SIA 737 MAX 8 Business Class from Hanoi to Singapore

[yflyer]

I headed to my room on the 7th floor...



The room was spacious and beautifully appointed...



There were 2 double beds...



My room had views of the lake adjoining the hotel...



Beyond the lake, you could also see skyscrapers and high-rise apartment blocks which represented the new, modern Hanoi, a city which was growing rapidly, with sky high property prices to match.

Large work desk, with sleek leather and steel chairs...



Flat screen TV...



2 very comfortable leather loungers...



The bathroom was an open plan affair...





...with sliding doors that could be shut for privacy...



The bathtub was enormous...



Separate shower stall...



Amenities from Aromatherapy Associates...





Separate stall for the WC...



Two way wardrobe that opens out into both the bathroom and the bedroom...



Overall, I thought this was an amazing room that I was very happy with.

[yflyer]

Continuing with the TR...

From Hanoi Airport, I caught a taxi to my hotel, the JW Marriott Hanoi.



This hotel has a stunning architecture, designed by American architect Carlos Zapata. The architecture is said to modelled after a dragon lying on the bank the lake next to the hotel. This hotel won the Best New Hotel Construction and Design in Asia-Pacific award at the 2014 International Property Awards.




This was the hotel former US President Barack Obama stayed at when he visited Hanoi in 2016, which was also the trip where he ate bun cha at a local restaurant with Anthony Bourdain.


JW Marriott properties are generally superb, but this one was probably one of the nicest I have stayed in. The customer focus and attention to detail where in evidence the moment I stepped out of my taxi. The staff member who opened the taxi door greeted me by name, as he had looked at the tag on my luggage as he was removing it from the taxi, and escorted me inside. What a nice touch.



The lobby of the hotel had views of the lake next to the hotel...



As a Marriott Platinum member, I was escorted to the Executive Lounge for check-in.



I sat down at the check in desk, and was presented with a cold towel, and an icy beverage, which really hit the spot as it as quite a hot day outside.



I was also presented with a card with a list of welcome amenities... after much debate, I decided on the points. I almost picked a glass of wine, until I realised that I could have all the wine I wanted in the Exec Lounge that evening.



"No, forget the wine, I'll take the points!" I told the young lady helping me with the checkin.

"That's the most popular choice!" she said with big smile.

[yflyer]

Thank you for sharing another trip report yflyer.

Thanks for reading, SQ218!

Did you try any of the dim sum? They sure look tasty.

I didn't have any that day, but I did try the dim sum and chwee kway at the new T3 Krisflyer Elite Gold lounge last month before my SFO trip, and all tasted really good! Will be covering that in a future TR, but here's a preview for you...

[SQ218]

Thank you for sharing another trip report yflyer.

Did you try any of the dim sum? They sure look tasty.

[yflyer]

Half an hour before arrival, the pilot came on the PA and announced the top of descent…



As I was in a centre aisle seat, I was content to watch the descent on the Thales Airshow map…





It was an uneventful landing, and on that morning, passengers lucked out as immigration queues were minimal. I was out of the terminal very quickly, and caught a taxi to the JW Marriott.

Overall, I thought this was a good flight, with state-of-the-art aircraft and cabin product, and a solid set of cabin crew.

As for SQ’s new short haul catering concept, I thought the dish itself was tasty and satisfying, but the presentation just felt very LCC-like and seemed a little incongruent compared to the excellence of SQ’s inflight experience in all other respects. It was the sort of meal I would expect on Scoot or Air Asia, not a premium airline like SQ, and definitely not for the price I paid for my ticket.

I would spend the next day or so in Hanoi, but what I was really looking forward to was my return flight in SQ’s new 737-8 business class.

To be continued!

[yflyer]

As there was poor weather over Singapore, the seatbelt sign remained on for a long time after take-off.

As soon as seatbelts signs were off, breakfast service began, starting from the front of the aircraft…



I chose the mee siam.

This was SQ’s new short haul economy class meal concept, served in environmentally friendly cardboard containers, with wooden cutlery…



When I first saw this, I was a little taken aback. This was a lot more basic looking than what they used to serve in Economy, even on short sectors. In the past we had a proper meal tray with metal cutlery. Now this. Wow. Perhaps this was environmentally friendly, but it sure looked cheap. We seemed to be moving into LCC territory here.

On the bright side, the mee siam itself was very tasty, with bouncy prawns and half a hardboiled egg.



The gravy was piping hot, and the prawns and rice vermicilli tasted quite delicious.



The box looked small, but was quite deep, so there was quite a lot in there, so no issues with quantity.

Coffee was served in a paper cup.



For a sense of the difference between an SQ Y meal today compared to breakfast on SQ176 SIN-HAN in Y in 2017, take a look at this post.

Times sure have changed…



This flight had the November Krisworld programmes loaded. Needless to say, SQ’s Krisworld was fantastic, with a huge selection of movies, TV and music.

I rewatched the movie “Nobody”, an excellent thriller which made for very satisfying viewing even the 2nd time round.



