Stardust, I did take that route earlier this year. I have seen Cathay's service standards considerably decline in the last six years (flown with them 3 times). That said, it is still far better than the "service" you receive from US domestic carriers. The IFE system should keep you occupied for the 15+ hr long LAX-HKG flight. The food is still pretty good though not as it was in the past. The connecting flights on Thai are short and also with excellent service but without IFE. On the return journey, you may have a long overnight layover at BKK. I think you need a transit visa for layovers of more than 12 hrs (even when you are not exiting the airport) at BKK as well. You may want to confirm this. I have also taken Korean twice and the service was great. Now that they fly to KTM directly, it may be worth a shot if fares are not prohibitively expensive.