Hong Kong Lounge Crawl - Which is the Best Lounge?
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- Опубліковано 4 лип 2024
- Before my flight out of Hong Kong, I had a few hours and decided to do a lounge crawl and record the experience. I had a great time, and I hope you do too!
⭐ #loungecrawl #HongKong #MattsPlanet ⭐
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⏰ Timestamps:
0:00 - Intro
0:56 - Wing First
4:19 - Wing Business
6:44 - A Few Others
7:38 - The Deck
8:49 - Qantas
10:56 - More Others
13:02 - Pier First
16:06 - Pier Business and My Rankings
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One thing that I really appreciate about your videos is that there’s no music tacked on in post to distract from the actual content. Thank you!
Very interesting point - thanks for voting that way!!! I'm usually rabbiting on so there's no space for music but I do worry that occasionally there's dead spots... I tend to up the volume of the ambient sound during these bits to make it sound less dead.... Music has its place but when I use it I try and make it a feature rather than something you hope people don't notice!
2:58 - hold the glass by the stem; it’s there for a reason 😊
Fair cop!!!! I usually remember to not be a slob when I quaff the champers!
Great video! And not always easy to film in lounges, so extra credits for that!
Cheers Steve - I left a few lounge faces in but I think I got away with it!
The Cabana in the Wing First is certainly a unique experience that would add a lot of points to the scoreboard. The dining room in the Pier and the Wing First used to provide different offerings too, being Cantonese cuisine in the Wing and Western Cuisine in the Pier, until the recent outstanding Michelle-star backed Rosewood Cantonese tasting menu being offered (It was an Italian menu a few months ago). The Pier First also offered semi-private sleeping rooms and free neck and back/foot massages which I strongly recommend.
Meanwhile, quiet sleeping sofa and tea house sections are also highlights in the Pier Business which I will add a lot of marks.
I couldn't agree more, these are all decent, if not outstanding lounges around the globe.
Thanks David - sounds like there's a lot more to experience! Time to plan another trip!
If said gentlemens club be the Garrick good luck to any ladies getting into the lounge!
Ha ha! I think the lounges are a little less strict than the Garrick!
I totally agree that The Pier First Lounge is the best in HKG and arguably one of the best in the world. I always enjoy spending a few hours there before my flight. I also agree that The Wing First is underwhelming and noisy, however, their catering is usually quite good. I've never had a bad meal there whereas I've had a bad meal at The Pier First last time I was there, they had an Italian tasting menu which was quite terrible.
Thanks so much for that. Its always dangerous to make conclusions like this off a sample of one visit but I felt I was pretty safe to put the Pier First top!
Another great video Matt. I think the Wing bathtub experience is something that elevates it a little beyond your experience. They're al lovely though as you say.
I said hello to you in LHR GF the other day (07/06) as I was leaving - hope you were off to somewhere nice!
No time for a bath this time round! Great to meet you - I was off to Madrid. A couple of times a year I invite my patreon group to come with me and I had about 30 new friends there this time - some of them were with me in the lounge... Great fun - I've just about recovered!
Great video Matt! I would agree that The Pier looks far superior than The Wing
I can't remember reading a review from someone who preferred the Wing!
Brilliant video. Having lived the last 8yrs in HK, I have to say your lounge experience at some of these (especially Cathay deck) can be completely changed depending on timings. I wouldn’t even bother going to the wing business lounge or the Cathay deck lounge due to this. 90% of the time it is absolutely mad (everyone in hk seems to have silver Cathay +). The pier business has always been brilliant (the huge space means even when busy you can find a nice seat..usually) and the Qantas I have to agree, I actually put that as the best in Hong Kong airport ;) brilliant video nether-less!
Thanks for that. This was mid afternoon heading into the evening which i guess is a quieter time.
Excellent video - really useful to see the options particularly with OneWorld status. I've only been to Wing Business. I don't like long, thin lounges (fussy, I know!) - squarer shapes are much better for orientation and looking around. If I travel via HKG again I'll definitely visit Pier First as it looked the best for sure.
The Pier is the place to be. Even if Hong Kong isn't these days!!!
11:43 - You can hire a shower for about £20 for a 30 min session. Used them whilst waiting for my flight to MNL.
