Review: Cathay Pacific The Pier First Class Lounge at Hong Kong Airport

Cathay Pacific operates a few different lounges at its hub in Hong Kong including a pair of excellent first class ones. I visited the two first class lounges for the first time back in 2017, and recently, I had a chance to re-visit both of them during my trip to New York.

About a month ago, I updated my review of the excellent The Wing first class lounge. In this article, I’ll be taking a look at the newer The Pier first class lounge.

Most of the photos are from my original visit since not much has changed in the lounge since then. However, I added some extra photos from the lounge’s a la carte restaurant as I had a chance to try some additional items from the menu during my most recent visit.

Cathay Pacific The Pier First Lounge Review
The Pier first class lounge’s beatiful hallway.

Location, Opening Hours & Access

Unlike in the case of The Wing lounges, The Pier business and first class lounges have separate entrances. The entrance into the first class lounge is located near gates 63 and 64. It’s located one floor below the main departures level.

As its name suggests, rather than being in the central part of the terminal, its in one of the “piers” that extend out of it. In fact, its almost at the end of the pier that includes gates 60 through 71. That makes it, unfortunately, quite inconvenient to access unless you happen to be departing from one of those gates.

Cathay Pacific The Pier First Lounge Location
The lounge was near gates 63 and 64.

The lounge admits Cathay Pacific’s first class passengers, as well as first class passengers traveling on other oneworld airlines. Besides that, it can also be entered by all oneworld Emerald status holders departing on oneworld flights, regardless of the class they are traveling in.

It’s open daily from 5:30AM until 12:30AM.

Cathay Pacific The Pier First Lounge Entrance
Escalators leading to the lounge.

Lounge Tour

At the bottom of the escalator leading to the lounge, there was a reception counter where boarding passes were checked. Once through the door, there was the lounge’s hallway.

It was beautifully designed, and it connected all of the different parts of the lounge that further.

Cathay Pacific The Pier First Lounge Reception
Reception.
Cathay Pacific The Pier First Lounge Hallway
Seating in the hallway.
Cathay Pacific The Pier First Lounge Hallway
The lounge felt like an upscale apartment.

Turning left at the entrance and going all the way to the end of the hall, there was The Pantry on the left side of the hallway.

In there, one could get drinks as well as some quick bites to eat. More on that later, though.

Cathay Pacific The Pier First Lounge The Pantry
The Pantry.
Cathay Pacific The Pier First Lounge The Pantry
Inside The Pantry.

Continuing straight down the hallway rather than turning left, there was one of the signature features of the lounge, a horseshoe-shaped bar.

Besides the bar itself and the stools around it, the area also featured some sofa chairs in a variety of different arrangements.

Cathay Pacific The Pier First Lounge Bar
Entrance into the bar area.
Cathay Pacific The Pier First Lounge Bar
The horseshoe-shaped bar.
Cathay Pacific The Pier First Lounge Bar Area Seating
Seating in the bar area.
Cathay Pacific The Pier First Lounge Bar Area Seating
Some more seating.
Cathay Pacific The Pier First Lounge Bar Area Seating
Mirrors lined one of the walls in the bar area, giving it a roomier feel.

Finally, across from The Pantry, there was the main lounging area.

The area was equipped with quite a few sofas and sofa chairs in several “living room-like” arrangements. There was also a cart with some wine and snacks to go with it in the middle of this section.

The seats along the window in this part of the lounge offered nice views of the apron.

Cathay Pacific The Pier First Lounge Bar Area Seating
The main lounging area featured living room-like arrangements of seats.
Cathay Pacific The Pier First Lounge Seating
Sofa chairs in the main lounging area.
Cathay Pacific The Pier First Lounge Wine Cart
Wine cart.
Cathay Pacific The Pier First Lounge Apron Views
Cathay Pacific A350 parked in front of the lounge.
Cathay Pacific The Pier First Lounge Seating
Sofa chairs in a more typical arrangement.

