VegasGambler

I found JL to be a comfortable temperature after takeoff (a little warm before), both on the 777 and the 787.

CX was ridiculously hot on BKK-HKG (A330), but so cold that I had to put on a jacket on HKG-SFO (4-class 777) I also remember being cold on my previous HKG-SFO flight on CX. Both were 12:55 am flights; they may intentionally keep overnight flights cold.

anabolism

I don't know which cabins you were in on your JL and CX flights; in my experience, CX in F and J have always been extremely hot on overnight flights, and JL in F has been too hot as well (but as I mentioned above, in F the FAs will sometimes lower the temperature on request).

bosman

Complete thread on JL cabin temperature here:

JAL - Hot Cabin

But we digress.

CFM3RD

I see OP, VXforever is suspended. Did she suspend herself or did FT?

enviroian

I don' t know but I'm glad we shifted away from talking about Japan Airlines.

VegasGambler

CX: Twice on CX 872 (~1am departure). Premium economy once, First once. Both very cold. It might have something to do with the crew (they were SF-based and American, both times)
Business on CX 708 (late afternoon departure). Ridiculously hot (this time the crew was all Chinese; presumably HKG-based)
Premium economy once on CX893 (~1am departure). The temperature was comfortable. I don't remember the crew.

JL: First class on JL1 (twice). Business on JL 717. Always comfortable after takeoff (a bit warm before, but not too much).

I usually run quite hot too. I generally travel in shorts and a t-shirt because of this.

VegasGambler

IMO JL F is far, far, far ahead of CX F. Better seat, better service, and FAR better food. I was actually surprised at how bad the food was on CX in F.

I actually thought that JL J was better than CX F in every aspect except the size of the suite (and even that needs a caveat because while the CX suite is large, it has a lot of wasted space and nowhere to store anything. JL suites are efficiently designed in both F and J with tons of storage space that you can easily reach. Also I much prefer the fully rectangular suite than the angled stuff with less room for your feet like they have on CX)

RE: food... My flight was at 1am and I'm not going to have 2 full meals in that time. It's just not a time that I eat. So I just picked two courses off the dinner menu and asked them to hold it for me until halfway through the flight.

They had a champagne and caviar starter -- I started with just the caviar. That was quite good -- no complaints there.

I skipped all the soups and starters. I ordered the beef main dish, which they had listed as a "Hong Kong Flavors" dish (it wasn't -- the entire menu was western food). It was Australian Wagyu so I expected it to be quite good. They actually ran out of it (I think I got the last one -- the next guy tried to order it and couldn't). He didn't miss much -- it was TERRIBLE. First of all it was short rib (cheap!! and conveniently that fact was left off the menu) It was also overcooked, tough, and flavorless. In a restaurant I'd have sent it back. To contrast, on my JL F flight there was a yakiniku course that included a slice of very flavorful, very tender, very rare sirloin beef. It was incredible. So, it is possible to serve good beef on a plane.

Then, for breakfast, I skipped all the starters and just got the dim sum dish (the only Chinese food served on the entire flight). When I got it, I recognized it -- it's the same as what they serve in premium economy. Very average quality. I was happy with it in PE, but in F I expect better.

Also, I don't drink wine or champagne, but the Krug that everyone here talks about non-stop was not on the menu. They had one type of champagne, and I had never heard of it. Their whiskey list was ok but not special, and not really matching my tastes. This is a problem for me on JL too -- in Asia they seem to favor very smooth whiskeys with very little flavor, so that's what's on the first class lists, and that's not what I like to drink. I was considering asking to see the J or Y whiskey list but given the time I didn't really want to drink, so I didn't bother.

Overall, I'm done with CX for everything except their occasional cheap PE fares. When coming back from anywhere in Asia (including HKG) on award tickets, I'm going to route through Tokyo on JAL from now on. The F experience is far superior.

SFO777

JL First is one of those products that you either love or don't. IMO, JL First is good but not that good. Crap FCL, miserable boarding experience. I'd rate it the 3rd best F service from Tokyo, after SQ and NH. Let's face it, any F cabin with bus schedule like brochure holders at the front of the F cabin has serious issues.

VegasGambler

I wasn't able to compare lounges because my F flight was to Tokyo (I flew J from Tokyo due to it being intra-asia with no F cabin, both times I've been). So I've never been to the F lounge (the one in SFO doesn't count). I did like the Wings lounge in HKG.

I didn't notice any issue with the boarding experience. No different from CX F. You're in F; you board in the first group; you sit down in your suite and wait for everyone else to board while you have a drink. I'm not sure why that's miserable.

Brochure holders: I can't imagine something that I care less about. I guess I'm more into functionality than ambiance. My suite on CX had a flower holder with a flower, which is a nice touch, but I'll gladly trade that for storage space, within reach, for my electronic devices. I also prefer food that tastes good to food that is nicely presented (although the presentation on both airlines was fine)

I haven't tried ANA or SQ F yet. I will eventually (though, that's not AA related)

JY1024

As this thread has meandered off-topic, let’s give this thread a rest. For those who want to discuss oneworld partner cabins, booking specific partner awards, and general avaiation industry, please refer to the more relevant/existing threads. Thanks!

/Moderator