- A380 Extravaganza: Introduction
- A380 Extravaganza: Singapore Airlines Silver Kris Lounge San Francisco
- A380 Extravaganza: Singapore Airlines Suites Class San Francisco to Hong Kong
- A380 Extravaganza: Singapore Airlines Silver Kris Lounge Hong Kong
- A380 Extravaganza: Singapore Airlines Suites Class Hong Kong to Singapore
- A380 Extravaganza: Conrad Singapore
- A380 Extravaganza: Shangri-La Singapore
- A380 Extravaganza: Skyview Lounge Singapore
- A380 Extravaganza: Cathay Pacific Business Class Singapore to Colombo
- A380 Extravaganza: Araliya Lounge Colombo
- A380 Extravaganza: Cathay Pacific Business Class Colombo to Singapore
- A380 Extravaganza: Emirates Lounge Singapore
- A380 Extravaganza: Emirates First Class Singapore to Dubai
- A380 Extravaganza: Park Hyatt Dubai
- A380 Extravaganza: Emirates First Class Lounge Dubai
- A380 Extravaganza: Emirates First Class Dubai to London Heathrow
- A380 Extravaganza: Coworth Park London (Ascot)
- A380 Extravaganza: British Airways Concorde Room London Heathrow
- A380 Extravaganza: British Airways First Class London Heathrow to Seattle
Singapore Airlines 1
Hong Kong (HKG) – Singapore (SIN)
Thursday, January 17
Depart: 8:00AM
Arrive: 12:00PM
Duration: 4hr
Aircraft: Airbus 380
Seat: 3A (Suites Class)
Much like on my previous flight I was welcomed aboard by name before the crew even saw my boarding pass. The leading stewardess walked me to my seat and engaged in small talk, asking me how my flight from San Francisco was and how long I was staying in Singapore for.
Suites Class cabin
Suites Class cabin
Suites Class cabin
Once settled in she offered me a pre-departure beverage. I ordered both a glass of Krug and water, both of which were promptly served. I was also offered newspapers and magazines, as well as eyeshades, socks, and the menu for the flight.
Krug, water, and The Straits
Within moments the leading stewardess returned to introduce the leading steward and in-flight service manager, and informed me of our flight time of 3hr20min.
The passengers in Suites Class on this segment were exactly the same as on the flight from San Francisco. There were four of us, and I had rows three and four all to myself.
As departure time approached the captain made his welcome aboard announcement, and shortly thereafter we began our long taxi to runway 7R, which must have taken close t0 20 minutes. Fortunately it’s Hong Kong and I love the variety of planes, so you could taxi me around for hours for all I care.
Taxiing to the runway
Taxiing to the runway
Taxiing to the runway
Taxiing to the runway
Eventually we were cleared for takeoff and had a quick takeoff roll. Our climb out was smooth, and within 10 minutes the seatbelt sign was turned off.
Views on climb out
Views on climb out
At this point the breakfast service began. The menu read as follows (the wine list was exactly the same as on the previous segment):
I ordered an apple juice and English breakfast tea to drink, and started with a fruit plate.
Fresh fruit plate
Next I ordered a bowl of granola.
Granola
And finally for the main course a Belgium waffle and scrambled eggs.
Belgium waffle with scrambled eggs
My favorite flight attendant in the world (the same one I flew with from Singapore to Tokyo and Moscow to Singapore), Janesis, was also working this flight, though unfortunately she was the leading stewardess in economy on this segment. After breakfast I had the chance to talk to her briefly, though obviously she was busy managing the economy cabin, so I didn’t want to get in the way (though we did have lunch at Changi Airport upon landing). She also made me this amazing card, which was completely handmade:
Gift from the amazing Janesis
Economy cabin
I then toured the business class cabin, which takes up two cabins on the upper deck.
Business class
It later occurred to me that a couple of FlyerTalkers I know were on the flight as well, so I spent much of the rest of the flight talking to them.
45 minutes before landing I returned to my seat and was offered some mixed nuts.
Airshow
Mixed nuts
About 30 minutes out we began our descent. It was a clear day and the views were nice on approach, so I was glued to the window for the rest of the flight.
On approach into Singapore
On approach into Singapore
Our touch down in Singapore was smooth, though we had a long taxi to our gate at terminal three.
