SIN: Restaurant A380 @ Changi [till 1 November 2020]
Transit Area, Changi Airport Terminal 3, Singapore
SIN: Restaurant A380 @ Changi [till 1 November 2020] <YOU ARE HERE!>
I had my lunch after 2.00pm.
I know I haven't finished writing about the short trip to Tokyo, Japan, but for today, I shall write about the fun and memorable experience of dining onboard one of Singapore Airlines' grounded Airbus 380-800 aircraft. Running for two weekends only, at least at the point of writing, Restaurant A380 @ Changi is part of the Discover Your Singapore Airlines trilogy, which also comes with a few activities to keep guests occupied prior to the meal.
---
SIN: Restaurant A380 @ Changi [till 1 November 2020] <YOU ARE HERE!>
SIN: Changi Beach Club [Before COVID-19]
SIN: Village Hotel Changi [Before COVID-19]
---
The nett price for each cabin seat after factoring in 7% GST is as follows:
Economy Class: S$53.50
Premium Economy Class: S$96.30
Business Class: S$321.00
Suites Class: S$642.00
To secure that Economy Class seat, I joined the midnight booking frenzy on Monday, 12 October 2020. I suppose too many people have missed flying that all seats were sold out within 30 minutes. I was so relieved when I received the following e-mail, knowing that my reservation was successful.
In a separate online form, I had to fill in my personal particulars, including passport details, and indicate my interest for the aircraft tour and my preferred main course. Anyway, fast forward to Saturday, 24 October 2020, I made my way to, for most of the parts, deserted Changi Airport Terminal 3.
Row 1 was reserved by Singapore Airlines for passengers to do their check-in for the event.
 |
| If you're wondering why my invitation card has Dubai written on the top right-hand corner, that's the group I was assigned to for the aircraft tour scheduled at 10.15am. |
From there, it was a rather long walk from Gate Lounges B1 to B4 where the event was held. There were lots of staff lining the path to lead you to the correct place and, of course, prevent you from wandering about the transit area.
 |
| Shopping and touring of the transit area aren't permitted, unless one has signed up for the shopping tour organised by the airport. |
At the entrance of the gate lounges, passengers were required to perform check-in using SafeEntry, a digital system implemented by the Singapore government for the purpose of contact tracing during this COVID-19 pandemic.
I was first directed to a booth where I could collect a tattoo sticker. There was another booth next to it that give a free umbrella to each passenger donning a traditional heritage wear.
I've recently got myself a Samsung S20 phone to replace my trusty Samsung S7 that has been serving me well for the past four years. Here are a few wide-angle shots of the gate lounges, which I wouldn't be able to get with the latter.
 |
| It was still relatively quiet when I reached there just before 10.00am. |
There were a few booths set up at the gate lounges to occupy passengers while waiting for the lunch to commence. Of course, I wouldn't want to miss the opportunity of taking a photo with two of the iconic Singapore Girls, whom I'm proud of and grateful for all these while.
Fancy getting your caricature sketched by one of the talented staff?
Each passenger could either redeem a pre-made rose made of batik (Indonesian traditional technique of dyeing) cloth or learn to make one during any of the stated time slots at the booth. I'm pretty much hopeless when it comes to arts and crafts, so I took the easy way out by simply taking one stalk.
Four pairs of male and female models showcased some of the cabin crew uniforms through the years.
 |
| The last pair, which I didn't capture in this photo, wore the current uniforms. |
There was quite a massive delay for the tour of the aircraft, which wasn't totally unexpected due to the safe distancing measures that had to be strictly followed. Even though I was scheduled for the 10.15am tour, I only got to the aircraft with the registration number 9V-SKN 45 minutes later, starting from the upper deck.
 |
| I was one the first five people from the Dubai group to have the guided tour. At 10.40am, we hadn't even stepped onto the jet bridge yet. |
 |
| A big shout-out to my tour guide! |
That was my very first time inside the new Suites cabin, which features six luxurious private compartments.
 |
| To be frank, each suite is smaller than expected. The wide-angle shot makes it look slightly more spacious. Nevertheless, I'm still going to burn my miles for the experience someday. |
 |
| Suites Class (and also First Class) amenity kit by Lalique |
There are two lavatories in the cabin. Here are two photos of the first one that I looked at.
