually really easy to just put your feet on and not worry about it hitting the top. I could kick my feet up a bit without touching the top, and I have the biggest feet in the family, so…
Cathay Pacific Airbus A330-300 Business Class Footrest
The bed was probably as long as the 777-300ER, just as well (i.e. rather miserably) padded and perfectly fine, as well as spacious. I found it somewhat more private than expected, going in with lower expectations this time, and slept better than I anticipated.
Cathay Pacific Airbus A330-300 Business Class Bed
Cathay Pacific Airbus A330 Business Class Headphones
Cathay Pacific doesn’t have Bose headphones in business class, though they’re pretty nice. They’re not active noise cancelling headphones, but they’re cushioned, which does the job.
Cathay Pacific Airbus A330-300 Business Class Headphones
Cathay Pacific Airbus A330 Business Class Lavatory
Admittedly it’s a really minor gripe, but the toilets are green. They’re pretty much the colour Cathay Pacific uses everywhere, which seems to be the case with business class lavatories on Cathay Pacific’s older fleet. Add in to the fact that I was wearing a green shirt, and it really looked like I was celebrating St. Patrick’s.
Cathay Pacific Airbus A330-300 Business Class Lavatory
Cathay Pacific Airbus A330 Business Class Food
I’ve always been a fan of Cathay Pacific and Dragonair’s Japan-bound food. I’ve enjoyed my dishes to Tokyo and Sapporo as a young kid, met couscous at 11 on a flight from Sapporo to Hong Kong and loved it ever since, and more recently a chicken orzo dish from Hong Kong to Fukuoka in 2014 I had tied with Jason’s halibut dish on Cathay Pacific – from Taipei to Nagoya no less – made the top of the charts in 2014.
My chicken teriyaki was good, seasoned perfectly and the temperature was perfect. However, the skin wasn’t crispy (which I expected), and there was an annoying piece of paper under the rice so I wasn’t really sure what the best way was to eat it (which I did not expect). Was this dish good? Sure it was. But did it lead me to a gastronomic mile-high orgasm? No, it didn’t.
Cathay Pacific Airbus A330-300 Business Class Meal
See the hexagonal quasi-prism thing on the right? That’s taro, which I normally don’t like, but it was glazed in something. That itself deserves Michelin honours.
Cathay Pacific Airbus A330 Business Class Service
This is where it gets the most interesting. First of all, a shoutout to the Japanese senior purser. I feel like she was the person who got everything organised, and made sure all of us were having the best flight we could. She took all our names so everyone could address me simply as “Alvin”, and she took great care of my sister, which is all that really matters to me on a flight (not because I care that much, just so I don’t have to be the bottom line of everything my sister needs).
The inflight service manager wasn’t as engaged in the actual service – she was at the back of the line communicating to everyone what to do. She also addressed us all by name, and was very friendly, but she wasn’t one of the best I’ve had.
Finally, the “normal” flight attendant, who was the only local flight attendant on board – she was clearly well intentioned, but her temper was about five times shorter than the others. She was unpolished, and didn’t really seem to want to be there. According to Jason:
MOST HK BASED FAS ARE B*TCHY AND COLD…
I’ve met 5 Hong Kong Based FAs that are really good.. And they were all new hires.
Bottom Line
Cathay Pacific offers a great way to travel, whether internationally or regionally. I definitely wouldn’t mind staying in the seat for six more hours – if I say that for the economy seat, chances are I say the same for the business class seat. My return flight in regional business will be great – not as great, but still great.
Neither are as great as sitting back at Osaka’s #1 rated hotel in a yukata, typing this (while it’s an entry level room, it would be a junior suite anywhere else – I can’t wait to see what the two bedroom residence will bring us on Sunday). Stay tuned for that.
InterContinental Osaka Deluxe Twin Yukata