Taxiing in
Terminal three gates
Upon deplaning I bid farewell to the crew and proceeded into the terminal. I was meeting Janesis for lunch after the flight, so hung out in the terminal for about 30 minutes, at which point we had lunch at a Thai restaurant.
A380 that took me all the way from San Francisco
Terminal three
On the whole this was another good flight on Singapore. The crew working Suites Class on this sector wasn’t quite as good as the one on the previous sector. They were good, but just didn’t have a “superstar” factor like the crew out of San Francisco or the flights I’ve had with Janesis.
Singapore Suites is a really, really impressive product, especially if you can snag the double bed. While I think the meal service on SQ1 is lackluster given that it’s a supper service and two breakfast services, I still love the flight times, given the late night departure out of San Francisco and reasonable arrival time in Singapore, allowing you to go straight to a hotel and check-in (vs. SQ11 from Los Angeles, which arrives after 3AM).
@ Lucky - perhaps your next goal would be to fly all SQ routes with Suites? :P
P.S. If I'd known in advance that my trip will be delayed, would've booked OZ's new A380 flight LAX-ICN (OZ201). Had awesome availability for December when it was initially announced by practically nothing now.
@ Lucky - have you been on the reverse flight (SIN-HGK)? Thinking of changing my UA award to be IAH-PEK-SIN instead of -HKG and then using KF to get one of these suites to HKG.
P.S. SQ site won't allow PEK-SIN(stopover)-HKG. They seriously need to allow that! ;)
@ Ivan Y -- Haven't done it in the other direction, though suspect it would be even better since you'd have access to The Private Room.
Well maybe short-to-mid haul, to be specific SIN-HKG...
@ Norman -- I suppose if you skip the meal they might. Otherwise really isn't enough time in the flight to eat and have the bed made.
@ Norman -- Midhaul as in Tokyo or Sydney? Absolutely.
I'm very interested in trying their suite product. Just want to know if they do the "full" service (the bed) on mid-haul flights like this?
@ Adriano -- Don't believe she's working that flight, sorry!
Hey there, I am flying SQ from GRU to BCN next Tuesday. Any chance that amazing Janesis serves that route? How can I find out? Will be only in C-Cl though.
thanks, Adriano
@ concorde02 -- The upper deck is a bit narrower than the lower deck, so generally I prefer when first class is on the lower deck as the cabin is much more spacious.
@ Lawrence -- The one on the left.
@ Lantean -- In terms of the suite itself definitely Singapore. I just like the other features of Emirates (bar and shower).
@ Paul -- ~$2,200
@ John -- On the A380 there are...
@ concorde02 -- The upper deck is a bit narrower than the lower deck, so generally I prefer when first class is on the lower deck as the cabin is much more spacious.
@ Lawrence -- The one on the left.
@ Lantean -- In terms of the suite itself definitely Singapore. I just like the other features of Emirates (bar and shower).
@ Paul -- ~$2,200
@ John -- On the A380 there are three leading stewardesses, one responsible for each cabin. So on a roundtrip between Singapore and San Francisco via Hong Kong, a leading stewardess would typically work at least one sector in each cabin. While she worked Suites for one of the longhaul flights, she was in coach on this flight.
@Brian - Is your name Frank?
Ben- How does Janesis go all the way from first class to economy? Is that normal?
@Paul ~$2500
out of curiosity, can you ballpark the ex-cmb fare range (assuming you did a one way?)
Post some photos of the meetup with janesis when she was in the US
so which suite is better, Emirates or Singapore?
@concorde The lower deck feels much more spacious than the upper deck on the A380.
which one is Janesis in the picture?
One might assume that the name of the Singapore newspaper would make it of less interest to you.
Who cares about the trip....we all want to hear about Janesis....Big Ben
Ben,
I would like to know your impression toward the F cabin that is located on the main deck (SQ,QF,KE,AF,MH) vs upper deck (LH,EK,TG) on A380. Because being under the staircase could give not as grand-feel as the upper deck?
@Jerry, he did last time.. https://cdn.onemileatatime.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/IMG_5524.jpg
@lucky
now you gotta post picture of Janesis :)
what gift did you end up getting her?
@ Mark -- Absolutely, and the buddy seat even has a seatbelt.
Is it possible to dine and face a traveling companion? Is the table large enough to accommodate two people?
@ jay -- Updated, thanks.
you may want to black out her full name on that card... just a thought