By RamonRamon is the creator of Travelling Companion. He focuses on flight review, hotel reviews, and helping stretch your travel dollars, miles, and points further.
Flight Overview
The lounge experience for business class passengers at Changi Terminal 3 was disappointing, the plane was old and in need of a refresh but the selection of amenities and onboard food blew U.S. domestic First Class out of the water. Pros- Delicious Onboard Food, Wide Array of Amenities, Business Class Privacy, Attentive Service Cons- Strict Enforcement of Rules, Disappointing Business Class Airport Lounge, Old Plane, Weak In-Flight Entertainment , Mediocre Drink Selection
First Class Honeymoon Trip Report
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Check-In
Changi Terminal 2
Our flight to Male, Maldives on Singapore Airline's regional affiliate Silk Air took off from Changi Terminal 2 which prior to the COVID-19 pandemic was the home for the vast majority of Singapore Airline's regional flights. During the pandemic all Singapore Airlines flights have been consolidated in Changi Terminal 3 which allowed for the closure of Terminal 2 for 18 months. This move was done in response to very-low passenger volume and allowed Changi to shave approximately one year off of the time for the renovation of Terminal 2. I found this work was sorely needed. Since our flight in May 2019, Silk Air has ceased operations and had its planes completely folded into Singapore Airlines. Singapore Airlines is still operating these 737-800 planes on regional flights I am going to share our experience since I think it could be helpful for those looking to fly on Singapore Airlines.
Changi Self-Check Baggage
Our check-in experience for Singapore Airlines (Silk Air) was awkward since it was completely automated including the baggage check. In the United States typically passengers with bags to check have to see the gate agent, however, at Changi the entire process was automated including weighing and scanning baggage. While I found this to be impressive it was also somewhat frustrating since it took us a while to figure out how to work the machine.
Changi Terminal 2
As we headed to the SilverKris lounge, which was used for business class and first class Singapore Airlines passengers leaving out of Terminal 2, we noticed that this terminal was much more dated than Terminal 3, where we arrived on our flight from Frankfurt. However, we really appreciated the lovely flower displays throughout the terminal and it showed us that Singapore takes seriously its nickname the Garden City.
Signs to Terminal 2 Lounges
It took us a while to find the SilverKris lounge since the signage in the terminal was not clear.
SilverKris Lounge Entrance
However, we finally realized that the lounge was on the second level and we headed left to the business class portion of the lounge. The lounge had an array of seating with a small business area, an array of black seats around the television, and seating in the dining room. The lounge was large but nearly completely empty. It was so quiet you could hear a pin drop, conversations happened only at a whisper, and it felt more like a library than an airport lounge.
The food was set up near the entrance to the lounge and included a special station for Laska which is a spicy Singaporean soup. During our time in the lounge I tried the majority of the hot food and it was a huge disappointment. The Dim Sum lacked in both presentation and taste, the Laska was average, while the apple juice was cheap and not good. The food in the lounge paled in comparison to the culinary adventure we had during the rest of our stay in Singapore.
To add to the disappointing experience at this lounge the business class bathrooms were out of order so I needed to go to the first class lounge to use the bathroom. I found the first class bathrooms to be in good shape, the service in first class lounge to be more attentive, and the first class lounge overall to be much nicer. For example, the bathroom had two bathroom attendants along with complimentary toothbrushes and shaving kits. It is clear that Singapore Airlines needs to renovate the business class lounge and that that they put significantly more resources into the first class ground experience.
Gate Area
Boarding
We headed to the gate about five minutes before boarding. As we approached the gate area I remembered that security checks are performed at the gate area and I got nervous that we would miss the initial boarding call. The gate area was packed and it was clear this was a full flight. We got through the gate quickly and boarding started five minutes late so we ended up being the first people on board. 
Singapore Airlines (Silk Air) 737-800
Plane and Seats
As we entered the plane I was impressed by the color palette of pale yellow and brown along with the light blues and reds on the flight attendants' uniforms. The business class had 12 seats arraigned in a 2-2 configuration with 38 inches of pitch and 22 inches of width. The seats had substantial recline which meant that when the passengers in front of us reclined it was difficult getting in and out of our seats. The seat also had a foot rest which is very rare in US domestic first class. 
