1hr 35 mins Connection time in Hong kong enough?

Hi team, flying to NY for work in May and have found cathay pacific flights in business that are half price to Qantas and cheaper than United. I only have 1hr 35mins between scheduled landing from Melbourne to departing for NY on the way to the US. Landing at 2.55pm so likely that will make a difference.

on the return i have 5 hours of a layover so plenty of lounge hopping time. Anyone with experience should i be ok connecting assuming the flights on time? I checked some forums and it seems to indicate yes but as always the ET team will likely have more real world experience to share.

Thanks,

LTF

Yes it'll be fine assuming no major delays in landing. Transit security will help expedite if boarding has already started due to a later arrival.

If you book directly with CX you will be fine and even if some major hiccup happens you will not be left alone. I would go.

Hi LoveToFly - can we presume both of these flights are Cathay Pacific, If so, then you'll certainly be fine even in the event of a delay to your MEL-HKG flight. If not, look, you'll be fine anyway if your flights are on time. HKG is pretty efficient for transfers.

Try to get your boarding pass for HKG-NY at MEL check-in (or of course have it on your phone). This makes the transfer process at HKG much easier because you don't need to line up at one of the transfer desks to collect your onwards boarding pass.

With a 90m layover you won't have much lounge time, because of course those 90mins includes getting off the plane, getting to the transit point, getting through the transit point, and then getting to and boarding your departing flight.

But if things run smoothly and the gates are not at opposite ends of the airport, then hopefully there will be time to call into a lounge - I'd pick the Qantas lounge if you're in the low-numbered gates near the 'top' of the terminal, or Cathay's The Pier if your flight departs from nearer the 'bottom' of the terminal - and relaxed for a bit and sample its wares. Hurried lounge visits just for the sake of calling into lounge are never fun.

Hope it all runs smoothly for you!

95 minutes sounds fine to me. I have connected on plenty of flights through Hong Kong with closer to an hour between. Starts getting a bit hectic when the incoming is late but Cathay does a good job of getting you to the next flight and have never missed one (luggage is a different story though).

Assuming all on time, you might get a little lounge time but as David has previously indicated, work out where you need to be and pick a lounge close to the gate to save some hurried walking to your departure gate.

CX have offered many 50mins transit time for my connections. If your flight is delayed, they will have an alternate flight booked, and a hotel voucher if the next flight is longer than 6hrs.

The only issue at HKG has been traffic when you arrive, so there is always some circling and delay to gate. Most times CX will delay departures to accommodate transit pax.

Hi everyone, thank you so much for all your answers and great details. It sounds like im good to go once not delayed in bound. I am flying Cathay J the whole way through. As suggested by David i think i will check the gate im departing from and see if i can nab a quick shower before the long hop to NY. On the return i plan to use my full platinum benefits and do some lounge hopping. Again thanks all for your answers and time, love this community.

Regards,

LTF

We did this just last week, London to Sydney. At the Hong Kong airport, arrival gates are different to departure gates. If you are in Business, you'll be first off, so look for the transfer gates where you must show your passport at an e-gate and go through security. At the Hong Kong airport, arrival gates are different to departure gates. The lines look long, but everyone gets through quickly. Ask your flight attendant if they can tell you the boarding gate before you land. Before boarding, we even had time for a cheeky drink in one of three lounges.