Cathay Pacific’s opened their latest lounge, and in my A350 fiasco yesterday (which is, apparently, still stuck in Manila), I did manage to have a lot of relax and rewind time at the Pier. I had high hopes of the Pier, and was thinking it’d be a step ahead all of the other lounges, possibly slightly ahead of the Qantas Lounge Hong Kong.
But boy, not only is this the best lounge in Hong Kong, I think this is the best business class lounge I’ve ever visited (there’s not much steal for the title here, since I haven’t actually visited that many, but please agree).
Cathay Pacific The Pier Business Class Lounge Hong Kong
OK, before I soil myself, I’ll explain why that is, and try to concentrate all the beauties of the lounge into seven main points.
1. The lounge is very attractive
While the Qantas Lounge is pretty attractive, it’s nothing compared to this. The lounge’s finishes are incredible, mostly featuring wood and a more concrete shade of marble, which is much better than the marble Cathay Pacific uses in most lounges.
Cathay Pacific The Pier Business Class Lounge Hong Kong
Cathay Pacific The Pier Business Class Lounge Hong Kong Food Bar
Cathay Pacific The Pier Business Class Lounge Hong Kong
The lounge just has this amazing “cigar bar” feel to it, which made it REALLY exciting and a nice place to stay in. My whole family loved the ambience of the lounge.
2. The lounge is MASSIVE
Cathay Pacific The Pier Business Class Lounge Hong Kong Signage
The lounge has six massive sections, consisting of the food hall, the noodle bar, the (booze) bar, the teahouse, the relaxation rooms and one big tarmac-viewing strip by the side. Every single section was pretty much as big as the Singapore Airlines SilverKris Lounge near gate 15 (at the same airport).
Cathay Pacific The Pier Business Class Lounge Hong Kong Food Hall
Cathay Pacific The Pier Business Class Lounge Hong Kong Bar
Cathay Pacific The Pier Business Class Lounge Hong Kong Side Area
Cathay Pacific The Pier Business Class Lounge Hong Kong Noodle Bar
Cathay Pacific The Pier Business Class Lounge Hong Kong Teahouse
Cathay Pacific The Pier Business Class Lounge Hong Kong Shower Room Area
Cathay Pacific The Pier Business Class Lounge Hong Kong Relaxation/Nap Rooms
There’s actually a “bureau” at the back consisting of the lounge’s new Solo flagship chairs (incredibly comfortable, by the way), which I spent skyping Nat for the latter half of my stay. She was impressed to the point of being jealous.
Cathay Pacific The Pier Business Class Lounge Hong Kong Bureau
3. The food is GREAT
I understand that Cathay Pacific’s lounge noodles are always good, but I felt like the dandan noodles at the Pier were especially good. I’ve had dan dan noodles at Cathay Pacific’s lounge in Paris, which weren’t as good (obviously), and reports from my dad tell me that these dandan noodles were better than anything else they serve. The broth was thick and the noodles were well seasoned.
Cathay Pacific The Pier Business Class Lounge Hong Kong Dandan Noodles
The actual buffet is really high quality, with perfectly cooked chicken and fish on the plate. I can’t remember the last time I’ve had gratinated cauliflower that actually tasted like cheese.
Cathay Pacific The Pier Business Class Lounge Hong Kong Food
Cathay Pacific The Pier Business Class Lounge Hong Kong Food
It’s not table service, but what do you expect from a business class lounge?
Lastly, they serve barista coffee, which my mom loved (that actually made her regret not getting to the lounge sooner) – here’s her hazelnut latte.
Cathay Pacific The Pier Business Class Lounge Hong Kong Hazelnut Latte
4. The nap rooms are well designed
I mean, who wouldn’t want to sleep on those daybeds? Not only do they look gorgeous, but they were also really comfortable.
Cathay Pacific The Pier Business Class Lounge Hong Kong Daybeds
5. The service is AMAZING
This was shown in a few instances. First of all, I took a shower at the lounge. After my shower, the shower attendant went into a bit of small talk, wishing me a pleasant journey in Taipei. That’s the first time that’s happened at a lounge for me from anyone but the person at the front desk.
Cathay Pacific The Pier Business Class Lounge Hong Kong Showers
Fellow writer Nat (who still hasn’t gotten around to writing anything up yet) wanted to call for something halfway through the stay, so I asked one of the lounge attendants if there were any business rooms I could use. He said there weren’t any at the lounge, so I could try being a little quieter on one of the daybeds. While I headed there, the lounge attendant scurried after me, and told me that the bureau was vacant and I could head there.
Cathay Pacific The Pier Business Class Lounge Hong Kong Bureau
Normally they don’t allow food or drinks in these sorts of carpeted work areas, but I was feeling really thirsty an hour or so into the call, so I asked if I could take some drinks inside, expecting a “no”. The lounge attendant said “no, no, no, feel free!” so I made my way to get myself a coke with ice. I think I saw him waving at Nat while I looked back to check that no one was stealing my stuff, but I’m not sure. 😉
Cathay Pacific The Pier Business Class Lounge Hong Kong Drinks
6. It’s a good place to work
All the solo chairs are private, so you can really do anything you want in them. But the thing I found great was the USB power ports located basically everywhere in the lounge. I could even juice up at the Noodle Bar, as well as the Bureau, the Food Hall, and basically every seat I sat in during my stay.
Cathay Pacific The Pier Business Class Lounge Hong Kong Power Ports
There’s also fast, free wifi, and iMacs with paper, which proved to be really useful especially during my call.
Cathay Pacific The Pier Business Class Lounge Hong Kong iMacs
Cathay Pacific The Pier Business Class Lounge Hong Kong Paper
7. The runway views are great
I missed this with a camera, but I definitely saw this plane while it was landing, close up, on the runway….
British Airways Airbus A380-800 Hong Kong Airport
While I took the British Airways’ picture outside the lounge, I managed to snap a picture of Cathay Pacific’s A330 in their sexy new livery, and if I had time I could’ve snapped pictures of a few planes landing.
Cathay Pacific Airbus A330-300 Hong Kong Airport
Bottom Line
Whether your flight departs from gate 2 or gate 50, do yourself a favour, get to the airport a couple of hours early and make your way to gate 65. You won’t regret it. It’s undoubtedly one of the best business class lounges anywhere in the world, and definitely the best lounge in Hong Kong.
I had to backtrack to gate 2 by the end, and I don’t regret a single step…