For BA

Baggage allowance – checked baggage is 3 X 23Kg whereas Cathay is only 1 30Kg. This is a massive plus for BA if you are carrying much baggage and don’t have Silver+ status.

Carry On Baggage – never had it weighed by BA, not to say they never will, but in the last year on numerous flights CX weigh and impose the 7Kg allowance plus laptop bag very strictly. On a couple of occasions I have chosen BA not CX when I had no check in baggage. This made me favour BA.

For Cathay

Seat – if the 773 seat is the same on BA as CX as stated previously then I accept. But my experience of the BA 773 seat on the one occasion I flew it was very bad. The recline of the seat in front was so encroaching that I vowed never to pay for WTP again. I could not properly even open my laptop.

Washroom access – CX cabin has a dedicated washroom`. BA you are very removed from the WT washrooms. Indeed on the 773 I was so shocked with how bad washroom access was I did a row count. No seat in WT is more than 7 or 8 rows from the washroom. The front row in WTP is 14 rows away!!

T3 v T5. If you have a lounge access card such as Priority Club then you have no lounge access at T5 whereas T3 has choices. This has swayed me in favour of CX on 2 occasions in the last 12 months.

Price – CX are in my experience usually cheaper – with the caveat that in advance thee cheaper prices are usually on their day flights. If you have to pay for an extra hotel night then the difference is likely to be considerably eroded.

Food – despite what was said above I don’t think the 2 offers are remotely comparable – with the caveat that I will always eat rice or noodle based dishes in preference to western food. The BA main course at the main meal is superior to the BA WT offering and on my last 2 flights was good but in extraordinarily small portions (I am a light eater so others would probably be less complimentary.). BA’s breakfast option on my flight on December 30 to HKG was surely the same as WT. The choice was eggs or eggs – Omelette ……or omelette as the main constituent of an English breakfast.

And trivially;

Drink – CX offer a welcome drink. My last 2 BA flights have been at best a welcome grunt.

Newspaper choice – BA have recently only offered me the Mail or Sunday Mail!!

In conclusion and as background, I personally make about 10 returns on Asia-UK routes per annum. I only pay for WTP over WT when the price difference is marginal and I can maximise points to retain Silver. I find the BA WTP cabin claustrophobic even on the 773 and have declined upgrades where I have been offered a middle seat. For the reasons above I think the CX product is a clear winner but I would not personally choose to pay a premium of more than 20% for WTP over WT on either airline.