Separately from the entrance across The Pantry, the lounging are was connected with the hallway also through The Library.

That was, more or less as the name suggests, a small area with a bookshelf and a bench.

Cathay Pacific The Pier First Lounge The Library
The Library.
Cathay Pacific The Pier First Lounge Reading Materials
Magazines and newspapers.
Cathay Pacific The Pier First Lounge The Library Seating
Seating in The Library.

A few more features of the lounge – including The Bureau, The Retreat, and the restrooms – could be found along the sides of the hallway.

The Bureau was essentially a business center consisting of six semi-private work spaces.

Each of those work spaces came with an iMac, a phone, a lamp, and – of course – power outlets

Cathay Pacific The Pier First Lounge The Bureau
The Buraeu.
Cathay Pacific The Pier First Lounge Business Center
Work spaces.
Cathay Pacific The Pier First Lounge Work Station
A closer look at one of the work spaces.

The Retreat was, on the other hand, where one would go to relax. It consisted of three parts: day suites, showers, and massages.

During my first visit, the earliest time slot I could book a massage for was after my scheduled departure time. As such, I recommend you to book yourself a massage as soon as you get into the lounge. During my more recent visit, my time in the lounge was very limited so I didn’t get one either.

Cathay Pacific The Pier First Lounge The Retreat
The Retreat.
Cathay Pacific The Pier First Lounge Massage
Massage and amenity menu.

The day suites – of which there were about half-a-dozen or so – were offered on a first come, first served basis.

Each suite was separated from the hallway by a curtain. Inside a suite, there were a daybed, a reading light, a power outlet, and a pair of USB charging ports.

Just like the main part of the lounge, the day suites offered views of the apron. As such, they were an excellent place to relax in before taking a flight.

Cathay Pacific The Pier First Lounge Day Suites
Hallway with day suites.
Cathay Pacific The Pier First Lounge Day Suite
Inside a day suite.
Cathay Pacific The Pier First Lounge Day Suite
Day suite power outlet, USB ports, and light switches.
Cathay Pacific The Pier First Lounge Day Suite Apron View
View from a day suite.

While I didn’t use the showers during either of my visits to the lounge, I took a brief look inside one of the ten or so shower rooms.

It was no “Cabana” but it was still very nice and functional.

Cathay Pacific The Pier First Lounge Shower Rooms
Hallway with shower rooms.
Cathay Pacific The Pier First Lounge Shower Room
Inside a shower room.
Cathay Pacific The Pier First Lounge Shower
Shower.

The restrooms – or “The Washrooms” – were right across the hallway from The Retreat. Just like the rest of the lounge, they were beautifully designed.

Cathay Pacific The Pier First Lounge The Washrooms
The Washrooms.
Cathay Pacific The Pier First Lounge The Washrooms
Inside The Washrooms.

Finally, at the end of the hallway was another signature feature of the lounge, its The Dining Room a la carte restaurant.

Naturally, a large part of its interior consisted of tables. They were mostly for groups of two featuring a chair on one side and a bench on the other. Besides that, there was also a bar counter with some counter-height chairs.

Cathay Pacific The Pier First Lounge The Dining Room
The Dining Room.
Cathay Pacific The Pier First Lounge A La Carte Restaurant
Seating in the restaurant.
Cathay Pacific The Pier First Lounge Restaurant Bar
The restaurant’s bar counter.

Food and Drinks

Getting a bite to eat was possible in The Pantry and The Dining Room. Drinks were available in both of those as well as at the bar.

Besides that, there were some bottles of wine, pralines, and dried apricots in the main lounging area.

Cathay Pacific The Pier First Lounge Wine Cart
Wine, pralines, and dried apricots.

An extensive drink menu was offered at both the bar as well as in The Dining Room.

The menu included a good selection of wines and liquor as well as of soft drinks including fresh juices and JING tea. Besides that, a variety of cocktails and mocktails was offered as well. During both of my visits, I had a glass of the airline’s excellent signature Cathay Delight mocktail.

