This Review of Cathay Pacific Business Class, 777-300ER HKG to JFK is one of our many Cathay Pacific Reviews, both of Cathay Pacific First Class and Cathay Pacific Business Class. Visiting Hong Kong? See all our posts tagged Hong Kong.
Here's my Cathay Pacific Business Class YouTube Video Review:
Cathay Pacific 777-300ER Business Class Cabin and Seat Selection
Cathay Pacific 777-300ER Business Class has 53 flat bed seats in a 1-2-1 reverse herringbone configuration, so each seat has direct aisle access and a good amount of privacy.
Cathay Pacific 777-300ER Business Class Seat Map, Image from SeatGuru
Solo travelers will want to select window seats, A or K, avoiding rows close to the galley or lavatories such as row 12, 15 and possibly 16.
Couples will want to select middle seats angled towards each other, D and G.
My favorite row is row 11, in the mini cabin located directly behind first class. As mentioned though, I don't like row 12 as it's right in front of the lavatories.
Cathay Pacific 777-300ER Business Class Seat, Bed and Sleep Quality
Each Cathay Pacific Business Class seat is 21 inches wide, and turns into a flat bed that is 82 inches in length from tip to tip, although it will be most comfortable for passengers not taller than 6 feet 2 inches. Thanks to the retractable armrest (see forthcoming video) the usable bed width at the widest point is 29.5 inches, when the seat is turned into a bed.
There's a good triangular storage space by the seat for a hand bag or laptop case:
There's also some space in the enclosed cabinet, where the noise cancelling headphones can be hung when not in use:
The seat easily reclines to a fully flat bed position, so there's no folding down the backrest as in Singapore Business Class. At each seat ottoman there was a duvet, which I used on top of my portable Thermarest mattress pad that I'd brought with me.
I managed to get about 6 hours of sleep on the flight, thanks to the quiet location of seat 11A and the Thermarest mattress pad.
Cathay Pacific 777-300ER Business Class Menu and Food
After boarding, cabin crew offered us a hot towel:
Next we were given a pre-flight drink; I chose orange juice.
Here's the menu for our evening flight, which included dinner, a snack option, and breakfast before landing at New York JFK.
I didn't have any champagne on this flight, but did enjoy a small amount of the Albarino white wine with mixed nuts, before the dinner service.
The seared scallop appetizer was good, and even better than the main course.
For my main, I chose the prawns, which were fine, although what I really liked was the Kai-lan (Chinese broccoli) that it came with.
Cheese and fresh fruit were offered after the main:
The strawberry rhubarb crumble was surprisingly good; usually I'm not too impressed with desserts on Asian airlines.
Praline chocolates were offered from a box to conclude, and the dark chocolate I chose was fresh tasting and delicious.
In the morning, I started with some orange juice, which was clearly from concentrate and not very good. Air New Zealand serves much better fresh squeezed orange juice in Premium Economy.
The Swiss Emmi yogurt, however, was delicious, though I wished there was the option of some fresh berries and granola to go with it.
Bread rolls and croissants were offered from a bread basket:
I liked the dim sum for breakfast, especially the lotus leaf wrapped sticky rice, and that some chili sauce was provided.
The Verdict
Business class flights are generally all about the flat bed and getting some rest, and much less about service and dining–if you want a more memorable flight in that regard, you generally need to fly first class. Given these expectations, Cathay Pacific Business Class delivered a good, solid experience. With the addition of my Thermarest mattress pad, and helped by being in the mini cabin in seat 11A, I was able to get a decent amount of sleep on the flight. I recommend trying to get a seat in row 11 if at all possible, and seat 11A or 11K if flying solo.
I liked the seared scallop appetizer and prawn main course for dinner, and also the option of dim sum for breakfast, although of course it doesn't compare to dim sum in top Hong Kong restaurants. The Emmi yogurt was also good, although I wished there was fresh squeezed orange juice instead of juice from concentrate.
If you've flown long haul Cathay Pacific Business Class on the 777-300ER recently, what was your experience?
Recommended Posts
Review: Cathay Pacific 777-300 Business Class Bali to Hong Kong
Cathay Pacific Asia Miles Award Chart Devaluation
Review: Cathay Pacific First Class 777-300ER JFK-YVR
Review: Premier Lounge Bali Denpasar Airport
If you enjoyed this, join 200,000+ readers: follow TravelSort on Twitter or like us on Facebook to be alerted to new posts.
Subscribe to TravelSort on YouTube and TravelSort on Instagram for travel inspiration.
Become a TravelSort Client and Book 5-Star Hotels with Virtuoso or Four Seasons Preferred Partner Benefits
Very timely article. I’m taking this flight in November. Originally booked in 12A (apparently hit and miss. Some like it some don’t). 11A and K were not available. On a whim I checked today and 11A was available.. In fact the whole mini cabin is empty. Does Cathay simply hold these seats until a month or two out? Great write up thanks
Glad you were able to snag 11A; it and 11K are my favorite seats. Also just included my YouTube video in the post. Hope you enjoy your November flight!
I have a good experience with CX Business class, and would fly it without hesitation. Which I cannot say about CX`s First – that was a nightmare (crew was based in Hongcouver, maybe that was the reason of such awful experience – never again).
Great review – thanks. I’m flying HKG-BOS in August and managed to get 11A 🙂 Can’t wait!
just took this flight yesterday and was not impressed. no wifi, no mattress pad and bad food. they need to step up their game!