I’m the first person to vouch for Cathay Pacific’s lounges. Not only are they very tastefully designed, though I always feel like the facilities are very thoughtful, whether it’s a bar, a tea room, a noodle bar, or Chinese “street food” style dining. However, on my recent review trip, I noticed that despite the lounges’ size, they aren’t nearly as serene as they once were years ago.
Let me just note that I’m aware I was travelling over absolute peak season (mid-September is when most people go on exchange), and was also there at a peak hour. However, the 1h 45m wait for a shower at a Cathay Pacific business class lounge makes it rival the mess Doha Airport was in 2019 before their second business class lounge opened.
My chaotic shower experience at Cathay Pacific’s Hong Kong lounges
I had lounge access at Hong Kong Airport (I was flying to London in premium economy, though had just flown from Seoul Incheon on the same itinerary in business class), and after having dinner with my family, decided to check out the new renovated The Bridge. I’ll attempt to review the lounge during the full trip report, though it was quite crowded, and I didn’t get to sample much of what the lounge had to offer.
Cathay Pacific’s new The Bridge lounge at Hong Kong Airport
I was sweaty from a full day of travelling (I had just flown ZIPAIR to Seoul Incheon from Tokyo, explored an area near Incheon in the late summer heat, had flown Cathay Pacific down from Seoul Incheon, and had had dinner with my family), so I was really looking forward to a shower. So I got a buzzer, and was told that I was number 29 on the list, with seven operational shower rooms at The Bridge.
Okay, The Bridge is the lounge closer to customs and immigration, and perhaps there’s a bit of hype around the lounge being newly opened. So I decided I’d come back and review the lounge later, and went to The Pier, thinking I’d review it for the first time since 2016.
I’ve never seen the Pier as crowded as it was, though there were still quite a few empty seats available. It reminded me of the Air France lounges in Paris, where the only time you’ll see the lounge devoid of a crowd is very early in the morning when it first opens. The lounge only continued filling up as we continued into the night.
Cathay Pacific’s The Pier business class lounge
I made a beeline to the shower area, thinking I’d get myself onto the list as soon as possible. I was then told that I was number 34 on the list (there were 12 operational shower rooms), and the estimated wait time was about an hour. Oof. Boarding was in just about an hour, and luckily we were departing from gate 64, literally just outside the lounge.
I sat near the shower area, and asked a couple of times, eventually expressing concern that I’d miss boarding (I didn’t want to miss the opportunity to photograph Cathay Pacific’s new premium economy, given that I’d specifically booked this itinerary so I could review it). The shower attendant was very friendly, and said that she’d try and let me cut in if someone decided to cancel their shower slot. As the time approached 10 PM, I saw more and more people approach the shower area, with the wait time extending to 1h 30m, 1h 45m…eventually they ran out of buzzers, and people started getting flat-out turned away.
While I could’ve used this time to properly review the lounge, realistically at this time I was sweaty and tired, and also the lounge was filling up to a point where it was getting difficult to take photos. At 10:25 PM, around 55 minutes after I first got my buzzer, someone no showed (ahead of our 10:35 PM boarding time) – my buzzer went off, with the shower attendant saying “it’s technically not your turn yet, though I know you were in a rush, so please try and shower quickly” – I ended up leaving the shower at 10:33 PM including brushing my teeth, rushed out of the lounge, and was around 7th or 8th in line for boarding in the premium economy cabin.
One of the best (and shortest) showers I’ve had in my life
Okay, before anyone pokes fun at me, of course I don’t need to shower before a longhaul flight. However, in the realm of first world problems, it does make a difference whether I board a 14h flight sticky and sweaty, or refreshed and relaxed. If you’re looking to poke fun at first-world problems, you probably shouldn’t be reading this blog at all.
Cathay Pacific’s lounges are now overcrowded…period
Cathay Pacific used to have four business class lounges at one point (The Deck, The Bridge, The Pier, and The Wing). At some point Cathay Pacific business class passengers will get The Deck back, though for now it’s treated as a first class lounge. The Wing is still open, though they no longer operate showers, and the lounge will also close for renovation soon.
Cathay Pacific currently functionally has two business class lounges, as most people are pointed to either The Bridge or The Pier. This means that both lounges get very crowded over peak times. Aside from showers which are the main bottleneck, there’s also an extended wait for the Noodle Bar, seats can get quite crowded and the more comfortable seating can fill up, etc..
Not the most serene atmosphere (although there are still empty seats)
I do think that if you market a shower available at a business class lounge, it is a problem if there’s a ridiculous wait time for it. I would love to call Cathay Pacific’s business class lounges some of the world’s best, and it’s a genuine blocker for this if you can’t rock up for a shower during a 2h layover at 10 PM on a layover between Australia and Europe.
With showers at The Deck and The Wing no longer being available to business class passengers, the reduction in overall shower capacity is felt by passengers. A Reddit thread I found suggested that a 1.5-2h wait for a shower was considered normal. That’s typically a wait time for an airline that has capacity issues, such as Qatar Airways and Etihad had at their hubs before they expanded (Turkish Airlines still has this problem), and atypical for a leading Southeast Asian carrier.
Conclusion
Thanks for coming to my rant on showers at Cathay Pacific lounges in Hong Kong, really I only have a few conclusions:
- Cathay Pacific needs to increase their shower capacity, perhaps by building a large enough excess at The Wing, and reopening The Deck to business class passengers as soon as possible
- Passengers shouldn’t take for granted shower access at Cathay Pacific’s Hong Kong lounges during peak time
- Cathay Pacific generally is dealing with a ME3-style issue, where they have great lounge amenities but too many passengers to enjoy them fully over peak times
- If you need to shower and are flying Cathay Pacific outbound business class or have access based on your status, I’d recommend giving the Qantas lounge Hong Kong a go
Have you flown Cathay Pacific recently and had lounge access at Hong Kong Airport?