In recent years many airlines around the world, especially those specializing in long and ultra long haul routes, have added a new class of service to some of their aircraft – Premium Economy. Not quite Business Class and not quite Economy, it’s the red headed stepchild of air travel, mostly because many people are unsure if it’s really a good alternative. I recently had the opportunity to fly in Premium Economy with Cathay Pacific and discovered that it’s hard to classify the experience because it really is its own new way to travel.
Process and Perks
I like to be on time; in fact I may be (definitely) slightly OCD about it. And yes, I am one of those horrible people who get anxious about lining up to board a flight. That was the first perk I noticed with Premium Economy; we weren’t put in the longer Economy Class line, a simple perk but one that set the stage for the rest of the flying experience.
Like many other folks, I like the simple perks of travel, extra little actions and products that make travel more civilized and enjoyable. That’s one reason why I relish being upgraded to Business Class, but I was thrilled to see many of those same luxury perks offered in the Premium Economy section as well. Welcomed with my choice of water, juice or champagne, I felt special. I felt like the next 16 hours onboard flight CX890 wouldn’t be a chore, that it would be a nice experience. And I was right, the simple extras kept on coming including a dedicated amenity kit with everything I could possibly need, hot hand towels, Premium Economy dining menus and more. In fact, many of these perks are very similar to what is enjoyed in Business Class, but at a more manageable price point.
Food and Entertainment
Airline food doesn’t have a great reputation, and it’s really not the fault of the airlines. Well, not entirely. I recently saw a snarky quote that said, “Do you know why airline food is so bad? Because you’re an on AIRPLANE!” And it’s true; the challenges facing the airlines in providing quality food are many. But, quality is still important of course; especially on an ultra long haul flight. As mentioned, not unlike Business Class, we in Premium Economy received our own printed menus, with plenty of choices and a description of the food service for the entire flight. I like that. I like knowing what’s coming up, what we’re being fed and when. In Economy there can be so much conjecture, so the menu was appreciated.
The quality of the food was pretty good too. In fact, the presentation was startlingly similar to what I experienced a few days earlier in the Cathay Pacific Business Class section. The food was tasty, the accompaniments adequate and filling and I really couldn’t have asked for me. I don’t expect, nor do I want, Michelin star eating on planes. I want meals and snacks that taste good, are simple and won’t cause me further discomfort during the flight.
Modern long and ultra long haul planes nearly all have state of the art inflight entertainment units and Cathay was no different. They offered a wide range of movies and TV shows, but if I had to complain I don’t think there were enough of them. From my own personal tastes I found very little to watch and on a 16-hour flight I expected more variety. Also, having been in Business Class a few days before I noticed a difference in the offerings. Business Class does indeed offer a little more variety, including a specific TV series I had wanted to watch, but it wasn’t offered in Premium Economy. I’m not a fan of offering different movie and TV show selections based on class of service, but I also understand the need for airlines to continuously offer more added benefit to their more expensive classes of travel. I’m just grumpy I couldn’t watch season five of Breaking Bad.
Comfort and Sleep
Perks are great and movies important, but on an ultra long haul flight comfort and the ability to get a reasonably nice night’s sleep are vital. Unless I’m in a comfy lie-flat Business Class seat, it’s this aspect that worries me the most about long flights. I’m tall, my right knee gives me a lot of pain and so the physical seat I’m in matters a lot. My first impression of Cathay Pacific’s Premium Economy seats was a positive one. They are wider than standard with a much improved pitch, which means you can recline more and get a lot more comfortable than in standard economy. We also enjoyed improved blankets and pillows, a nice touch to be honest.
On my flight the Premium Economy cabin was far from full, so the passengers were all able to stretch out and relax. When it finally did come time to sleep, I fully reclined the seat and set up my own personal cocoon of comfort as I call it. Using the eyeshades and earplugs included in my amenity kit, I curled up with a blanket and settled it. I am a notoriously bad plane sleeper. When in economy it almost never happens, no matter the length of the flight. Last year I flew 15 hours from Taipei and slept one hour. I just can’t get comfortable usually. On my Cathay Pacific flight though I slept for 8 hours. EIGHT HOURS. Sure, I was tired, but the fact that I got what was basically a full night of uninterrupted sleep is amazing to me. That alone in my opinion makes Premium Economy worth it. The wider seats that recline deeper along with the nicer amenities enabled me to get really and truly comfortable and that is the ultimate perk.