I'd be embarrassingly wrinkly after a 30 minute shower.....
One of the things I love about you Matt, is your thought process clearly includes your “dear viewer(s)”. With 6 hours before a flight, you’re off on a lounge crawl in HKIA. Most other people would use that time enjoying the sights, sounds and sensory explosion of Kowloon.
It was absolutely bucketing it down that day so the airport didn't seem like a terrible idea!
Could you please provide some information in your future videos on how many hours before your scheduled flight you can go through security at the airport you’re visiting? You could simply ask the security staff when you go through. I remember once wanting to go through security at Gatwick Airport 6 hours before my flight and finding out the earliest was 5 hours before the flight.
😮😮😮😮
This information is very difficult to find online, so it would be useful to know.
👍
I don't think I've ever come across a restriction on getting through security - the bigger issue is that check-in desks (if you need them) usually only open 3 hours before departure. Cathay fly from Hong Kong all day so there was no issue with checking in and going through. I remember going through Athens 9 hours before the flight but again I was flying Aegean so that was the home airport and they had flights all day. Who were you flying with out of Gatwick?
Great video! I agree with your rankings. The Pier F also has a massage service and day rooms (entrance near the showers). You can exit the QF lounge towards the rear to emerge in front of the entrance to The Deck, although you can’t enter the QF lounge from there.
Thanks - I did spot another exit from the QF lounge - good to know that heads towards the Deck.
Totally agree. HKG Pier First is my favorite lounge also. Followed by LAX Quantas First
Thanks. I've had the chance to go to the LAX QF first lounge 4 times - wasn't allowed in as the kitchen had flooded, closed cos of the you-know-what and I didn't have the time to get round from terminal 4. And the 4th time? I was only silver (the shame of it.....)
Thanks for the great info + video!
As always, thanks for the watch and the comment!
Quite a thorough tour that was. The open spaces really don't do it in my opinion because of the echos and so on. But the closed off spaces are definitely doing something right in making a space quieter and dare I say, tranquil. Also, thanks for posting in 4K. 😊
Hey! Thanks for noticing! I didn't plan 4k when filming so I lost some definition at some points but I thought it was better to use it where I could!
@@MattsPlanet Thanks again 😁
Thanks! I enjoyed the video. Watched the whole video!!
Thanks - tried to tease some interesting stuff at the end of the video... Looks like it worked!!!!
Good to see you back Matt
Likewise!
Great video Matt, but surprised you rated Qantas so highly. It's not an unpleasant place but there's no champagne and the Aussie wine is usually pretty cheap stuff. The food seems to be average business lounge quality.
Always tricky with a sample of one visit, as I say in the video! That BBQ pork was really good though!
That first lounge seems very exposed and an unusual shape. You mentioned noise and I expect it would be rather less pleasant at peak time!
Its a design that probably felt great on the blueprints but is a bit annoying as built!
Thanks for this Matt. It is so enjoyable to get a down-to-earth review without gimmicky add-ons to accomodate the YT algorithm. As I drop from silver in a couple of weeks, I will be going through your "back catalogue" of YT vlogs on how to do a tier run with the possibilty of trying for gold, so these inputs help as encouragement. I take it you plan your connecting flights to give you all these hours to do your "research"? 😉🍾
Plenty of time for research!!! I like to sleep in a bed rather than on a plane and daytime flights make for better videos as there's better lighting. So I do tend to leave decent buffers between flights, ideally overnight ones. Gives me a chance to see a little of the cities I'm passing through too. This video was planned so I did leave myself a block of time there!
as you have been to lots of lounges ,,,,,,,,,,,,is the pier the best in the world ??? it must be as i think that your opinion is far more honest than ALL of the other bloggers etc etc thanks again for another great honest video ,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, how is your health hope you are feeling well much thanks ............................tony
All good here thank Tony. I think the Zurich, Frankfurt and Paris First Class lounges are better but I've no prospect of getting into them any time soon!
Thank You ✈️
Thanks for watching!
Nice review. Good to see all the options.
Thanks - heading that way anytime soon? Baiju rather than Whisky in that neck of the woods I think???