737-800 Business Class Seats
Another positive feature of this plane is that it had a hard bulkhead and a thick curtain which really made the business class cabin feel private. One big downside of the plane was its age which showed in the seats. The seats were very difficult to recline because the levers to recline the seat were old and manual. At one point Christina's seat was completely stuck in recline and she had to yank at the lever to move it up or down.
Business Class Curtain
Amenities and In-Flight Entertainment
Waiting at each business class seat was a pillow and a blanket. I found the pillow to be comfortable and much more substantial than the pillows offered on U.S. domestic first class. Shortly after takeoff the flight attendant came by with slippers, various newspapers and magazines, and an iPad pre-loaded with in-flight entertainment (IFE) since there were no seat back screens. I selected the local newspaper and a Time magazine to read. I really appreciated having a pillow, slippers, and footrest on this four-and half-hour flight.
The IFE on the iPad was weak. While the iPads had a ton of content most of it was very old. Initially, the iPad was very annoying to watch because I had to hold it up to see any of the movies. However, I noticed that another passenger had an iPad stand so I asked and received one from the flight attendant. It was frustrating that these were not proactively offered the iPad stand since it would be very annoying to watch the iPad on this long of a flight without one. Another problem about receiving this array of amenities is that the seats did not have sufficient storage space to hold them all when they weren't in use. For example, when we were eating we had to find somewhere to put away the iPad and this is another downside to not having seat back IFE. There were also several additional amenities offered on the flight in the bathroom but these were not at all impressive. The amenities included lotion, mouthwash, toothbrushes, and toothpaste. However, these were not at all at the caliber of our Singapore Airlines Suites experience. I utilized the toothpaste and it looked like whiteout and tasted disgusting.
IPAD Inflight Entertainment
Dining
The in-flight dining experience began before takeoff when the flight attendant came by to confirm our food orders, take our in-flight drink order, and offer us pre-departure drinks. The pre-departure drink choices were apple juice or orange juice. I took the apple juice while Christina took the orange juice. The apple juice was bad so I sent it back and instead asked for orange juice which was good. 
Pre-Departure Drinks
Once we were in air the flight attendant brought our drink order of champagne which was really bad. I don't know if the champagne was really that bad or we were spoiled from drinking so much Krug on our Singapore Airlines Suites flight. We were also given hot towel service which included a steaming towel. I wish that airlines would adjust from a hot to a cold towel in climates that are already warm. It was strange that the towel was steaming hot because the cabin was already warm. After this I was served mixed nuts as a starter while Christina had the snack mix both of which were good. Next, we were served a salad with tomatoes, lettuce, and chicken which also good. After we were served the salad we were offered bread and I chose the garlic bread and Christina chose a cracker. My garlic bread was good and Christina liked her cracker and said it had Indian flavors.
For our main courses we pre-ordered from the expanded All Time Favorites Menu which offered meals beyond those listed in the onboard menu. The All Time Favorites Menu offered a massive selection for relatively short flight. I choose the beef brisket noodles and Christina chose the Nasi Goreng. My meal came out piping hot and was delicious. The beef was very tender and the noodles were cooked excellently. The broth was also flavored very well but was really messy so I ended up having to use napkins as a bib. Christina's meal had a chicken satay (kabob) with rice, pickles, and zucchini. While Christina thought the chicken was on the sweet side and the rice was somewhat spicy overall she thought the meal was great though still not at the Singapore Airlines Suites level.
Once the main course was done we were offered a choice between Merlot or Chardonnay wine. I chose the Merlo while Christina selected the Chardonnay. I liked the Merlot while Christina thought the Chardonnay was too sweet.
Maldives Airports Fast Track Passes
At the end of the meal service the flight attendant came by with Maldives Airports Fast Track passes for the business class passengers to clear immigration on an expedited basis. However, they ended up not being necessary as there was no line when we landed in Male.
Pre-Arrival Dessert
As we got closer to the end of the flight the flight attendants brought by a pre-arrival dessert of Double Chocolate ice cream which was really good. Christina had hers with coffee which she said was surprisingly very good for airline coffee. Overall, I found the onboard drink selection, with the exception fo the coffee, to be mediocre on par with American Airlines. This was surprising for a Singapore Airlines affiliate. Finally, as we entered our final decent we got our first glimpse of the beautiful Maldivan water which we had traveled half way around the world to experience.
