Changes are afoot at Cathay Pacific’s Hong Kong Lounge as the airline aims to improve the passenger experience for premium and frequent flyers.
This was announced by a Cathay spokesperson. executive traveler From November 1, the airline will provide passenger services from contractor Sodexo at its five lounges in Hong Kong (The Wing First, The Wing Business, The Pier First, The Pier Business and The Deck). announced that he will begin taking over important roles.
France-based Sodexo replaced Plaza Premium as Cathay’s lounge operator in 2018 and will continue to work behind the scenes in catering and cleaning. Sodexo also has a contract with Qantas’ Hong Kong lounge.
Long-time Cathay flyers will remember that the Hong Kong lounge was operated and managed by Peninsula Club and Consultant Services, a division of The Peninsula Hotel Group, from 1998 to 2016. It may be.
That’s about to change again, with Cathay announcing that “certain front-of-house positions in Hong Kong’s premium lounges will be transferred from Sodexo to Cathay Pacific in a phased manner from November 2023.”
Cathay is looking to build on its reputation as a premium service-oriented airline.
A spokesperson for the airline said it was an “opportunity to deliver premium service to our valued Cathay Pacific customers in a key front-of-house role and deliver superior service across customer touchpoints.” explained.
executive traveler It is understood that Cathay’s takeover will begin at The Pier First and then expand to other lounges in the coming months.
As oneworld member states continue to recover to pre-pandemic levels, Cathay’s return to control of its home lounges will undoubtedly give it greater control in setting service standards.
Cathay Airways’ last lounge in Hong Kong reopened in mid-year when the flagship airline’s The Pier First opened its doors in July 2023, but as previously reported, The Bridge will be located between Gates 35 and 36. It is located at the arrival point of automatic personnel transfer aircraft. Shuttle – remains permanently closed.
read: A complete guide to oneworld lounges in Hong Kong
Cathay is also counting down to the ribbon-cutting for its new “Seaport Lounge” at Shenzhen Shekou Ferry Port, which has been pushed back multiple times past its original opening date of August 2023.
As part of Cathay’s expansion into the Greater Bay Area, the compact lounge, designed along the same lines as Hong Kong’s The Deck, will take a 30-minute high-speed ferry to Hong Kong Airport’s Skypier to connect to Cathay Pacific flights. Cater to travelers.
An artist’s rendering of Cathay’s new Shekou Ferry Pier Lounge.
Cathay is also considering a new lounge once the airport completes the redevelopment of Terminal 2 at the end of 2024.
T2 will house many of the airlines currently operating from T1, which Cathay hopes will give it more room to literally spread its wings.
This “airline repositioning” will open new possibilities for Cathay Pacific, said Vivian Lo, the airline’s general manager of customer experience and design. executive traveler At the beginning of this year.
“In the long term, we are thinking clearly about this and want to focus our investment on Terminal 1.”
“Whether that’s an arrivals lounge or a larger flagship lounge, that’s something we’ll consider down the road. So we’re doing a lot of customer insight for future flagship lounges.”
Cathay Pacific’s passenger numbers and capacity are currently at about 50% of pre-pandemic levels, according to a September 2023 report. This comes against the backdrop of the airline’s aim to operate at approximately 70% of pre-pandemic capacity by the end of 2023 and reach 100% capacity by the end of 2024.
