My 14-hour journey from Singapore to London on Singapore Airlines onboard the A380-800 in Suites Class was about as flawless as a flight can be, with decadent meals, personalized service, and a very cozy first class suite.
Singapore Airlines A380-800 Suites Class Review (SIN-LHR)
Singapore to London is one of the rare longhaul routes that you can score first class award space on using KrisFlyer miles. I booked almost 10 months in advance and paid 141,000 KrisFlyer miles plus 292,600 IDR (about 17 USD) in taxes, an unbelievable deal.
After landing in Singapore, I proceeded to The Private Room, where I enjoyed a flat white and fresh-pressed juice before being driven to my flight in a golf cart.
Rather than rush to board, I enjoyed a few extra moments in The Private Room and arrived at a deserted boarding area, where the gate agent welcomed me by name and told me that I was the last passenger to board. The door shut behind me and we were soon on our way to London.
I know many vloggers love to film stepping onboard Singapore Suites and I was tempted to do that, but even though I know SQ flight attendants are very much used to have their photos taken, I always like to ask for permission first…so no video here.
But the boarding is special. Three flight attendants met me at the door, welcomed me by name, and escorted me to my seat, 2A.
Singapore Airlines 308
Singapore (SIN) – London (LHR)
Wednesday, November 5
Depart: 9:00 AM
Arrive: 3:20 PM
Duration: 14hr, 20min
Aircraft: Airbus A380-800
Distance: 6,765 miles
Seat: 2A (Suites Class)
Shortly after being seated, Kenny, the purser, offered me a glass of Champagne, sparkling water, a hot towel, and some mixed nuts.
Suites
Suites Class is located in the front of the upper deck and has six suites in a 1-1 configuration. Each suite is spacious with a dentist-like chair (very comfortable) and a bed that flips down. There’s tremendous privacy and the chair swivels almost 360º to allow for dining, watching movies on the huge screen, or even looking out the windows.
The leather upholstered swivel chair reclines 45° recline and the suite features a sliding door, wardrobe, credenza, and separate flip-down bed (27 inches wide, 76 inches long).
Suites 1A/2A and 1F/2F have a retractable wall, making it possible to combine them into a unified space with a double bed in the middle. The cabin was booked 4/6, but sadly it was 1A, 2A (me), 1F, and 2F that were occupied, so no one lucked out with a double bed of their own.
There are two power ports (universal A/C with USB-A, not USB-C), one at shoulder level and one at ankle level. Seat controls are on a touchpad inside one of the storage cabinets. The seat also has a wireless tablet which can be used to watch IFE as if it were an iPad. There’s ample storage along the windows.
Last time I flew in Suites Class (from Frankfurt to Singapore), the bed felt a bit hard, but this flight I slept like a baby for eight hours…a rare feat for me on airplanes these days, even in premium cabins. The bedding is top-notch (mattress pad, lower duvet, upper duvet, and two pillows) and the cabin was thankfully cool even though there are not individual air vents (though I deliberately took my socks off and slept with my feet sticking out).
Service
Kenny and Natapa took care of me and were simply perfect in providing gracious, attentive, genuine service with a smile.
The entire crew was lovely and that made this flight one of my best ever…it’s just a pleasure to be pampered on Singapore Airlines and the crews are impeccably well-trained to offer the sort of hospitality that has given SQ such a stellar reputation.
Food + Drink
A menu had been placed in my Suite, but I had already used Singapore’s Book The Cook service to pre-reserve my meals.
Champagne
There were three Champagnes onboard (Bollinger La Grande Année 2015, Charles Heidsieck Blane des Millénaires 2007, and Krug Grande Cuvée), but Krug is my favorite and I stuck to that during the flight. Interestingly, it was served in half-size bottles. The crew was somewhat sheepish about that, but I think it makes sense…less waste and also keeps it fresher since I had a glass early in the flight and more later in the flight.
Lunch
With a 9:00 am departure, breakfast was served after takeoff. But having just had breakfast on my Jakarta – Singapore flight, I ordered the most famous Singapore Airlines meal: lobster thermidor. It was positively prefect, a decadent treat that left me longing for more (my lobster thermidor on Starlux was excellent, but this was even better).
For dessert, I ordered coconut pancakes off of the breakfast menu, which the menu said were high in protein. I’m not sure about that and don’t bother counting macros on airplanes, but they were delicious.
