Cathay Pacific FAM trip
The trip was hosted by Cathay Pacific and we were accompanied by the Hong Kong Tourist Board and Macau Government Tourism office along with the Director of Leisure and social group sales from the Mandarin Oriental Hotel. 36 guests in total were invited on the trip from various travel agent/tour operators from around the UK and Ireland. The trip was 3 nights in Hong Kong and 1 night in Macau and the itinerary was jam packed seeing all that Hong Kong and Macau had to offer.
I arrived at Manchester and the check in experience was so quick and easy and we were straight through security without any delays. Once we were at the gate ready to board I was lucky enough to have my boarding pass changed from economy to premium economy. The aircraft was an Airbus A350 and the seat configuration of the cabin was 2-4-2 I was sat in the 4 in the middle with other members of the trip. The service was great we were served champagne and orange juice prior to take off and the meal service was fantastic with regular snacks throughout the flight and wide selection of alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks. The seat was spacious with a generous recline and the entertainment system had a wide range of films, music and TV programmed, I was spoilt for choice.
Once we arrived in Hong Kong we were met by Joe who was our Tour guide and we were transferred to the Mandarin Oriental Hotel by coach. The hotel had an amazing bar called M bar located on the 25th floor that had stunning views over the skyline that you could enjoy over its amazing cocktails.
A few of the main highlights I got to experience included:
- Visited a coastal town to see Stanley Market were I was able to experience a traditional Chinese lunch.
- A ride on the Peak Tram which is the world's steepest funicular railway to see some of the most spectacular views on the sky terrace.
- We took a ferry from Central Pier 4 to Lamma Island for a 3 hour trek for some amazing views
- An afternoon and evening in Disneyland
On the third day we were up bright and early to check out and load our luggage onto the coach and transfer over to Sheung Wan ferry pier where we would make our journey over to Macau. The ferry was so quick it only took 1 hour to get there and we were met in Macau by a coach and straight away we were head off on a tour of Macau and then for a traditional Macanese lunch.
Main highlights from Macau:
- Visiting the Macau Giant Panda Pavilion to see the red pandas and giant pandas, was a real breathtaking moment for me and I will never forget this!
- Macau Tower allowed us to have full panoramic views across Macau and is Asia's tallest building - the option for bungy jumping was not on the cards for me.
Hong Kong International Airport was incredible! I was lucky enough to have access to the 4 Cathay Pacific lounges, our FAM trip group chose to go into The Wing Business lounge where we took a seat at its iconic long bar where we were served champagne and enjoyed freshly prepared food. The lounge was so spacious, and had plenty of food options to cater for everyone, it had a noodle bar which served freshly prepared Asian dishes and also a large selection of sandwiches and sweet treats. There were so many different areas within the lounge where you could enjoy some quiet time, recharge, take a shower and refuel before your flight.
Cathay Pacific, Mandarin Oriental and the Tourist Boards did an absolutely amazing job of hosting such a fantastic trip I enjoyed every minute of my time in Hong Kong and Macau.
Written by Jaclyn Thomas
