Need advice on SQ routing...

[LampStack]

Hello,

This is my first post as I only recently discovered this forum.

I need a little help in picking the best routing for an upcoming trip to Asia from the West coast of the US.

I am going to Thailand and I want very much to travel on SQ, even though CX has "one-stop" routing to BKK from LAX and SFO I believe. I know there are several options on SQ, including LAX-TPE-SIN-BKK and LAX-NRT-BKK and also LAX-SIN (on the A340-500)-BKK.

What is the best way to do this itinerary with SQ? Thanks.

fcp

[LukeGT]

If you want to fly F Class, IIRC the only option is LAX-NRT-BKK.

[StarG]

You can fly via SFO in F too: SFO-HKG-BKK or SFO-HKG-SIN-BKK.
The fastest would perhaps be LAX-SIN (nonstop 345)-BKK but in J.

[MegatopLover]

Hey guys: don't forget that you can now also fly First Class on SFO-ICN-SIN on the B777-300ER.

But the OP didn't mention what class of service he's looking for. So here's the rundown...

The two factors you should consider are aircraft type and timing. Some arrivals into SIN will require an overnight in Singapore before you can get up to Bangkok. From the West Coast, those flights would be SQ 15 SFO-ICN-SIN, arriving around midnight, and SQ 11 LAX-NRT-SIN, arriving around 1:00 am. You'd need to wait in SIN 'til 8 am to catch a BKK flight. Now, that's not necessarily a bad thing. If you want to spend some time in Singapore, you could book out on the last flight at night the next day, thus keeping your <24 hour stop in SIN a "transit stop" not a "stopover," the latter being prohibited on some tickets and liable to increase the cost.

SQ 27 (or is it 29 now?) LAX-TPE-SIN and SQ 001 SFO-HKG-SIN both arrive at Changi around 11am and connect smoothly to the first afternoon flight to BKK. SQ 37 (???) LAX-SIN nonstop arrives very early in the morning, often before 6:00 am, and will connect to the first morning flight to BKK, giving you a few hours at Changi. I'm really not keen on the nonstop for arriving in Asia because you wake up at 3:00 am local time for breakfast, which destroys you for the first day. SQ 27 and SQ 001 have the same problem arriving in TPE and HKG, but you have that second leg onward to SIN to get a bit more shuteye, and that makes all the difference. My personal favorite, in Raffles (Business) or First is SQ 001, because SFO is a nicer departure point than LAX and HKG is a nicer stopover point than TPE, and I like riding a MEGATOP. (More on that to come....)

On the way back, taking SQ 12 SIN-NRT-LAX or SQ 16 SIN-ICN-SFO require a morning departure from SIN, meaning you have to come down from BKK the night before and stay overnight. SQ 002 SIN-HKG-SFO, SQ 28 SIN-TPE-LAX, and SQ 38 (???) SIN-LAX all leave around 4 or 5 in the afternoon, meaning you can take the 11:15 am departure from BKK to make the connection, or you can take the first morning flight from BKK to have a longer stay in Singapore, for shopping or lunch or whatever.

Now then, aircraft. Aircraft choice means a lot on these routes.

The nonstops LAX-SIN-vv. are on A345's, the only aircraft with Executive Economy, and they don't have basic economy; Business Class seats on those birds are an inch narrower than on the Boeings (save the B777-300ER) but have five more inches of pitch.

The B777-200ER runs the LAX-TPE-SIN route (for now), while B747-400 Megatops run the LAX-NRT-SIN and SFO-HKG-SIN routes. Economy pitch is an inch or two better on the 772 than on the 744; the Business Class SpaceBeds are the same; and only Megatops have First Class with SkySuites. All of these aircraft, A345, 772ER, and 744, will have the same in-flight entertainment systems.

The B777-300ER now operates 3x-weekly on the SFO-ICN-SIN route and will go daily in mid-March. That has the brand new Business Class and First Class products, with totally redesigned experiences from the SpaceBeds and SkySuites. You can find lots of detailed info and pics here on SQtalk. I think the Economy Class product is substantially the same as on the 772ER. The LAX-TPE-SIN route will get the 77W 3x-weekly from October, and is expected to go daily by December.

There used to be a difference among the SIN-BKK flights, but now all are served by 777's with regional business class (one has regional First) and substantially equivalent economy. So which flight you take to BKK doesn't matter, unless you're trying to get on the one daily that has First Class.

If you wanted to get screwy, you could do <24-hour transit stops in Tokyo and thus fly LAX-NRT-BKK. That cuts down on stops, legs, and flight time--which can be a good thing or a bad thing. But it will require an overnight in Tokyo going to Asia and a long stopover returning, because SQ 11 arrives at NRT in the evening, and SQ 625 NRT-BKK nonstop departs in the morning, while SQ 626 BKK-NRT nonstop arrives at NRT at 7:00 am and SQ 12 departs around 6:00 pm. Also, be aware that SQ 625 and 626 are typically operated by regional B777-200's that do not have SpaceBeds in Business or SkySuites in First; in Economy, the experience is the same as the 772ER, except that some aircraft might not have the most advanced in-flight entertainment with audio-visual on-demand.

All things considered... In First, I'd take SQ 001 going to Bangkok and SQ 002 coming back. In Business, I'd take SQ 001/002 via HKG or SQ 027/028 via TPE. For Executive Economy, it has to be the nonstops. For plain economy, I'd take SQ 027/028 via TPE.

[MegatopLover]

Okay... after typing all of the above, I just noticed that the OP's screenname is fclasspax. He didn't specify class of service, but that's a pretty good indicator he wants F.

So anyone else wondering about the general comparison points can use the above.

[LampStack]

Thanks everyone (especially MegaTopLover) for the help!

In spite of my user name I plan to fly C/J class this go-round. The SQ1/SQ2 itinerary via HKG and on to SIN then BKK sounds like a winner. Even though the LAX-SIN route is "only" an additional 4 hours without a break, I think I would prefer to stop in HKG.

I'll post what I end up doing and also how I enjoyed the trip.

Regards
fcp

[DeltaFlyingProf]

Thanks everyone (especially MegaTopLover) for the help!

In spite of my user name I plan to fly C/J class this go-round. The SQ1/SQ2 itinerary via HKG and on to SIN then BKK sounds like a winner. Even though the LAX-SIN route is "only" an additional 4 hours without a break, I think I would prefer to stop in HKG.

I'll post what I end up doing and also how I enjoyed the trip.

Regards
fcp

If you are in J, don't forget that SQ15 has the new seats on some days right now and every day starting mid March. I think everyone agrees the new seats are a vast improvements over the spacebed in J, but there is no consensus on the F seat.

[LampStack]

If you are in J, don't forget that SQ15 has the new seats on some days right now and every day starting mid March. I think everyone agrees the new seats are a vast improvements over the spacebed in J, but there is no consensus on the F seat.

Thanks. This is definitely something to keep in mind. The seats sound like a plus but the midnight arrival time doesn't sound as great. I guess that would mean 5-6 hours at Changi, or staying over in SIN which would not be so bad either. I'll will check the exact time at SQ's website.

Also, an additional question:

- If I choose the SQ11 (LAX-NRT) route, what is the easiest/best way to set up the overnight hotel?

Regards
fcp

[AndrewSQ011]

SQ 27 (or is it 29 now?) LAX-TPE-SIN

It's SQ 29 now

[9V-JKL]

It's SQ 29 now

27..........