Best seats: business class, Cathay Pacific Boeing 777-300ER

Cathay Pacific's Boeing 777-300ER aircraft are increasingly becoming the mainstay of the airline's fleet as its older jumbo 747s are retired.

You'll find them on many connections from Hong Kong, especially to European destinations.

Flights between Australia and Hong Kong use the Airbus A330, for which we've previously mapped out the best seats in Cathay's new business class, the best seats in Cathay Pacific's Airbus AA30, and the top premium economy seats.

There are two 777-300ER configurations in Cathay's fleet. The first has first class ahead of business, and the second skips first entirely and puts premium economy between business and economy.

You'll be able to tell which version you're on by how far back Cathay Pacific business class goes -- if it stretches beyond row 23, that's the version with First Class. If the last row of business is row 23, that's the version with Premium Economy.

In fairness, the great thing about Cathay's new business class is that there are very few bad seats at all. But there are a few especially good seats that you might want to snag if you can, and a couple to avoid.

We'll split our recommendations out by whether your plane is the version with or without First Class

The version with First Class

Cathay Pacific Boeing 777-300ER (long-range) seatmap.

The best seats on the plane

11A 11K: these seats are at the very front of business class, for extra quietness, right behind the hushed environs of the first class cabin.

11D 11G: if you're travelling with a colleague (and you want to talk during the flight), you'll want a centre pair. These are among our favourites for being able to carry out a decent conversation in the air. You'll be among the first off the plane too, no matter whether the airbridge hooks up to the first or second doors of the plane.

Rows 19-21: these seats in the middle of the business class cabin strike the best balance if you want to get some rest: as far as you can get from the bassinet cribs for infants in row 15 and behind row 26.

The worst seats on the plane

Rows 26, 15, 16, 17: with baby bassinet cribs at 15D and 15G in business and immediately behind row 26, skip these if you can.

Row 12: right in front of all the business class lavatories, these are seats to avoid.

The version without First Class

The best seats on the plane

11A 11K: these seats are the first on the plane. You might get a bit of through traffic heading to the front lavatories, but it's unlikely to disturb you much in Cathay's great new business class seats.

11D 11G: if you're travelling with a colleague (and you want to talk during the flight), you'll want a centre pair. These are among our favourites for being able to carry out a decent conversation in the air since they're so far forward and away from the engines.

21K: This seat is tucked away all on its own, with a decent buffer from the galley kitchens ahead of it. But a baby could lurk at seats 20D or 20G, so it's not among our very first picks.

Rows 15-17: these seats in the middle of the main cabin are as far away as you can get from the potential disturbances of galley kitchens and lavatories to the front and rear.

The worst seats on the plane

20D 21A: right next to a lavatory, these are ripe for disturbance during the night.

19A 19K: while these seats will give you a fast exit if the airbridge hooks up to the second door back, they're also close to the galley kitchen, where passengers tend to congregate -- so they may well be noisy.

Also in our Best Seats series:

• Business Class on United's 747
• Business Class on Singapore Airlines' A380
• Economy Class on Cathay Pacific's A330
• Business Class on Emirates' 777-300ER
• Premium Economy on Qantas' A380

John Walton

Aviation journalist and travel columnist John took his first long-haul flight when he was eight weeks old and hasn't looked back since. Well, except when facing rearwards in business class.