Capsules and Pods: NRT to MEL in SQ's Newest F

[SQueeze]

This trip report covers a continuous hop on SQ's newest First Class from Narita to Melbourne via Singapore over Chinese New Year. It's part of a larger long weekend trip to Sapporo over the Snow Festival period which I would also be sharing briefly here. To spice up the mix, I will also be writing on a uniquely Japanese experience of an overnight transit stay in Narita's capsule hotel

Part 1 (9hrs Capsule Hotel)

The return journey from our Hokkaido trip started in Sapporo naturally but since it was on a regular Jetstar flight on a boring regular A320 I skip that little bit and fast forward to Narita's new Terminal 3 a.k.a it's Budget terminal which is mainly used by Jetstar, Vanilla, and Spring.

I have to say it's a really well-designed pleasing terminal considering the bare Low Budget furnishings they put here. The blue tracks on arrival efficiently guide passengers throughout the terminal.





It went on further to Terminal 2 which is quite some 15 minutes walk away under a covered passage.





Not just capsule hotel, pet hotel is also available in Narita. Actually both are quite similar, aren't they?




Narita's capsule hotel is branded 9h, and it's located in the basement of a parking building. Yes, there is no need for daylight at all.





Here's the entrance to the hotel






There is a simple almost-sterile reception area where check-in was quick and very efficient.






And then a bag of amenities consisting of slippers, pyjamas (yes), towels and toiletries was handed out.






Lots of rules.






And lots of instruction.






First, it's to the locker room. Extremely sterile.






Where we changed to the pyjamas provided. Beginning to look like an inmate? Imagine everyone there was wearing the same. And the hotel was doing well, there were at least 50 of us there in these robes.

[SQueeze]

Slippers were provided as well.






Confronting next is more rules!






The next room after the locker room is the toilet area with a long continuous washbasin. Again imagine 7 people in grey robes brushing teeth at the same time. Hotel guests or inmates?






The next room after the toilet area is the shower area. Ok. At least it's in private compartments and not open shower ...








And then onto the most interesting room - the dark spaceship-like sleeping room where all the pods are located. This is only half the length ....






It's quite a surreal experience in this space of complete uniformity and anonymity.






My pod is on the upper deck. And contrary to what I initially thought, the pods are not glassed over for privacy. They are completely open and for privacy, one only has a retractable fabric blind.






Setting up my cozy corner.






There is some space for phones but no charging point.






This is control centre for lights and ambient music. Yes, they have a hypnotic sounds of waves in the pods. They are supposed to induce you into sleep.





It's all comfortable, with the exception that the temperature is way too hot for my liking, and I think reading reviews on TripAdvisor reflects the same opinions. I feel it definitely was more than 24 degrees. Way too much because I generally sleep below 20... Nonetheless, I was quite tired and I slept after awhile (but shirtless )

[SQueeze]

Part 2

Flight: SQ638
Reg: 9V-SNA
Type: 777-300ER
Seat: 2C
Class: First
Load: 4/8


I have been looking forward to try out SQ's Newest F since its launch in 2013 and finally today was the chance. Actually technically 2nd, because I also flew into Narita in this same product but not reporting on that overnight flight.

The First Class experience started at a dedicated check-in counter which is not of anything special to report about other than the agents were very courteous.






And then passed through security screening area which is probably one of the best-sited in the world. It has a full wide vista towards airside.









Spotted our SQ bird which was going to fly us home.





And a gaudily-coloured Air China 737.






After that it was then a Long walk towards the end of the pier which SQ uses typically.





As First Class pax, we were entitled to use ANA's First Lounge.





We have been here before but it seems slightly different so perhaps it was renovated. We were last here in 2010 during the heyday of 747s.





Quite a good range of food from the buffet.





And also cook-to-order dishes.






Satisfied with breakfast, we headed to the plane early.


Definitely missing the sight of a grand 747 at this spot....

[SQueeze]

Ah, the window seat.






And the couple seats.






Beautiful leather work.






And beautiful pillows as well. All nicely detailed and yes, it rivals Etihad although I think EY still has a slight edge in stylishness.






There is improvement of privacy compared to the previous F version, but there is no feel of major upgrade. I had no problems with the previous version either.





Screen is wide and perfectly-sized. With mirror compartment at the side.





