HX 706 Hong Kong Airlines on their A330-300 Business Class from Bali (DPS) to Hong Kong (HKG), Hong Kong SAR 🇭🇰 – no breakfast for us on this flight

A Hong Kong Airlines Business Class flight with large seats, but few highlights — from the slow check-in to the not working in-flight entertainment. Instead of luxury, there was a lot of room for improvement and a crew hiding behind the curtains. Does that sound weird? It was. But it’s best to read for yourself!

Review #66

Departure – planed (actual)	04.01.2025 – 8:15 (8:27)
Arrival – planed (actual)	04.01.2025 – 13:20 (12:58)
Flighttime – planed (actual)	4:55 (4:30)
Delay	12 minutes late at departure 22 minutes early at arrival
Aircraft type (call sign)	A 330 – 300 (B-LHI)
Class	Business
Seats	16 A & 17 C

Getting there

In most cases, you can get to Denpasar Airport (DPS) by Grab/taxi or via a privately organised airport transfer from the place you stay at. As always, we ordered a Grab via the app, but despite the early hour, the proximity of our hotel to the airport, and the shortcut via the toll road, it still took us 25 minutes to get from the Hyatt Regency Bali to the airport. Always bear in mind that often there is a lot of traffic in Bali, so set off for the airport with enough time!

Departure airport

Ngurah Rai Airport, located in the Balinese capital of Denpasar, is one of the largest airports in Indonesia. Although it is constantly being expanded, it has been operating at maximum capacity for some time. The vast majority of incoming flights must fly one or even several waiting loops before landing. The airport’s expansion seems endless, and each time you return after a few months, you will notice something new. The combination of 1990s charm, renovated and brand new features is interesting, but sometimes strange.

Source: Bali-airport.com

Check-in

As you arrive at Ngurah Rai Airport, you will be dropped off at the designated area before entering the airport terminal with its shops and cafés. At the end of this hall, you will need to pass through a security checkpoint, your boarding pass will be checked here, and your luggage will be scanned for the first time. Pro tip: there are two passageways here. Most passengers use the one on the left, which results in an unnecessarily long queue. However, you can also use the one on the right, which leads to the exact same counter hall. For Hong Kong Airlines flights in particular, the right-hand passageway will take you directly to the right row of check-in counters.

However, it’s best not to enter the counter hall too early as it usually is quite packed and there are only a few benches to sit down. Catering is also no longer available here.

Hong Kong Airlines has six check-in counters at Bali airport. Four of these are for Economy Class passengers. One is for guests with status or who have checked in online, and the last one is for all Business Class guests.

Although the queue at the Business Class counter was not particularly long, the check-in process for the two parties in front of us took quite a long time, so we had to wait fifteen minutes for our turn. The process was obviously quite extensive for the check-in agent and so it took us also quite a while.

However, in the end, we had our boarding passes, our suitcases had priority tags attached and were on their way to the aircraft.

Security check

The central security checkpoint is located at the back of the room, behind a partition wall. First, scan your boarding pass, then remove any liquids and electronic devices from your hand luggage before putting it through the scanner. After that, you simply go through a metal detector – there are no other scanners at this airport.

After the security check, you will get to passport control, which is now also equipped with automatic immigration gates. These can also be used with new digital German passports. If you have an older passport, you can of course go through the traditional checkpoint with an immigration officer, but this will of course take longer.

When we went through security, there were only two other passengers in front of us and nobody at all when we left the airport. We were therefore able to walk through the endless queue of duty-free shops very quickly.

Waiting area / Lounge

Unfortunately, we were a little late at check-in and couldn’t try out any lounge for you this time. However, as a Business Class passenger, you can of course use the Premier Lounge. However, as a Priority Pass holder, you can also visit the Concordia Lounge free of charge. We got the Priority Passes as an additional benefit for haveing the Amex Platinum Card, which comes with Priority Pass and a few other benefits. If you would like to find out more about the Amex Platinum Card and its benefits, please leave a comment or send us an email. We will be happy to help and can also advise you on whether it would be worthwhile for you or not.

Boarding

Our Hong Kong Airlines flight boarded via Gate 2, which was particularly conveniently located directly opposite the exit to the shopping area. The airline began the boarding process promptly, calling out groups one by one. First, Business Class and Status guests were asked to board, followed by the other Economy Class groups. However, as we arrived, boarding was already in full swing, leaving us slightly confused. As business class guests, we were, of course, allowed to board at any time, so we headed straight through the gate towards the aircraft.

After scanning our boarding passes, we took the escalator down to the boarding bridge. This is divided into two ‘fingers’, the first of which is reserved for business class passengers and leads to the front entrance of the aircraft.