@@MattsPlanet I was planning but work got in the way.
What a crawl! Great vid
That certainly was a good day!!!
I don't tell anyone I watch videos about lounge crawls. Sssshhh! But, this was a very good video, which I enjoyed!
I won't tell anyone.... You don't have to drink in them!
abalone is like chewing old sweaty shoe leather LOL. The pier looks like an amazing lounge. As for the Quaintarse lounge only offering Pork is not a huge surprise, given how much pork is consumed in HK and is a staple of Cantonese food. I have had the good fortune to live in HK for a couple of brief periods in the 80's and 90's and worked in hotels and one of the to 10 restaurants of the world at that time. I would expect the food and drinks options for the Pier and the Wing to have reflected the high standards common in the finest establishments in the territory, but seeing the lack of Hennesay Paradis or Camu XO behind those bars is extremely dissapointing, given that anyone with enough status or in First will be well accustomed to the finest things their corporate position generates for them LOL ( in the good old days Ex Pat packages would include 2 first class return flights, private schooling for your children, accommodation allowances or company apartments with use of company yachts at the weekend and vacation homes on Lantau or one of the other Islands, to mention a few ). As a 17 yr old Staying with my Uncle, a Banker with Standard Chartered, walking into many of the hotels and restaurants, he was greeted by name, even without a reservation, for 2 months, I don't think we ate in the house of an evening. I bet things haven't changed.
Fascinating. No Hennessey Paradis these days.... Hong Kong has changed a lot since the handover - I probably don't have enough footage to make a video about it but anyone who lived there may not recognise it if they went back....
I see these videos and question if I should upgrade to Gold status as you have shown a whole new world out there waiting for us. Another great video thanks Matt.
Thanks Tim - Silver is the sweet spot but gold does open some nice doors!!! 600 TPs vs 1,500 though!
The pier F is a favourite and I very much wait to visit it again but one that beats it, hands down, is the Swiss F lounge in the satelite terminal at ZRH. It's a tough one to get in to since you have to fly F or be HON Circle and since it is next to impossible to redeem miles for Swiss F it means paid F... which usually doesn't come cheap but well worth it when you find a sweet spot 😊
Thanks - I'm not sure I'll be doing many paid F flights anytime soon which may keep the Zurich, Frankfurt and Paris lounges out of reach.... Sadly....
We were in HK in March and they are extending the airport which looks a huge project, maybe the new terminal might be to Cathay only, not sure just speculating.
I did see some building works - I was a little surprised that the terminal seemed to take up so little of the island they'd made for the airport. New terminal = new lounges = another trip!!!
Oh no! We were just in HK last week and did this very crawl - sod's law and all, but thank you for uploading - fascinating to see/listen to an expert opinion on these matters
Hopefully you drew the same conclusions???
I certainly agree with your assessment of smaller lounge spaces being better than large open lounges. This is why I never really got the huge praise for the Emirates Dubai or Qatar Doha (especially the new Garden lounge) flagship lounges - they're all massive and very open (which isn't necessarily a good thing!)
Thanks. I did the Emirates lounge before the channel and it is a little overwhelming.... I thought the new Al Mourjan in the Garden handles the space quite well as the greenery is calming.... Although the one time I went there it was super quiet
@@MattsPlanet Yeah, I find when it's busy out in the terminal around the green space it can be a bit loud, which can make it feel a bit like a very fancy food court
I'm using the Pier First this coming September and you have now persuaded me to arrive at the airport plenty of hours early...that bar looked way too tempting!!!!!!!
I'd probably recommend against abbreviating time in Hong Kong for time in a lounge... But if you've had plenty of the former, make sure you leave yourself plenty of time for the latter!
If you want to experience the massage and shower facilities, you may want to reserve the time slots as soon as you enter the lounge. Same for the cabana in The Wing. There are lots of outbound flights to Europe in the evening, slots fill up really quickly. And there is "day suite" facility in the Pier First, you get a private room with a combo of a loveseat and a daybed, plus the tarmac view. The other features can't see in this video is that The Pier Business has a large HK style noddle bar with extensive selections and lively vibe, further down is a Tea House with Asian sweets delicacy. Enjoy! ✈
I've done both First Wing and Pier lounges. Agree the pier is better and also my favourite lounge in Hong Kong. Probably in my top three lounges I've ever visited
Thanks Alan - I have to ask what the other 2 are???
