It is so lovely to be back in the air within 24 hours again. Transiting at Singapore Changi Airport is such a vibe. I just flew in from Bali before this flight. It will be the start of my latest trip series where I will undertake a Southern Tour of China! I will be flying to Shanghai and then exploring Suzhou and Hangzhou as well. This is the classic tour itinerary for this part of the world. As mentioned, I issued this ticket as part of a DPS – SIN – PVG ticket and paid 43,000 miles for it. Funnily, the taxes are even cheaper than a direct Shanghai ticket. This flight would have cost around 2.9K SGD if paid in cash. We will be in Shanghai to celebrate my mum’s birthday! This is one of the main remaining destinations that I would like to visit in China. 2024 is so China-heavy for me! I visited a total of 6 cities. It is sure nice checking it off my bucket list. I will not be doing an in-depth review of the hard product onboard the 350 LH anymore. It is my favourite product. I have reviewed it tons of times. The 350 LH is my go-to when in Business Class currently. You can find a link to my old reviews here. Here is also my collection of SQ premium cabin reviews. 

Checking In

I have already checked in the day prior in Bali. I got back again to the airport in the morning at around 5am to check-in. We checked in at Terminal 3 which was rather smooth in the morning. The weather was horrendous and it was raining so heavily in Singapore. We used the dedicated business class counters, it was still very empty and quiet at this hour. Check-in was polished but I had a very weird visa verification issue when entering the transit area. This seems to be a bug as Singaporeans do not need any Visa to enter China. We went for a bite at SKL before heading over to the gate. 

Boarding Process

Boarding is assigned for 6.50am. We sadly got one of the far gates at Terminal 1. C20 was quite a trek from the SilverKris Lounge. Security is at the individual gate so you need to cater some time for that too. I wish that SQ could improve on having security priority lines for premium cabins and status holders. This is easily doable. Boarding started way earlier and ahead of time. I was warmly welcomed by the IFM May and Miki who was working my aisle. I can immediately tell that this will be a spectacular set of crew with their warm personality and all. I was helped with my bags and jacket. 

I will be seated on 11D, one of the middle bulkhead seats. It might not be the window seat that I wanted but this is worth it for the extra space. This is worth it especially when fully flat. While on the ground, Miki came by to take my meal orders and reconfirm my BTC selection. The crew soon came by with a welcome drink. There was a choice of various juices. I went with a glass of champagne. Hot towel service was also offered. The IFM May also drop by to personally welcome me and to introduce herself. This is outstanding! I do have to say that it is very rare for non-pps! There seems to be a new headphones onboard too.

We spent quite some time on the ground. I really love the exclusivity in the first cabin. The rest of the plane boards via the second door. Ground service will be impeccable here. On the 350, business class is also the highest cabin. The aircraft doors were closed at 7:15 a.m., and we pushed back shortly after. We were wheels off at 7:50 a.m. after a pretty lengthy taxi! 

Singapore Airlines A350 Business Class

I shall not dwell too much on the hardware and the seats since I have reviewed this product countless times. You can find some of my recent reviews of this cabin here and here. I will include some pictures of my seats here. The bulkhead seats are amazing and the best onboard. These are as good as or superior to some First Class out there.

Meal Service

Probably due to the weather, we had a very long climb and it got rather shaky before the seat belt sign was turned off. I am pretty curious to see how the breakfast service will be given that it is a mid-haul flight. They better not take the easy way out and do it via the tray. Shanghai is also one of the more premium routes in the network. From my understanding, it is a 4-hour cut-off for tray service. Both Miki and Mira who were working my aisle were excellent. You can find the menu for the flight here. SQ recently added a rosé wine to their wine menu but it self cannibalises a red wine option. The meal service starts about an hour after take off. 

The breakfast service was lacklustre. I wasn’t keen on the options. Thankfully there is Book The Cook. The crew still did the service via trays. I can’t understand why they would do so even when there are like 5 hours. Come on! This is very disappointing to be very honest, Singapore Airlines has been taking shortcuts by using a tray service. Qatar could do a 3-course meal with drinks in 1.5hr to landing! We started with a fruit plate. The pomelo, grapes and melons were tasty. I went with some croissant which was nicely heated! I had some orange juice, as well as a glass of the bubbles which the crew just brought out a glass straight from the galley. 

I was offered some muesli or yoghurt. We hit some turbulence and service was suspended. Once things got started again, I was served my meal. I pre-ordered the Lobster Thermidor from the Book The Cook menu. This is a SQ classic dish. It has been quite some time since I had it. I also figure that it will be nice to have some Western dishes ahead of the next two weeks in China. 

Service ended when we were 2.5 hours out from Shanghai and flying over the coast of Guangzhou. I had a little rest in bed before we got to prep for landing.  

Conclusion

The flight ended up feeling a little shorter than expected. Miki and the rest of the crew were excellent. The IFM usually sets the tone and she was a gem too. My main quirks for this flight would be the SOP. The meal service and options feel so underwhelming. Given that we are landing in the afternoon, perhaps a lunch service served closer to the landing will be more appropriate. Full proper table service should be the SOP here. Having the long-haul seats for this flight is a delight. It is a very comfortable way to get to Shanghai. We had a slightly late arrival. I wish that SQ service style could go back to the good old days.