Welcome

We were greeted very warmly by a flight attendant on board, who quickly checked our boarding passes and showed us to our seats. A few minutes later, we were offered a choice of welcome drinks: still water or orange juice of which we chose the latter.

Even before take-off, we received information from the cockpit about the current situation: the flight was running on time, but it would probably be a little bumpy after take-off due to the weather conditions not being ideal.

Start & Routing

Source: Flightradar24

Cabin & Seat

Hong Kong Airlines offers a 1 – 2 – 1 seating configuration across eight rows in one Business Class cabin at the very front of its A330-300 aircraft. The seats are staggered, meaning individual seats in the window rows are alternately positioned by the window or the aisle. In the straight rows, you sit directly by the window and have more privacy and a better view. Aisle seats are easier to access on the other hand.

The centre seats also alternate. They are installed either next to each other or slightly apart parted by both armrests placed next to each other in the middle of the cabin. The former are ideal for couples or two people travelling together, while the latter are right next to the aisle and work better for guests travelling alone.

Source: aeroLOPA

Unfortunately, this Hong Kong Airlines aircraft does not have individual air outlets at each seat.

Usually, the front cabin (i.e. Business Class) is separated from the Economy Class cabin further back by a curtain. Although this curtain was present, it was unfortunately never closed. However, the curtain to the front galley was closed for the entire flight. Which left us with the impression that the crew wanted to be on their own. Unfortunately, every trip to the lavatory was met with a rather disapproving look and made you feel like an intruder.

Seat

I was sitting in seat 16A by the window, with Fabi sitting behind me in seat 17C by the aisle. As there are no pictures, this review will cover both seats. Be sure to check out our YouTube post for more information!

It was indeed possible to access my seat directly from the aisle, but the entrance was rather narrow – I would estimate it to be around 30 centimetres wide. This wasn’t a problem for me, but could be challenging for larger people.

Once you’re seated, however, there’s plenty of space and the footrest is a long way from the seat itself leaving plenty of legroom. There is storage space for shoes or similar items underneath the footrest. However, this becomes inaccessible when the seat is moved forwards into the lie flat position.

In addition to the two seat pockets for magazines, there is only a small storage compartment located under the fixed armrest. Unfortunately, there is no space for laptops or other large items by the seat itself. The seat adjustment controls are located in the side console. As with most airlines, you can select one of three preset positions or adjust the seat sections individually.

The wired remote control for the in-flight entertainment (IFE) system is located directly underneath. You can also use this to call the flight attendants and operate the cabin ceiling lamp.

There is a power socket at the bottom front of the seat console and a reading lamp right next to your shoulder. You can also hang your jacket on the integrated hook next to the folded-up table.

The table is built into the front seat and is easy to operate by simply flipping it open and folding it down. You can also turn it towards the monitor, allowing you to stand up even when the table is set – which is very practical!

Middleseat

As previously mentioned, the centre seats are installed either directly next to each other or separated by the two centre consoles. Seats that are next to each other are separated by a low partition wall, can move this wall upwards for a little more privacy if someone you don’t know is sitting next to you.

Bed

The seat can also be transformed into a completely flat bed at the touch of a button, of course. The seat surface moves forwards and the backrest moves into a horizontal position. The armrest by the cabin wall moves downwards too, providing extra space for your upper body. The reclining surface measures around 1.9 metres in length.

The pillow was quite plump, but the blanket was very thin and only around 1.5 metres long. Accordingly, it is rather difficult for tall people to cover themselves completely.

In the aisle seats, you should bear in mind that there is absolutely no privacy. There is no shielding towards the aisle whatsoever, and when you recline, you are lying with your head next to the feet of the person opposite your seat. This is something to bear in mind, especially on long flights!

Entertainment

Unfortunately, the in-flight entertainment system was completely out of order on our flight – fortunately I had some reading material with me and some work to do. But joking aside, there was no mention of this at all, nor was there an apology from no-one of the crew whatsoever. The flight wasn’t particularly long, but on a long-haul flight, I would have been very annoyed.

Unfortunately, there was no WiFi on board this Hong Kong Airlines A330-300. Not at all — not even for a fee! This is quite astonishing for an airline originating from such a technologically advanced country as Hong Kong.

Amenities

There was a pillow and a blanket waiting for us at the seat, as well as a small bottle of still water. Unfortunately, that was it. There were no slippers or amenity kits. This is not too unusual on shorter flights, but it still always feels disappointing.

Food, Drinks & Snacks

Before the start, we were asked about our food preferences. There were three main courses: omelette; Asian noodles; and muesli, with the latter being the quick and easy option. Unfortunately, there was not enough food loaded for all the guests, so we were told that none of us would get any of the dishes on this flight, but they would see what they could arrange for us instead.

