Singapore Airlines First Class Guide: Cards & Tips to Maximise Your Savings
Updated: 19 Feb 2024
Written byDeborah Gan
Ever wondered how much it costs and what you can expect flying first-class on Singapore Airlines? Here’s everything you need to know — from prices to how you can maximise your savings.
Best miles card for flight purchases: UOB KrisFlyer Card | Citi PremierMiles | Citi Prestige | OCBC Titanium Card | DBS Altitude | AMEX Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer Ascend Card | AMEX Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer Card | UOB Lady's Solitaire
Best priority banking accounts: Citigold
Best travel insurance policies: MSIG TravelEasy | TIQ Travel Insurance | FWD Travel Insurance | AIG Travel Guard | Allianz Travel Insurance | Ergo Travel Insurance | Singlife Travel Insurance | Sompo Travel Insurance
Regardless of whether you’ve just saved enough miles to redeem a first-class ticket or want to pamper yourself and your significant other on a long-awaited trip, flying first-class is definitely something not many can experience often.
So, of course, you’ll want to know everything you need to know about it to make the experience all the more enjoyable — and that includes maximising your savings!
From the prices of each top travel destination, the best miles cards to book your flight tickets to some common FAQs, this guide will definitely help you, especially if you’re a first-timer!
PBAUG_Citigold S$250k tier_IN ARTICLE BLOG BANNER_800x250_KV1_V1
SingSaver Exclusive Offer: Get up to S$1,700 upsized Cash via PayNow, an Apple iPhone 17 256GB (worth S$1,299) or an Apple iPhone 17 512GB (worth S$1,599) when you successfully apply for a Citigold account and make a minimum S$250,000 deposit within 3 months of account opening, maintaining these funds until gift fulfilment. Valid till 30 September 2026 . T&Cs apply.
Plus, enjoy up to 7.51% p.a. interest when you join Citigold and open a Wealth First account. Valid till 30 September 2026. T&Cs apply.
HSBC CC_IN ARTICLE BLOG BANNER_800x250-KV2
SingSaver Exclusive Offer: Enjoy the following rewards when you sign up for an HSBC TravelOne Card:
Get S$450 Upsized Cash, Dyson Airstrait (worth S$799), Dyson V8 Cyclone cordless vacuum (worth S$559), 28,000 Max Miles by HeyMax (worth S$504), or an ECOVACS DEEBOT MINI 2 (worth S$499) upon activating and spending min. S$500 by end of the following calendar month from the card account opening date. Valid until 30 September 2026. T&Cs apply.
Or, upgrade your rewards when you top up as low as S$50. Valid till 30 September 2026. T&Cs apply.
- S$50 for a Dyson Airwrap™ (worth S$799); or
- S$150 for a Dyson Clean+Wash Hygiene hard floor cleaner (worth S$729); or
- S$150 for an Apple iPad A16 11-inch (worth S$649); or
- S$280 for Apple AirPods Max 2 (worth S$749); or
- S$540 for a MacBook Neo 256GB Magic Keyboard (worth S$999); or
- S$680 for an Apple iPad Air (M4) 11" Wi-Fi 128GB (worth S$1,149)
Flights to Asia/Oceania
|
Destination (from Singapore)
|
Airport
|
Singapore Airlines First-class ticket price (return-trip)
|
KrisFlyer miles**
|
|
Tokyo
|
Narita International Airport (NRT)
|
From S$6,831
|
From 154,000
|
|
Male
|
Velana International Airport (MLE)
|
NA
From S$3,922 (business class)
|
From 117,000
|
|
Melbourne
|
Melbourne International Airport (MEL)
|
From S$7,589
|
From 187,000
|
|
New Zealand
|
Auckland Airport (AKL)
|
From S$21,215
|
From 187,000
|
|
Perth
|
Perth Airport (PER)
|
NA
From S$2,726 (business class)
|
From 115,000
|
|
Shanghai
|
Shanghai Pudong International Airport (PVG)
|
From S$14,080
|
From 117,000
|
|
South Korea
|
Incheon Airport (ICN)
|
NA
From S$2,405 (business class)
|
From 154,000
|
|
Taiwan
|
Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport (TPE)
|
NA
From S$2,027 (business class)
|
From 90,000
|
*Tickets are subjected to change at any time, and are accurate as of 12 April 2023. Tickets are also based on a 7-day trip return-flight.
**The actual number of miles required for your booking may differ, depending on the combination of award types and cabin classes for your award itinerary. Airport taxes, fees and other charges apply, and may vary based on travel dates and flights, as well as on fluctuations in exchange rates.
