Short hair Francis

Introduction

In March 2019, I needed to head down to MNL on a quick trip for something.
Mama SHF and Papa SHF would join on the outbound segment as they were heading to SIN themselves.

Now with a need at hand, what possible ways can I used to get to MNL? 🤔

Cathay Pacific “CX”? That's the best way obviously but how to facilitate 😁
Philippines Airlines “PR” ? It's Okay, but Been There, Done That 😐
Hong Kong Airlines “HX” ? Ugh, Is that thing ever ontime... 😒
Cebu Pacific “5J” ? Eek, that's a Tight Fit 😣
Philippines AirAsia “Z2” Is that going to be the Marianas Turkey Shoot 😱

At the end, I decided to use BA miles to redeem for travel on CX.
11.25K BA Miles for Premium Economy on the outbound, 15K BA Miles for Business Class on the return.

And because CX loves to do airplane swaps on regional flights, I didn't ended up on my originally booked aircraft in either direction 🙄


Route Map



Flights (2 Flights, 1424 Miles)
All Flights Flown
Cathay Pacific Airways 901 – Hong Kong to Manila (Business Class)
Cathay Pacific Airways 918 – Manila to Hong Kong (Business Class)


Trip Parts
Part 1 – Newest Toy in the House, Cathay Pacific Airways Airbus 350-1000 Business Class HKG-MNL
Part 2 – Hidden Calmness in Metro Manila, Manila Marriott (Resort World)
Part 3 – The Old Comfy Way Home, Cathay Pacific Airbus 330-300 Long Haul Business MNL-HKG


Trip Report Statistics
Parts Written – 3/3
Parts Imaged/Posted – 3/3, Completed 😊
Images Hosted in Report - 318
*Data accurate as of Apr 7, 2021


Links to Other Written Trip Reports
Click Here for Other Trip Reports


#LifeWellTravelled 😁

Short hair Francis

Part 1 – Newest Toy in the House, Cathay Pacific Airways Airbus 350-1000 Business Class HKG-MNL


When I originally made this booking couple months back, CX 901 was slatted to operate with a 359.
However with Cathay typical trigger finger fleet planning, the 359 got changed to the 351 3 days prior to departure.

I didn't think much about paying for CX 359 Business Class, a little unnecessary for a 2 Hour flight with a product I've previously flown.

Now, it's a CX 351 which I've not set my foots on.
What the Eff Cathay ?? 😒😒😒


Mar 14, 2019 – Thursday
CX 901 HKG – MNL 9:00am – 11:10am (351/J)

Having been buried with work the night before, I took the earliest bus out to the airport.
As such, I made it to the Cathay First counters by 6am.

I've heard MNL was “Op-Up”heaven previously before, but upgrades given at the counter are a definite rarity nowadays.
CX must be oversold badly despite the up-gauge from 359>35K.
Both Mama SHF and I got an Op-Up at the counter as JL Emerald, while Papa SHF was still stuck in Premium Economy.
3 Operational Upgrades in 3 Months, how do I keep this nice streak going? ?

With the new seats assignments resolved, we made our ways to the CX Pier First at Gate 63

Still Early and Quiet at HKG


HKG Cathay Pacific “The Pier” First Class Lounge



*A Couple of Recycled Photo

For further “The Pier” First Class Lounge photo, refer to
The 2020 Pandemic Chronicles - North America Chapter

After a nice hot shower, I had an Iced Latte from the Bar, then made my way to the Dining Room for breakfast.

The Pier Breakfast Menu


Chamomile Tea


Dan Dan Mien



The Western Set
Two Eggs, Grilled American Style Bacon, Cumberland Sausage, Sauteed Mushroom, Grilled Tomato, Braised Cannellini Beans, Toasted Sourdough


Near 8am Papa SHF got paged to the Lounge Service desk, which naturally meant it was me walking to the desk with his passport and boarding pass. 😒
It's Papa SHF lucky day too, a lowly JL Sapphires also gets bumped from Premium Economy > Business.
Seriously, how much traffic does CX generate from the Overseas Filipino Worker crowd? 🤨🤨

At 815am, I made my way to nearby Gate 66 for this morning's flight to Manila for some photos of the new bird.

