Review: Singapore Airlines First Class 777-300ER Singapore To Melbourne

Ben, how do you have a soothing, crisp Singapore accent? I find that the Singaporean accent is not my first choice (or even my second... 😉 ) when it comes to spoken English pronunciations.

Also... was your dad wearing EMIRATES pajamas in that birthday cake picture?! :O

And this makes me want to fly SQ even more!

Hi Ben!

How exactly did you make arrangements for the cake? I'm flying DME-IAH on first class in a few weeks right during my wife's birthday and I would love to arrange a surprise like this too... but I have no idea where to start. How far in advance and where did you make the request?

so your dad pre-ordered lobster too?

Great report. I'm oozing with envy!! The meals look fantastic too. and always great to see your dad having fun too. One thing that I always find surprising is that on SQ the F and J products are so similar (especially on the non-suite 777s) doesn't J canabalize F? And with the 'refresh' that the 777s are getting, J is inching even closer.

You were using miles but I can't really imagine why someone would pay the premium to sit in F when there is such a stellar, phenomenal business class available.

Look forward to your report on the A350 inaugural flight. When will you be posting?

Ben, Great report.
Slighty off topic, but do you know if BA offers birthday cakes as well and how could I preorder it?
Thanks
Julia

Ben, your father looks 100% Turkish. I swear you have some Turkish in you. Do you by any chance speak Turkish by chance?

What a phantasmagorical review Ben. SQ have such a capital product. The crew really made a personal touch with the signed card 😉

@Bill: You call their customer service @ 1-800-742-3333 and request. I did not find anything online.

My best flight ever was on this route when SQ still had the A380. I was the only one in Suites.

aaaaand I had Michelle - funny that I remember the name, but agree with all the above, she was incredible, great sense of humor. your review isn't surprising! 🙂

@Lucky. I may be wrong, but the dessert wine in your picture looks more like a Sauternes than a port.

You've convinced me (many times) which airlines I need to try for aspirational travel. Great product and service by SQ and comprehensive review by you!

"Apparently my appreciation of British things is limited to One Direction and afternoon tea…" Sigh... don't forget Tom Daley 😉

Great trip report, Lucky. If you're "downgraded" from suites to first due to an equipment change, etc. on an award flight, do you think you might be able to get some form of compensation?

well hello there flight attendants!

@mas - I scrutinized too. Decided maybe it was a tawny, as opposed to ruby, port.

@colleen,@lucky They were serving a 20year old Taylor tawny port on this flight as per the wine list. So it was probably that. Although , hard to distinguish color of a 20 year old tawny from a sauternes. Although, the sauternes probably has more yellow hues than a tawny which is more amber in color.

I didn't know you could pre-order birthday cakes in any cabin either. Are they free?

Those F seats are certainly looking a little worse for wear.

Dear Lucky,

Been enjoying your blog for quite some time.

Will you be able to advise me on ordering a birthday onboard a SQ Flight? Does the actual day of the birthday have to fall on the day on the flight, or just within the month? Will this be available on Business Class?

You're exactly right about Singapore's hospitality that goes above and beyond good service. I've only flown with them a few times - the last time was seven years ago (TPE-LAX-TPE in the then very new business class), yet I still remember them even after hundreds of other (entirely forgettable) flights. Singapore's ad campaign (with their flight attendants going to get that perfect tea, movie, etc. just for you) is brilliant, precisely because Singapore is one of the very few airlines (if not the only one) where this rings true.

I flew economy on SQ last year and they are simply amazing, I refuse to fly on any airline that tries to squeeze 10 abreast in economy.

@Adi-T - IIRC, the mileage difference is very small. It does however make a difference for the whole experience of having flown First around the world.

It is endearing to read the crew added to make the trip memorable. Korean Air and Singapore have a thoughtful touch in offering birthday cakes gratis in any cabin.

Several clients have mentioned Krug is served in premium routes only. The menu reflects careful attention to details. The tough lobster out of JFK is due to the late departure time. Catering cooks meals until late afternoon. Red-eye flights receive food that has been in freezer hold for hours.

