For the second year in a row, I splurged on long haul First Class for a solo trip. This trip had me back on Cathay Pacific First Class from Chicago to Hong Kong. Here is a review of the Cathay Pacific First Class Travel Kit I received on this flight in July 2019.
Cathay provides gendered travel kits to first class passengers. Both are Aesop branded. Aesop is an Australian skin, hair and body care brand based in Melbourne. I received the male kit, and that is what I will review below.
Welcome to another installment of our amenity kit review series. As in past reviews, I will be reviewing this amenity kit on a scale from 1 to 5 (being the best) and will rate it based on five categories:
- Bag/container: design, quality and reusability/collectibility of the bag.
- Product: quality, size and variety of the facial and body products.
- Comfort items: eye masks, ear plugs, etc.
- Miscellaneous: pens, tissues and everything else.
- Extras: additional items that make your flight just a tad more comfortable including pajamas, slippers, etc.
Cathay Pacific First Class Travel Kit
Here is a summary of what is provided:
First Class Male Amenity Kit
- Aesop Grey top zip case
- Aesop Camellia Nut Facial Hydrating Cream
- Aesop Rosehip Seed Lip Cream
- Toothbrush, toothpaste, mouthwash
- Earplugs, hairbrush, sleeve and monitor-cleaning cloth
First Class Female Amenity Kit
- Aesop Camel top zip case with button (from Hong Kong)
- Aesop Camel top zip case with flap (to Hong Kong)
- Aesop Camellia Nut Facial Hydrating Cream
- Aesop Rind Concentrate Hand & Body Balm
- Aesop Rosehip Seed Lip Cream
- Toothbrush, toothpaste, mouthwash
- Earplugs, cotton pad, hairbrush, sleeve and monitor-cleaning cloth
There is a card inside describing the contents and some information about Aesop. The contents I received are slightly different than pictured above, but the promotional studio photos are prettier than what I took so I just use that. I’ll describe differences below.
Bag/Container
The gray/green container closes with a zipper, and has hard plastic on the sides to it will maintain its shape. Only a small pocket in the lid to hold the information card, otherwise items can just bounce around. This is a nice enough container, but not likely something I’d reuse. Score: 3.
Product
While the products are high quality, the contents are pretty minimal for a first class kit. These are excellent quality Aesop products, although there are only 2 of them. Inside is a tube of Rosehip Seed Lip Creme. There is also a 0.5oz bottle of Parsley Seed Anti-Oxidant Serum. I had to read the fine print to know this is a facial moisturizer. There is also mouthwash, but it comes in a disposable plastic ‘shot glass’, which is a pet peeve of mine. Score 3.5
Comfort Items
My default eye mask is one from a Cathay Pacific Business kit. Very comfortable, and I just keep it in my backpack. After this trip, I have upgraded to the even nicer mask from this kit. It is larger, and softer cotton jersey. This is the best eyemask I’ve received in an airline amenity kit. Pajamas are provided to first class passengers, and these are made by Hong Kong shirt maker, Pye. These are very soft pima cotton. Excellent. Score: 5
Miscellaneous Items
A toothbrush is a staple of amenity kits, and there is also a 25g tube of Colgate toothpaste. This toothbrush is biodegradable, made from corn starch. The same 3M 1100 earplugs that AA uses are included as well. Finally, a small microfiber cloth for cleaning monitors/glasses, etc is part of the kit. A nice feature. than the microfiber cloth, this is pretty basic Score: 3.5
Extras
First Class passengers receive a pillow and day blanket, and then when ready to sleep, the flight attendants make the bed with mattress pad, another pillow and a duvet. A minor complaint is a rather warm duvet and no air vents. On my flight, the cabin was cool. Score: 4.5
Final thoughts on the Cathay Pacific First Class Travel kit
The products are very high quality, but there just aren’t that many items offered. I’d have appreciated some other items. Although I suppose the hand lotion usually in these kits is available in lavatories on board. In any case, this is a nice product, and the pajamas in particular are excellent. By averaging the scores, I rate this kit 3.9
Have you tried out one of Cathay’s Travel kits? Please let us know what you think.
Other Amenity Kit Reviews
- Japan Airlines First Class
- ANA First Class
- British Airways First Class
- Virgin Atlantic Upper Class
- Qantas First Class
- Thai Airways First Class (Rimowa 2014)
- Japan Airlines Business Class
- Lufthansa First Class (Escada)
- Cathay Pacific Business Class (new Seventy-Eight Percent)
- United Airlines BusinessFirst (Cowshed Kit)
- United Airlines BusinessFirst
- American Airlines Transcon First Class (Reno Air Heritage Series)
- United Airlines BusinessFirst (new TEAM USA kit)
- Lufthansa Business Class (Bree)
- Etihad Business Class (LUXE)
- Qatar Airways Economy Class
- American Airlines Business Class (Cole Haan 2016)
- American Airlines Business Class (Cole Haan 2017)
- Austrian Airlines Business Class
- Delta One Domestic Tumi
- Air France La Premiére
- Qantas First Class Martin Grant
- American Airlines Business Class (Cole Haan 2018)
- Lufthansa Business Class (Reisenthel 2018)
- Swiss Business Class (Victorinox 2018)
- American Airlines Business Class (This is Ground 2019)
- American Airlines Premium Economy (STATE 2019)
- American Airlines First Class (2019)
