Cathay Pacific unveils updated Premium Economy experience
Cathay Pacific's updated Premium Economy cabin
Cathay Pacific is elevating its passenger experience with a new Premium Economy cabin, a selection of exclusive Chinese wines and collaborative inflight menus.
The airline unveiled the updated Premium Economy cabin experience at an exclusive Customer Experience Showcase at the Freespace at Hong Kong’s West Kowloon Cultural District earlier this week. The Premium Economy cabin updates are coming to Cathay Pacific’s retrofitted 777-300ER aircraft this year.
The airline also showcased an exclusive selection of fine Chinese wines, which are currently being served to passengers in First and Business Class for a limited time. It also highlighted its recent dining collaborations with renowned Hong Kong restaurants and features of its award-winning inflight entertainment experience.
“We always put our customers at the centre of everything we do. We listen to our customers, and ensure that we understand what is important to them. These valuable insights continuously motivate us to go above and beyond to elevate our customers’ journeys and ensure that their experience with Cathay is truly unforgettable whenever they fly, shop, spend or dine with us,” said Vivian Lo, General Manager Customer Experience and Design.
“Whether it’s refreshing the inflight experience with new cabin products, creating memorable wining and dining experiences, enhancing our award-winning inflight entertainment experience, and much more, our investments in augmenting the customer experience are all part of our continuous efforts to become one of the world’s greatest service brands – and, from there, the best premium airline.”
An elevated Premium Economy experience
Cathay Pacific’s updated Premium Economy cabin has been meticulously designed with the passenger experience in mind.
Passengers are set to enjoy a greater sense of personal space and seclusion in their seats, along with comfortable touches like a leather headrest, customized seat cushions, privacy wings with a reading light beside the headrest, a 15.6-inch 4K ultra-high-definition screen with 4K on demand and Bluetooth audio streaming.
Exclusive Premium Economy lavatories on each side of the cabin offer touch-free features to ensure minimal contact. Mood lighting is also extended to all cabins, including Premium Economy, enhancing relaxation and aiding in restful sleep inflight.
A curated wine selection
Cathay Pacific’s wine cellar provides passengers with a wide range of stunning vintages and cuvées from esteemed winemakers worldwide. The airline’s selection of wines includes those sourced from world-famous wine regions in France, Italy, Austria, South Africa, Australia, the United States, New Zealand and now, China.
Cathay Pacific is partnering with several of China’s leading winemakers to bring passengers an exclusive selection of the finest Chinese wines to taste inflight. This specially curated wine list includes Domaines Barons de Rothschild Lafite’s (DBR Lafite) Domaine de Long Dai 2020 from Qiu Shan Valley in Shandong Province, a medium to full-bodied Bordeaux blend boasting a lively balance and freshness, being served in First class.
One of three wines from Ningxia is also being served on rotation in Business Class. The Silver Heights Jiayuan Marselan 2021 is a full-bodied red wine made from 100 percent Marselan from the fully biodynamic Silver Heights Vineyard. The Grace Vineyard Tasya’s Reserve Cabernet Franc 2018 is a 100 percent Cabernet Franc from Grace Vineyard, which recently secured a spot on the prestigious 2023 World’s Best Vineyards list.
The Xige Estate Jade Dove Single Vineyard Cabernet Gernischt 2019 is made from the best selection of old Cabernet Gernischt vines from Xige Estate, founded by Bordeaux L’Ecole du Vin-trained winemaker, Zhang Yanzhi.
These wines are available to passengers travelling on long-haul routes until May.
An immersive culinary journey
Cathay Pacific is collaborating with acclaimed local restaurants and brands to provide the finest quality food and drink to passengers. Travellers can expect a bespoke menu of reimagined French classics from JIA Group’s Michelin-starred French restaurant Louise, and an all-new selection of “Hong Kong Flavours” developed in collaboration with Cantonese fine-dining institution Duddell’s.
Passengers at The Pier, First lounge at Hong Kong International Airport (HKG) can sample specially crafted tasting menus developed in collaboration with Rosewood Hong Kong’s dining establishments.
Updates to inflight entertainment
Cathay Pacific said in its press release that it features the largest inflight movie and TV library in Asia-Pacific, with seatback entertainment on every aircraft, in every seat. Cathay Pacific provides a wide selection of entertainment for passengers, including titles from Disney+, Paramount and more.
Travellers can watch their favourite movies and shows inflight on 4K ultra-high-definition screens. They have access to a 4K video-on-demand experience as well as Bluetooth audio streaming in every cabin onboard the airline’s A321neo and retrofitted 777-300ER aircraft. A graphical user interface (GUI) has been introduced onboard the carrier’s A350s and is being progressively rolled out to other aircraft types. It is a proactive, dynamic and personalized management platform for a meaningful, connected end-to-end inflight experience.