I must have been to HKG about 8 times
In the last 6 weeks, I still find the airport badly signed, and finding that first wing near gate 64 is near impossible when coming airside.
Great video.
That's a good point - inside the lounges is one thing, but finding them is not always easy!
Matt thats barely any alcohol. Dont worry bout the haters,😂 were English we can do all that and then go for a few pints and a game of tennis what what!
Indeed! Chin chin!!!
Deck is good for peak times, it's normally very empty compared to the Wing!
Indeed - it gets so little publicity in reviews and on the blogs - its a little gem!
Bang on with your ranking, Matt.
The Wing is in the older CX style so is aging a little - the part which attracts most popularity is the Cabanas. They are great, but if I were pressed for time The Pier (F or J) would be my go to. The J class lounge has excellent food and a real extensive buffet on offer.
Great video!
Final note, I didn’t see a massive boost with 4K - would save those extra pixels for zooming.
Thanks Callum - I think I need to go and buy a new TV so I can see what happens when I zoom in on a UHD frame!!! My DJI is probably not brilliant for UHD footage anyway when its not bright daylight....
he had another... Good man!
I consider it my duty!
@@MattsPlanet Someone has to do it!
Dear Matt , Is it possible to book Manchester to Inverness via Heathrow on avios. Can't book from Manchester directly as not a BA flight etc.Thank You
I looked on the BA website and it showed me redemption options between MAN and INV via LHR and got lots of options. Should be straightforward....
How many hours did you spend at that airport visiting all that lot 🤷♀️
Only about 5.... And a half....
Amex Platinum card holders can enter Centurion Lounge
I realised I said "UK platinum cards" in the voice over where it is in fact all platinum cards
Nice work! I’ve just booked Cathy business class flights to/from Taipei via Hong Kong with a decent 4 hour connecting break on the return journey to lounge surf….😀🍻🥂
Fantastic! Assuming you're not gold / emerald, you've got an hour each in each of the 4 business lounges... Should be fun!
@@MattsPlanet I am BA gold so even more choice! Really helpful review once again! 👏👏
Hi Matt,
As if you said that the lounge looked like a gentleman club,.....with a lot of wood.....😂...
Hope you are well sir! Thanks for the video. Lounges look so clean, organised compared to the London zoo! Food looked amazing!
Keep well,
Regards
Thomas
All good here Thomas. The lounges were certainly well presented!
Nice selection there Matt. I would be interested to hear how close you thought the Pier first lounge was to the Concorde at LHR? I'm looking forward to spending some time at the Concorde (LHR) & Chesea (JFK) tomorrow 17/06. Enroute to LAX. Keep up the great work. Many thanks.
I'd say the pier wins by a nose... The service is a lot better (obviously small samples to conclude this from, but the CCR is often criticised for not having the most attentive staff), the food was a little better but I think the drinks are a shade better in the CCR. Ambiance is a personal preference but I'd give that to the Pier too. Not been to the Chelsea but people grumble about the darkness with no windows... Good champagne though! Have fun!
@@MattsPlanet Nice to hear your thoughts Matt. Your not wrong on the Chelsea at JFK, it is considerably dark. Like you say, there is no natural light. I only pop in for a quick cheeky glass or 2 of the high end bubbles. lol. Chat soon Matt.
I will be doing just this in 3 weeks time myself 😀
Have a great time!
@@MattsPlanet Thanks, I was there last year too, but only silver then. Now I have my gold it is new lounge time in HKG and HND
@@mwcloud Gold opens doors.... Literally!
✈️👍
Thanks for watching!
I remember a Cathay lounge called 'The Cabin' - about half way between either end of the Terminal - it was small and a bit dingy, downstairs - but we got comfortable at the champagne bar so we stayed put. Does anyone else remember it? I assume it no longer exists
Its now a 24hrs Mcdonald's.
I think they're ok with the 3 business lounges and 2 first class ones!