I wasn’t quite ready to go to bed, so I put on movie and enjoyed some movie snacks…more mixed nuts (macadamias, cashews, candied walnuts) and potato chips.
Dinner
My pre-arrival feast began after I woke up from my slumber, about three hours out of London. I was a bit groggy and had a cappuccino to wake up.
Dinner soon began, first with chicken satay, another staple on Singapore Airlines, served with cucumber, onion, and a spicy peanut sauce.
Then the bread basket, which had an assortment of bread, crackers, and both olive oil and balsamic vinegar.
Caviar followed, which is never something I eat at home or would buy, but is a treat when flying first class.
By this point, I could have stopped, but dinner was just beginning…
More lobster? Why, not! Next came a poached lobster with celeriac remoulade, orange segments, quail eggs, and citrus dressing, a very nice appetizer.
Soup? Sure…it was white bean and shellfish soup with prawns, a rich and flavorful combination.
The main course was (also pre-ordered from Book The Cook) was roasted veal chop. It was cooked a bit too much, but still very good. I typically avoid sauces, but the morel mushroom sauce helped a lot.
I switched to a 2005 Château Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande, Pauillac, Bordeaux with the veal and it was a perfect accompaniment.
The meal concluded with cheese, followed by a warm apple-raisin strudel with vanilla ice cream and raspberry coulis, and finally a cappuccino with a special “Jamaican Blue Mountain” espresso blend, served with chocolate truffles from Laurent Bernard…a fabulous end to a fabulous meal.
What. A. Meal.
Food was served at the perfect pace at the perfect temperature with perfect presentation…Singapore Airlines shows that offering restaurant-quality food on an airplane is very possible.
Lavatory
With Suites Class in the front of the upper deck, there are two lavatories for the six passengers and both are huge (these are the same size as the Emirates and Etihad lavatories, which have showers) and quite luxurious. The right lavatory is larger than the left (when facing the stairs), but both are very large.
Larger lavatory:
Smaller lavatory:
Both lavatories included a drawer with dental kits, shaving kits, and hairbrushes.
Amenities
After settling into my seat, I was offered pajamas and an amenity kit, both Lalique branded.
The amenity kit was in a gray leather bag and only featured Lalique skin products, including:
- perfume
- body lotion
- facial mist
- lip balm
Later on, socks, eyeshades, and earplugs were offered, which interestingly were not part of the amenity kit (perhaps to reduce waste?). As I mentioned above, other toiletries were available in the lavatory.
The pajama were soft, but I didn’t like that they did not have any Singapore Airlines branding or logo on it:
Pajamas are like caviar, a first class treat that is nice (and I took these with me), but I don’t wear pajamas to bed so these just sit in one of my dresser drawers.
Wi-Fi + IFE
Singapore Airlines has come along way from the days in which paying for data-capped Wi-Fi required mortgaging your house…or something like that.
Wi-Fi is now complimentary for KrisFlyer members and worked fairly well for the start of the flight, but was not functional from the time I woke up to our arrival in London.
The KrisWorld entertainment system is among the best in the industry, with hundreds of movies, TV shows, music, and games. This time, there was no White Lotus binge, though I did watch a Spanish movie called The Goldsmith’s Secret, which I quite enjoyed.
I had the moving flight map on, however, for most of the flight and it was a beautiful day just to look out the window:
As I mentioned above, the wireless tablet also doubles as a second IFE screen.
Noise-cancelling headphones are from Bang & Olufsen.
CONCLUSION
Singapore Suites on the A380 is one of the best travel experiences in the world, a product I rate in the top-three along with Air France and JAL. Even though this was a 14-hour flight, I was very sad as we pulled into the gate in Heathrow Terminal 2…who knows when I will get to enjoy a flight like this agin.
People often ask me if first class is worth the splurge over business class. I say yes…in fact, I’d rather have flown one direction in economy class and one in first class versus both in business class (and SQ has an excellent business class product). Suites class on the A380 is a bucket list experience and one of the best uses of your KrisFlyer miles.
I look forward to returning onboard…
Caviar, lobster, veal, Krug… ooh lala! *chef’s kiss*
(Excellent selfies, too!)
Wish they’d bring the a380 on the SIN-FRA-JFK route.
Matt – dont take this the wrong way, but all those pictures make it look like all of this traveling/work/life is taking it toll on you… you look worn out and not just tired and in need of a good night sleep.
