Cathay Pacific The Pier first class lounge opens

Cathay Pacific’s flagship first class lounge at Hong Kong is back, in a welcome sign for the recovery of not just the airline but Hong Kong and global travel.

As of today, Wednesday July 19, The Pier First lounge rolls out the welcome mat at 5.30am every day, and the lights don’t go out unti 12.30am – so yes, that’s a solid 19 hours of lounging ahead of or between flights on Cathay and its Oneworld siblings such as British Airways, Finnair, Japan Airlines, Malaysia Airlines, Qatar Airways and Qantas.

Cathay Pacific's The Pier First lounge.

The Pier First has long been the go-to for not only first class passengers but also top-tier frequent flyers such as Cathay Diamond members and their Oneworld Emerald equivalents.

One change which visitors to The Pier First will notice is a fresh take on The Pantry, that almost-hidden alcove near the horseshoe-shaped bar which was stocked with a dizzyingly wide range of light snacks and treats, as well as drinks.

The Pantry nook at The Pier First lounge.

“What we’ve realised is that everybody that goes to The Pier First, actually almost always wants to go to the dining room,” Vivian Lo, Cathay’s General Manager for Customer Experience & Design, recounts to Executive Traveller.

This led to the pantry being overlooked and under-utilised, Lo explains. One option was to transform The Pantry into a ‘grab and go’ nook for lounge pit-stoppers.

But “instead of trying to replicate a faster à la carte, I think I’ll do something very different,” Lo says, “like maybe some more delicacies that are fit for afternoon tea, or maybe for your drinks… because I think it’s probably for the people that don’t want to spend time in the à la carte dining room.”

All five of Cathay’s Hong Kong lounges have now swung open their doors, although as previously reported, The Bridge has been permanently closed.

But more lounges are on the way, with Cathay now scoping out an all-new ‘flagship lounge’ and perhaps the return of an arrivals lounge as other airlines shift to the redeveloped Terminal 2 in 2024, giving Cathay more room to quite literally spread its wings.

Meanwhile, Cathay continues to add aircraft, boost flights and revisit destinations, with the intent of being back to 70% of pre-pandemic capacity by the end of 2023 and hitting if not exceeding the 100% mark by late 2024.

Also read: The Oneworld guide to Hong Kong airport lounges

Are you headed to Hong Kong? Here’s how your Australian passport can be used to skip the immigration queues at Hong Kong Airport via the automated e-Channel lanes.