Luggage space is plentiful but little exposed compared to Etihad's Apartment's way of compartmenting but that is a completely different product as it is the true 'beyond first'





These little details are good improvements. Sliding compartments for IFE which can get irritating because they easily get pressed accidentally when placed at the side uncovered.








And also a compartment for phones which has USB charging point inside so cables don't get entangled all over the place.





There are also more charging points at the table side.






Overall impression is positive but there is no surprise or excitement. It was good but not spectacular.

[SQueeze]

Next is the service, which is one of the quintessentially SQ's ever high standards. The crew was fun and engaging and motivated on this sector. And building up on the thread about the increasing number of female IFS, this flight had a she as the IFS.

Service started with my usual choice of Krug.





And then satay service (but forgot the pics!)

And then Mt Fuji, close and personal.






The menu had a Kaiseki selection and we skipped the rest and just zoomed into it. And WOW, it was one of the best ever. Just as a comment, on the outbound overnight flight, we also ordered the Kaiseki from the menu and it was really terrible to the point I could say it was probably one of the worst meals onboard ever. But ex-NRT, Kaiseki is a heavenly must-have.

The parade of dishes was all gorgeously presented with such a high standard of refinement. I let the pictures speak for themselves.

First tray.






From left to right: cod milt curd (ahemm, yes, this is sperm sac and yes apparently it's in season), squid jelly, yellowtail fillet with fish roe.






The rarity ... cod sperm whipped into curd.






Distraction: we did try the Un-curded version at Sapporo airport and that was quite challenging after visual inspection. But it tasted good though texturally very unusual and took time to get used to.






As part of the first tray, inside the stone bowl
From left to right: salmon rolled in a turnip, prawn wrapped in cucumber, and snapper inside a carrot. Quite dramatic layering.






Next was the udon course which was texturally perfect.






Which was paired with a crab sushi, marinated chrysanthemum leaves and flowers. Again, delicious.






Meanwhile ordered a cold sake which came gorgeously like this. What lovable sight.






Next was the kurobuta pork belly course which was soft, rich and comfortingly warm after the earlier clean lean and cold courses. It was on a bed of puréed beetroot drenched in black vinegar sauce. So this course was sweet, sour, and richly so.






After the clean lean and cold and then the dramatic soft, rich and sweet, Chef Yoshihiro now brought us to the next course which was more neutral to begin towards the ending of the meal.

[SQueeze]

The final tray with fried rice, soup, chicken, and fish.






Grilled chicken in teriyaki sauce. This was the weakest part as the chicken came lukewarm and with skin on and I don't like this combination texturally. But the presentation was stunning - the maple leaf (why? when it was then winter) and the gold leaf.






The mackerel confit with yuzu dressing and vinegar end lotus root, on the other hand, was perfect. And it was also the most gorgeous visually throughout the meal. What a climatic highlight here. Look at that single slice of Chilli and the speck of gold. Truly first class in presentation.





Ending the meal was soy ice cream on wine jelly which was gently sweet and what a wonderful end to a most wonderful meal. I would say this was the best most impressive meal onboard I ever had.





Thank you Chef for the journey of the palate. This was truly unforgettable.



After the meal, time to rest. Bed was set up. Note that on row 2, no protrusion for the leg space of the person behind. In my next sector to MEL, I tried row 1 and there was a slight protrusion still.





While I checked out the toilet which was stylish. Made you feel like a star.






Some nice convenient detail to hang unused headphones.






And the whole cabin was darkened and the ambient lighting was gorgeous throughout the space and all the little details.
















Ah, this compartment is handy too. But not deep enough for my SLR although the lens could fit.






The remainder of the journey was fairly uneventful until we touched down in Singapore.

[SQueeze]

Part 3

Flight: SQ227
Reg: 9V-SNA
Type: 777-300ER
Seat: 1A
Class: First
Load: 6/8


After a relaxing 3 hours at the Private Room, time to go for the next sector: SIN-MEL.

It's exactly the same plane I had flown into so less pics here.

I was then seated at 1A. And the only difference of notice is the size of the side compartment which is much deeper than at row 2. My whole SLR could go all in there now.






And the protrusion to the side when the bed goes full flat.






Service started with champagne (Dom this time) with warm nuts.