Cathay Pacific Premium Economy By The Numbers
Cathay Pacific rolled out their new Premium Economy section in 2012 as a way to add a new option to passengers who wanted some extra value to their trip. Reading through their literature, it seems that my initial impressions were correct – Cathay wanted to improve the entire experience, from check in to landing. More than a wider chair, they set out with the goal of making everything just a little bit nicer for the Premium Economy passengers.
At the airport Premium Economy passengers get their own dedicated lines at check in and boarding and even have an enhanced baggage allowance. In flight the operative word is cozy. The Premium Economy cabin is its own separate space with just 26-34 seats. Those seats are also wider than the standard Economy class versions, with an incredible 38-inch seat pitch, six more inches than in Economy. Remember, this is the distance between the same points between chairs, and determines whether or not my knees will be crushed. (My knees were fine on this trip.) The seats also have eight inches of recline which is ultimately what made my sleep experience possible.
The personal TVs are larger, as are the meal trays, there is extra personal stowage space, inflight power outlets and they even provide noise-cancelling headphones. Living up to its name, it really is all about simple enhancements that make this its own unique and distinct class of travel.
So, is it worth it?
As a guy who loves comfort and perks when traveling yes, Premium Economy is absolutely worth the investment. And that’s what it is. Our time, for all of us, is important and for me it’s important to arrive in a new destination (or back at home) as well rested as possible. Also the flight itself is an incredibly important part of the travel experience so why not do something to make it a little more fun and enjoyable? Too many people dread long flights, a phenomenon that I just don’t understand. If done right flights aren’t just manageable, they’re fun and an event unto themselves not unlike the rest of your trip. I would without a doubt recommend Cathay Pacific’s Premium Economy to anyone who asks and I sincerely hope to fly this way again.
Do you have any questions about the Premium Economy flying experience?
This campaign was created and sponsored by Cathay Pacific Airways in partnership with iambassador. LandLopers retains all editorial control of what is published and as you know, I never shy away from honest commentary.
Thanks for the great review. It makes me wish I upgraded or bought myself a premium economy ticket to London. If it’s not too much more, I could see myself shelling out more money for some extra comfort and perks!
Something to keep in mind for next time!
Great review, Matt. In the end, it does come down to price and it may be because I fly from San Diego (hence the addition of an AA regional jet to LAX before boarding Cathay) but the difference in price between economy and premium economy on the fall dates I’m looking at is just over 30% which seems like great value for a round trip if your bank balance permits. However, I adore Cathay business class so I do whatever I can to make that work (my husband’s firm used to buy us transpacific business class tickets–those were the days). I will tell you as someone who has probably flown Cathay 100 times in the last 8 years that I have been delayed only a handful of times, also. Service is impeccable from top to bottom and they even remembered my favorite chocolates after a while. It is my favorite airline.
Just stumbled across your reviews and am enjoying them all. We had a very underwhelming experience on Cathay Pacific recently. First experience in this newish product and we won’t be rushing back. No major catastrophes but just a general lack of attention to the details you’d expect for the extra $$$. Examples include our requested seating for the three travelling was completely screwed up on the out bound legs (Australia to HKG and on to LHR). We understand seat requests aren’t guaranteed but we were scattered all over the place. Then while one side of the cabin was treated to pre take off drinks, our side was ignored. Both outbound legs. Experience on the return sectors was a little better, but overall not as good as Qantas premium for the most part and certainly nothing like the almost Business class experience you’ll see with Virgin Australia or Air NZ.
Good, thorough review! It’s important when weighing the cost to upgrade to find out how the airline you’re flying on treats it’s premium economy as airlines like Cathay and British Airways have a wholly separate cabin with wider seats and generally improved in-flight services while U.S. airlines such as Delta and United have instead adjusted the first 6-10 rows of the economy cabin to offer more legroom but the same width of seat and virtually the same inclusions as economy.
I’ve been travelling to China for business since 2002. I started out flying New York -> Tokyo -> Hong Kong on United. I had put in my time in coach, built up the miles, and had a great success rate of getting upgraded to business. When United stopped flying to Tokyo, ANA took over that leg, I switched to Cathay. Again I put in my time in the back, built up the miles (flights and award points) and started to get my business class upgrades (40,000 miles) most of my flights. I’m in China now and didn’t have the miles for an upgrade coming over, but planned so I would on the way back. When I went through the upgrade process online and saw I was eligible and it was now only 27,500 points I was thrilled. Clicked OK, confirm, confirm…and then noticed I was not in Business class but Premium Economy. Called Cathay and found out you can no longer upgrade from Standard Economy to Business, only 1 class to Premium from Standard, Premium to Business. Oh well, after reading your review I’m looking to forward to the flight. I’ll be missing the lounge though.
