London Heathrow to Hong Kong
Alex McWhirter looks at how new services can benefit business travellers.
With five top-level airlines flying non-stop and offering some of the best premium products, including fully-flat business class beds in the case of four of them, the London Heathrow-Hong Kong route must be the most hotly contested service between Europe and Asia.
Such ferocious competition spells great value for the passenger. The only downside is that the Skyteam alliance isn’t represented – this is a route dominated by Oneworld (British Airways, Cathay Pacific and Qantas), with Star Alliance, courtesy of Air New Zealand, getting a small look-in. The fifth carrier, Virgin Atlantic, is non-aligned.
BA, Cathay Pacific and Virgin Atlantic
These three are the longest established on the route. BA operates up to three daily flights with a mixture of B747 and B777 aircraft. Cathay Pacific departs up to four times a day using B747s and A340s in a three-class layout. Virgin Atlantic has up to two daily flights with A340s. One of these services (flights VS200 and VS201) continues on to Sydney. This is operated by a larger A340-600 and, being an Australian route flight, is always heavily booked, so opt for Virgin’s terminating flight if you prefer a quieter cabin.
Virgin operates with a three-class cabin but, unlike the other two carriers, does not provide first class. However, all three offer fully-flat beds in business class. They also provide a variety of departure times, but only Cathay and Virgin operate in the daytime between Hong Kong and London. Cathay’s planes on the London route should feature its new seating but as some of the fleet is yet to be converted, it’s worth checking to avoid disappointment.
Qantas and ANZ
The new kids on the block lack the market identity of their established rivals, but that means the consumer benefits from keener pricing. Qantas’s flight carries on to Melbourne while Air New Zealand’s continues to Auckland. Both fly once daily, although ANZ is cutting frequency to five a week from September 23.
The decision to withdraw first class between London and Melbourne on flights QF29 and QF30 will affect those travellers using Qantas as an alternative to British Airways.
ANZ operates a three-class B777 whereas Qantas operates a B747. Qantas is the only one of the two to offer first class, but this cabin is withdrawn between July 6 and October 1. It’s not clear whether Qantas will leave the first class empty or if it will opt to accommodate its favoured business class passengers “up front”. So check when booking – you might secure yourself a first class seat, with business catering and so on, for the lower price.
Interestingly, you will find Qantas competing on price with British Airways. This scenario isn’t possible on the other Asian routes where Qantas flies alongside BA (Bangkok and Singapore) because of a marketing agreement with BA.
ANZ’s flat-bed business class seats on the B777 feature a herringbone design similar to that on Virgin aircraft. Qantas’s B747 features angled lie-flat seats. Both carriers leave Hong Kong for London only in the morning (Qantas departs at 0735, with ANZ not far behind at 0830), so you will need to be an early riser.
Unless staying at the airport, it means a visitor to Hong Kong will have an early start if staying in the Central district, and will be faced with the cost of an extra night’s accommodation. However, ANZ softens the blow by offering a reduced 90-minute check-in time for business and premium economy passengers. It says the recommended reporting time for those flying normal economy class is three hours ahead.
Prices
These vary enormously. Each airline has different rates depending on the agent you use, when you book, when you travel and whether or not your stay will include a Saturday. There are also regular seat sales.
As a guide, when we checked the return fares for July covering all carriers for a stay including a Saturday night, online agent Expedia quoted upwards of £3,820 for first class, £2,000 for business class, £705 for premium economy and £450 for economy. Without a Saturday-night stay, you could be paying upwards of £4,850, £2,700, £950 and £575 respectively.
