Tom Having booked our SQ first class tickets a year in advance, it was finally time to experience the SilverKris Private Room and SQ first class cabins aboard the newly revamped 777-300ER! To learn about how we accumulate enough miles for this flight, check out our post on the How to accumulate Krisflyer Miles for SQ First Class Tickets.
The SQ First Class Check-In Reception
As boarded our Uber ride, we informed our driver to head towards Changi Airport Terminal 3. However, we were unsure exactly how to get to the SQ First Class Check-In Reception. As we drew closer to Terminal 3 Departure drop-off, we told the driver to look out for a “SQ First Class” sign – to which he replied that he had not seen one before. Towards the departure gates, the driver told us that there’s no other turn heading up the slope. However, JUST BEFORE the departure gates, there’s indeed a left turn with a sign that says “SQ First Class”! We followed the sign and arrived at the SQ First Class Check-In Reception…
As you can see from the picture above, the staff from Singapore Airlines rushed out as our car drew up at the driveway of the SQ First Class Check-In. We actually arrived 10 hours earlier to enjoy both lunch and dinner at the Private Room before our midnight departure. This was why this conversation took place
SQ Staff: Hi Mdm, welcome! Can I check where will you be heading to today?
Kate: Tokyo
SQ Staff: Haneda?
Kate: No, Narita.
SQ Staff: *Awkward silence for a while* Let me assist you with the check-in! 🙂
We arrived at approximately 1pm and there was an afternoon departure to Tokyo…so they definitely didn’t expect first class passengers to come so early for their flight! 😛
There were about 5 staffs at the SQ First Class Check-In Reception and there were no other first class passengers – we were the only passengers checking in! The check-in process was smooth and it took less than 5 minutes before we were issued our first class tickets and golden invitation to the exclusive Private Room…
There was also a separate immigration for the first class passengers. 2 counters with just 1 staff during our check-in. Again, it was seamless. We followed the signs and just a few steps after immigration, we were immediately inside the transit area, with the SilverKris Lounge directly in front of us!
The Private Room for Singapore Airlines First Class Passengers
There are actually three lounges inside the SIA SilverKris Lounge. Upon entering, you’ll see a sign that points left for Business Class and right for First Class. However, that is not all. In fact, the First Class Lounge in SIA SilverKris Lounge is meant for all first class passengers, including that of the Star Alliance partners. Within the First Class lounge is where the exclusive Private Room lies. Access to the Private Room is only given to SQ First Class passengers departing from Changi Airport…
As we approached the entrance of SilverKris Lounge, we were quickly verified and led by a staff all the way past the first class lounge, into the Private Room…
After we had taken our seats, another staff showed us the Private Room Menu and asked if we wanted to start off with some champagne – Of course we did!
The champagne was Piper Heidsieck Millesime 2002 Rare which retails at $180 SGD a bottle. Talk about luxury for first class passengers. Another thing we noticed about the ambience within the Private Room was that it was quiet. Extremely quiet. No light background tunes. Just silence. We mostly whispered when we communicated with each other, even during meal times.
The staff who brought us into the Private Room actually wanted to retain our Private Room tickets. But we requested to have them back to be kept as a memento (not exactly sure when we’ll be able to do this again). When we were handed back the Private Room invitations, there was a note that says “Green Top” – to which the staff apologized – to which Tom made fun of Kate for the rest of the trip as “Green Top” as she was wearing a mint green shirt that day. 😛
Soon, it was time for the serious stuff…checking out all the items on the Private Room Menu!
We informed the staff of our selection who in turn came back and led us to the dining area once the meal was ready…
As you may know by now, the Private Room is no ordinary lounge. Meals here are akin to fine dining. We were actually looking forward to having lobsters for lunch at the Private Room. However, you may wish to note that lobsters are actually not available for lunch. Nonetheless, we were still wowed by the extensive selection of food, drinks and desserts at the Private Room of Singapore Airlines. This time, we started with local chef station selection of Tahu Goreng and Assorted Satay…
Both of which were good but the Tahu Goreng was exceptional. Definitely a must-try. Next was the mains. We went for the US Prime Beef Burger as well as the Chirashizushi…
Both were good but definitely not as good as their Japan and US counterparts. Nonetheless, a satisfying meal. We ended the meal with Vanilla and Strawberry Cheesecake ice cream. They were simply Haagen Dazs ice cream but man, were they so beautifully presented!
We ended the meal with Sakura Sakura and Napolean TWG tea and its off to shopping in the transit mall! There, we checked out the price for cosmetics and beauty products that we would be buying in Japan. After 2 hours, we were back in the SilverKris Lounge. This time, we checked out the Business Lounge and the First Class Lounge…
SilverKris Business Lounge
SilverKris First Class Lounge
As we came back close to dinner time, the SilverKris First Class Lounge served some selection that was similar to that in the Private Room. The only difference is that it’s not plated but served over a buffet spread. Drinks wise, they were similar to the Private Room. Piper Heidsieck 2002 Millesime Rare and Macallan Whiskey Maker’s Edition are both close to $200 SGD per bottle! There was also a self tapping beer dispensing system for Tiger beer fans 😉
After checking out the Business and First Class Lounge of SilverKris, we headed back to the Private Room in hopes of having the lobster for dinner. We were also pleasantly surprised with…
Krug champagne was served for dinner in the Private Room of SQ First Class Lounge! Coupled with the Wok Fried Lobster with Braised Wanton Noodles…Perfection!