View of The Maldives
Service
I would say that the service on this flight was a mixed bag. The flight attendants were clearly well trained by Singapore Airlines. They executed on the service very well and they were very attentive constantly looking to see if we needed refills and quickly clearing plates. For example, they were able to complete extensive multi-course meal service in about one hour. However, they were far too strict at enforcing rules. Our flight had a long taxi of about 30 minutes and while we were taxing several people tried to get up to get something from the overhead bins or to use the bathroom and the flight attendants on several occasions got up to reprimand tell these passengers off. While I thought their tone may have been too harsh I didn't think too much of this since this is something that is usually enforced in the U.S. as well. Once we took off and were climbing I tried to use the bathroom and the flight attendant gave me a nasty look and shook her head no. Once again I had an incident relating to flight attendants enforcing the rules about using the bathroom and I felt like this was now a trend after the incidents on our CLT-LHR and LGW-BCN flights. This wasn't the only rule which the flight attendants vigorously enforced. While we were landing the flight attendants came around and asked Christina and I to remove our headphones for landing which is the first time I had ever heard of this rule on any airline. 
Singapore Airlines (Silk Air) 737-800
Take Away
Our experience flying on Singapore Airlines' 737-800 with its regional affiliate Silk Air was a mixed bag. We really enjoyed the privacy of the business class cabin, the wide-array of amenities, and attentive service. Moreover, the onboard food was significantly better than U.S. domestic airlines. However, the plane and seats were old, the flight attendants vigorously enforced the rules, the IFE was weak, and the KrisFlyer business class lounge was very disappointing. I hope that the full integration into Singapore Airlines and renovations at Changi Terminal 2 improves on these weakness and leads to a more consistently positive experience.
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By ChristinaChristina writes and edits Travelling Companion. Her writing covers expeditions, food, and culture for the blog. First Class Honeymoon Trip Report First Class Honeymoon Overview Delta Sky Club DCA Review Delta CRJ 900 DCA-JFK First Class Review Virgin Atlantic Clubhouse New York JFK Review Singapore Airlines A380 JFK-FRA Suites Review Singapore Airlines A380 FRA-SIN Suites Review JW Marriott Hotel Singapore South Beach Review Singapore Surprise Singapore Airlines 737-800 SIN-MLE Business Class Review The St. Regis Maldives Vommuli Resort Review Etihad Airways A320 MLE-AUH Business Class Review Al Maha, a Luxury Collection Resort & Spa Dubai Review The St. Regis Abu Dhabi Review Exploring Abu Dhabi Etihad Apartments A380 AUH-JFK Apartments Review  Singapore Singapore Surprise Overview Prior to booking our tickets, I never really thought about Singapore. After we finalized our honeymoon itinerary, Ramon and I did some light research. We asked for advice from friends who traveled to Singapore, looked for suggestions from the internet, and went to the theater to watch Crazy Rich Asians. We learned that Singapore is a very safe city-state, with some interesting rules, and a foodie's dream destination. We made a list of places we would like to see, but mostly wanted to wander the streets and see where the city took us. What I didn't realize at that time was that I was going to fall in love with Singapore. I left with a promise to myself that I would return. Here are some of the highlights to our first adventure in Asia. Attractions  National Museum of Singapore Our first stop was to visit the National Museum of Singapore. Google Maps told us the walk from our hotel to the museum was about 15 minutes, so we decided to walk. Along the way, we stumbled into Fort Canning Park and some really beautiful murals.  Armenian Street Murals The National Museum was extremely impressive. The Republic of Singapore is a very young country, only 55 years old. The free museum did a beautiful job explaining the pre-independence history of Singapore and bringing the visitor to modern day. I highly recommend this museum as a first stop if you visit Singapore, especially if you are not as well versed in the history and sociology of this region of the world. The museum gave us context to the country and set us up for success for the rest of the trip. Some things that we learned:
Singapore Flyer and Gardens by the Bay Nighttime It is really hot in Singapore. I mean, really, really hot. The walk to the National Museum, while not a far distance, completely zapped our energy. When we came back to the hotel, Ramon and I switched our plans to try to capitalize our experiences by exploring the nightlife. We found out Singapore comes alive at night.  View from Singapore Flyer I highly recommend carving time to visit the Singapore Flyer at the start one's vacation in Singapore. While it may be a bit of tourist trap, it provides a nice overview of the landscape and gives an opportunity to learn landmarks as points of reference. We took the "flight" at night. The journey was slow and steady around the ferris wheel and offered beautiful views of a twinkling city. The trip around was about 30 minutes, and about $25 USD a person.  