My Vietnam Airlines A321-200 flight in economy class from Ho Chi Minh City to Singapore was punctual, clean, but admittedly a bit boring…reminding me in a way of what flying used to be like. And I don’t miss it…
Vietnam Airlines A321-200 Economy Class Review
My one-way ticket from Ho Chi Minh City to Singapore was $212, which was much more than the $129 convenient afternoon flight that would have allowed me to sleep in and enjoy the morning…but I had to fly to Jakarta, Shanghai, and Seoul…
We arrived at Tan Son Nhat International Airport about two hours prior to departure.
Check-in was quite easy, with only a short wait.
Immigration, however, took much longer…
But I had allowed for plenty of time and we even spent a few minutes in the Vietnam Airlines Lotus Lounge prior to the flight (though did not have time to visit the Priority Pass lounges).
Boarding began at 8:40 am, only 25 minutes prior to departure.
Vietnam Airlines 651
Ho Chi Minh City (SGN) – Singapore (SIN)
November 2024
Depart: 9:05 AM
Arrive: 12:15 PM
Duration: 02hr, 10min
Distance: 675 miles
Aircraft: Airbus A321-200
Seat: 16D (Economy Class)
Onboard, we walked through the 16-seat business class cabin to find our seats in row 16.
Seats
Economy class includes 162 seats in a 3-3 configuration. Seat pitch is a reasonable 32 inches and seat width is 18 inches.
There are no seatback screens on this aircraft, though theoretically there was streaming movies and TV shows (more on that below).
I think the color of the cabin is quite drab, but I suppose it masks stains well over the years.
IFE + Wi-Fi
Although a seatback card suggested a wi-fi network was available onboard that included “hundreds of entertainment programs in many genres including movies, music, reality television, podcasts, audiobooks, etc…” it did not show up for me…so it was a quiet flight with no distractions via internet or screen.
Overhead screens did display a map of our progress to Singapore:
Vietnam Airlines still publishes a magazine…
Food + Drink
Lunch was served during the flight starting with a wet towelette, followed by the meal, then beverages.
Lunch choices included beef with rice or fish with potatoes and green beans. It really was the old-school “beef or fish” approach to dining with no further description. Augustine had the beef and seemed to enjoy it. I ordered the fish but didn’t eat it because we had just consumed a large breakfast. I hate wasting food, but I am not going to stuff myself when I am not hungry…
Service
The flight attendants were kind and efficient and I quite liked their uniforms. With a flight time of only two hours, by the time meals and beverages had been distributed and collected we were already approaching Singapore.
Lavatories
The A321 has two lavatories in the rear of the aircraft for economy class passengers and while mostly clean, it looked like something…and I hate to think what…had spilled all over the lid of the toilet seat (and dried).
CONCLUSION
We landed on time in Singapore and I must admit I was thankful for the uneventful flight on what would be a very busy travel day ahead.
I reviewed this aircraft in 2017 and nothing has changed…seven years later my experience was just like the last time.
While I know there is something alluring about being able to disconnect on an aircraft, I do prefer flights with screens and internet…I’ve gotten used to it. I was still able to stay productive onboard with my laptop, but do bring something onboard to keep you occupied.
Next up: a long layover in Singapore
I’m live-blogging my SAS EuroBonus SkyTeam Million Mile challenge this week. Click here for background and route information.
VN is an underrated airline.
May I suggest trying a review of Vietnam Airlines’ long haul A350s. They fly to the west coast and as others have pointed out may be quite underrated.
I quite enjoyed it:
https://liveandletsfly.com/vietnam-airlines-a350-business-class-review/