Hello and thank you for the great post. I fly (not just once but many times) CX from EWR to HKG in PE and agree with your review. I also fly BA and tonight i will take the new JAL flight from SFO to HND in PE.
While I loved upgrading on Continental and then tolerated United to Asia, the new PE products are very reasonable and comfortable for business travel.
The biggest perk is if you are loyal to one airline, upgrades to business are less miles. I will post how the new JAL flight is if anyone is interested. It is only day 2 for this flight.
This review was in 2014, is Cathay Pacific’s premium economy still as good or better now in 2017.
I’ve flown from JFK to HK on premium economy (PE) many times over a span of two years. My experience is totally opposite of yours, is this site sponsored or affiliated in any way with Cathay Pacific?
I’m just going to list items from my experience:
1) Express boarding is nice, but just sign up for Marco Polo for only $50.00 to get this benefit anyway.
2) My flights were always full and the passengers sitting next to me did not pay the PE fare.
3) Do you use a laptop, if so, impossible to look at the screen, if the seat in front reclines (16 hour flight, will it recline).
4) So, I’ll sit in the front row to use my laptop, but the economy bathroom is in the same row, horrible, kept getting stepped on and my laptop knocked off the tray table!
5) You got champaign, wow you must be some kind of VIP, perhaps there’s some kind of sign language to get it, please tell us.
6) So, the flight attendant will “drop” your food tray early, but, wait.. wait….. wait…….. till someone picks up your finished meal, the flight attendants will disappear somewhere in the main cabin. Actually I would eventually dispose of my tray to get some laptop quality time.
7) The seats are not comfortable, much stiffer than all other airlines and the extra pitch just gets obliviated by seat recline in front.
8) The flight attendants are **not** so happy with PE, seems like its an annoying street bump on the road as they jettison pass you heading to the main cabin and back.
9) The PE fare cost difference from economy is usually 3x from JFK to HK, the above list was the norm for all my flights.
Well, you get the idea, Cathay Pacific PE product does not measure up, at 3x the cost of economy, I disagree, it’s not worth it!
I’ve have not experienced Cathay Pacific’s economy class, the JFK to HK Boeing 777 seating is 9 across, which is nice, because other airlines like Emirates seats 10 across. And, as with your experience, sitting in economy with an empty seat next door, will be a nicer experience than PE with an extra $1500.00 in my pocket – doh!!!!.
You must be the most unlucky person to have all the bad experience with CX PE. I have travelled many times for the past couple of years from HKG to LAX with CX PE. Personally I would agree with Matt. I had good experience with CX PE and will continue to travel with then in PE as its value for money and I never pay 3X more than economy. From time to time, I got lucky and bumped up to Business.
I’ve flown Premium Economy a few times from free upgrade as Macro Polo to or from HK, I must say I enjoyed all the perks every single time. I enjoyed it so much, I just used my mileages to get a free round trip award ticket to HK from the USA on PE.
Since you have so much unhappiness on PE and have been traveled so many times on PE on Cathay, why would you keep going back to pay more for the “bad experience”?
My first flight in PE in a few minutes.
Have been flying Cathay almost exclusively for most of my flying life….40years
Have not taken a flight for quite sometime, busy raising my daughter.
Just a quick FYI, bc of this blog I decided to request an upgrade to PE and paid a nominal fee of $500 not quite 3x I expected. Will it be worth it?
I’ll post my thoughts.
Most of my previous upgrades to Business Class and First was purely through accumulated mileage.
So I’m starting from zero mileage to build up my time again.
Just bought a drink at Starbucks…. Are there cupholders in the seats? ;-)
I purchased a round trip flight in economy for less than $850 from LAX-HKG-CMB. I inquired about premium economy and they said my 1 way upgrade between LAX-HKG would be +$900 USD. So, I’ve opted not to upgrade. This is my very first flight on Cathay so we will see how it goes.
We flew Cathay Pacific Economy Plus without planning – just asking for an upgrade and what may be available and I have to say that the experience was such a happy surprise. I love the affordability compared to business class and will book this class on long hauls – no question.
I’ve flown Premium Economy a few times on CX with most recent being yesterday. I’ve also tried it on Eva air and air Canada. Cathay’s is by far most underwhelming of ones ive tried and have been told that by others who’ve tried PE on other airlines as well.