Gardens by the Bay Gardens by the Bay is another popular attraction in Singapore. The park has two free nightly shows where their gardens dance with popular music through lights. When we arrived to watch the show, we were overwhelmed with the size of the park, and decided to circle back another day to visit additional attractions. There were a large number of people attending the show, so I recommend coming a bit early if you would like good seats. The show lasts only 15 minutes, which was about as much as we could handle being outside in the high temperatures. Gardens by the Bay Daytime Gardens by the Bay is essentially the ride Living with the Land at Epcot, but IRL and not Disneyfied. With a futuristic mindset, Gardens by the Bay tackles how the city-state could self-sustain their growth in population, protect biodiversity from climate change, and continually promote Singapore as a City in the Garden. Since the attraction is a large national park, and we would need to spend most of the time in a climate-controlled space, we limited our experience to the Cloud Forest and the Flower Dome.  The Cloud Forest The Cloud Forest is a conservatory that replicates cooler mountainous climates. As you climb the mountain inside, you experience the temperature dropping while learning about threatened biodiversity.  The Cloud Forest The Flower Dome is the largest greenhouse in the world, displaying the variety of plants and flowers from arid and Mediterranean regions. I was especially tuned to the section the California Garden. For a brief minute or two, I was transported to a very familiar landscape.  The Flower Dome Cultural Diversity Whenever Ramon and I travel, we get a small exposure of how a society views race and interracial marriage. It can be uncomfortable at times, but it is an experience that I am continually grateful to have. This being our first trip to a whole new continent, I didn’t have preconceived ideas. What I found was an extremely kind and welcoming city who did not show any interest in us other than wanting to show us hospitality. This is not by accident, rather than by design from the city. Four languages are recognized as the official language, English, Mandarin, Malay, and Tamil. Three quarters of the population are ethnically Chinese, followed Malay, then Indian. Within the ethnic groups, there are further subgroups that continuously split but not necessarily within ethnic lines. Buddhist is the largest religious group followed by Christian, then people who do not identify by religion, followed by Taoist and Muslim. In addition, because of the geographic and economic position of Singapore, there are multiple nationalities from around the world calling Singapore home. It is not out of the ordinary to see different people from all corners of the earth. This cultural creates a unique identity all on to Singapore. The music, art, and food all unapologetically point to their origin, but at times the culture blends with each other at a graceful pace. Singapore gives space for their citizens to honor their history with the new nation. Malay Heritage Center  Sultan Mosque The Malay Heritage Center explores the cultural and historical experience of Malay Singaporeans. The building was once the palace of a sultan in the early 1800s. The expeditions display the experience of the Malay people prior to the 1800s through present day.  Arab Street The community surrounding the Malay Heritage is a vibrant section of the city with wonderful unique shops, small cafes, murals and specialty stores. There are multiple shops that cater to Muslims, but the community is not exclusively Islamic. The neighborhood is a fun place to walk around and enjoy the sites. Chinatown  Buddha Tooth Relic Temple Chinatown is another neighborhood with winding streets that invite you to wander in and out. Multiple shops and restaurants with their own specialties dot the area, but the two main structures of architecture are the Sri Mariamman Temple and the Buddha Tooth Relic Temple and Museum. We were not able to visit the Sri Mariamman Temple as we were not dressed appropriately, and they did not have coverings available to visitors. We did see the building from the outside and we were awe of the intricate designs. I wished we had a docent who would have been able to talk us through and explain what we were seeing. Regardless, it was still super enjoyable.  Buddha Tooth Relic Temple We were able to see the Buddha Tooth Relic Temple. Again, I found myself wishing I had someone to explain to me what I was seeing. I tried my hardest to learn but found it difficult to take in all of the details while trying to be respectful of the people who were in their place of worship. Still, I enjoyed the experience taking my time to be a wallflower and observe.  Sri Mariamman Temple Little India Little India Store Walking through Little India was an awaking for all our senses. There was so much color, sounds, and smells coming from each direction. The shops carry items from all parts of India. The food also represented the culinary diversity within India. We originally planned to visit the Indian Heritage Center, but we had our days wrong (yay jetlag!) and they were closed when we arrived.  Indian Heritage Centre We decided to explore a little and see what we could find. The food smelled so wonderful, it made me wish we didn’t have such a big breakfast. There were wonderful keepsakes at Little India Arcade, but we were nervous about buying anything as we had to keep our luggage empty for our next flight. With 20/20 vision, I would end my trips in Singapore so I could stock up with trinkets to my heart’s content.  Little India Jewelry Store Singapore Zoo We took a Grab from our hotel for a 30-minute ride to the Singapore Zoo. Grab is Singapore’s common ride share app. The drive to the Zoo was really fascinating. We were able to get a glimpse of life outside of downtown Singapore, and really appreciated the large size of the island.  