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If you want to fly Singapore Suites, your best chance to do it may be on flights within Asia Pacific.
I know, I know, you live in the United States. But these flights can be very convenient and cheap as part of a trip to East Asia, Australia, and/or New Zealand.
You can fly the 6.5 hours from Beijing to Singapore in Suites Class for 42.5k Singapore miles and $131 or the 10.5 hours from Auckland to Singapore in Suites Class for 64k points and $160.
Singapore Suites is inarguably one of the top five First Classes in the world. Some people even consider Suites Class to be the nicest First Class in the world because of the available double bed that two people can share (or one person can get to himself if the flight isn’t totally full.)
Here is my experience flying Singapore First Class on a 777-300ER. Suites Class is a fancier product available on Singapore’s A380s.
You Can Only Book Singapore Suites Class with Singapore KrisFlyer Miles
Singapore only releases award space in longhaul First and Suites Class to its own KrisFlyer program. You need Singapore miles if you want to book a double bed in the sky. Luckily Singapore miles are extremely easy to get because every transferable points program transfers 1:1 to Singapore miles.
- Citi ThankYou Points
- Chase Ultimate Rewards
- American Express Membership Rewards
Routes within Asia Pacific with Great Award Space
The three routes that offer a lot of award space in Suites Class, a low price, and a decent amount of in-air time are Beijing, Auckland, and Sydney to Singapore.
Prices
Singapore awards include taxes and fuel surcharges. The required mileage is rarely a round number because there is an automatic 15% discount when booking online. These are the all in prices:
- Beijing to Singapore: 42,500 KrisFlyer miles + $132 (6:30 flying daytime)
- Singapore to Beijing: 42,500 KrisFlyer miles + $161 (6:05 flying daytime)
- Auckland to Singapore: 63,750 KrisFlyer miles + $160 (10:35 flying daytime)
- Singapore to Auckland: 63,750 KrisFlyer miles + $184 (9:55 flying redeye)
- Sydney to Singapore: 63,750 KrisFlyer miles + $221 (8:20 flying daytime)
- Singapore to Sydney: 63,750 KrisFlyer miles + $181 (8:00 flying redeye)
To me, the best value is Auckland to Singapore. You get the most time in the air and all during the daytime, so you can maximize your enjoyment of the service while perhaps taking a short nap.
I also priced out these connecting itineraries:
- Auckland to Beijing: 78,625 KrisFlyer miles + $301 (16:40 flying, overnight in Singapore)
- Beijing to Auckland: 78,625 KrisFlyer miles + $296 (16:35 flying, 21:30 layover in Singapore)
Those are great mileage prices, though a little expensive on taxes and fuel surcharges. I would find the layover from Auckland to Beijing (7:05 PM to 8:45 AM) a bit annoying, but the layover from Beijing to Auckland (11:20 PM to 8:50 PM) is perfect for a full day of exploring the city.
Award Space
Auckland <-> Singapore award space is excellent in Suites Class this week and in November and December 2016. Award space is almost non-existent next month.
Since the times with award space are the best times to go to New Zealand, I infer that award space is best on this route at the last minute and 10-12 months in advance (you can book Singapore awards 355 days out). Many days with award space have two award seats in Suites Class (double bed!)
Beijing <-> Singapore award space is great for two passengers for most of the next 11.5 months. This route has the best award space in Suites Class of any route I have searched.
Sydney <-> Singapore award space is best in November and December 2016, so book it in advance.
To book more than one segment in Suites Class, each segment needs to have award space, so check times when both routes have award space like December 2016 for Auckland to Beijing.
Big Trip
If you’re reading this, you are probably an American, meaning that the value in great flights between Auckland and Singapore might not be immediately apparent.
These flights are valuable as part of a big trip like your home airport to Auckland with American Airlines miles in AA economy, Auckland to Singapore in Singapore Suites, and Singapore to your home airport in Cathay Pacific First Class.
That’s an amazing trip that would cost 105,000 American Airlines miles (at least until the AA devaluation), 64,000 ThankYou Points (transferred to Singapore miles), and about $200 in taxes and fuel surcharges.
Better yet, take a round-the-world trip with a leg in Singapore Suites and the rest of the legs picked from my nearly comprehensive list of under-priced awards.