Finally, any award winning restaurant will explain to its patrons sturgeon caviar has such a delicate texture and flavor that to properly enjoy it, nothing but blinis or lightly toasted fresh bread should accompany it. Malossol is a salting method, does not indicate quality. Iranian caviar and American Osetra are considered the best. Only cheap caviar that has not been kept at the proper 25 F temperature needs garnishes.

Maybe it's a testament to SQ's quality but the picture of the lobster thermidor here and the one in the past you used for comparision to that horrible one out of JFK are almost identical. Down to the plating, table setting and lighting. Only the perspective is slightly different.

@ Jon -- While the other one may have looked nice, it tasted much worse. 🙂

@ Dennison Wee -- Absolutely available for business class, and I think it's fine as long as it's within a couple of weeks of the birthday.

@ Trevor -- Price is the same for both, so I don't think so.

@ Abdul -- Hah, nothing Turkish about him as far as I know.

@ Julia -- I don't believe they do.

@ Adi-T -- Will share my initial thoughts on the A350 by tomorrow. Yes, agree there's not much difference between business and first on the 777. It's all about the food and service, I guess.

@ Lantean -- I pre-ordered it for him, yes.

@ Bill -- Just ring their call center anytime after you book (and at least a couple of days before departure) and they can do it. Super-easy process.

@ Diondi -- Yep, he was indeed wearing the Emirates pajamas, hah.

Awesome trip Ben!!! So glad you could do that with your dad!!
FWIW, Cathay Pacific would get a cake if you request it as well. They did it for my wife in a whim since I forgot to request it in advance. I just politely asked at check in and the agent was more than happy to assist. She grabbed the phone, called catering and they loaded a cake on the spot. During the flight (JFK-HKG) all the FA's and purser came over and sang happy birthday to my wife. It was really cool.

"We weren’t really hungry, so it’s a good thing it was just a small snack."

Be that as it may, it does seem like SQ is cutting back on it's second meal service in first class. There are business classes that offer more plates for flights of similar length. The "finale" is tea and coffee? They can't offer at least a plate of fruit?

Awww. I love the b-day cake and the card!

What a lovely post! I just love the reports from your trip with your Dad! It must have been such a great feeling to have been able to make this trip happen and to have had this time - just the two of you! You are a wonderful son! Thanks for sharing this trip with us.

Awesome review Ben! Truly appreciate getting a glimpse into this special trip you got to share with your dad 😀

Loved the report. I can testify to that as I've just had the ZRH-SIN-CGK flight on suites/first.

For those who are asking about the celebratory cakes, they don't mind if it's not on the day itself. My wedding anniversary was in June but I wasn't able to take the trip until December (to catch the aurora) but they gave my wife and I a cake regardless. No questions asked. I only wished we followed your example to share it with the cabin as it, too, was too much for us.

My husband and I always fly Singapore Airlines whIch we love. We have only had one flight that was not up to their usual standard. Unfortunately our experience is only economy and business class let alone first class is out of our reach, we can always dream. We however recommend Singapore Airlines to all our family and friends and will be flying with them again this year. Can't wait.

Lucky- any recent experiences transferring points from UR to Singapore? Any idea how long it takes?

@ Pat -- It happens within a day.

Dear Lucky;

In redeeming miles for singapore airlines first class seat on boeing 777-300ER, do you prefer to be seated on Row or row 2? I am travelling alone..my options are 1A, 1F and 2A , 2F; all are still available...i remember you had a post on seat selections, but i cant seem to find it.

Many Thanks
Jacky

@ Jacky Widjaya -- Personally I prefer row two since I like to be able to have an "overview" of the cabin and be further from the galley, but can't go wrong with any window seat.

Hi lucky,

Saw you had the Lobster Thermidor on your flight out of singapore. Was looking at the book a chef menu for flight out of singapore and there was two choices for Lobster Thermidor (Boston lobster Thermidor or classic lobster Thermidor). May I ask which one did u choose and also recommend. Thank u.

