Revisit Singapore Part 1: Fly to Singapore with ScootBiz

[Introduction]

I traveled to Singapore in late June for the first time in two years. In addition to famous tourist areas, I went around spots I have never been to before this time. While I have lived in Singapore for a year and half before, I find something new whenever I revisit Singapore. In this article, I will write about flight to Singapore with Scoot as part of Day 1.

[Visit Places (series of articles)]
* Day 1: Fly to Singapore with Scoot [This article]
* Day 1: Don Mueang International Airport
* Day 2: Raffles Marina
* Day 2: Chinese Garden
* Day 2: Tiong Bahru/Outram Park/Tanjong Pagar
* Day 2: Orchard Road Part1
* Day 2: Orchard Road Part2
* Day 3: Sentosa (Madame Tussauds/Merlion etc.)
* Day 3: Sentosa (Palawan Beach)
* Day 3: Sentosa (Cable car)/Henderson Waves Bridge
* Day 3: Chinatown
* Day 4: Katong area/Esplanade
* Day 4: Marina Bay Sands/Gardens by the Bay
* Day 4: Marina Barrage Part1
* Day 4: Marina Barrage Part2/Gardens by the Bay
* Day 4: Marina Bay Sands etc.
* Day 5: library@orchard etc.
* Day 5: Little India
* Day 5: Bugis
* Day 5: City Hall/Marina area & Return Home

[Travel Date]
2018.06.23-27

[Main Part]

It has been several weeks since I posted the previous article about Ehime Matsuyama trip and now I will start a new series.

Why I decided to visit Singapore

To begin with, I will briefly mention why I decided to visit Singapore. To tell the truth, I originally planed to travel to another country in Southeast Asia and did research to some extent. Then, when I tried to book a flight, I was surprised to see the airfare rose sharply by 20,000 – 30,000 Japanese yen from the previous day.

“Oh my God! What should I do?”

In the meantime, I just found information on sales promotion of Scoot in the Facebook and checked with it.

Scoot is a Singaporean low-cost airline owned by Singapore Airlines and I found the airfare between Tokyo and Singapore was relatively inexpensive, though its flights were indirect ones. To be more precise, there were two routes, either via Taipei or Bangkok, and the air ticket between Tokyo and Singapore via Bangkok was less expensive by 20,000 Japanese yen compared with direct flights with mega careers (JAL, ANA and SQ), even if I choose business class. In addition, the difference between business class and economy class in the Scoot flight was just 20,000 Japanese yen.

“Considering extra costs such as check-in baggage and inflight meals, which were included in business class for free, the difference is just a few thousand yen, isn’t it?”

Actually, I have been interested in Scoot for some time, so I decided to visit Singapore and set experiencing Scoot business class (“ScootBiz”) as one of the main purposes in the trip.

Flight TR869 (1) Tokyo – Bangkok

Now I will start my trip to Singapore. While most of LCC airlines use terminal 3 at Narita airport, Scoot uses terminal 2. When I arrived at the check-in counter, I saw crews of Scoot.

There were check-in counters for business class passengers.

I was allowed to pass “Priority Lane” for security check, as a business class traveler.

Please note: it seems departure gates for Scoot are usually allocated in the satellite building, which is a little bit far from the terminal 2 main building.

I arrived at the departure gate (No. 85).

There is one flight (TR869) to Singapore via Bangkok and the flight schedule was as follows:

・Tokyo (Narita) 10：00 – Bangkok 15:00（- 2 hour time difference with Tokyo)
・Bangkok 17:00 – Singapore 20:30（- 1 hour time difference with Tokyo)

As you can see, I need to spend most of a full day for move on the first day. However, taking “ScootBiz” is one of the main subjects in the trip, so I would like to enjoy the flight as much as possible.

Now I was getting on board the plane.

The fleet was Boeing 787 and arranged 2-3-2 sheets in business class.

Water was provided as a welcome drink.

Take-off.

As streaming inflight entertainment service, “ScooTV” was available with laptop, tablet or mobile phone (complimentary for ScootBiz passengers).

Inflight meals were provided without charge for business class passengers. I ordered “Singapore Signature Chicken Rice” from “Premium Selections”.

Snack and drink, which were included as a set menu.

Bangkok (Don Mueang Airport)

The aircraft started to descend to Bangkok.

From the window, I could see the landscape of Bangkok.

The plane landed at Don Mueang Airport in Bangkok.

It was sunny, although the weather forecast I heard at Narita airport predicted rainy.

I got off the airplane for the time being and moved to “Transfer to International”.

Then, I was aboard the aircraft again.

The plane took off to Singapore.

Goodbye, Bangkok.

The airplane arrived at Bangkok about an hour earlier than its scheduled time and I spent more than two hours at Don Mueang Airport. I took lots of photos in the airport and will post them in the next article separately.

Flight TR869 (2) Bangkok – Singapore

As this was the indirect flight, another inflight meal was served between Bangkok and Singapore. I chose “Signature Nasi Goreng with Chicken Satay” this time.

The flight was from evening to night, so it became dark gradually.

Here are cabin attendants of Scoot, who provided excellent service.

Among business class passengers, only one couple and I went through the flight from Tokyo to Singapore, so I had more opportunities to receive their service. When I got on board the plane again at Don Mueang Airport (Bangkok), they greeted me warmly saying “Welcome back!”. Overall, they were friendly and helpful.

Arrived at Singapore and Checked in Hotel

I arrived at Singapore Changi International Airport. Scoot uses terminal 2.

I used terminal 2 after a long interval.

Immigration.

I moved to the hotel from Changi airport by taxi. This time, I stayed at “Grand Park City Hall”.

Here is my room.

When I arrived at the hotel, it was already near 10 p.m. So, I went to bed shortly and the first day of my Singapore trip was over.

[Closing]

That’s it for the article about flight to Singapore with Scoot as part of Day 1.

To review the business class of Scoot (“ScootBiz”), I was overall satisfied with the flight and it was worth the price.

It is true that it takes more time compared with direct flights. However, if I look at indirect flights from another point of view, I can say “It was easygoing flight with one stop and two times inflight meals”. Although I might have been just lucky, the airfare of Scoot business class to Singapore was less expensive by 20,000 Japanese yen compared with direct flights with mega careers (JAL, ANA and SQ) economy class. In addition, the difference between business and economy class in Scoot was practically just a few Japanese yen, considering extra charges. If you visit Singapore for the first time, it might be better to choose direct flights such as Singapore Airlines in terms of effective use of your travel time. However, if you are a repeater to Singapore, Scoot would be a good option 🙂

In the next article, I will write about Don Mueang Airport, though it is in chronologically reverse order.

[Map]

1 Changi International Airport
2 Grand Park City Hall