About 45 minutes after take-off, the first drinks arrived individually from the galley. On this Hong Kong Airlines flight, the service works in such a way that the flight attendant walks through the cabin with the cold drinks on a trolley, takes orders for hot drinks, and serves them directly from the galley later. We were then given a pastry to accompany our drinks, and Fabi was also given a dish from Economy Class which unfortunately wasn’t very tasty.

There was no further trolley service through the cabin. You could order more drinks as the crew passed by, but nothing was offered proactively. Unfortunately, the flight attendants were virtually nowhere to be seen in the Business Class cabin after the halfway point of the flight. The call button on my controller didn’t work, so I had to get up to order or wait until one of the crew came by.

Snacks

Snacks are not available on this relatively short 4.5-hour flight, which includes a full meal service.

Lavatories

The three lavatories in Business Class on Hong Kong Airlines are no different to those in Economy Class. There are no special amenities or anything similar. The toilets were clean, but nothing special.

The toilets at the back of the cabin are also used by Economy Class passengers. I don’t think this was intended, but simply nobody checked. The toilet at the front of the cabin was certainly cleaner, newer and better maintained.

Service on Hong Kong Airlines

The service on Hong Kong Airlines was friendly, but unfortunately rather reserved. All of the flight attendants consistently wore FFP2 masks with the entire cabin sniffling and coughing.

The purser was very nice, but the others were all very reserved and rather sparse with emotions – above all friendliness. I have experienced this very much differently on most flights and really expected something nice from this Chinese Hong Kong airline. Unfortunately, our expectations were bitterly disappointed.

We generally felt that the passengers were somehow annoying the crew. In fact, the flight attendants obviously wanted to be among themselves, literally behind closed curtains.

Arrival

Half an hour before landing, the captain made an announcement confirming that there were 30 minutes remaining on the flight and that the landing time was scheduled for 12:55 p.m. He also provided an update on the weather forecast and the current temperature in Hong Kong.

We arrived at gate D212 relatively quickly, as did the passenger boarding bridge. Guests were able to disembark via two doors here so the process was quick. Business Class passengers were the first to disembark.

Destination airport

Hong Kong Airport is dramatically built into the bay in front of the city, with a second huge satellite terminal currently under construction. The current capacity here is also no longer sufficient, so the airport needs to be expanded. I really like the airport – it is clean, clearly laid out, and it still looks as if it has only just been built. Of course, it is equipped with state-of-the-art facilities.

Source: Airportmaps.com

We took the Airport Express train directly from the airport to the city centre. The train departs from right outside the terminal and stops in Kowloon and Hong Kong. Trains depart approximately every 10 minutes, taking around 20 minutes to reach Central, during which time you can enjoy your first fantastic views of this great city. Tickets can be purchased directly at the station entrance in the terminal building. At the time of our visit, the fare was around 25 euros for a oneway journey.

Of course, you can also take a taxi or travel by bus. However, the former is quite expensive, while the latter is cheap but takes the longest. We’re staying at both the JW Marriott and the W Hotel, so stay tuned to find out what we think of them!

Conclusion

Fligh HX 706 with Hong Kong Airlines was rather basic today. Admittedly, there was a fully lie-flat business class seat, which was a nice touch for such a relatively short flight, but the rest was rather disappointing.

The aircraft and seats were outdated, the service was basic, and there was no sense of hospitality or welcome on board. The breakfast selection was limited, and the lack of functioning IFE was disappointing.

All in all, it was a very mediocre flight. It delivered what was needed — a safe premium cabin flight from A to B — but nothing more.

Points

Unfortunately, we can only award Hong Kong Airlines’ flight HX 706 from Denpasar to Hong Kong 5 out of 10 possible points.

Far too much went wrong on this flight, so today, I’m going to list the individual issues that led to a point deduction:

• The IFE was not functional.
• The service was not at all friendly.
• The check-in process took a long time.
• The breakfast situation was difficult.
• The cabin and washrooms were old and not particularly clean.

Recommendation

So, what can I state here? As mentioned, we arrived at our destination safely and on time. However, the fact that I felt like a disruptive factor for virtually the entire flight speaks volumes. Accordingly, I would be rather cautious with a recommendation here. Of course, sitting in a wide-body Business Blass cabin for a short flight is great. But otherwise, it just wasn’t right.

Just because we were disappointed with our flight with Hong Kong Airlines doesn’t mean that it has to be the same for you, though. Maybe you’ll have a newer aircraft and a fantastic crew on your flight. At least we hope so for you!

Let us know in the comments below about your experiences with Hong Kong Airlines — perhaps even on this route!

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YouTube Review

Would you like to find out more about this flight? Why not take a look at our YouTube review? Have fun!