Cathay Pacific’s The Pier Business Class Lounge
Studioilse

Juror Roopal Patel sums up why this Hong Kong International Airport business class lounge won the aviation award in one simple sentence: “It doesn’t look like it belongs in an airport.” In other words: LaGuardia this is not. Designed by Ilse Crawford’s London-based Studioilse, it’s more evocative of a Japanese onsen—all natural light and clean lines, with an emphasis on earthy finishes (limestone, cherrywood). At more than 35,000 square feet, it’s the largest of Cathay Pacific’s lounges, but with warrens of distinctly separate areas, it doesn’t feel like it. Passengers can choose whether to unwind in a custom Solo chair (a Zen-ed-out, private hideaway with a reading lamp that casts a warm glow); hit the noodle bar for dim sum; or tiptoe into the hushed Tea House, where a tea sommelier of sorts awaits to help you select your drink—chamomile not necessary. cathaypacific.com

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