Gate 66


Newest Toy in the House, Cathay Pacific Airways Airbus 350-1000





*1st flight of the Trip, 712 Miles Flown
Cathay Pacific Airways 901
Hong Kong to Manila
Scheduled - 9:00am – 11:10am, 2 Hr 10 Min flight
Actual Departure – 8:59am
On-Time Arrival – 11:24am
Business Class, Seat 22A
Food – Breakfast
Equipment – Airbus 350-1000 (46J/32W/256Y) Configuration “B-LXE”




At 830am, boarding started with the CX Diamond/OW Emerald line.
And yes, there were easily 25-30 bps at the podium computer with various seat changes or operational upgrade.
WOW, what a route? 😲😲😲

Cathay Pacific Airways Airbus 350-1000 Business Class Cabin




Cathay Pacific Airways Airbus 350-1000 Business Class Seat



Part 1 Continues Below

Short hair Francis

Full Flat Mode



18.5 Inches Personal TV


Cocktail Table


Seat Control and Storage Box


Seat Control


Storage Box


Additional Storage Box


Cathay Pacific Airways Entertainment System with the Newest CX Studio Interface


Selection Menu


Movies









Part 1 Continues Below

Short hair Francis

Comedy TV





Drama TV





Satellite TV


Hot Towel


Pre-Departure Beverage


This Chilled Enough for you?


1 Hour 27 Minutes flight time to Manila this morning


Philippines Arrival Card were handed out early

*Props to the Crew to do this on a short flight

Meanwhile, it seems the Summer Monsoon started early this year


With the fully load, Door were closed at 8:59am and CX 901 pushed back from the gate at 9:11am

Starting Engines on Taxiway


Leaving from Gate 66


Part 1 Continues Below

Short hair Francis

Sadly with morning traffic, it took awhile until we were at the front of the line.

Taking off from Runway 7R at 9:43am


Still Rainy


Rolling Off



Wheels Off





Terminal 2 Construction is still a mess


Quiet Cabin after Takeoff


The crew jumped into action right away and similar to a TPE flight, they have no time to waste in order for the service to run smoothly.

Oh boy Manila flights do feel short




Cathay Pacific Dining Menu



Drinks Menu





Breakfast is Served


Part 1 Continues Below

Short hair Francis

Fruit Bowl


Main Course, Dim Sum


Coke Zero to finish the meal


30 Minutes Left to the flight




By the time breakfast finished up, we were already above Luzon and beginning descent into Metro Manila.

Over Luzon


Back out over Manila Bay



Descent






Here Fishy Fishy




Final Approach




Part 1 Continues Below

Short hair Francis

Touchdown at 11:18am




Breaking on Runway 6



MF 8667






Why Xiamen Air thought it was a good idea to leave an airplane carcass in plain view is beyond me?!?
😱😱😱

Peeling off Runway 6


Philippines Airlines Hub at Terminal 2



And Turning into Terminal 3


Finally on chock at 11:24am.
Welcome to Hot and Stinky Hectic Manila 🥵🥵


Cathay Pacific Airways Airbus 350-1000 Quick Business Class Review
Check-In – 6am at the HKG Cathay Pacific Check-in is 99.99% Guaranteed No-Wait 😀

Security – Likewise a World of Bliss at this Early Hour as well 😀

Lounge (CX First) – My Home Away From Home 😍😍

Boarding – A Very Calm Boarding Gate despite the “Rolling the Cabin Forward” Situation.
#1 in the CX Diamond/OW Emerald line doesn't hurt either for photos 😁😁

Cabin Ambiance – Biggest Difference between CX 350-900 and 350-1000 is the Cabin Layout.
The 359 has 38J seats in 2 Sections, 30 Seats in the Front and a 8 Seat Mini-J Section.
351 however has all 46J Seats in 1 Huge Section between Door 1 and Door 2.

Seat – With 1-2-1 Configuration now the Golden Standard of Long Haul Business Class, it was hard to imagine how this Enhanced Cirrus Herringbone Seat designed by Studio F.A. Porsche managed to improve upon the original Cirrus Herringbone seat.
Netted Pocket inside the small cabinet is great for things like phones or small chargers.
The Padded Side Panels and Padded Side Cabinet definitely gives a sleeker and cosier feel then the previous version when the seat is fully flat.

Do look out for Teething/Wear-N-Tear Troubles with this seat, I've definitely had broken this and broken that on this seat in the 359 before. 😞

Food – Is it just me or do most Airplane Breakfast just suck? 😒😒😒
How I long for Pork Congee with Preserved Century Egg and a Side of Stir Fry Vermicelli? 😢
Will also settle for Nasi Lemak 🙏

Entertainment – Unlike the 77W, the 351 handles the newer CX Studio interface very smoothly.
No more of the frozen screen feel and the Live TV works well also.
And for those that want to work during the Long Haul flight, the 351 has Wifi installed at delivery so work away Worker Bees.
The CX Wifi also works in Mainland China airspace, how secure is your data?
Hmm, Use at your Own Risk 🤷‍♂️🤷‍♂️🤷‍♂️

Crew – 4 Crew Members for a Full House 46 Seater Cabin will likely push the Cabin Crew to the limit.
CX definitely isn't known for fast cabin service. 😑

Overall Impression – All Praise to the Travel God! 🙏🙏
May you bestow Operational Upgrades upon us whenever possible 😁😁

I would be curious to be fly in this cabin a 2nd time for a better feel for things.
46 Seat Business Class Cabin does feel a bit claustrophobic, so would be interested to find out if that is the case on a true Long Haul flight.


