VegasGambler

Sorry, I couldn't find a thread on this topic. Mods, please merge to correct thread if one already exists. Thanks!

I'm considering taking advantage of the current cheap premium economy fares to fly SFO-SIN.

It seems like my choices are either SQ 31 / 32 (non-stop on 359) or SQ 1 / 2 (stop in HKG on 77W)

I'd prefer non-stop, but reviews on seatguru seem to imply that the 77W premium economy seat is significantly better. Is that accurate? Is it worth the stop in HKG (same flight number, same equipment, and, I assume, same plane and no reason to deplane) in order to fly the 77W? Price difference between the flights is negligible so that's not an issue -- this is all about convenience and quality of product.

I'm 6'2 (188cm), have 42-inch (107cm) shoulders, and weigh about 220lb (100kg) so, while I'm not huge, I am a big guy and so extra legroom and seat width has some value to me. But I will also want to sleep, so extra recline has a lot of value too.

CaliforniaSteve

I'll be doing this route later this year (also took advantage of the low PE fare), so I can't comment on the seats yet. However, be aware that there are two non-stops flying SIN-SFO. One is a traditional three class configuration on the original 359's. That's a daily flight. The other is three or four days a week on the new 350-ULR and that's configured for just business and PE. The reviews I've read on the PE seats for the 359-ULR are quite good. The preferred ones seem to be in the last couple of rows, as instead of 2-4-2, you can have 1-4-1.

The stop in HKG on SQ2 is minimal in terms of time. You have about 1-1/2 hours to deplane, go through security theater and queue up again to get back on. The only positive is that it gives you a chance to stretch your legs. We're going to Singapore a few times this year. On our return in March, we're taking SQ2. In November, we'll be returning on SQ32, but only because SQ34 was not available on the day we had to return.

VegasGambler

Oh, so you have to get off the plane on SQ 1 and 2?

The ULR configuration seems strange. No econ? Just business and PE?

I'll probably try to do the nonstops on the ULR then. Thanks for the tips. Are the extra legroom (front PE row) seats blocked out for elites? It will be my first time on SQ.

VegasGambler

Whoops, it looks like the fare is dead. I guess I'm not going. Next time...

zeebanker

So we just came back from a PE trip SFO-SIN-HKG-SFO (spread over 2 weeks of vacation). SFO-SIN on the 17hr non-stop only PE/business. SIN-HKG on a 380 and HKG-SFO on SQ2 777.

Maybe I'm either not too observant or too old, but the PE seats felt pretty much the same on all three. The 777 felt just a tad more spacious, but no biggie. The 380 (first time for me) was surprisingly quiet. I could not adjust the footrest on all three aircraft to just the correct angle in conjunction with the seat recline for me to be comfortable, but that is likely a me-only problem.

Another thing I noticed (only on the 777, didn't notice on the other aircraft) that one could lift the arm rests on the middle 2 of the 4 seat row in the center to get a bit more room, if the other seat was unoccupied. Maybe worth it, but not enough to stretch out and lie down. The other arm rest for all seats is immovable and houses the meal tray.

However, we were most disappointed in the service. Very mechanical, very little thought put into how things were done, almost as if they were reviewing the training manual in their minds as they went through the service. For instance, my wife's beef was that the flight attendant walked by several times without asking her if she wanted a refill of her wine. I asked for water 2x (separate legs) during meal service and both times they were out and although they said they were going to bring it, didn't. Little things like that.