Singapore Zoo Giraffes We spent a whole day at Singapore’s Zoo. I am intrigued how other countries set up and run their museums and Zoos. In comparison to what I experienced stateside, the Singapore Zoo is a hybrid between the San Diego Zoo and their Safari Park. The Singapore Zoo is an open concept zoo, meaning the animals are given large amounts of space, separated by natural barriers like boulders and rivers.  Singapore Zoo At night, the zoo turns into a separate excursion where visitors pile into a vehicle and are driven around the park in the dark. The tour guides point out nocturnal animals throughout the drive, and visitors observe how the park comes alive in a whole new way.  Singapore Zoo Elephants A highlight was being able to feed an elephant banana during their snack time. The second big takeaway from our visit to the zoo was their delicious food. We ordered a variety of food during our stay and everything was surprising exquisitely delicious. We are used to eating park food to be passable at best, but the food in Singapore never disappointed. Food is the Universal Language I can’t say it enough, but if you consider yourself a foodie, Singapore should be on your wish list of countries to visit. Their food is out of this world. Ramon and I were never hungry during this trip because the second we had even a bit of room in our stomachs, we made a pit stop to try something new. The surprising part of experiencing food in Singapore is that all of their food is super high quality. From street food, to cafes, to five course dinners are all served with a strong sense of pride in their work. And because Singapore takes food safety super seriously, we were not nervous to try out street vendor’s food. We did not experience one tummy aches from the variety of things we ate, and oh boy, did we try everything and anything. Hawkers  Singapore Hawker Sign Hawkers are a foundational part of Singapore culture. Hawkers are essentially street food vendors from Singapore, and their history dates back to the early 1800s. In an effort to maintain a high level of food safety, Singapore moved the hawkers from the streets and rivers and placed them in Hawker centers, a version of an open-air food court. With strict regulations and essentials like running water and shelter provided, the hawker culture thrived. Generations of Singaporeans and immigrants to Singapore passed down their recipes, perfecting cheap food. Adding the concentration of diverse people, you could essentially eat around Asia in a very small space.  Hawker Stalls Hawker food is high-quality and low-cost. For example, in 2019 there were 7 recognized hawker stalls with a Michelin star, and multiple more with the distinction of a Bib Gourmand. You can have a Michelin star meal of chicken and rice for under $3.00 USD. If the hawker stall is well known, you would need to plan to arrive early. Multiple times we tried to eat at a famous hawker stall, but they would run out of food by noon.  Hill Street Tai Hwa Pork Noodle Hawker Stall Some of the hawkers responded to this new level of popularity by capitalizing on their name and recipes by franchising out. We ate at Hawker Chan’s franchise in Chinatown and was not impressed. It wasn’t bad, but it didn’t hold a light to all of the other food we had in Singapore, especially considering the name was associated with a Michelin star.  Hawker Chan If you are in Singapore and want to experience the hype, by all means plan out your day to guarantee you can have the experience of a $3.00 Michelin star meal. But I wouldn’t be too worried about it. We had plenty of mind-boggling meals at the hawker stalls by walking around and doing eeny-meeny-miny-moe. Singapore Sling  Singapore Slings While food in Singapore is relatively inexpensive, alcohol come’s with a hefty price tag. Because of this, we didn’t really seek out too much to drink, but wanted to try the Singapore Sling, Singapore’s Long Island Iced Tea, but classy.  Singapore Sling Sign Singapore Sling is a gin-based drink, created first in the Long Bar at the famous Raffles Hotel in 1915. Raffles Hotel was still under renovation when we were visiting, but the Long Bar was still up and running. After a long day of playing tourist, we walked across the street from our hotel to the bar for a night cap.  Raffles Hotel Old-World colonial England is alive and well at the Long Bar. Rich mahogany wood, colonial ceiling fans, colonial décor, and peanut shells on the floor all harken back to when England occupied modern day Singapore. The drink itself is a refreshing cool drink to break the Singapore heat and is roughly $27 dollars per drink. While the drink was pretty tasty, we didn’t think it was $27 dollars’ worth of tasty. We heard there were other, better, options to try the Singapore Sling, but didn’t seek it out since the cost was pretty much the same throughout all of Singapore. Chimjes  Lei Garden Chimjes was originally a Catholic convent in the 1800s. Currently the space is multi use, including event space, restaurants, bars, cafes, fitness centers, spas, and open gardens. We visited Chimjes a few times as it was just a few blocks from the hotel.  Lei Garden Menu One of our memorable meals at Chijmes was at Lei Garden. Lei Garden is a Chinese (Cantonese) restaurant with one Michelin star. We decided to eat the chef’s lunch, which was a eight-course meal. Ramon and I are not well versed in Chinese food, nor did we know what we ate as we could not read the menu. But it was really wonderful!