I only came to say, nect time.yoi do one could u make a note of the different champers in each lounge, thats the only reason id go
I'm annoyed about that - I rely on the shots I take of menus to remind me of what it was and my camera let me down.... I will "belt and braces" the booze identification going forwards!!
I just came back from travelling Australia. I flew Qantas on a few trips. I was not that impressed with the domestic lounges.
The domestic Aussie lounges can be patchy... No alcohol before midday!!!!
@MattsPlanet Glad you agree, and it's not just me thinking it. I am also a Bronze member, so thought I was getting a steal when I was able to upgrade to Business class by bidding on flights. However, I did not read the small print, and you don't get any extra tier points when you receive a flight you bid on. This made it terrible value for money as you still get fed and recirve alcohol on the economy fare . If I had already been a Silver members it would have been different.
Hope you are well 🙏
Hello from the Admirals Club in Mexico City Matt.
Aha! Say hi to the grumpy staff... Actually, don't!!!
@@MattsPlanet not the best! But considering the airport is being held together with safety pins and little to no seating, I’ll take it on a 3 hour delay! Not having a go, I love Mexico and have been through this airport more times than I can remember through the years.
Almost worth booking a ticket to HK😊
Almost certainly!
is the video mirrored? I have the feeling the my memory of the Wing is the other way around
Wing is certainly to the left on entry!
Thanks for the video Matt but with all due respect this was about as successful as my efforts of a pub crawl when i was 17 years old
My measure of success was coming away with footage good enough to make a video out of! Had I deployed 17 year old me's objectives it would have been a different story!!!
Next time channel your inner 17 year old for the video (may require a wig)
@@herogeroi8521 Ha ha! I may make that video one day actually!
Emirates and Etihad - foreign words on this channel 😂 maybe a good side quest would be building status on emirates (they seem to have dedicated lounges everywhere) or doing an airport crawl in the US (I have no idea which ones to avoid) I quite like the JAL first in Haneda but the only things I have to compare it with are BA, KLM, Lufthansa and Qatar lounges.
I really find the KLM business in amsterdam extremely pleasant, I can’t put my finger on why I enjoyed it so much.
Least favourite lounge has to be Prague where I am based 😭 with their inedible pizza. I don’t even need status, for £2 a month with any bank in CZ you can get a gold Mastercard which gives you access to the lounge.
I prefer the Turkish business in IST better than Emirates business in DXB. Emirates business used to be amazing 20 years ago.
Oman air business is nice.
Have u been to Buckingham palace im going in July
I have - it is quite an experience! You see a few palaces around Europe that aren't really still in use but Buck palace is still in daily use and it shows! Well worth it....
@@MattsPlanet ok tysm ahhh
I can't think of a reason why I'll be going anywhere near Hong Kong or eligible to enter The Pier even if I did - but I'll certainly be trying to come up with one. 😄🍸
Indeed - Hong Kong may not be quite the indispensable Asian city it used to be, but it is on the way to a lot of places that still are!
How did you function after all that alcohol!
Over the space of 5 hours it really wasn't that much!!! And I did have a flight to enjoy after the lounge experience!
@@MattsPlanet Even with it spread over 5 hours, I would still have had to be rolled onto the plane!
@@slavchick2602 Years of training for me....
@@MattsPlanet 🤭
Yet another good video without the click bait sensationalism (I’m looking at you Non stop Dan😁) Off topic, but how about a video on Air Lingus giving BA tier points now? Only seen a small article on HfP and no one else seems to be talking about it. It seems really big news for me, maybe my regular work in Ireland makes me biased. Just booked my first BHX to DUB since I noticed this, so have used my BA number instead as a test. Hopefully it works. 👍🏼
Thanks! I am trying to book a redemption on Aer Lingus to review the product now it does earn TPs, and you can use the twofer on it. Availability is really, really tight though!
How is your health, sir?
All good! My liver's a bit crispy after this crawl but otherwise I'm good! Going to make an update video in a month or so as the news has been good since the diagnosis
@@MattsPlanet Good to hear! All the best 😊
Amex platinum and its priority pass scheme seems less and less appealing each video you produce on longue crawls....always got ques and some have questionable quality 🤔
Hong Kong may not be typical - I hear that the Centurion lounge is quite nice....