For award-winning chef Margarita Forés, bag designer Amina Aranaz, basketball star-turned-entrepreneur Chris Tiu and star stylist Liz Uy, choosing the right airline is the first important step to a pleasant, hassle-free travel, regardless of distance or destination.
These celebrities, to whom travel is indispensable to their professions and businesses, agree that the Hong Kong-based Cathay Pacific delivers on its promise of a comfortable, enjoyable, convenient flight through its “Life Well Travelled” campaign, now on its third year.
Forés says traveling keeps her updated on developments in the restaurant scene and foreign cuisine. She discovers new ingredients that she can use in her cooking, even as she highlights the best of Filipino cuisine.
Aranaz points out that travel helps her design bags that are not only relevant to Filipinos but likewise appeal to an international market.
Uy incorporates fashion and styles she discovers in her trips related to her work in the Philippines.
Tiu reveals travel has made him discover authentic French bread and pastries and open the French artisan boulangerie Eric Kayser.
Lounges
The celebrities enthuse over Cathay Pacific lounges, particularly at the Hong Kong International Airport, the Asian airline’s hub, which they think is a good starting point for any journey, long or short.
Aranaz says the Hong Kong lounge “has a resort feel,” while Uy says The Pier, one of two lounges for first-class travelers, “feels like home.”
“Hong Kong is a convenient hub for a traveler, with the availability of flights to different destinations,” says Tiu. “I look forward to layovers, as Cathay Pacific’s lounges in international airports are very comfortable and provide the basic amenities that long-distance travelers need.”
For Forés, service is key in her choice of an airline. Cathay Pacific “is the brand I grew up with,” says the chef who notes a significant difference between the service of Cathay Pacific and other airlines. “Even in premium economy you get champagne.”
Tiu concurs, citing that the cabin crew respect a passenger’s wish not to be disturbed, even during meals. “They let you sleep,” he says.
“A comfortable flight really makes a difference,” avers Aranaz, to which Uy adds, “My trip is my relaxation.”
‘Life Well Travelled’
Rob Bradshaw, Cathay Pacific country manager, says the “Life Well Travelled” program is designed specifically to address individual needs, like those of the four seasoned travelers. The campaign offers “experiences that are enriching,” he says.
Humidity in planes, for instance, has been adjusted so the cabins do not dry up. Passengers can taste their food and jetlag is reduced, Bradshaw says.
Forés notes that her feet do not get as swollen as in other airlines when she flies Cathay Pacific.
Bradshaw underscores the importance of Cathay Pacific to Filipino travelers and the Philippine market. “We have been flying to the Philippines for 70 years. We are passionate about flying to the Philippines,” he says.
The airline was launched on Sept. 24, 1946, through a Hong Kong-Manila-Hong Kong flight.