callmedtop

Debating between flying Cathay F non-stop home to the USA from HKG versus connecting in DOH to connect to QSuites. First flight on Qatar would be on an older 77W, with a ~3 hour layover. Obviously travel time on Qatar is significantly longer than Cathay, but after seeing the downgrades to the CX F product with my own eyes over the years, wonder if it is worth giving Qatar a try.

People say First is First, but I wonder if QSuites can compare? I will be traveling with my wife. Willing to go out of our way in terms of travel time if the product is better/unique.

QRC3288

Why not EK F?

​​​​​Superior catering and far superior wines to QR J.

If it's a bed you're after I still think CX F hard product beats them all. EK F, QR J, and presumably QR Qsuites (first two very familiar, last one haven't tried). CX is wider and better bedding. And if it's a door you fancy, EK has a bigger setup and you can snag those two middles. The QSuites do look great but I don't see how they beat EK F.

Totally agree with your sentiments on CX F. The failings are real, although they're still mostly soft product. Long term decline in food, wines are pretty bad except for one or two bling options, and now FAs are disgruntled. This lends itself to galley chatting and more frequent bouts of indifferent or downright bad service, which never used to be the case 5-10 years ago. Sad to see and CX deserves all the blame they get.

If I were in your shoes the choice is a no brainer EK F any day.

(Lol and I love how AA isn't even a consideration)

callmedtop

EK is an idea, but I've flown it before and honestly at that point I'd probably just fly CX F nonstop home. QSuites has the novelty factor as it's a product I've never flown. I'm sure CX F is better all-around versus QR J, just wonder how much of a downgrade it is and if its absolutely crazy to take the long way home on QR J versus CX F nonstop.

G-CIVC

I strongly advise against DOH-USA just because they SSSS like half of the plane and I've been questioned by DHS staff in DOH (no idea why they're there) to the point I felt extremely uncomfortable. I would only go for it if it was the other way round (US - HK), or if you could get QSuites-QSuites (QSuites for HKG starting next season, all flights) and do not mind these unnecessary inconveniences. Also, the Al Mourjan lounge in DOH to me is one of the worst 'flagship' lounges in oneworld...no kidding...poor F&B, ridiculously overcrowded, can't even get a shower easily. It's a different story tho if you stopover in Doha and they put you up in a nice hotel on their dime.

I've flown QSuites twice (on a 350 tho, not 777) - loved it, think it beats the subpar F products like AA and BA by miles, but hard product wise not exactly there yet with the legacy/big names when it comes to int'l F. Still it is certainly the best J product (sorry BA F - title has been snagged). The soft product was also fantastic, but that's the same for non-QSuite QR J.

CX F is still fine if only for the convenience factor, and the hard product is still hard to beat (spaciousness, width, bed etc). Yeah the soft product is nothing to write home about but they haven't given up entirely just yet - case in point, the caviar mother-of-pearl spoon is coming back.

My wildcard recommendation, if you are flying to JFK (or IAD, LAX but for a less superior product) is EY F. The HKG-AUH route also has Business Studio (which is the skeleton of QSuites!) flying now. Preclearance in AUH relieves the stressful arrival experience in the US. If I am not mistaken the HKG-AUH-JFK connection is not too badly timed. (Plus their F lounge in AUH is fantastic). If you are heading to JFK on their A380 F, the experience will blow you away over any single airline if only for the dazzling hard product - the service to me was mindblowing as well - you will really feel a difference, if only more on the gimmick side, between your standard FA and your onboard chef and butler. Although I'm not sure if OW loyalty matters to you (at least you get some AA miles if you want to credit EY flights to AAdv)

QRC3288

For some reason I assumed you were in DFW. So assuming you're in SFO, LAX, ORD, BOS or JFK (CX's USA F routes), yea no brainer to do CX F. Definitely don't go out of your way! Just don't hesitate to tell the crew to stop chatting if they make noise, which is my biggest complaint. The wines are uncompetitive but ultimately the convenience is there, and the bed excellent. Especially if you're doing a night flight so the F&B weakness isn't as big a problem. Or if you don't mind being upfront tell the FAs when you board you need sleep and please do their best not to make noise and disturb you. (Of course, this should never be required IMO in F or J class, and this fact is just really a showcase of the sorry state of affairs at Cathay recently, but it's the reality of CX these days...and since the bones of the F product are good, you can still guarantee yourself a very good flight if you're proactive about what you want and tell them bluntly)

for the other info...yea I defer to G-CIVC. As you might've noticed he flies like a madman

callmedtop

Thanks all! I'll likely just go for the non-stop as even if CX service has slipped quite a bit since I started flying them, the hard product is excellent and the non-stop convenience is hard to ignore. I flew EY F from/to JFK a couple years back and found the service rather disappointing and the hard product quite special but also rather impractical.

HarbourGent

It says a lot about how CX is slipping that a lower class of service on an indirect route is seen as a potentially superior option.

Kachjc

well the OP wants to maximize time in the air... what do you expect?

brunos

Apparently price is not a parameter for you. To me it would be a major factor in my choice.
QR suite with the double bed is indeed a unique experience if you travel with a beloved wife.
But, remember that there is a lot of russian roulette in QR equipment. If you book months ahead, the probability of an ac swap is significant.

I fully agree with QRC3288 that the soft product of CX F is mediocre in food/wines/service,. But it is still the best F seat in my opinion (except for TV screen). If I have the choice of a nonstop CX F, I would not hesitate a moment, but for price.

callmedtop

When did I say anything about wanting to maximize the time in the air?

Kachjc

your last line....

SilverChris

Jackolee

HKG_Flyer1

I flew DOH-JFK last month, and arrived at the gate well-ahead of the boarding process (additional security screening takes place at the gate). I didn't observe anything out of the ordinary (when compared to the enhanced screening that all inbound US flights typically entail), and was watching closely (because I was bored).

I actually thought the lounge was pretty nice. Seating was definitely pretty full near the entrance, but it is huge lounge, with lots of different rooms, and after taking the time to explore, I found lots of quiet areas with plenty of seating once I migrated away from the seating areas in direct line of sight from the lounge entrance. Didn't check out the food offerings or wait for a shower.

fast03

Is CX F that bad now that we can compare it now to another carrier's J offering?

Had QSuites on a DOH-JFK leg last month. If you were fairly comparing it to CX J then I would probably go out of my way which is what I did to fly from HKG-NYC just to experience it. The ticket was also significantly cheaper (HKD 30K/60K) so it was an easy decision. QR soft product just blows CX out of the water in almost every way and Qsuites is probably the best business hard product I have been in. But you do have to note that you either take the old 77W (bad) or 350 (just ok) hard product en route to DOH.

Comparing this to CX F however, the only deal breaker I could see is how much you can stomach paying more for it compared to QR. If money was no object then I would fly CX as the F offering is consistent. On the other hand, if you want to save on the extra F seat and pay for the 2 J tickets on QR then I can say you would not be disappointed at all as long as you remind yourself that you are flying a J product (but IMHO best there is).