Bottom Line
There are three Asia-Pacific routes that offer a lot of award space in Singapore Suites Class, a low price, and a decent amount of in-air time: Beijing, Auckland, and Sydney to Singapore.
Book them as part of a big or RTW trip with Singapore miles that you get from ThankYou Points.
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Excellent post! Evernote-d for posterity. Love your posts like this!
How far out can you book awards on Singapore? We’re planning a 1st class dream trip from Los Angeles to the Maldives, onto Dubai and back to Los Angeles for 2017. I want to try the Singapore suites double bed and take a shower at 30000 feet. I’ve been challenged to find flights from LA to Maldives. Singapore seems to offer LA to Singapore through Tokyo. I tried calling Singapore Airlines and seemed to get someone that knew less than I did. Will I have to book 2 different trips to get from LA to Singapore and then Singapore to Maldives?
We’ll try to do Emirates from Maldives to Dubai and onto LA and that seems findable. Only part I don’t know on that one is whether we can do a few stay over in Dubai on the one ticket. Any feedback would be appreciated. I have the miles to do this as long as I can get “saver” seats.
You can book LAX-MLE on singaporeair.com as one award in Business Class for 76.5k + $392. SIN-MLE only has Business, so you can’t book LAX-MLE in Suites online. You’d have to book LAX-SIN in Suites and SIN-MLE in Business separately, which would be a lot of miles.
“To book more than one segment in Suites Class, each segment needs to have award space, so check times when both routes have award space like December 2016 for Auckland to Beijing.”
My (admittedly limited) experience has not been this way – I was able to book JFK-SIN-SYD in suites at saver level, even though JFK-SIN was not available at saver. Don’t know if it was a fluke, but figured I’d mention it just in case it helps someone.
Paul, the Singapore calendar right now allows award bookings through 1/12/17.
OK, they might have some “married segment” logic going on that makes my sentence incorrect. Thanks for the info.
With Scott’s example Beijing to Singapore you could add first class on a 777 with older first class to Jakarta for the same miles and ~$60 USD extra in fees. You could do Bali instead for the same miles but there is no first. I assume taxes would be a bit cheaper. I just booked for early January 2017.
Actually it looks like first on the 777 has been refreshed so that’s two nice first class products for the price of one + $60 as well as access to the Private Room.
Nice! Enjoy the trip.
@scott I was also looking at BOM-SIN award. Preety wide open. Jus hate the taxes n fuel surcharge.
I hope thats a daytime flight
[…] Great Singapore Suites Award Space on These Three Routes […]
[…] Saver is the cheapest, around one-fifth to one-eighth of the price of Full. Saver is also the least likely level to have award space available, though there are some routes and times of year when Saver space in Singapore Suites Class is a gimme…. […]
With your example of Beijing to Auckland, would you be able to call after booking to add a stopover at Singapore with $100 cost? Thanks.
I think you should do it while booking by phone, and you should still be able to get the 15% discount.
[…] in two segments of Singapore Suites Class with 78,625 Singapore miles […]
Hi Scott, thanks for a great article! Am planning on using my Chase Sapphire Reserve sign up bonus to book 2 SQ Suites for the end of the year. I just wanted to ask a few more questions about the AKL-SIN route which you believe represents the best value. Do they have Book The Cook on this route (is the signature Lobster Thermidor on the menu)? Caviar? Is it possible to get any shut-eye, seeing as it’s a 90% daytime flight? Would you consider the flight going the opposite direction (although shorter) perhaps more “tricked” out since you’re originating out of SQ’s headquarters on an 8.50pm flight which I assume means a full dinner, as well as breakfast, service?
Book the Cook is not available out of Auckland: https://www.singaporeair.com/en_UK/us/flying-withus/dining/book-the-cook/
I don’t know whether you can sleep during a day time flight; I don’t know whether you want to sleep in Singapore Suites or stay awake to enjoy it all.
If sleep and Book the Cook are important, book SIN-AKL.
Hey Scott, thanks for the reply. I’d rather just enjoy the Suites experience as much as possible than sleep. And I expect it’s a rather pretty daytime flight? BtC is pretty hit and miss, in my experience, so also not sure if that’s enough to base the decision on. I guess my final question is if you found the overall ground experience and catering out of AKL to be up to the standards of SIN. Thanks!