Continued from my previous trip report on my outbound flight and stay in Maldives, this report will include my return flight and transit experience in Singapore.
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/trip-...mle-sq462.html
After the boat ride from the resort to the airport where departing passengers have to go thru a security check before collecting this boarding pass inside the restricted area.
After collecting your tickets, don't forget to redeem your deposited alcohol beverages here:
After immigrations, you will have another security check before you find yourself in the duty free section of the airport.
There is only on lounge for all first and business class passengers for all airlines. Of course, Plaza Premium members are also welcome to use the lounge. Sorry for the shaky image though...
Soon it was boarding time and many passengers are already queuing up. Did not find a separate line for J passengers so I gave up and plan on being the last one boarding after finding a seat in the common boarding area. Thankfully a call was made for all J and Star Alliance Gold members to board using a seperate line.
Boarding time, it is actually quite nice to be on the tarmac at night. It gives you more perspective especially when the lights comes into play.
The flight was about 80% full in business class and I overheard some stewardess worrying about the high number so certain passengers onboard. Recently it came out in the news that several passengers took cutlerys and refused to return them. For more details of the flight and Male International Airport click here.
http://www.sg-flight.com/2013/09/sin...e-intl-to.html
I shall then contiune with my transit experience after we landed at Changi International Airport the next morning from SQ451. The first thing we did was to have some breakfast over at Burger King before heading to Terminal 1's transfer desk to collect our tickets for our evening flight to Melbourne on Emirates flight EK404.
I had previously checked my luggage to MEL from MLE via Singapore by informing the counter agenet at Maldives Airport.
Transit at Changi is never dull as there is so many places to explore and visit. There is a free movie screening at T3 which is also a sleeping lounge for many passengers.
A butterfly park, various massage points, gym and many more....
Head over to terminal 3 for some shopping and spotted several A388 and took a couple of shots.
Brought a gift and got a card for 50 chances at the draw at Changi. I was told that the going rate for winning small prizes was about 1 gift per 50 chances.
A very "unexpected" win! We got a travel pouch, better then nothing.
For foreginers new to Singapore with 6 to 8 hours to spare before their connecting flight, there is also a free Singapore Day tour to the city provided by the government at no cost.
However, do register early as slots tend to fill up rather quickly. The booth is located at T3, close to the A380 boarding gate A & and the skytrain zone.
After walking around for sometime, we came across this:
A perfect solution for our weary legs!
After the short massage, we managed to make it to the Ambassdor Transit Hotel at Terminal 1.
It was rather quiet and we paid USD90 for 6hours of rest time on dual basis. It was funny that you have to call to have toothbrushes delivered to you.
However, one good news is that our room comes with a small window where I could do some spoting. Video as follows in the link below:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature...&v=y0pi90piPm8
Soon, it was 6pm and we woke up recharged and have a nice shower. After meeting afew friends in the airport, it was time to proceed for dinner.
We headed to level 2 of the departure transit area at terminal one where the airline lounges are located. Using the vouchers from my Amex Ascend card, we was able to get into Sats Premier Lounge for dinner and drinks while waiting for our flight even though we will be traveling in EK404's Y class.
There is buffet spread was quite descent with a reasonable selection of hot food, salad bar, breads, fruits, drinks and alcoholic beverages. Shower is also available upon request where they will provide you with towels.
Soon it was time for boarding, it was a nice experience transiting in Singapore Changi International Airport!