And then the parade of dinner dishes come. It's Chinese New Year day 1 and over the period, SQ offers a special Chinese New Year menu.

I started with caviar and a shot of chilled vodka. For appetiser, no CNY special menu. Either this or the lobster salad.






For soup, I had the "Bountiful Harvest Soup to Welcome the Lunar New Year" - yes, they literally wrote this in the menu. What silly name I thought. Bountiful Harvest Soup is a good enough name without the silly additions. This is a double-boiled soup with ginseng, kampong chicken, Fai Choi and dried oyster. For those unfamiliar, kampong chicken is organic farm-raised chicken. Fai Choi is a type of Chinese fungus that looks like hair ....






There is no choice for salad course other than "Fa Cai Yu Sheng" - my second for today (the first one at Private Room). This is a malaysian / singaporean Chinese tradition to toss the salad high and wild with wishes for the new year but I didn't want to mess up my table. The servers also traditionally loudly shout out wishes while putting the dish together. But here, no, the packets of seasonings were placed separately and I did it myself. Well, yea, it was not quite an authentic Yu Sheng experience onboard.







For my main, was a dish called "Nian Nian You Yu" - steamed Chilean seabass with Chili garlic sauce, fish maw, kailan, carrot, snow fungus, egg noodles with conpoy. This was just ok. I wish it had more sauce.






For desert, I had the warm almond soup with hasma and glutinous rice ball. Ok, vegetarians, beware. Chinese deserts may not be suitable. Hasma is a delicacy that is frog's fatty tissues that surround its reproductive organ. Yes. That's hasma. I hope I didn't shock anyone too much. I personally like it because it is extremely smooth.






The end of the service was concluded with pralines and since its Chinese New Year, we also had pineapple tarts!






After the meal, I slept pretty well on the new bed.

Overall, this was a fine flight but not as polished as the first sector from Narita.

Thank you for reading.

[SQueeze]

For those interested in Hokkaido, the following sums it up.

Our vacation started with an overfly over the frozen farmlands of Hokkaido.






The first night was spent at a ryokan in Jozankei, just outside Sapporo which is an onsen town. It's as frozen as it looks.









But the interiors are warm and cozy.






Part of an onsen experience is dressing up Japanese.





And walking around in these sandals.





Onsen time





You have to bathe first





And then dip in the variety of pools - indoors and outdoors











Kaiseki Dinner was part of the package and wow it was sumptuously delicious with a parade of 17 courses!

[SQueeze]

The next afternoon, we headed to Sapporo where the famous snow festival was way under way.

Giant sculptures had been carved over the entire 3-km stretch of Odori Park.





To me, the most stunning one is this one from Macau. Looks almost like a full-size replica.





They range in a variety of sizes. Many of them very cartoony.











The entire area was also peppered with lots of F&B like a fairground.








Night time is especially spectacular.

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Night time is also the best time to eat hot ramen. This is black ramen in a nondescript shop in a nondescript building on a nondescript road. It was really really delicious. Some of the best I had ever tasted.








As a fan of cold weather, I was really in joy with so much snow falling every few hours. It's been awhile since I had seen this much snow and the flakes here are bigger, slower than elsewhere I had seen making it a magical experience.











One of the days, we also headed out to Otaru, an hour train ride away.

Unlike Sapporo with its typical big Japanese city feel, Otaru has the charm of a small old town.











It's also lit up in the evening with ice lanterns. Unfortunately it was too crowded and my partner refused to see the lanterns close up. But from what I see online, they are magical. Don't miss it of you are in the Neighbourhood.











And that sums up our Hokkaido experience. Thank you for reading

[yflyer]

What a brilliant TR, SQueeze! I really enjoyed reading this. Great photos...

[Pinkfloyd]

Fantastic TR! Thanks for sharing!

[icn.sg]

Very nice TR, SQueeze. The capsule hotel looks certainly like a good option if you have a long connecting flight. What are the rates? Are the capsules sound proof against snoring neighbors?

[CarbonMan]

Thank you, SQueeze, for a very comprehensive TR!

[HUGE AL]

Nice TR. Enjoyed the Winter Festival pics!

We have been here before but it seems slightly different so perhaps it was renovated.

Definitely renovated and many more food offerings. You didn't ask for the famous ice cream?