Cabin ambience on this flight was very good. Bright, airy cabin that felt open and spacious even though the flight was very full.

[yflyer]

Safety video with Vietnamese subtitles…



A smooth take-off on a wet morning…



A flight time of 2 hours 44 minutes to Hanoi today…



I turned on wifi and logged on to the 2 hour complimentary plan…



Paid plans were also available, but none really made sense for such a short flight.



You didn’t need to purchase a wifi plan to explore the inflight portal, to check out the menu etc.



Today’s breakfast menu…



Beverages and amenities…

[yflyer]

Here is the Y seat fully reclined…



No footrests, and no underseat obstructions…



Armrests can be raised by pushing button at the base of the armrest…



Large widescreen IFE touchscreen…



…with a single USB charging point…



A/C power…



Fold down tray table with cup holder…



Vanity mirror in the tray table…



Thales 3D Maps…



The contents of the seat pocket…



No printed menu…the menu would be viewable online…

[yflyer]

At the gate, 9V-SHO, the Airbus A350-900XWB that would be taking us to Hanoi this morning...



Here is a nice view of the distinctive “Mask of Zorro” cockpit windshield of the A350, with its black border…



The Virgin Atlantic website gives a good explanation of why the windshield looks the way it does. It turns out that the A350 is the first Airbus aircraft with curved windshield glass that helps with aerodynamics. And the black border? It apparently helps with the thermal condition of the window area, which is quite temperature sensitive.

On time boarding…



…with Y earphones by the door…



Inside, the J cabin, with lie-flat seats in staggered 1-2-1 layout…



…and then the Y cabin, in standard 3-3-3 layout, with the latest 2017 Y seats.



Bulkhead seats with screens attached to the bulkhead…



Very comfortable Y seating, with good width and recline…



Bathrooms with off-white countertops and dark wood cabinets…

[yflyer]

I made myself a bowl of laksa and slurped it down, standing at one of the high tables...



...and washed it down with another glass of Piper Heidseck...



As I left the lounge I also couldn't resist sampling a little of the Teusner "Reubke" Shiraz from the Barossa Valley...



Overall, I think this is a lounge that checks all the boxes in terms of facilities and F&B, but design-wise, it's clear that the lounge is quite dated, and was just quickly given a once over and re-opened, possibly as a stopgap measure to provide lounge facilities in T2 after re-opening. I hope SQ has a newer lounge in the works somewhere in T2. Positives for me were the catering, especially the local selections and the drink selection. Compared to the Asian dishes, I think the western breakfast spread looked a little uninspired. On the other hand, anyone looking for a local Singapore breakfast would be quite happy with the selection.

I left the lounge and headed for my gate, F58 which was at the other end of T2...



Given that only the F gates have re-opened, it is pretty much guaranteed that anyone who uses the T2 SilverKris Lounge, at the far end of the E section of the terminal, is in for a long walk to their gates in the F section of the terminal.



Must be some sort of tie up between SIA and Singapore's Health Promotion Board...many travellers on SQ will be getting a lot of exercise in the new T2 :-)

[yflyer]

There were showers in the lounge...

[yflyer]

There were some very substantial breakfast options available, with an emphasis on local / Asian flavours, although international / western palates were also catered for.

Some very tasty looking dim sum...



Char siew bao and lor mai kai...



Pretty decent looking Chwee kway as well...



South Asian selections included South Asian Peas Upma and Sambar...



As well as vadai, with coconut chutney, onion pakoras, and aloo bonda, along with Western style hash browns and croissants...



Salads and yogurt...



Cut fresh fruit and sandwiches...



A highlight was the laksa, in self service format, rather than prepared by counter staff...



You chose your ingredients...



Then ladled in the fragrant, spicy and lemak laksa broth...



There was also fish congee...



Western style bread pudding...



...and pancakes...

[yflyer]

The crowd in the dining area ebbed and flowed, sometimes busy, some times less so. At one point there was a queue for coffee...



A decent liquor selection, with Tiger Beer available on tap and a nice Teusner red wine...



Soft drinks, juices, and 0.0% beer available in the fridge...



2 white wines...



It was a little early to indulge in a cocktail...



...but as good a time as any for a glass of Piper Heidseck Champagne...



I savoured my morning bubbly before heading over to check out the food selections...

[yflyer]

The dining area was also unchanged from before...



At least in this part of the lounge, the design has, I think, withstood the test of time, and still looked quite attractive and modern (Which is more than I could say for the main seating area...).



Dining tables for 2...



A pretty decent buffet spread...



...with two large self service islands laid out with both Western and Asian hot food selections...

[yflyer]

The Changi T2 SilverKris Lounge looks to have undergone only very minor renovations since the lounge reopened in October 2022.



Inside, apart from possibly new furniture and carpeting, the lounge looked quite similar to what it was before.



The main seating area...



This looked quite similar to the old seating arrangements and design of the old lounge.



The lounge was also quite packed...