Mercy! Is it that bad?!
Michael is crazy. You look hot, Matt!!!Wish you had taken your shirt off, though.
Agreed with LF (hawtie); ignore michael, ya ole catty bee-atch!
I noticed you had their PJ’s on in bed; top & bottom? were they made of recycled polyester? curious; on a recent bus. class flt. on UA to Bkk, you had to ask for them; they didn’t offer them, even though it was 12 1/2 hr. flt. Their PJ’s were made cheaply in Vietnam, & made your skin itch after using them on your shoulders; maybe it was the recycled plastic? chemicals, waste recycled; UA has done too much cost cutting in bus. class; how were your PJ’s ?
Pajamas were not silk, but very soft and comfortable…but I also did not have any issues with UA pajamas on the flight to HKG.
UA used to provide them, made w/ cotton & polyester; now, they’re 100% recycled polyester; I read labels; do you know what yours were made of ? thanks.
Did you use miles for this trip?
Yes, I detailed particulars in second paragraph.
Good for you!!
Krug Grande Cuvée is a one of a kind champagne. It’s an absolute must try experience.
The superb “2005 Château Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande, Pauillac, Bordeaux” is effortlessly standing out from the lineup of exceptional red wines.
Personally I would have stuck with the Burgundy and the Blanc des Millénaires, as I prefer my champagne bone dry. Krug is available everywhere, whereas the 2007 BdM is a slightly more elusive creature.
The “2007 Charles Heidsieck Champagne Blanc des Millénaires” definitely requires a second bottle at a celebratory gathering.
I started with that and thought the Krug was much better.
To each his own.
Even those wine lovers, who are more into grower champagnes will rarely say “no” to a KRUG. This is the true connoisseur ‘s choice of champagne.
I read your blog from time to time and find it entertaining. But why on earth do you have to post so many pictures of your self (in bed, on the toilet seat!, etc)? So narcissist! Just write about the airline (or whatever) and stop taking pictures of your self!
God forbid if I become a narcissist (or am one), but as I’ve stated before, I post these to prove I was on the flight and write these stories myself. We live in a world of “fake” AI-generated trip reports and I still do things the old fashioned way…
p.s. That wasn’t a toilet seat!
Minor nitpick, but I assume you paid in IDR (Indonesian Rupiah), rather than INR (Indian Rupees) as you state in your article.
Correct. I will update.
An excellent travel experience. Kudos to the exceptional SQ!
Wow. The exceptional food & drink alone are worth the price!
Oh, my… So much food, Matthew. That’s my calorie intake for a whole week ;)
I would have wanted a cooler!
I’m really surprised you don’t eat caviar outside of flights. I picked up my caviar habit years ago working in Moscow for a Russian company, and I really like making the Blinis and the trimmings for my family (especially playing with different ones: my current sour cream mix is with sea salt black and sichuan peppers), so I tend to find in-flight caviar OK but a bit tame. I also notice I have very few American friends who’ll join us for a caviar night (they mostly think it’s not to their taste when asked) so I suppose it could be cultural. Expense wise the US has reasonable suppliers (which you have to look for, there are many who will charge way more) at about $1/1g, so per person it would cost about $30 per head to serve which is on a par with a meal out (and if you stretch it with the sides, that’s enough for an entire meal). I do admit that to keep it special, we tend only to do it for Birthdays and new year.
Good
Let’s add that SQ currently has 12 A380-800s in its fleet with an average age of 12.1 years.
The smaller the bottle – the higher the ratio between wine and oxygen in the bottle. For instance, champagne from a magnum bottle will taste better compared to the usual 0.75l. Hence, sheepishness about Krug served from half bottles. Some first class passengers probably scoff at those.
You are very naturally attractive, but I wish you’d invest in a better wardrobe and a better camera, do your hair more nicely and practice your camera skills.
Nah, he’s doing fine.
I see nut-in wrong
Awesome review – happy you enjoyed yourself
Hey Matthew – would you mind talking about how you managed to snag A380 Suites on a SAVER fare? For a long haul flight?
That’s incredible – I thought the only long haul saver fares SQ offered were for their 777 F!
You are wise to pick up on that. This was originally on a 777 but there was a schedule change and I got put on the A380. I’m going to add that note (I wasn’t aware that SQ only releases advantage space on 388 in Suites).
Ah, that makes a lot more sense! Very fortunate indeed – congrats 🙂