Hotel quality in Cathay

[Sam Ting Wong]

To anyone interested in a " career" in Cathay:

you will spend a considerable part of your life in absolute dumps. Cathay' s management has decided to save the last possible Yen/ Baht/ Renminbi on hotel cost - at the crew member's cost.

Unless you are an ex-military man used to live in tents for a few years you will find this extremely irritating to say the least. While at EK or BA you would stay in a decent place somewhere actually in the city you are just visiting, at CX your choice of accomodation will be the cheapest available option,non-descriptive location somewhere in the middle of nowhere or , if you are lucky, next to a third tier mall (hooray..). Room quality, food and beverages at rock bottom standard ( granted, a few exceptions, but they are just that: exceptions).

I just googled tripadvisor about the hotels I stayed recently, to give you an idea:

" ... appaling diner buffet frequented by stranded budget groups..."
" ... the hotel is a 1,5 Star at best, dirty and old, beware at all cost.."
" ... a run-down budget chain hotel in a very unconvenient location... no public transport within walking distance.."

[nitpicker330]

So what's new?

[Shep69]

I disagree.

To be honest I think Cathay takes pretty good care when I've been on the road. While we might whine about other stuff the hotels I'm billeted at are a lot better than those I stay at when I commute. There are certainly issues but for me this isn't one of them.

I guess it's a high-class problem when we can bee hatch about places with heat, air conditioning, food services and buffets, and running water.

[flyhardmo]

To be honest I think Cathay takes pretty good care when I've been on the road. While we might whine about other stuff the hotels I'm billeted at are a lot better than those I stay at when I commute

Your choice to stay in accomodation worse than cx provides. You have the opportunity to correct that.

What is not your choice is where cx puts us up on layovers. Sam is right. Hotels have mostly gotten worse over the last few yrs.

[greybeard]

"you aren't guests, you are MMA"

Port Hedland 0330, late 70's, when expected to make up the departing crew's rooms for ourselves.

Tuff love indeed.

[Old Fella]

Poor accomodation

Vote with your feet folks if you are not satisfied. You may find the grass is no greener elsewhere.

[Fl00]

I agree with Sam Ting Wong
Although I dont have many outport layovers I believe at least the LAX and ORD are not up snuff. These are thing's that are small dollar quality of life issues that truly world class airlines don't have a problem with. I am aware of big picture issues, but I hope some in the AOA take notice of the smaller issues and try to fix them.

Grey beard: Sorry, But I don't know what MMA means. Can you educate me?

Old fella: if you are in fact an old fella,I am sure you know that every employer needs some motivation to improve conditions, they will not do it on their (managements) own unless some pressure is exerted. To vote with your feet on a hotel issue may not be the greatest career choice, but I hope we can agree we should be striving for better.
Regards

[CXChildLabour]

One port we stay at the same hotel as Azerbaijan Airlines, nuff said..........

[ex-cx]

"Luxury.....Ah used to dream of living in't corridor ;-) "

I'm so sorry for you guys still there at CX with your declining conditions. It's a shame to see these comments from the old guard telling you to vote with your feet...it's not that easy once you are "addicted" to the seniority list.

Anybody remember the night stops in FUK back in the 80's/90's when you would get literally one side of a hotel corridor. You'd open the door and have 2 kitchens/monster sized jacuzzis/a couple of lounges/bedrooms etc?

Or the original Bali stops with a room that opened onto the beach?

.....and all for 10hrs :-(

[gofor]

So you all joined Cathay to live the dream and have great 24hr layovers in fancy hotels? You forget that you came to them for the job to do a job - the hotel is purely a place of rest and not a vacation. Most of the middle class I fly with forget where they come from.

[Synchronize]

Whilst I agree the hotels are generally of a sub standard quality these days there are a few noteable exceptions to the rule . Anyone who has had the misfortune of staying in the new San Fran hotel will understand how much we have dropped in standards over the years
It's a double win for the company, Cheaper hotel = lower allowances , win win for them loose loose for us .
If you don't like the hotel complain, write CARs if you can't sleep go sick , if they screw up take details and report it

[Bob Hawke]

My wife thinks I'm on holidays when I fly.

[Koan]

Rama Gardens is a paradise compared to Nagoya.

[ranmar850]

MMA--MacRobertson Milller Airlines. Pioneers in West Australian RPT, flying to all the really remote places, which are nowadays busy mining/tourist destinations.

[broadband circuit]

the hotel is purely a place of rest

You've hit it in a nutshell. Many of the hotels we now frequent struggle to meet that basic requirement. Whether it's a regional flight where you get the bare legal minimum 10 hrs rest, or a long haul to the other side of the world where your body is totally out of phase with the local time, sleep is a premium!

Here's a few counter-questions:

1. How can I get a decent rest when the curtains are so rubbish that I can't darken the room?
2. How can I get a decent rest when the temperature control is non-existent?
3. How can I get a decent rest when said temperature control unit is rattling all day & night?
4. How can I get a decent rest when the noise from the surrounding neighbourhood can't be filtered from my room?
5. How can I feel safe going out for food at some weird hour (jet-lag) because if I turn right instead of left out the front door I'm in gang territory?

I suggest you lookup "Motel 6" in wikipedia. Then you'll have an idea of some of the places we stay.

[Brown Nose]

To answer all you questions with one answer braordband;

Call crew control, say the room doesn't meet the contractual requirements and until they find you a hotel that meets those requirements and get the required rest, you are unfit for duty.

If all crew members did this on the first couple of nights in SFO, we would no longer be staying in that hotel

[Sqwak7700]

If all crew members did this on the first couple of nights in SFO, we would no longer be staying in that hotel

Well said Brown. It is fully our fault that any crew hotel has gotten as bad as they have. If we were maintaining our end of the bargain then the company would have no choice.

[White None]

Hilarious B.N. I bet you personally take that sort of stand ALL the time and constantly meet with success?

[White None]

Hilarious C.R. Have you done it? What co-ordinated action do you propose exactly? And when was it that the girls went sick En Masse and left the Jet in SFO, they can't do that either. Don't get me wrong, I don't like the place either but let's be realistic about action, or are we trying to get some inexperienced newbies to put themselves on the line for our gain?

More worrying in the SFO case is the probability that if we keep bleating we'll end up at the Airport. Personally, I'll stick to Earplugs, Eyeblinds and using a bit of common sense on the streets, I haven't been mugged yet and walk around half the night on HKG time.

[Synchronize]

White none

Yes BN suggestion would be difficult to pull off , but one or 2 crew going out for lack of sleep on a regular basis would very quickly see a change .
I for one will no longer bother with crew control , phone the duty ops manager instead (best done at 3am HK time ) explain that you are unable to sleep due to substandard hotel accommodations and therefore won't be available to take the flight