1. The section is tiny and you need to go into regular economy for washrooms and the FAs are only passing by on their way to and from the main cabin
2. Food and service is basically same as economy..they drop a tray of food and walk away and come back when you’re done to take away the tray . the entree is different than economy and a bit better quality but that’s more to do with the low quality in economy more than anything good about PE
3. The cheap glass of champgne is just tacky and welcome drink is hit and miss and really you can get it in economy if you ask whereas PE you may get chance of getting it without asking but don’t see anything special about getting a small cup of drink
4. Seats…the seats are wider by a small amount but the extra width is reduced by the drink holder tray and built in table..the foot rest is extremt uncomfortable and suitable for midgets ..for taller people it just gets in the way.
5. Check in/boarding …I am already Marco polo club member and got it free with my credit card so no advantage for PE
Conclusion
Yes PE is better than regular economy but barely …for nominal extra price
.sure..but nothing premium about the experience …having traveled on business ..and economy enough times…I find PE hard to justify since its really just economy with a few tacky add ons
Having flown with a number of carriers who have PE I think the rational for choosing a PE seat over standard economy is generally down to personal preferences. I’m also tall at 6′ 7″ and therefore on longer flights if business isn’t an option due to price I’ll always book PE over economy. As a result that will generally determine my carrier as the numbers with a PE offering is still small.
As a number have said I’ve also got status with all OneWorld carriers so advantages such as different check in lines, pre boarding etc aren’t additional perks, for me it’s all about the seat pitch.
I’ve not travelled long husk using Cathay’s PE only on a regional service so can’t really comment on there particular offer. However the one to beat for PE offering is Qantas, the seat is vastly different to Economy and the service much better, they don’t have the annoying footrest which isn’t great for tall passengers so that also helps . BA old PE has seen better days but the offering on the A380 and B777-300 is significantly improved.
Overall, yes PE is worth the additional outlay for me, as 12 plus hours in a standard economy seat isn’t really an option
Pitch is king for tall people. Take a look at Air New Zealand PE—41in. pitch on their Airbus 777-200 Honkers to Auck
Pitch is good until someone reclines. :(
Can’t beat a 2 seat (2-4-2) economy Exit Row – no recliners & unlimited legroom.
Upper deck A380 mini cabin (Qatar, QF & others). I’ll sacrifice the extra 1″ seat width in PE for an equal or better experience in Y.
As a tall and impatient person who does not have any airline status and who pays for all of his own travel out of his own wallet, can I point out that things like dedicated check-in desks and extra pitch are vitally important to some, much more so than even gourmet food. I have flown business and will do so again but I sometimes detect a hint of snobbery in reviews of PE. When did any of you last fly in economy with no status perks? Just sayin’……because that’s the real acid test of whether PE is worth it, not from the other perspective of J class.
I too am tall and impatient and hope you were referring to the other commenters. I don’t think my review is snobbish at all, I really enjoyed PE and would fly it again in a heartbeat. Regardless, thank you so much for your comments!
Hi
Can you recommend a lounge in departures CX in HK as we have a long wait before our flight to Dubai?
Thanks
depends on the airline you’re flying
I know this reply is 2 years too late, but for future references: The “Wing” (one of CX Business Lounges at HKG) by Gate 2. I was there 3 days ago, and it was wonderful!
I have a CX premium economy flight coming up later this year from YVR to JFK (part of the HKG -JFK route). Can anyone tell me if you get lounge access with a premium economy ticket? Thanks!
no, lounge access for business and first class passengers only
Have not yet traveled Cathay but many times on Thai. Thai has left me because their schedule is no longer compatible. PE on Thai and business LAX to BKK and return many times. Sad as I loved Thai. But it appears Cathay now has my card.
Cathay is great and I too was sad to see the changes in Thai’s schedules :(
departure from HK,PE can enter cx lounge?
You should check with the airline directly to see what the current rules are for the location.
No PE does not have lounge access
had just booked a PE flight hong kong to london.. i have read about flyers commenting that the first row seat is the best seat in PE..has anyone gotten this seat? anyone with comparisons? i would be working on my laptop and my concern is the table and power outlet.
They’re all pretty similar – front row doesn’t have a seat in front, but people may congregate nearby
I just flew ORD to HKG on Cathay Pacific. Outbound, we were upgraded without warning to Business Class. This is the class you want on a long flight. I can’t say enough about it. But this article and my comment is about the Premium Economy seats we paid for:
(1) The seats are only a couple of inches wider. Wider is better, but don’t expect to be swimming in room. The problem is that the airline put an enormous console in between the seats where the heavy swing-out, fold-out tray tables live. That makes the seats completely unyielding just like bulkhead seats. Without such a huge console, the seats could be a few inches wider still.
