Review: Cathay Pacific Airbus A350 & A330 Business Class Singapore to Seoul (via Hong Kong)

Flight no.	SIN-HKG: CX 658 HKG-ICN: CX 416
Aircraft	SIN-HKG: Airbus A350-900 HKG-ICN: Airbus A330-300
Seat no.	SIN-HKG: 18K HKG-ICN: 17K
Cost	22.5k Alaska miles + US$84 (taxes/fees)
Flight duration	SIN-HKG: 4 hours HKG-ICN: 3.5 hours

These flights were part of my Jeju-Seoul 2023 trip.

How to book Cathay Pacific Business Class with Miles

Travellers can book Cathay Pacific Business Class seats with miles from the airline’s own Frequent Flyer Program (FFP), Asia Miles, or through partner FFPs like Alaska Mileage Plan and Qatar Privilege Club.

Miles on these FFPs can be earned through the best travel/rewards credit cards in Singapore.

Related: Cheapest ways to fly between Singapore and North Asia using Miles/Points from Singapore cards

Seat maps

All of the airline’s A350-900 and A350-1000 aircrafts have similar Business Class seats in 1-2-1 reverse herringbone configuration.

Cathay Pacific operates a number of Airbus A330-300 aircrafts with different Business Class seats. Look out for the following seat map to fly in the best Business Class seats in this aircraft type.

Pre-flight

Prior to take-off on both flights, I was greeted and offered a beverage of choice and a hot towel.

Cathay Pacific Airbus A350-900 Business Class seat

The airline’s Airbus A350-900 Business Class seats, laid out in a 1-2-1 cabin configuration, look understated and honestly, unexciting.

However, because of their good use of space and privacy, these seats are very practical, for the airline and its passengers.

As these reverse herringbone seats are pretty much identical, travellers get exactly what they expect.

The key disadvantages of this seat type are:

1. Window seats are technically “off-window”; passengers have to bend forward a lot; to get a good view of the outside world.
2. Middle seats are positioned at a distance and are blocked off from one another; not good for couples (right?).

Bed mode

Seats can be transformed into fully-flat beds which are soft and comfortable.

Shoulder, foot and knee room are quite brilliant by Business Class standards as these seats do not come with deep leg/foot “tunnels”. Having an entertainment screen that can be folded away is genius!

In bed mode, it is easily more spacious and comfortable than “futuristic” seats from Finnair and Singapore Airlines.

Cathay Pacific Airbus A330-300 Business Class seat

Like those in the airline’s Airbus A350 aircrafts, all seats in the A330 aircraft offer direct aisle access and are angled in the same manner.

While they look very similar, seats in this aircraft are older and come with slightly lesser technology, poorer use of space and inferior furnishing.

Dining

I’ve always enjoyed dining in Cathay Pacific Business Class, even on these short flights.

Singapore to Hong Kong

Hong Kong to Seoul (Incheon)

Unfortunately, on this slightly-shorter flight from Hong Kong to Seoul, there was no plating done to the main course and it looked pre-packed, like what you would expect to receive in Economy Class.

In-Flight WiFi

Cathay Pacific charges a fee for in-flight Wifi and it depends on the flight duration.

• Flights under 6 hours: US$12.95
• Flights above 6 hours: US$19.95
• One hour pass (all flights): US$9.95

Message Pass is also available for US$3.95 on flights under 6 hours. This can be used for sending and receiving messages on applications like WhatsApp, iMessage and Facebook Messenger.

Airport lounges

Flying in Cathay Pacific Business Class from Singapore gets you access to Cathay Pacific Lounge, and flying from Hong Kong Airport gets you access to 3 lounges: The Wing (near Gate 2), The Pier (near Gate 65) and The Deck (near Gate 6).

As the lounges in Hong Kong are located pretty far from one another, be sure to check where your flight is departing from, for your convenience.

The Wing and The Pier lounges are the best ones (larger, better food/amenities).

My ratings

This is how I am rating my Business Class experience (vs other airlines):

Seat	8/10	Storage	9/10
Bed	9/10	Service	8/10
Dining	8/10	Cleanliness	9/10
Privacy	8/10

Bottom line

Cathay Pacific has always been a great airline to fly in, especially in the premium classes, and it is great to see service standards bouncing back to pre-pandemic levels.

While the airline’s current generation of Business Class seats do not have the “wow factor”, they are among the better ones out there when it comes to comfort, especially on the Airbus A350s.