Singapore in Hindsight
Singapore has so much to offer. Food, art, shopping, museums, gardens, public transportation, and much more. While we were there for a week, there was still so much we didn’t get to do or see. I couldn’t bring myself to say goodbye, so instead I said, see you soon. Now, I am off to convince Ramon to have another long layover in Singapore for our next trip. By RamonRamon is the creator of Travelling Companion. He focuses on flight review, hotel reviews, and helping stretch your travel dollars, miles, and points further.
Hotel Overview
My first stay at a JW Marriott left me with a positive impression of the brand. JW Marriott South Beach was a nice city hotel with a great location, good elite recognition, stellar views, and spectacular food including my favorite buffet ever. Pros- Spectacular Food, Cool Decor, Nice Art Work, Stellar Views, Large Basic Room, Huge Suites, Great Location, Great Executive Lounge and Spectacular Restaurant Breakfast Buffet, Fantastic Spa, and Solid Gym Cons- Bad Staff Communication, Poor Property Maintenance , Ice Cold 18th Floor Pool, and Weak Bathroom Amenities First Class Honeymoon Trip Report First Class Honeymoon Overview Delta Sky Club DCA Review Delta CRJ 900 DCA-JFK First Class Review Virgin Atlantic Clubhouse New York JFK Review Singapore Airlines A380 JFK-FRA Suites Review Singapore Airlines A380 FRA-SIN Suites Review JW Marriott Hotel Singapore South Beach Review Singapore Surprise Singapore Airlines 737-800 SIN-MLE Business Class Review The St. Regis Maldives Vommuli Resort Review Etihad Airways A320 MLE-AUH Business Class Review Al Maha, a Luxury Collection Resort & Spa Dubai Review The St. Regis Abu Dhabi Review Exploring Abu Dhabi Etihad Apartments A380 AUH-JFK Apartments Review Location The JW Marriott South Beach is located in downtown Singapore, about a 15 minute drive from Changi Airport, which is an unbeatable location especially for first-time visitors to Singapore. The hotel is located in the South Beach development, which has a mix of commercial and residential buildings. The hotel is also located right above the Esplande subway station which allowed easy access via subway to the majority of Singapore. The hotel is also walking distance away from many tourist and cultural attractions including the National Museum of Singapore, the Singapore Flyer, Fort Canning Park, Little India, Kampong Glam, and about a ten-minute car ride from Gardens by the Bay. This made it easy to navigate the city and made us happy with our hotel selection.
Check-In
As we pulled up to the hotel we were immediately impressed by the size and design of the hotel. The hotel took up 24 floors of the east tower in the South Beach development while the hotel's spa, nail salon, and Sky Deck Pool occupied two floors in the west tower. 
JW Marriott Singapore South Beach
As we got out of the taxi a porter grabbed our bags and whisked them away without us asking. We would eventually see our bags reappear after check-in. The lobby had a large digital art display, art all around the lobby, and had a cool modern vibe. The hotel offered an art, tour though we never had a chance to go on the tour during our stay.
Hotel Lobby Art
Christina checked us in and the check-in agent asked us for our passports, something I am now used to happening when we travel internationally. Once the agent saw that Christina was a Marriott Bonvoy Platinum elite he handed us off to a VIP Check-in agent who handles Marriott elites. The VIP agent was very friendly, thanked Christina for her loyalty, and apologized that she could not upgrade us because there was a large business group at the hotel. She also asked us if we wanted 1000 points or the welcome amenity and we chose the points. She said that was a good choice since all of the amenities are available in the room anyways. I liked the fact that the hotel did not make elites choose between points and breakfast. I heard that not forcing elites to choose is more common in high-end Marriott Asian hotels. I also asked the agent about the additional 5000 points which were part of reservation. She said she would look into it and get back to us later.