(2) The seats recline 5 inches more than normal coach seats. Again, that is a benefit, but in my opinion and experience, that whole benefit is defeated by the fact that the seat right in font of you can recline 5 inches more, too, and the seat will be right in your face or lap depending on if you recline your own seat or not. This makes it very hard to see the built in TV correctly, unless you fully recline your seat, too. This also makes using the tray table for work impossible. It makes sitting up uncomfortable unless you don’t mind someone’s sweaty dandruffy hair in your face and watching the TV at the wrong angle. It makes getting up to use the bathroom very difficult. I found all of this most annoying and uncomfortable. Yes, you could try the front row, but there is only one bathroom in the Premium Economy section and the only way to get to it is across the front row, so watch out for your feet to be trod on time and time again.
In short, unless the premium economy upgrade is less than 35% of the face value of the regular economy ticket, I don’t think the upgrade is worth it. Mine was much more expensive than that, and definitely not worth it.
Perks: dedicated check-in. Hot towel. Reasonably decent food.
Diasadvantages: seat did not feel more comfortable, in fact I thought the opposite. Footrest not helpful. No special attention from cabin crew. Full cabin on flight from Melbourne – Hong Kong – Milan felt just as congested as in Economy. Poor air quality.
The return journey was better for the fact that the cabin was not full and air quality seemed better.
Even though I had received a pretty good ticket price, it was still rather more to pay when the only perks were the check-in and the hot towel.
Flying from PERTH to LONDON via HK with a 4 day stopover so no need to upgrade but when we are returning the flight will be direct, LONDON- PERTH. I’m flying solo with a 5 year old, is it worth the extra 2K it is going to cost? She is small & will sleep anywhere. But in saying that though, each time she has flown long haul we have managed to get the entire row to ourselves so she’s never flown true economy. Sodry my question is so late, I just discovered your review tonight after returning from the travel agent.
Cheers
Just returned from Hong Kong to the UK and decided to try Premier Economy with Cathay Pacific. I can honestly say it’s the best thing I’ve ever done and unless I can’t afford it again it’s the way to fly for me. Coming back we had our own toilet and the curtains where closed between U.S. business and economy. (Not sure of the plane) The food (we choose vegetarian as you get your food first) was not good, not seasoned and bland. Next time I will go for the menu option, it looked a lot better.
Excellent service and drinks, snacks through the flight plus welcome glass of champagne and a hot towel. The extra leg room is bliss and the noise cancelling headphones help cancel out the engine noise.
I paid the extra a couple of years ago and joined the Marco Polo club as you get on first and have a special check in but with PE you get that as well. I would love to be able to try Buisness or First a Class one day but for now Cathsy PE is for me and at £1000 return its only a few hundred pounds more than Economy.
Great review, flying to Australia from Heathrow via Hong Kong in February and reading this review just made me change my flight from economy to premium economy.
Great help and I cant wait to see the cabin!
Just booked our first PE seats for next year..Just so tired of feeling uncomfortable in economy on the long haul from Australia to Europe..The differing reviews make me wonder if it is worth double the price. Fingers crossed that we have a good experience..Thanks for the reviews
Karen I’m having exactly the same concerns. We are doing this flight in PE in September. How was yours? I would be interested to know. Thanks. Kaylene
Flying cx premium economy melbourne hongkong rome return april 2016. As R ome does not have dedicated checkins for PE (have to use economy ) i was wondering if they have dedicated checkins for Marco Polo members, if not, do we again go to economy checkins.
I have no idea, you should probably check with the airline
Seen prices for Cathy Pacific E/ P, wish I could find a seat for £1,000 like your commenter quoted, need two seats and have been asked for £1,650 each,to Perth W Australia, looks like another economy for us, why are prices three times the price of economy which to me is a lot of pennies, went business class three years ago but retired now so can’t afford, if business was £2.000 per seat more people would use them on long flights, including me and the wife.
Thanks Matt, I flew on Cathay Pacific long haul in economy it was a nightmare. So after reading your page on Premium Economy I have just booked 2 seats again with Cathay Pacific in Premium Economy so keeping fingers crossed the long haul flight will be more smoother.
Flying from Syd to Lon with a 2night stopover in HK. Bit concerned about going with PE after reading all the negative comments. Just hope our experience will be a positive one!
