The Pier is just incredible
Last November I had the pleasure of visiting Cathay Pacific’s beautiful and unique The Pier First Class Lounge at Hong Kong International Airport. You can read my full thoughts here, but simply put it immediately jumped into my top 5 lounges in the world and maybe even into the top three.
It’s simply a gorgeous departure from the typical Cathay Pacific black marble decor. There’s off-white marble, beautiful wood decorations, and a great mid-mod design in the dining room.
What about The Wing?
I’ve always enjoyed The Wing, Cathay’s other First Class Lounge at HKG. It’s known primarily for two things: the Champagne Bar and the Cabanas. The Champagne Bar is, you’ll never believe it, a bar full of champagne, and the Cabanas are amazing rooms that you can relax in during a long layover.
As you can see, the Cabanas are impressive spaces with a comfortable day bed should you want a nap and an open shower/tub arrangement if you want to draw a bath. Even better, hang a shirt in the closet, press a button, and VOILA! it’s pressed for you while you lounge.
Back to The Pier…
Honesetly I thought that was the primary difference between The Wing and The Pier, but then I realized that The Pier actually has a similar sort of offering: the Day Suites.
The day suites aren’t nearly to the level of the Cabanas at the Wing (they’re much smaller and don’t have showers or the like) but they’re quiet rooms with thick curtains and shades you can draw to have a rest.
To get to the Day Suites you simply approach the Foot Massage Desk (probably a more official name for it but oh well) and ask. They’ll escort you up a ramp, through a thick glass door (to isolate the day suites from the noise of the lounge), and into a hallway of Day Suites.
So what’s the big deal?
Just seems like a small room, right? Well, yes, it is, but I wanted to make sure you saw it, and there’s one big advantage The Pier’s day suites have over The Wing’s Cabanas: tarmac views! There was a massive Thai Airways A380 at the gate in front of the window which was pretty much the best thing ever for a plane nut like myself.
Andy, you’d mentioned this is in the Andy’s Travel Blog Top Five Lounges™. I’d be interested in reading a blog entry sometime comparing and contrasting the rest of your list. Even a top 10.
I’m flying CX F tonight, JFK-HKG. Weather is kind of meh at the moment so I’m hoping there’s no delays so I can check out this lounge since I only have a ~2 hour connection.
I hope so too, safe travels!