One thing that was strange about the hotel was that throughout our stay there were items that we found not well maintained. For example, the second day during our stay the second lobby door was broken and remained unusable throughout duration of our stay. I was surprised about the condition of the property given the hotel only opened in 2016. 
Check-In Desks
Deluxe King
As we entered the elevator to our room on the seventh floor we continued to be impressed by the cool vibe of the hotel. In the elevator there was a video playing which made it seem like the walls of the elevator were an underwater glass display. The elevator itself was a smooth and very fast ride. As we excited the elevator hotel the artistic touch continued with the impressive grey pattern on the walls. 
Hotel Elevator Digital Art
Our room was a Deluxe King room the smallest category of rooms in the hotel with king beds. I was impressed by the size of the room given that it is one of the most basic rooms at the hotel. The room had curtains which we raised to see the nice city view including a view of the adjacent historic Raffles hotel. Unfortunately, the curtains were partially broken when we first entered the room, while they were fixed after we notified the hotel, it was strange that no one noticed this when cleaning the room. Another annoying part about the curtains was that they had to be either fully open or fully closed. The room also had numerous mirrors and white drawers all around. These drawers were not only for clothes but also contained the mini-bar and safe. One of the downfalls of the room was that it did not have enough drawer space for us put way all of our clothes. This would have been nice since we were spending nearly a week at the hotel. The closet had hangers, two sets of slippers, two robes, a shoe horn, shoe polish, and a shoe brush along with a light. Christina and I found the robes and slippers to be very comfortable.
Deluxe King Closet
The room also had a white desk next to the window which had a lamp, the spa menu, and a remote for the television, along with a paper outlining the great Marriott Bonvoy Platinum benefits at the JW Marriott Singapore South Beach.
JW Marriott Singapore South Beach Platinum Elite Benefits
Later on, we found a welcome amenity of fruit sitting on the desk with no note. We were unsure why we got the welcome amenity since it could have been because of Christina's Platinum elite status, the lack of an upgrade, or because of our honeymoon. The welcome amenity was a nice touch but poorly executed. Next to the desk was the King bed which we really liked.
Welcome Amenity
The television was built into a panel behind the desk and had several features. It included not just television channels but also music channels.
Desk and Television
The bathroom was large for a non-suite room and also was covered in mirrors. The bathroom had a sink with a drawer, various amenities, and a shelf below for towels. The amenities were provided by Aromatherapy and Associates and I really didn't like them. In particular I found that the body wash had a horrible scent. This was my first time staying at a JW Marriott and first time trying these amenities and I hope they are not the brand standard for JW Marriott. The bathroom had a separate door for the shower and the toilet room. I loved that the shower had strong water pressure and both a rainforest and handheld shower head.
Shower
The most interesting aspect of the bathroom was the Japanese Toto toilet. The toilet came with a remote and had a self-clean and bidet function. This was the first time I had ever seen one and I was very impressed. The biggest issue we had with the toilet was when we first entered the room it did not function. It turned out that the hotel turns off all of the toilets to save energy which is fine but when a guest checks in it would make sense to turn them back on automatically.
Japanese Toto Toilet
Deluxe Suite
On the second day after we hadn't heard back about the availability of a suite upgrade we went downstairs to talk to the check-in agent. The agent checked in and said that a suite was now available. We went back to our room to pack up all of our stuff which was annoying but turned about to be very worthwhile! We ended up getting upgraded to Deluxe Suite on the 14th floor. As we exited the elevator there was a very strange smell in the hallway which thankfully didn't reach the room. As we walked into the room I was blown away by the size! It was the largest room Christina or I had ever stayed in. The funny thing was that the hotel considered this a junior suite and it was the smallest suite in the hotel. It was crazy to think that the junior suite was bigger than our first joint apartment. I can only imagine the size of the other suites in the hotel! One awkward feature of the room is that it had no manual lock and only contained a digital lock. I think that the hotel room must have sensors to show when a guest was in the room because whenever we were in the room the hotel employees would ring twice. On the left side of the hallway as we walked in was a half bathroom which was also equipped with a Japanese Toto toilet. 
