I will be flying ams-nrt next week but have to choose between BA and CX in first. BA is almost 2000$ more expensive. I am gold on BA. What to choose? Is CX's 1st seat any good? Where will I get the best service in the air AND on the ground? I did CX business ams-hkg and was pretty happy with it.

Is the hkg-nrt route a 2 class flight or do they also have first?

Lot's of question, thanks in advance for the answers!

CX F is much better than BA F IMHO
(but there are people in this board who like BA more)

as for HKG-NRT, there are 3 class flight. but i am not sure if all of them are.
the 450/1 which stop by TPE are definitely 3 class.
(this a result of re-using those plane flying to NA, do a search on itn you should be able to find which are 3 class flights)

as for ground service. cx is weak in AMS, in HKG/NRT they are very strong. so not much to worry. the only concern for you is the pilot incidence if u r travelling in the next few weeks

I don't think even the die-hard BA fans would say it's $2000 better. At that price difference CX is a no-brainer choice.

That is, not counting possible flight disruptions due to the CX quarrel with their pilots. You have to put your own price tag on that one. It seems quiet now, but I don't doubt the pilots are in a room somewhere talking about what to do next.

a related question:
what is the booking class? if it is full fare first, class F, it is fully endorsable/re-ticketable.
=> what i mean is: the BA fare is only for the uninformed and total rip-off. any good travel agent should advise you to buy CX fare in such case.
(we did this a few times from TPE-HKG, where the full fare J for BA is lower than CX, and there had been no problem at all. later BA raised its fare)

therefore,
buy the CX ticket even if you choose to fly BA (just call BA to make the reservation, tell them your ticket number, get a sticker at BA counter at the Schipol) -- although i would still choose to fly CX if the pilot mess is solved
(i suppose u r comparing AMS-LHR-NRT vs AMS-HKG-NRT. the only real trade-off is the massage at T4 vs cabana at the Wing + full 12-13 hours of better product. i would choose CX since the massage is usually fully booked is the afternoon and you might not have enough time to connect due to BA delay anyway--- and with the 2000$ you saved, you can have 20 massages at the Elemis in the WING)

of course, you can also do AMS-LHR-HKG-NRT for the same price. BA transit at T4 - same as where u fly in from AMS, whhereas CX at T3. i think the AMS-HKG direct flight is only 3-4 day/week)

if it is A class, or there is some clause saying CX only at the top or bottom of the ticket, then you dont have such flexibility.

the last thing is tier point.
you get 80xclass on BA, but 50xclass on CX. but i guess u don't need these extra point and already have enough to renew.


[This message has been edited by pegasus8228 (edited 07-14-2001).]

If it is paid A, there probably wouldnt be a problem as long as there is room. BA would be silly to give up the revenue.

I do agree with the rest of them that CX is a much better seat and "product", as it has been called.

$2000 difference is alot of $. I just got
done flying 7 legs on CX in 6 days. It was
a nightmare on the ground. The saving grace
is the CX Wing in HKG. CX service in the air
is wonderful and in my opinion just as good
as SQ. Flew the HKG to NRT with a one night
stop in TPE. This is 747 with three cabins
and full suite seat. My understanding is
that this flight was just put back on after
early month industrial action by pilots. If
you decide on CX make sure to get all of your
onward boarding passes. You do not want to
visit CX transit desk area. Also if you
value your time BA might be a better bet.

CX CX CX.

Even if it takes 4 hours longer via HKG!

Catering is miles better and I find the CX First Class seats more comfortable than BA's.

Also if you like Chinese cuisine, then CX certainly won't disappoint. That's not to say that CX only has that. In fact, CX's meal choices have got to be one of the best I've seen anywhere.

Thanks for all the tips folks, As far as the CX site says the AMS-HKG and HKG-NRT flights are all flying although as some of you stated you never know what these pilots will do next...

I think my agent is offering me a discounted first ticket so I don't know about endorsing to BA. As far as I am concerned I think I'll go for CX.

Thanks again!

Scott

i c, so the 2000$ lower ticket is class A.
but no worry, in case cx is cancelled they would rebook you on BA (or KL) -- but u can express u prefer BA i think

I would agree: CX on a 747 is as good or better than BA on a 747. Only 12 instead of 14 seats, more space etc.

But: AMS-HKG is on a A340 as far as i remember - and they dont have the Betsy seats in all 340's. And the old F seat on the 340 is horrible.

HKG-NRT has some flights with a 747 (some stop in TPE!) with 3 classes and some other planes with only two classes.

So check: If A340 then BA, if 747 then CX.

I would also go with CX 747 over BA, certainly in F.

AMS-HKG has been with a 747 for quite some time now and it runs (normally) daily except Tue, Thu. It has a very good connection to Tokyo:

CX270 AMS-HKG 14:25-7:50+1 747
CX504 HKG-NRT 9:05-14:25 747

Scott, take these flights and you get to enjoy CX First with Betsy seats all the way. There is also a good connection back NRT-HKG-AMS on 747.

Arrived back at AMS today and saw the CX HKG gate with a 340 instead of a 747 I'm hoping to get more info from CX what they will be flying on friday... Are the 340 first seats really that bad?

As is looks now the itin is this:

Fri 20/7 AMS-HKG CX270
Sat 21/7 HKG-NRT CX504
Sun 22/7 NRT-HKG CX501 (in HKG at 1445 to do some shopping downtown)
Mon 23/7 HKG-AMS CX271

Just off the phone with my agent, he guarantees me that they will be flying with the *NEW* seats even though it is an airbus A340.

Who should I beleive? He says that CX have a single refurbished (new seat) A340 in service and that it is flying the AMS-HKG route. He is an official CX agent so I expect him to have some good connections.

Another question: if it is a new-seat config, which seat to choose? I now have 1A and 1K, I heard someone say 2A and 2K are larger seats in first on the 340?


[This message has been edited by ScottC (edited 07-16-2001).]

I have been on the CX A340, fabulous equipment, go for it. New seats. BA's not worth the 2k bucks. :-)

i think in contrary, cx worth an extra 1k bucks vs ba