Tried & Tested Flight I 19A light breakfast (drinks and a muffin) was served
on the short Gold Coast-Cairns leg, before the flight
landed in Cairns at 1220. All passengers were required
to disembark before boarding again at 1305.
My seat was prepared with refreshed amenities,
including a new pillow, blanket, headset and an
attractive Hong Kong-inspired amenity kit with
L’Occitane products.
I revisited the extensive IFE system and was happy
to find the movie I had started en route to Cairns was
paused where I’d left it. We took off again at 1350.
Drinks and nuts were brought round, and it was
great to see special hometown options, including Hong
Kong-style yuan yang (a mixture of milk tea and coffee).
Lunch was served soon after: the prawn cocktail
starter was okay – though nothing special. For the main
dish I chose grilled beef tenderloin with a demi-glace
sauce and gratin potato. The beef was a bit overcooked
and soaked in too much sauce, though the potato was
tasty. The meal was completed with delicious Maggie
Beer burnt fig, honeycomb and caramel ice cream.
After doing some work, I reclined into a fully flat
position. Though it was a tight fit for my 190cm frame,
the semi-open footwell did give my feet plenty of room.
I slept comfortably for about two hours before
waking at 4.30pm for another meal of seasonal fruit,
chicken lasagne and chocolate cake. The chicken was
very tasty – a big improvement over lunch.ARRIVAL We touched down at 1855 – ten minutes
ahead of schedule. Immigration was quiet and fairly
quick, however I was slightly annoyed to find my
“priority tagged” luggage did not emerge until most of
the economy passengers had retrieved theirs.BACKGROUND Hong Kong got its first direct service
to Australia’s Gold Coast in January last year, when
Hong Kong Airlines launched a three-times-weekly
service. The return flight includes a stopover in Cairns.
CHECK-IN I arrived at Gold Coast International
Airport (OOL) at 6.45am for my 0940 HX16 flight.
Despite there being separate business and economy
lines, the staff directed all passengers to one queue.
Fortunately, I completed the process within ten minutes.
As Hong Kong Airlines doesn’t operate a lounge
at OOL, I was given two A$15 (US$12) vouchers to
redeem at the terminal restaurants. I moved to the
second security scan for international departures at
- The immigration check was an impressively
speedy affair, thanks to high-tech electronic self-scan
passport stations – even for foreign passport holders.
BOARDING Boarding was called at 0905. Again,
the demarcation between business and economy
passenger lines was ignored. There are no air bridge
facilities at OOL, so we had a five-minute walk on
the tarmac to reach the aircraft.
THE SEAT There are 32 business seats arranged in a
staggered 1-2-1 configuration. My window seat 18A
offered plenty of privacy.
There was a generous amount of legroom, but
not much storage space: the compartment under
the armrest (the only holder) was big enough for
my glasses and an iPad – if I removed the bottled
water and headset. The work/dining table was solid
and balanced and an international power socket is
conveniently situated under the armrest.
A highlight was the built-in seat massage function.
WHICH SEAT TO CHOOSE Every passenger is
afforded direct aisle access, however window seats A
and K give more privacy than their C or H counterparts
as the side table acts as a buffer to the aisle. I would
avoid rows 11 and 20, as they are close to the galley.
THE FLIGHT I stowed my belongings in the empty
overhead compartment and settled into my seat with
an orange juice and water before we took off at 1000.
VERDICT The new route is
a fantastic addition to give
travellers direct connectivity
between Hong Kong and the
Australian MICE and leisure
hotspot. I loved the local Hong
Kong touches, but felt the
overall F&B quality could be
improved. The service on board
was excellent, but the ground
handling of priority passengers
left something to be desired.
Valerian HoDEPARTURE TIME
0940
JOURNEY TIME
11 hours 55 minutes
(1 hour 30 minutes’
stopover in Cairns)
AIRCRAFT TYPE
A330-
CONFIGURATION
1-2-
SEAT RECLINE
180 degreesBED LENGTH
74.5in/189cm
PRICE
Internet rates for a return
business class ticket
from Gold Coast to Hong
Kong in mid-October
start from HK$14,
(US$1,832) including
taxes and surcharges
CONTACT
hongkongairlines.comBUSINESSECONOMYHong Kong Airlines
A330-300 Business Class
Gold Coast–Hong Kong
(via Cairns)