Flights to rest of the world
|
Destination (from Singapore)
|
Airport
|
Singapore Airlines First-class ticket price (return-trip)
|
KrisFlyer miles**
|
|
Cape Town
|
Cape Town International Airport (CPT)
|
NA
From S$5,697 (business class)
|
From 173,000
|
|
Finland
|
Helsinki Airport (HEL)
|
From S$16,866
|
No available seats for redemption
|
|
Germany
|
Frankfurt Airport (FRA)
|
From S$15,715
|
From 282,000
|
|
Greece
|
Athens International Airport (ATH)
|
NA
From S$5,610 (business class)
|
From 282,000
|
|
Iceland
|
Reykjavík–Keflavík Airport (KEF)
|
From S$18,555
|
No available seats for redemption
|
|
Ireland
|
Dublin Airport (DUB)
|
From S$20,848
|
No available seats for redemption
|
|
Italy
|
Leonardo da Vinci International Airport (FCO)
|
NA
From S$8,121 (business class)
|
From 282,000
|
|
London
|
Heathrow Airport (LHR)
|
From S$20,475
|
From 282,000
|
|
Los Angeles
|
Los Angeles International Airport (LAX)
|
From S$17,431
|
From 293,000
|
|
Madrid, Spain
|
Adolfo Suárez Madrid–Barajas Airport (MAD)
|
From S$17,595
|
No available seats for redemption
|
|
Norway
|
Oslo Gardermoen Airport (OSL)
|
From S$19,042
|
No available seats for redemption
|
|
Netherlands
|
Amsterdam Airport Schipol (AMS)
|
No flights
|
From 282,000
|
|
New York
|
John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK)
|
From S$21,215
|
From 297,000
|
|
Paris
|
Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport (CDG)
|
From S$17,829
|
From 282,000
|
|
Johannesburg, South Africa
|
O.R. Tambo International Airport (JNB)
|
NA
From S$4,997 (business class)
|
From 173,000
|
|
Sweden
|
Stockholm-Arlanda Airport (ARN)
|
From S$17,601
|
From 282,000
|
|
Switzerland
|
Zurich Airport (ZRH)
|
From S$14,914
|
From 282,000
|
*Tickets are subjected to change at any time, and are accurate as of 12 April 2023. Tickets are also based on a 14-day trip return-flight.
**The actual number of miles required for your booking may differ, depending on the combination of award types and cabin classes for your award itinerary. Airport taxes, fees and other charges apply, and may vary based on travel dates and flights, as well as on fluctuations in exchange rates.
Best miles credit cards for SIA flight purchases
|
Credit card
|
Mile rate
|
Key benefits and requirements
|
Complimentary night stay when you book a minimum consecutive four-night stay at any hotel or resort
UNI$ are rounded down to nearest the S$5 transaction
Minimum S$120,000 annual income
HSBC CC_IN ARTICLE BLOG BANNER_800x250-KV2
SingSaver Exclusive Offer: Enjoy the following rewards when you sign up for an HSBC TravelOne Card:
Get S$450 Upsized Cash, Dyson Airstrait (worth S$799), Dyson V8 Cyclone cordless vacuum (worth S$559), 28,000 Max Miles by HeyMax (worth S$504), or an ECOVACS DEEBOT MINI 2 (worth S$499) upon activating and spending min. S$500 by end of the following calendar month from the card account opening date. Valid until 30 September 2026. T&Cs apply.
Or, upgrade your rewards when you top up as low as S$50. Valid till 30 September 2026. T&Cs apply.
- S$50 for a Dyson Airwrap™ (worth S$799); or
- S$150 for a Dyson Clean+Wash Hygiene hard floor cleaner (worth S$729); or
- S$150 for an Apple iPad A16 11-inch (worth S$649); or
- S$280 for Apple AirPods Max 2 (worth S$749); or
- S$540 for a MacBook Neo 256GB Magic Keyboard (worth S$999); or
- S$680 for an Apple iPad Air (M4) 11" Wi-Fi 128GB (worth S$1,149)
What can I expect from Singapore Airlines First-Class tickets?
If you book a first-class ticket, there are a myriad of privileges you can experience and enjoy:
- Private space — extended curved partitions for privacy, headrest, plush seat back cushions
- Extra wide seat — handstitched and made with real leather
- Mood lightning — Intense to cool reading lights that can be set to your preferred intensity
- Book the cook — reserve your main course up to 24 hours before you fly, including creations by notable chefs from their international Culinary Panel. Complete with full table service and wines
- KrisWorld inflight entertainment — 1,800 entertainment options, a video touchscreen handset and a 24-inch HD-enabled personal LCD monitor with Bang & Olufsen noise-cancelling headphones, and complimentary internet connectivity
Is Singapore Airlines first class the same as Suites?
