Cathay Pacific will be flying non-stop to Hong Kong from Adelaide this Australian summer, with three of the SA capital's seven flights a week going straight to Hong Kong.
Existing flights run on a triangular network with Melbourne, with flights going Hong Kong-Adelaide-Melbourne-Hong Kong.
The new flights begin November 24, using Airbus A330 aircraft, which are the planes Cathay already uses on existing triangular routes. You'll have the option of business and economy classes on board.
While Cathay is keeping mum on whether the flights will have the fantastic new business class we reviewed, don't miss our guide to picking the best seats in business class on board if they do.
CX174 will depart Adelaide at 0745 on Mondays, Thursdays and Saturdays, arriving in Hong Kong at 1430 the same day. That's useful for same-day connections to many cities on Cathay's network.
Return flight CX173 will leave Hong Kong on Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays at 1920, arriving into Adelaide at 0625 the next morning.
For the rest of the week, Adelaide passengers will continue to see the triangular patterns with Melbourne.
Melbourne won't see any reduction in flights, though -- substitute flight CX194 will take over from the triangular CX104 on Mondays, Thursdays and Saturdays when direct Adelaide flights are running.
Melburnian travellers have two other daily flight options as well:
- CX168 leaves Melbourne at 0105, arrives Hong Kong 0715
- CX134 leaves Melbourne at 0850, arrives Hong Kong 1505
Savvy travellers from Hong Kong to Melbourne will already be skipping the triangular CX105 route on the way back from Hong Kong -- with the stop in Adelaide it takes an extra two hours. CX163 and CX135 are much better bets.
(Source timetable data: airlineroute.net)
Aviation journalist and travel columnist John took his first long-haul flight when he was eight weeks old and hasn't looked back since. Well, except when facing rearwards in business class.
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