Flew PE from South Africa to Beijing last year and thought it was incredible value. Have used PE on British airways the year before and the seat comfort etc was just as good to my mind. Both times the cost was approx 5O% more than economy which I felt was great value plus we received a surprise upgrade to business class on our Beijing to HK leg which gave us access to the lounge. ( pity that was a day flight). Busy booking a flight to LA right now and probably going to choose Cathay again as I feel it’s great value.
Hello,
I’ll be taking Cathay pacific premium economy this June from JFK to HKG,HKG to Cebu,Philippines.now I have an idea about the seat thanks.how about electric ports do they have it in premium economy?cause let’s be honest those ports like USB ports they don’t charge an iPad iPhone it’s charge,like my gadgets always full.
are seats 34a and c on Cathay from JFK to HKG reclining seats?
Check out SeatGuru.com
Interesting read on everyone comments in flying London -Hong Kong- Brisbane in PE, looking forward to the experience , though I do hope for the extra money I have spent it’s worth it , everyone I have spoken to have said how amazing CAthy Pacific is so lets hope their right , ?
After never being upgraded and suffering from being squeezed into economy, I booked premium economy based on this review after much thought as to what I could do with an additional £1000 to travel to see my daughter in Sydney Feb 17. After moving my seats today from the allocated ones to window seats and no one in front of me (like you I suffer with not one but two not so good knees) so for me the benefits are already paying off. Access to a lounge would have been nice and possibly not too much to ask for the extra cost ??
Very interesting to read all the posts and comments , good and bad…..My wife and I have never flown on Cathy, but have decided to give it a try . We are flying out of Vancouver via Hong Kong to Singapore early in Feb 2017. Very excited about it . As I am tall and tired of booking economy on long haul . we will give PE a try . any tips out there Matt for departing out of YVR ? . I understand no lounge access is available with PE. Too bad , but still we are excited.
Cheers
Hello Al,
I’m travelling the same rouote in a few days.
How was your experience? Does it worth paying the extra for the PE?
Cheers.
Matt, I look at the cost of premium economy this way. First time I flew to London from Australia was in 1984 and the ticket cost around $AU2,000 economy return. That’s 32 years ago, and today an economy return fare Sydney-London still costs around $AU2,000. So what’s the equivalent of 2,000 1984 Australian dollars in present-day money? I don’t know, but it would have to be more than double. Certainly more than premium economy.
Matt, Booked a flight from Tucson Az. to Melbourne Au. For the latter part of March 2017. Picked seat 30D in the premium economy section. Now this where my concerns come in, I’ve read many testimonials about the seating, unfortunately I read this information after I selected my seat. The seat GURU said that seat 30D was one of the best to be had. According to the testimonials it is the worst seat. Apparently passengers have to step over your legs to get to the restroom located on the starboard side of the aircraft. All I can hope for is that I can change my seat sometime between now and March if that is possible. I’m 6ft.2 tall and 82 years young, but having issues with my legs. Has anybody out there had this kind of issue? Help !!! & Thanks
Excellent good value for money, our trip to Australia went very smoothly.
The connection at Hong Kong between flights with only 35 minutes to spare was exceptionally well organised
I just experienced the premium economy flight from HK to Philippines. And yes the experience is better.
The leg support meant a lot and made me comfortable even in a short flight.
So I have booked our next flight to the US via Cathay Pacific Premium Economy to enjoy and further feel the comfort in a long haul flight.
Would rather hustle for Business Class or First Class–this “premium” economy class on Cathay Pacific is embarrassingly poor. No thanks.
PE has reclining seats. Does economy still have those hard shell seats because I’m one of those who hates them. Also, was wondering if anyone felt claustrophobic in the PE cabin?
Great Review Matt,
Considering all, it will cost you (approx) 30% more than economy. Do the additional benefits outweigh the 30% ?? . . .For sure !
Of course: If company subsidized, is Business Class the preferred choice. However if financed privately: Once you’ve flown Premium, and consider the extra costs to upgrade to Business … . You’ll think twice !
Happy flying.
Is there lounge access? Thanks!
I’m glad I found your article as a prepare for a month long trip to HK and then Kuala Lumpua. I polled my world traveling friends and co-workers and they all said Cathay; so that is what I will fly. Now I’m struggling with whether I should pay the extra for Flex. Its large chuck added to the price! Thanks for the great article.
Do the seats in the back row , in front of the bulkhead,, of Premium Economy Class, on the Cathay Pacific 777, 300er, recline sufficiently?