1/2 Bathroom
Next was the living room area of the suite which had a desk with several lamps, a couch, table, television, and artwork. I found several of the design choices to be questionable. For example, the artwork in the living room was creepy and the television obstructed the view of the city out of the living room window. However, I appreciated the large number of plugs on the desk including two USB plugs and two international plugs.
Living Room
The room also had a small kitchenette which had a coffee machine, sink, cabinets, and a mini-fridge. The mini-fridge and the cabinets contained very expensive items for sale. Also, Christina could not get the coffee machine to work and it was another example of something broken in the hotel.
Kitchenette
The suite also had two closets with one in the entrance hallway and the other in the hallway heading to the bedroom. I really appreciated that the closets had ample space for us to store all of our clothing and that the entire room contained soft close drawers. Also, inside the bathroom hallway closet were laundry bags which included absurdly high laundry prices. A few things I did appreciate about the closets were that they included a steamer and an umbrella which are both uncommon items in a hotel room.
Closet
The bathroom was amazing! It was very spacious and contained a shower, toilet room, and two sinks on opposite sides of the bathroom. However, the show stopper in the bathroom was the free-standing soaking tub with stunning views of Singapore. The bathroom also had both larger sizes and a wider variety of amenities than those in the Deluxe King Room. The additional amenities included a shaving kit and a nail filer.
Soaking Tub with Spectacular Singapore Views
The bedroom had a chaise lounge, a king bed, and a desk. The desk was positioned awkwardly on a carpet cutout which made it difficult to use. The room also had similar creepy artwork as the living room. The best part of the bedroom was the view. Since the room was a corner room on the 14th floor it had great views of downtown Singapore in both directions.
Deluxe Suite Bedroom
Dining
The JW Singapore South Beach had a plethora of dining options which was unsurprising in an amazing foodie city as Singapore. The hotel had eight dining and drinking options across the South Beach complex. This including Akira Back, run by a Michelin Star chef, Beach Road Kitchen, Court Martial Bar, and Tonic which were all accessible directly from the hotel. Additionally, Cool Cats, Fish Pool, Madame Fan, and Stag's Room were located inside the NCO Club in the South Beach complex. Also, specifically for those with Marriott Bonvoy Platinum Elite Status or above and a room with executive lounge access had access to dining in the executive lounge. 
Map of JW Singapore South Beach Dining, Amenities, and Meeting Rooms
While we were at the hotel we had the opportunity to try only two of the dining options, Beach Road Kitchen and the executive lounge. We attempted to try Akira Back, however, it was completely full for Mother's Day dinner. We didn't attempt to try the other dining options because Singapore had such amazing dining that we wanted to explore the city. However, I can tell you that the breakfast buffet at Beach Road Kitchen along with the food and drinks in the executive lounge were spectacular!
Aikra Back
Beach Road Kitchen is located in the South Beach complex across from the main tower (east tower) of the hotel. The restaurant served breakfast, lunch, and dinner, however, we only tried the breakfast buffet during our stay. Breakfast was served from 6:30am-10:30 am during the week and 6:30 am-11:00 am on the weekends. The breakfast buffet included an extensive selection of food reflecting the diversity of Singapore. It was by far the best buffet I have ever tried. We had access to the buffet every day as an amazing Marriott Bonvoy Platinum elite benefit, normally a cost of $45 Singapore dollars per adult and $23 per child, and it allowed us to skip lunch every day resulting in a substantial savings on dining.
Beach Road Kitchen
The breakfast buffet took up multiple rooms of the restaurant and included Indian food (e.g. curry and roti) Chinese food (e.g. dim sum and mode to order noodles), Western food (e.g. pancakes, eggs, and waffles).
My favorites were the Chinese and Indian dishes including the multiple types of dim sum, and the Beef Curry. The restaurant rotated several of the hot dishes every day which meant we were able to try different dishes every day we ate at Beach Road Kitchen.
Breakfast
I also really enjoyed eating the fresh honey and various jams with bread. If all of the food offered at the buffet was not enough the restaurant also came around with additional food samplers during breakfast.
Fresh Honey
I also tried several unique tropical fruits I had never heard of before including snake fruit. I was not a big fan of snake fruit.
Breakfast Buffet Fruit
The buffet also included a large variety of fresh fruit juice. In particular I loved the fresh orange juice. The only compliant at all about the buffet was that the desserts were mediocre. