Great service, but a distinctly average seat
This was our second ever flight with Singapore. The first one spoiled us, as we were in a First Class suite on the upper deck of their A380. This second flight was on the A350 in business class, flying from Changi to Manchester. What we didn’t bank on was a seat that was over ten years old.
How we flew with Singapore
This was an ultra-long-haul flight from Singapore to Manchester, quoted at just over 14 hours but coming in at around 13.5.
To book this flight, we used American Express reward points. In total, this journey required 207,000 points, with £75 in taxes, for two people. When you’re used to paying over a thousand pounds for a BA redemption, this felt like a bargain, at least when it comes to the cash element.
The points part of the transaction was higher than we’d usually pay, especially for a one-way flight; however, it meant we’d land at our home airport without the need for a connection.
The flight was overnight, taking off from Changi Airport at 2am and arriving in Manchester just after 9am the same day.
Singapore Lounge at Changi
We were travelling to Changi from our hotel in Malaysia. You can read more about that journey (which was on a ferry) in my review of the Anatara Desaru Coast. It meant we arrived at the airport just after 7pm, leaving us seven hours before our flight took off.
In most airports, a seven-hour layover would be painful, but Changi has the incredible Jewel shopping and entertainment venue. If you’ve seen images of the airport, the famous water feature is actually inside the Jewel. Its official name is the HSBC Rain Vortex.
We checked our bags in at Terminal 2, then walked over to the Jewel. There were no issues with checking in for our flight so early.
The Jewel at Changi
The shopping centre is separate from the main terminals, but there are walkways from T1, T2, and T3. Those three terminals surround the Jewel on three of its four sides.
Terminal 4 requires you take a shuttle bus, and the upcoming T5 will likely require the same, as it’s going to be even further away. Walking from T2 to the Jewel took five minutes.
There are secure storage facilities inside the shopping centre, so for £10 we could store two sets of hand luggage, leaving us free to wander around the shops and get some food. There’s a cinema in here, which is surprisingly the second cinema at Changi airport. There’s another in Terminal 3 that’s completely free of charge for any passenger.
At around 10pm, we picked up our hand luggage and headed back to the terminal. On the walk back into the airport, we spotted a (closed) Star Wars library pop-up. I have no idea what it is. Changi really is a fascinating airport, and they try hard to make a travel experience more interesting.
We cleared passport control with ease and then made our way to the Singapore Business Class lounge, which was a couple of minutes’ walk.
The lounge was located on the second floor, and it sits next to the Singapore First Class lounge. There’s also a DBS Private Lounge on this floor, accessible to select DBS Bank customers.
The Silverkris Business Lounge
The SilverKris Business Lounge is huge. As you walk in, you can head right to a bar area, or left to a larger food-focused space. Both sides of the lounge are attractive, with lots of dark woods and marble countertops. It’s sensitively lit, with more of a boutique hotel vibe than a bright and sterile lounge.
It’s also one of those lounges that takes 10 minutes to do a lap around, and it was extremely busy around 10:30pm. If you’ve ever been to any of the Business Class lounges at Heathrow T5, then it felt exactly like this. It was challenging to find a space to sit, so we had a soft drink perched at a small and then wandered back into the terminal.
We wanted to use the Robot Bar Tender, which sits on the second floor of the main duty-free shop. Sadly, Tony (it is actually called Tony) was out of order. After wandering around the terminal to kill time, we made our way back to the lounge and managed to find some quiet seating in a snug that had small booths.
These booths were meant for work: they had power outlets and USB sockets. There were speakers in the ceiling that played relaxing music, and that helped drown out the noise of the lounge.
Food and drink in the lounge
We had already eaten at the Jewel, so we had only snacks rather than a heavy meal. The selection of food and drink in the lounge was good, better than most lounges, and it was an attractive space. Food options included a self-service ice-cream fridge and a selection of Sushi.
The bathrooms were clean and spacious, and the toilets were Japanese-style. There were full-time attendants in the bathrooms. and showers were available plus a clothes pressing service.
Our 2am flight was one of the last flights, so the lounge started to empty out as we got past midnight. It certainly wasn’t completely empty by the time we boarded, but it was much quieter, and there were plenty of tables and seats free.
