Getting LHR-SIN in F - suggestions?
 

All,

Having spent several years in the UK, I am thinking of treating myself to a F class flight on SQ for my final trip home to Singapore to start a new job. I regularly travel the LHR-SIN run in Y class but upgrade occasionally to J using Krisflyer miles.

Does anybody have suggestions for which UK travel agents offer the best deals for a one-way flight LHR-SIN in F or J class? And is it a better strategy to buy J and upgrade to F using a Krisflyer award, or should I shell out for F class rather than risk there not being an award upgrade available? (If it's feasible, my key objective is to get the F class one-way trip. Otherwise I might as well save the miles and do a J class upgrade from a Y ticket.)

Advice from the wiser and more experienced veterans on this board would be greatly appreciated. :)

DoctorWu

The non-stop flights to LHR is the prized flagship route of any Asian carrier. Slots to LHR are hard to come by and carriers typically negotiate for years to secure these rights, usually giving up a lot more for inbounds to their own country. It is extremely difficult to get a F class award ticket on this route in advance, especially SQ. You might have better luck as the departure date approaches. I think you may have better luck buying J class and trying to upgrade. Otherwise, you should consider flying to AMS or FRA then taking the SQ non-stop from there. I think that SQ is more liberal with F award seats out of AMS/FRA. Good Luck!!!

Thanks for the reply. I guess my thoughts are whether to pay for J class and try for the award upgrade to F class -- which, from what you write, might not be a certain prospect. Or, alternatively, whether I should go for the F class ticket straight out, which will cost more but have the benefit of certainty that I'll get my objective of flying F class for that trip home. My travel agent quoted me GBP 1585 for the LHR-SIN one-way in J class, with GBP 2185 for going in F class -- any idea if that's market rate? Experiences with getting Krisflyer miles upgrades from J to F on LHR-SIN would be most welcome as well. :)

I think your chances of getting an upgrade to F is all but guaranteed on the AMS-SIN (777 - double check if this is 2 or 3 cabins) and the FRA-SIN (747) flights. I have taken these flights several times in the past and F has never been full; in fact, it averages about 50% in F. However, I have never taken the LHR flight but have heard as with other carriers that the loads are much higher. It would be a shame to buy a J ticket and not get the upgrade. Then again, you could try and be flexible with your date should the upgrade not clear in time for your departure. I believe SQ has 2 flights/day on this route.

SQ flies to LHR 3x a day. The noon flight is usually easier to get seats on than the other two flights in the evening. But I'm not too sure about award/upgrade seats though. In regards to the AMS flight, it is now served using the B777ER which means it's two-class.

At those prices, I would just pay the F fare and not stress about it.

Agreed. The SQ website quotes much higher prices for one ways ex-LHR.

Thanks for the input, all -- I spoke with my travel agent and she says that if my attempt to get a Raffles to First award upgrade doesn't work out, I can pay the difference to get a First class ticket without any penalty. So it looks like I'll be getting the Raffles class ticket and then phoning Krisflyer to order the award upgrade, with paying the difference as the backup plan.

By the way, does anybody know which flight out of Heathrow is the best one for meals in SQ First? i.e. is there any difference between their lunch, dinner and supper service? And how does the overall experience (meals and otherwise) compare to Raffles?

Many thanks,
DoctorWu

I also think the best strategy is to buy J and upgrade to F
using your KF miles.

That's what I used to do.(until SQ switched to 777s on
the routes I usually fly... :( )

Since you said you wanted to treat yourself to a first class
experiene flying LHR to SIN, I had another thought.
Is it possible to fly on Emirates?(connecting somewhere)

Their new first class suite is really something. It's the
most amazing first class I've ever seen. I would love to
try it at least once...

I've seen the publicity material on their website and it looks quite impressive. However the Emirates suite only seems to be available on selected aircraft -- could that make things a bit of a gamble? At least with LHR-SIN on SQ, I know I'd be getting a 744 with the SkySuite if I flew in First. (Sod's law and unscheduled sudden changes notwithstanding!) :)

That's what CX charges for F / J to SIN from LHR too (if purchased from some of the asian travel agents in London). So I guess it is pretty much the "market rate".

Dinner service is the most elaborate. I recommend dinner if you're a gourmand.