@ Kim -- I had booked the Boston Lobstern Thermidor. Can't say I've tried the other, so not sure how it compares.

Lucky -
Looking forward to fly the new SQ 777-300ER First Class. On which routes do I have the best chances?

On a partially related note; what seat do you recommend on Singapore's A380 in R? I would be flying their A380 on the 28 between Shanghai and Zurich via SIN.

Hi Zach,

Which seats are better depends on you.

There are only 10 seats in R and if you are travelling as a couple, 2CD and 3CD would be good as they open up into a double bed.

If travelling singly, I personally would prefer 1A or 1F as I would have the window on one side and the stairway on the other and not have another passenger there. However, the privacy afforded by the suites really doesn't make it a major issue to have someone else to one's right or left.

Hello Lucky,
Planning a trip around the world, but given surcharges, rather than doing the United RTW option, doing point to point. This site and all your insights are a godsend, thank you!
One step, and best chance to use Singapore Airlines, is from Paris (or Barcelona or Amsterdam or...) to Singapore in November. Of course A380 suites at the saver level are not available/waitlist (booking for 2). My question is - what would you think is better, first class on a 777-ER (and anyway to tell if it's a new one or old??) or business on A380? We both travel a lot, though usually in Economy (working with non-profits mostly), so this voyage is a splurge with United and Sapphire points we've acquired over the years. Want to make the most of them.
Also (apologies for the long post), any tips on transferring miles from Sapphire? I'm afraid if I transfer enough for a first class ticket, then can only book business by the time they transfer, that I'll have miles sitting more or less useless in KrisFlyer.
Thanks in advance for any and all suggestions! And again, thanks for this site and all the work you and your team put into it.

Give SQ Krisflyer a call and ask about the availability of seats before you transfer the miles. Explain your situation to them so they do not do the booking for you. If the seats are available, then transfer the miles and do the booking yourself on the SQ website so you can benefit from the 15% online discount.

Of course if the seat is unavailable, you can waitlist for it but that will be a bit of a gamble since you'll have to transfer the miles to do so without a firm guarantee of getting the seats eventually. Given that the A380 only has 12 suites in total, normally only 2 are available for redemption. Book early. Good luck.

Hi Melvin,
Thanks for these tips! Funny, I actually did call them the other day, 2 different times. Honestly I was a bit surprised that the agents were not more knowledgeable/helpful (and having done a lot of customer service in my time, I am always super nice on the phone :), but I will definitely try again.

Do you/others have any opinions on whether business class A380 is better than first class on their 777-ER, or vice versa?

Thanks!
Sasha

Hi Lucky

I just redeemed 2 seats in F class to SFO in dec for my husband and I.
Chose 1F and 1D cos row 2 was already taken up.
I'm wondering if they'll force us to switch to 1C and 1D cos we're a couple?
I really want a window seat though.

Thanks!

My daughter and I flew to Singapore on 4/6/16 and were very impressed from the beginning. First at the Sydney Airport Lounge and then on the flight where the service, food and friendliness were outstanding, SOOO we were really looking forward to the return trip to Sydney on 11/6/16, BUT alas Singapore Airlines let it self down right from the outset. The lounge was magnificent but the staff were sadly very unhelpful. We were first told we wouldn't have to worry about boarding till 9.0am, at 8.30am we noticed on our tickets boarding was at 8.35am when we asked we were told yes you must go (Sydney lounge staff came and told us when it was time to go) to gate 14 by Skytrain. Skytrain, what's that? After a mad dash through the airport we arrived as people were boarding. The food on the flight was very disappointing so much so I couldn't eat it and I wasn't the only passenger who sent their food back. The staff were very nice and I think very embarrassed this should happen. I think Singapore Airlines should send their airport staff to Sydney to learn how to provide customer service after all they do charge a lot for First Class Travel.

Flew this route a few weeks back in first, and enjoyed my trip in the old 777. Stellar service as always!