Cathay Pacific The Pier First Lounge Bar Menu and Wine List
Drink menu.
Cathay Pacific The Pier First Lounge Cathay Delight
Cathay Delight.

In The Pantry, there was a selection of canned soda, bottled juices, and canned beer including Heineken, San Miguel, Carlsberg, Asahi, and Kirin.

There was also a Tsing Tao draft beer dispenser.

Cathay Pacific The Pier First Lounge Drinks
Soda and juices.
Cathay Pacific The Pier First Lounge Beer
Beer and soda.
Cathay Pacific The Pier First Lounge Draft Beer
Draft beer.

Besides that, there were also a coffee machine and a selection of JING tea bags.

Cathay Pacific The Pier First Lounge Coffee
Coffee machine.
Cathay Pacific The Pier First Lounge Tea
JING tea.

The food offered in The Pantry consisted mainly of light items.

There were some toasts, pastries, cereals, fresh fruits, and cheese spread across a counter and the table in the middle of the room.

Cathay Pacific The Pier First Lounge Breakfast
Cereals.
Cathay Pacific The Pier First Lounge Bread
Bread.
Cathay Pacific The Pier First Lounge Desserts
Fruits and sweets.
Cathay Pacific The Pier First Lounge Snacks
Snacks.
Cathay Pacific The Pier First Lounge Cheese
Cheese.

Separately, there were cups with salads and appetizers and some yogurts in the refrigerators.

Cathay Pacific The Pier First Lounge Salads
Salads.
Cathay Pacific The Pier First Lounge Muesli
Muesli and yogurts.

Finally, besides the self-service items mentioned above, there was The Dining Room, an a la carte restaurant.

The first time I had a chance to visit the lounge, I went to The Dining Room during breakfast time. As such, the menu was a bit limited.

Since I had a full English breakfast in The Wing lounge before heading to The Pier, I only had a bowl of fruits in The Dining Room.

Cathay Pacific The Pier First Lounge Breakfast Menu
Breakfast menu.
Fruit bowl.

During my visit back in September 2019, I had a chance to try the all-day dining menu.

I had coconut panna cotta, a fruit plate, and a wagyu cheeseburger. Yukihiro who I was traveling with had a bowl of Cathay Pacific’s signature dan dan mien – noodles in spicy peanut sauce.

Cathay Pacific The Pier First Lounge Lunch and Dinner Menu
All-day dining menu.

According to Yukihiro, the noodles were quite good. That cannot be said about my dishes, though. While they were all decent, I found them to be nowhere near the level of American Airlines Flagship First Dining in New York.

I also enjoyed the burger served onboard the airline’s first class more than I did the one in the lounge.

Cathay Pacific The Pier First Lounge Coconut Panna Cotta
Coconut panna cotta.
Cathay Pacific The Pier First Lounge Fruit Plate
Fruit plate.
Cathay Pacific The Pier First Lounge Wagyu Burger
Wagyu cheeseburger.
Cathay Pacific The Pier First Lounge Dan Dan Mien
Dan dan mien.

Cathay Pacific The Pier First Class Lounge Hong Kong Summary

Overall, The Pier first class lounge is one of the best lounges I visited to date. Now, to put that into context, it’s one of only two first class lounges that I had a chance to visit so far with the other one being the equally excellent The Wing.

I appreciated how no two seating areas in the lounge were the same, making the lounge feel more like a luxury home rather than a lounge. The food selection – and its presentation in The Pantry – was also very good.

One unfortunate thing was that I did not manage to try one of the free massages during either of my visits. But, that is more a “fault” of my short stay than of a shortcoming of the lounge itself.

As for the lounge itself, I think the most unfortunate part about it is its location. While it’s convenient for some of the departure gates, for the vast majority of gates, it’s quite a long walk away.

Because of that, if you only have limited time and your flight is not departing from the pier in which the lounge is located, I would recommend going to The Wing in the central part of the terminal instead.

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