First Class Cabin
Source: Singapore Airlines
New A380 Suites
Source: Singapore Airlines
In short, they are not.
If you book Suites, you’ll have a door, meaning that you’ll really have a private suite to yourself. On the other hand, in First Class, the space is more open, and you cannot combine any of the seats to make a double bed.
Suites is only found on Singapore Airlines’ Airbus A380s.
Who can access the Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer Gold Lounge?
Those who are KrisFlyer Elite Gold or a Star Alliance Gold member departing on Singapore Airlines or Star Alliance-operated flights, in Premium Economy or Economy Class can enjoy access to the KrisFlyer Gold Lounge.
Do note that customers travelling on Scoot flights are not eligible for lounge access.
If you need more information, including guest entitlements, visit Singapore Airlines’ website here.
How can I get cheap flight tickets?
#1 Book during promotions
This goes without saying, but getting your flights during the promotion period will definitely save you a lot of money, and can sometimes go up to 50% off! Of course, this is only for those who have planned for their trip very early on, and can afford to wait for the promotion to launch before booking their flight tickets.
It’s good practice to follow the respective Telegram channels of Scoot, Singapore Airlines, Klook, Traveloka, Trip.com and other sites to get first dibs on their promotions!
Most of the time, you might also have to change your trip dates to coincide with the promotional price, and might only be possible if you have a flexible leave schedule.
#2 Compare flight prices
It’s no secret that the same flight to a specific destination on the same dates might differ based on the different websites you use.
For example, Skyscanner and Google Flights let you compare flight prices across all platforms that are offering the same flight ticket, and may sometimes differ as much as S$100!
So don’t just settle on the first website to secure your tickets. If you want to score discounts, you’ll have to put in some effort to scour the internet for the cheapest flights!
#3 Switch on price alert notifications
Price alert notifications can massively help you save on your flight tickets if you’re in no rush. Depending on the price drop (or increase) threshold that you can set for yourself, these websites will notify you every time there’s a change in price for your flight tickets.
However, it might be a gamble. If you don’t want to secure your prices now, will the flight prices continue to drop further or increase exponentially?
Sometimes, you may give up your already low price for a potentially even lower price, only resulting in you paying more in the next few weeks because of the limited number of available flights left. So this is up to your own discretion.
Read more:
Cheapest Flights to Popular Destinations
How To Get Cheap Flights: The Science Behind Flight Pricing
7 Ways to Get the Cheapest Low Cost Flights from Singapore
#4 Book your flights on strategic days
One of the widely-known hacks to get a cheaper price is to purchase your flight tickets on specific days like Tuesdays and Wednesdays as it is believed that the prices will be the lowest on these days.
Conversely, Fridays and Saturdays are said to offer the most expensive tickets, so you should avoid these days when booking flights.
However, this theory doesn’t necessarily apply for all airlines and websites. You may notice fluctuations in the price on different days, due to demand and supply. So do monitor your tickets across several weeks before you decide to book them.
#5 Take advantage of credit card sign-up offers
Of course, the easiest way to score massive discounts on your flights is to take advantage of credit card sign-up offers. For a minimum spend that you hit, you may be able to get cash rewards or your favourite electronic devices when you sign up on Singsaver!
Apart from the sign-up rewards, choose your credit card wisely. Make sure you’re able to maximise the miles earned by selecting the right credit card for payment.
Some of the highly-raved cards out there for flight ticket purchases include UOB Lady’s Card, UOB KrisFlyer card, Citi Rewards Card and HSBC Revolution!
UOB Lady's Solitaire Card Welcome Gift: Get S$350 Cash Credit as one of the first 200 new-to-UOB credit cardmembers with a minimum spend of S$1,000 per month for 2 consecutive months from card approval date. Valid till 31 July 2024. T&Cs apply.
PBAUG_Citigold S$250k tier_IN ARTICLE BLOG BANNER_800x250_KV1_V1
SingSaver Exclusive Offer: Get up to S$1,700 upsized Cash via PayNow, an Apple iPhone 17 256GB (worth S$1,299) or an Apple iPhone 17 512GB (worth S$1,599) when you successfully apply for a Citigold account and make a minimum S$250,000 deposit within 3 months of account opening, maintaining these funds until gift fulfilment. Valid till 30 September 2026 . T&Cs apply.
Plus, enjoy up to 7.51% p.a. interest when you join Citigold and open a Wealth First account. Valid till 30 September 2026. T&Cs apply.
About the author
Deborah Gan
A mahjong addict with an undying love for dogs, Deborah is always on the hunt for cheap deals because she is always broke. That is why she is attempting to be more financially savvy to be.. less broke
