SFO777

Thanks everyone for your kind comments.

I know, I know Genius1... there are any number of places I could have and should have stayed.

Here is a link that references the RTW, showing a based F fare of $6,699. http://www.singaporeair.com/saa/en_U...otions/rtw.jsp
As cs57 noted, the SFO office is great for booking these. PM me for the contact info for my sales rep there.

And there is good info (routings, restrictions, etc...) in the SQ forum's RTW thread...
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/singa...-deals-sq.html

Like you, I am primarily oneworld, but am using the 28,000+ EQMs from this trip to get me over 35,000 for my *A Gold thru Air Canada.

Flyingfox

Well, at least you gave Raffles a go! So now you know.............
I cannot understand all the raves about the place either.

Now if you can just get your lovey accustomed to those smallish F seats on the 747s, you'll be good as gold!

Cheers again for the report.

SFO777

Marina Bay Sands Hotel, Sky Park and The Singapore Flyer

After a short power nap, we decided to explore Singapore after dark, clearly the best time considering the oppressive heat and humidity during the day. The view from our suite at Raffles.



First stop was the impressive Marina Bay Sands hotel...





S$20 plus S$1 for an audio guide (which is about all its worth) will get you to the 56th floor "Sky Park". Nice enough name but not much of a park. The view is spectacular, especially at night. But the rooftop bars and restaurants are strictly reserved for hotel guests, so this is basically an observation deck with limited access to a very small part of the rooftop.









The view of and from the infinity pool is quite incredible...



Next stop was the Singapore Flyer. And the words VIP Lounge and Priority Boarding sucked us in as we bought the Champagne Flight package, S$69 per person for a private car, flute of Moet and strawberries and chocolates.





















Setting up for this week's F1 race...



A great first night in Singapore.

SFO777

For someone from SFO that thinks 21 degree C day is a heat wave, Singapore is a shock to the system. Clearly nighttime is the time explore and enjoy the city. Daytime not so much. But we were determined to explore the food courts, especially Maxwell Food Centre in Chinatown. Crowded, hot, the place to be for great inexpensive meal.







We waited in line for the amazingly good Chicken Rice from Tian Tian, with soup and side of Bok Choy with Oyster Sauce.





Earlier in the day, we decided to do the HippoTours Hop On/Hop Off bus to get an overview of the city plus it went to Chinatown and near the Maxwell Food Centre. While waiting for the bus to arrive, we discover the fabulous Suntec Food Court.









A few city views including major construction. Adding to traffic woes this week was street closures for the F1 race.

Lounge Expert

Superb TR mate...

I dont agree however about the less than grand reviews of Raffles Hotel. Maybe its a cultural thing, but a hotel with so much history and sophistication lends itself to a word that has become less and less relevant: Class.

IMHO its sister E&O Hotel in Penang is the best hotel in the world based on value for money:-:

Flyingfox

Class was a word best applied to this hotel perhaps a decade ago.

Tour groups by the busload to look round the grounds and drink at the bar do not add to an air of sophistication. A similar atmosphere with tourists coming and going can also be found at...........well...........the Burj al Arab!

SFO777

Only a decade ago? Perhaps century might be more accurate.

SFO777

SIN First Class Check-in and SilverKris First Class Private Room, Part 1

Our amazing Singapore Airlines saga continued with an experience that rivaled and in many respects surpassed the LH Frankfurt FCT. As we approached Changi T-3, the progression of signs direct customers to doors by class of service. After all the signs, there is an elegant turn off for "First Class".



Private entrance where a personal SQ assistant and two porters greet our arriving car.



We were warmly welcomed by numerous SQ employees into a gorgeous reception facility. No check-in counters here, but rather check-in desks and chairs more reminiscent of a 5* hotel, with a discrete baggage conveyor behind all of the check-in desks.







After being escorted to our personal check-in agent, we were offered cold towels as our agent processed our boarding passes, verifying frequent flyer accounts for the trip (AC for me, CO for Mrs.).



After more pleasant conversation and some photo ops, we were given our boarding passes, Private Room invitation and baggage claim receipts.





Best wishes all around and our personal assistant escorted us from the check-in/reception lounge to passport control, into the beautiful Changi T-3 terminal and upstairs to the SKL.











Our personal assistant introduced us to the SKL agents and we bid our adieus. One of SKL agents then escorted us into the lounge giving a brief tour as we passed through each area, Business Class, First Class and finally The Private Room. The further we walked, the higher the class and more elegant the setting, furniture and decor. The Private Room is the most luxurious and decadent airport lounge I have ever had the pleasure to experience, no doubt with the highest employee to passenger ratio. An oft-times jaded Mrs. SFO was thoroughly impressed and moved to utter "wow", "amazing", "beautiful" and "this is even better than Lufthansa". It is especially fabulous when we arrive 3 hours before departure and have the entire Private Room to ourselves, allowing me to take as many photos as I wanted. Enjoy the tour.















Up Next: The Private Room Dining Room, and the rest of the SKL.

UA_Flyer

^Love this trip report so far. I have learned a great deal from SFO777 in putting together my own trip report. Unfortunately, I don't have time to write as most of my visit to each location last at most 24 hours of non-meeting time ( including sleeping and eating).

As business traveler, I envy this type of trip report that capture the relaxtion and excitement of leisure travels. Many good ideas from SFO777 in terms of which flights to take, hotels to stay and places to visit.

Thanks for such a enjoyable TR, and I look forward to the rest.

ThatJohn

*SFO777*, this is the best TR I have read in quite some time. Sterling photography, useful and interesting commentary, and a sense that you have a taste for the experience. Thank you enormously for posting it, and I look forward to reading the rest!

glennaa11

WOW! Thanks for the links. I had no idea you could get an SQ RTW so cheap! I was thinking of doing an RTW next year. Using the *A tool I was coming up with fares of around $15K in a mix of F and C. So this is a real steal. Is there a surcharge for A380 flights? Does this have to all be on SQ metal or do codeshares work?

SFO777

Thanks UA_Flyer and ThatJohn for your kind comments. UAF, your LH A380 trip report is fabulous!

It is an amazing fare that books into A class. Must be all SQ, so codeshares do not work. And at this time, if you want the A380 experience, you only get Business Class as there is no A class. No surcharge option. Bummer. I passed on the A380 Business Class CDG-SIN option and took Eurostar to London to get the one daily 77W flight and the full F experience.

SFO777

The Private Room features a large and elegant dining room...









Dining options include fabulous menu of great made to order selections...



Or an impressive array of serve yourself options...

GeneCMH

Since I'm not current on SQ doings, is access to the Private Room for all SQ F passengers or is there some other criteria? I assume the F section of the lounge must be for PPS member and other *A F passenger?

Thanks

SFO777

My understanding is that the Private Room is restricted to SQ revenue pax in Suites and First. First pax on SQ award and upgraded tickets do not get access. *A First & Business pax apparently do get SKL access their respective lounges, buy *A Y pax do not get access to any part of the SKL.