The boarding process
We arrived at the gate well after it opened, so we were able to walk to the front of the Business Class line and board straight away. Our A350 had two classes: Business and Economy, so no Premium or First cabin.
Boarding was prompt, and we were shown to our seats by a crew member. I was sitting in 14k, and my wife was in 12k, both were window seats on the right-hand side of the plane. Despite these numbers, we were close to the front of the cabin as Singapore started their business class seat numbers as if there was a First cabin in front.
The Business Class cabin is split into two, with seven rows of twenty four suites. A second mini-cabin sits behind the larger cabin, separated by two bathrooms and a galley. There are three rows back there, so 12 seats in total, then beyond that is the economy cabin. The snack area sits in between the two business cabins, and there’s an additional bathroom at the front of the plane.
The Singapore Seat
When I first sat down, I immediately disliked this seat. It looks dated and overly plastic. There’s also limited privacy. It felt worse than most business seats. It was, however, spotlessly clean and unmarked.
Whilst the seat had everything you would expect (power ports, a mirror, lighting options) it felt more challenging to use than any other seat I have been in. Things seemed to be hidden away beneath, or around, acres of plastic.
The storage options were also quite limited. There’s a larger storage spot that’s hidden at floor level, then some smaller storage spaces dotted around. It just felt like a clunky seat that missed out on real user testing.
Over the course of the flight, I came to like the seat more, but ultimately felt disappointed. It turns out the seat design is over ten years old, and I get the feeling it looked and felt dated when it launched, let alone a decade later.
As a bed it was actually very good. You have much greater privacy when you’re lying down, and it was a good width and length. Despite there being no door to the suite I slept well in here.
Food and drink
Food orders were taken before we pushed back, and I opted to just have breakfast as we had already eaten at The Jewel and within the lounge.
My wife did have dinner and went for the famous Singapore Chicken Satay. It was outstanding – we both had the same dish on our previous Singapore flight. It’s famous for a reason, and ranks up there as one of the best light snacks you can have on a flight.
For breakfast, I went for a healthy fruit bowl and a not-so-healthy croissant. Both were excellent. I’ve had dry, or half-frozen, fruit on planes many times, and I’m pleased to report that the Singapore fruit was delicious.
The croissant was warm and crispy, and went down well with a fresh orange juice and an excellent coffee. I ended up getting a second cup of the latter as it was such a great brew.
My wife went for the breakfast waffles, served with warmed fruit, and they were outstanding.
At some point in the night I visited the snack area, and found a great selection. I opted for a cute snack-sized packet of M&Ms, and a KitKat. Sometimes it’s the small things that can make a flight even better.
The full menu for the flight is below. It’s extensive, with some great non-alcoholic options.
Bathrooms on the Singapore A350
There were three bathrooms for the forty business class suites. They were all standard aeroplane bathrooms, although they did have fabric hand towels, which was a nice touch.
The bathrooms were spotlessly clean, and the amenities were from Payot.
The Singapore Crew
You cannot fault Singapore staff. Whilst the seat was lacking, the crew were outstanding. They are there when you need them, but don’t hover or intrude. That was my one complaint about the Etihad Residence: it felt like we had a third passenger in our suite, since our dedicated staff member was always there.
One Singapore crew member even asked my wife if they were ok waking me up so that I didn’t miss breakfast.
It’s especially difficult to deliver great service over the course of an ultra-long haul flight, but somehow the SIngapore team managed it. The food, drink and crew made this flight much better than it could have been, given the seat.
Singapore Business Class: The Verdict
Putting the aged plastic seat aside, this was a good flight. Whilst the lounge experience was initially a bit jarring due to its busy atmosphere, things improved as it quietened down, and the range of food and drink was really strong.
The lounge was always going to be busy in the evening, and the KrisFlyer Business lounge is huge for a reason – it has to hold hundreds of premium passengers that fly into and out of Changi. If you’re travelling during the quieter daytime period, then you’ll have an even better experience than we did.
On board, the crew and the food were as you would expect from Singapore: excellent. That’s the primary reason why we’ve already booked another flight to Singapore, this time revisiting their First Class suite on an A380 from Frankfurt in late 2026. This will be our fourth trip to Singapore, showing how much we love the city just as much as we now love the airline.
Singapore Business Class
Add a comment