The other one looks equally posh, but unlike its competitors, Emirates and Etihad, Singapore Airlines doesn't believe in providing onboard shower facilities.
 |
| Enjoy a quiet moment while flying to refresh and rejuvenate at the sit-down vanity counter. |
The Business Class cabin is equipped with 78 lie-flat seats.
 |
| The two middle seats in each sub-cabin can be turned into a double bed. |
 |
| I felt really satisfied when I managed to take this particular photo. |
After visiting the two lavatories dedicated for Suites Class passengers, the Business Class counterpart seems passable now. Life's like that, no?
Let's go down to the main deck.
There are 343 seats in the Economy Class cabin.
 |
| I love the colour scheme of the new Economy Class seats. |
 |
| Such a creative use of the bassinet to showcase what they've got for the little ones! |
 |
| COVID-19 has instigated the installation of hand sanitiser dispensers in public places, including inside the aircraft. |
We weren't allowed to take photos of the cabin crew rest area, but here's a photo of the door secured with a combination lock if you haven't noticed it before.
Last but not least, the Premium Economy Class cabin is comprised of 44 seats.
 |
| I belong to the camp that doesn't see much value in Premium Economy Class, but I did have a one-time experience when flying from Hong Kong to Singapore. |
We were also not allowed to take photos of the cockpit, but we could get ourselves a photo or two with one of the pilots. I learnt that the maximum number of pilots that a flight can take is four, an ultra long-haul one, that is.
At the end of the tour, I managed to take a photo of the front staircase.
Let's put our hands together for the cabin crew for their service and dedication all these while!
The lunch seating was supposed to be from 12 noon to 3.00pm, but boarding only started at around 12.30pm.
 |
| I collected an earpiece and a care pack. |
 |
| I wass assigned to 57G at the back of the sub-cabin just behind the Premium Economy Class cabin. |
 |
| I'm not tall, so the 32" seat pitch is perfectly fine for me. |
I wonder if we'll ever see hardcopy magazines anymore in the seat pocket.
Below is a short video clip of the cabin when a welcome announcement was made. Anyway, all of us had a good laugh when the captain instructed us to keep our seat belts unfastened for our safety.
During the flight, I mean lunch, I watched Scoob! Nostalgia rushed over me as I used to watch the Scooby-Doo series when I was a boy.
 |
| All set for the Singapore-Hong Kong travel bubble? |
Before my lunch tray arrived, I genuinely had to use the lavatory.
 |
| What's a 'trip report' without a toilet selfie? Haha! |
 |
| All ready for media coverage! |
I was expecting the food and beverage to be served in the usual Economy Class style. To my surprise, the meal presentation that afternoon looked like what you'd usually get for a short-haul flight in the Business Class. For the main course, I chose the Peranakan dish by Shermay Lee, an acclaimed chef who's the niece of the late Mr Lee Kuan Yew. May I invite you to take a look at the review of the food in my food blog?
 |
| Main course: Ayam Tempra and Brinjal Sambal with Rice |
At the end of the meal, each passenger received a goodie bag from the cabin crew.
 |
| A bag, an Economy Class amenity kit (socks, toothbrush and toothpaste), a deck of playing cards and a pen |
After bidding farewell to the jumbo jet, passengers were directed to the immigration checkpoint nearest to the gate lounges. As there was obviously no formalities to be done there, the person behind me just had to say, "Wow, we're walking through the immigration like a boss!" Finally, instead of collecting luggage at the baggage reclaim area, we collected our passports.
Going for the event without harbouring any expectations, I walked out of it with a heart full of praise and gratitude. Thanks to everyone for making this event happen! I'm certainly looking forward to the Inside Singapore Airlines tour at SIA Training Centre next month.
Comments
Post a Comment