Next Part
Part 2 – Hidden Calmness in Metro Manila, Manila Marriott (Resort World)

zip10001

Thanks for the report.
I miss Hong-Kong, its airport and flying CX for flights around South-East Asia. I lived there 2014-2016 and your TR brings back sweet memories.
Thank you!

D3Kingg

Who cares ? 🤷🏻‍♂️

Short hair Francis

Thanks zip10001, personally I think HKG not only holds a special place in my heart but also for many FTers who've travelled/lived/worked there in its heydays 😭
Governor Patten was correct about one thing on HK, "No other place has quite the same blend of East and West, ancient and modern, spectacular and humdrum"

In all of my travels, there's very few places where I've experienced such a phenomenon similar to HK, those would be Beirut and Tirana. 🙂

It's truly sad to see HK goes through this current phase 😢😢


Apparently you do 😂
But thanks for reading anyway, D3KingAmerican 😉

Hope D3 flying is just as fun LOL 😄

Short hair Francis

Part 2 – Hidden Calmness in Metro Manila, Manila Marriott (Resort World)


For this short Manila trip, Mama SHF and Papa SHF were flying out the same day to SIN.
I only had to go outside the airport bubble one time the next day, hence why I picked a hotel close to Terminal 3.
That would be a cluster of hotels located in Resort World directly across Terminal 3 across the NAIA Expressway.

With Door 2 opening first on CX 901, we were able to exit the plane very quickly from 22A.
As such, we were able to reach the immigration counters while they were empty.

No Philippines Immigration and Customs troubles and we were quickly stamped in.

After being hit by a wall of Hot Air (+32C/90F) 🥵🥵 the moment you step outside, the “Resort World” shuttle stop can be easily found at the arrival curbside.
It takes around roughly 20-30 mins to drive from the airport to the Marriott, yes traffic is that bad.

If you're in a rush, look into the Runway Manila explained further below.

Manila Marriott (Resort World)




West Wing Driveway


For this property, they try to keep Regular guest in the East Wing while Elites in the West Wing since the Executive is in the West Wing Tower.

East Wing Lobby




Bar


Did I pick the right or wrong hotel this weekend?

*Luckily this event only started on the last day I checked out

Long Passage Way from East to West Wing



West Wing Check-In


For this 2 night stay, I was upgraded to the Premium King Room with Balcony + Executive Lounge access at the West Wing.

Premium King Room with Balcony





Bathroom


Shower View



With an outside balcony view looking towards MNL Terminal 3

View from the Room


Part 2 Continues Below

Short hair Francis

Looking further away to MNL Terminal 3



How Rest of Resort World looks


Executive Lounge












Tea Time


Golf Course




What a Grand Time to be in Manila 😧
Water Rationing! 💧💧💧



Time for Inner Peace 😊



Part 2 Continues Below

Short hair Francis

Metro Manila




Makati


Villamor Air Base Golf Course from the Rooftop Pool


With how hectic Manila traffic can be, having the pool and the executive lounge facing Villamor Air Base golf course is a “Calm in the Storm”. ☯️☯️

When it came time to send MamaSHF and PapaSHF back to the airport, the calmest and most peaceful way was to ride one of the Resort World golf carts to the Manila Runway where you can walk in an Air Conditioned path to Terminal 3.

The Manila Runway is a footbridge built above the NAIA Expressway, and it takes about 5-8 mins walking depending on how fast you can walk.

And this was one way to escape the traffic nightmare of NAIA Expressway and all of the access roads headaches into Terminal 3.

The Peaceful Way to get to the airport






As for the rest of the time in Metro Manila, I didn't escape very far from Resort World other than for the 1 meeting.
I've visited the Intramuros and Corregidor on a past trip and didn't fancied more Manila Traffic than strictly necessary. 😳

Walking around Resort World



$1 USD haircut? 🤨



Next Part
Part 3 – The Old Comfy Way Home, Cathay Pacific Airbus 330-300 Long Haul Business MNL-HKG

FlyDeltaMD88

Great report so far, definitely enjoy the photos of the Philippines. Also that Xiamen Airlines 737, yikes!

Short hair Francis

Thanks FlyEndeavorAir, this one is just a short little report.
Hence why there's no "destination" portion on the Phillippines.

It's a good baseline for photos for both the CX Long Haul 333 and 351 products 😃

Ya Xiamen Air 737-800, what were they thinking?!? 🤦‍♂️🤦‍♂️

BTW, Est-ce que tu parles français?