Before boarding for our SQ First Class flight to Narita, we took a quick shower to freshen ourselves. The shower had towel and bathing amenities within, complete with body shower jets! The only thing noticeably missing from the Private Room and SilverKris Lounge was a resting/sleeping chair – though there’s a quiet room inside the Private Room that is meant for making phone calls but could possibly be used to snooze a little.
Singapore Airlines: The SQ First Class Experience
Before being able to book this pair of SQ First Class tickets to Tokyo Narita, we’d never imagined that we would be the first few passengers to board a plane! In fact, we were the second and third passengers respectively. The first passenger turned out to be a regular first class traveller – she didn’t even eat or drink anything throughout the entire flight. She just went straight to bed! Of course in first class, that would be a literal bed…
As we scanned our first class tickets and walked towards the first class / business class door entry, it felt exclusive. Soon we were greeted by the signature smiles of the SQ First Class Crew who showed us to our seats. The first order of the day, Dom Perignon Champagne with new found friends!
Our air stewardess were really attentive. They were also very tactful. To confirm that we were newbies for the first class flight, she asked
“Is this your first time…on this aircraft?”
Through our immediate replies upon hearing “first time”, she knew we were first timers and proceeded to introduce us to all the nifty gadgets of the SQ first class seats…
First of all, the seats were huge! It was sooooo unreal! In the upright position, we were able to fully stretch out our legs with ample room beneath our legs to put our cabin luggage. By the way, there’s no overhead storage in first class. This removes the need to “struggle” with storing and retrieving bulky items overhead. All you need to do is just place it beneath the ample space beneath your seat. The leather seats were also unbelievably comfortable. Did we mention the ample space that you’ll have?
We were introduced to the nifty gadgets and compartments all around the seat. There were various amenities such as Bose noise cancelling headphones (not earphones), which worked superbly – once you put them on, you’ll hear only the movie you’re watching. We had to remove the headphones to interact with the air stewardess. And we digress…back to amenities…sleeping pyjamas were provided along with Salvatore Ferragamo amenity kit for him and for her. Electrical socket and usb charging points, night lights and of course the SQ in-flight entertainment suite – all 24 inch of it for the best in-flight experience! Most importantly, we were pointed to the call button. We were told that if we were in need of anything at all, just press the button and we will be promptly assisted… SO UNREAL! In economy we’ll probably be told not to anyhow press…
The service of the SQ First Class crew was simply top notch. We were provided with choices of newspapers and magazines, served drinks, provided with comfortable sleeping pyjamas, promptly assisted when the call button was pressed (we did it only once as we were about to land – definitely no abuse here). In fact, the service was so impeccable that plastic wrappers were removed from our hands (as we took out the amenities) not once, not twice but three times! By then we were so embarrassed about passing them plastic wrappers already! Just let us stuff them into the seat pockets like we usually do already…
Of course the best part of the flight – the Book The Cook Menu!
Enjoying lobster with champagne in mid-air? Definitely an unforgettable experience. To top it off, we were introduced by the first class team to bottles of wine (both red and white) where we were shown the bottle, opened in front of us and given a taste before pouring – just like that of a fine dining restaurant , except that it’s an experience at 30,000 feet…
For a quick comparison between Dom Perignon and Krug served aboard the SQ First Class flights, we had a slight inclination for Krug. Both were bubbly, sophisticated and delish. But Krug stood out for us.
After finishing our movie – Despicable Me 3, it was time for us to turn it. We headed to the bathroom, which by the way was two toilets shared only by the eight of us, changed into our incredibly comfortable pyjamas while the first class team converted our seats into a single flat bed! The cool thing was that we didn’t have to stand around and wait for the conversion to be done. Because of their experience in converting, when we arrived back from the toilet, it was already done. Perfect timing! Of course, in the future when all the A380s roll out the new SQ suites, no conversion will be required…Please roll them out on all A380 flights soon! We can’t wait to experience the new “hotel room in the sky”!
Again, it was definitely the most comfortable in-flight sleep we’ve ever had. No wonder the lady next to us headed to dream land straightaway. The blanket was thick, padded and comfortable. We floated into dream land almost immediately. Just before we turned in, we were asked about breakfast options – whether we wanted to be woken up or to sleep all the way till arrival. We requested for breakfast and we were told that we would be woken up about 1.5 hours before landing. At about 5:30am in the morning, we were ever so gently woken up for our in-flight breakfast. Again, with all the frills of laying the table, salt and pepper, chopsticks and Jamaican blue mountain coffee!
The bak chor mee was actually very good. Definitely a pleasant surprise. With the perk of the Jamaican Blue Coffee, we were ready to explore Japan.
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Thank you Singapore Airlines for pampering us from the exclusive Private Room access to the impeccable in-flight service aboard the SQ First Class Flight. It was simply perfect and a dream come true. Kudos to Singapore Airlines and the First Class Service Team!
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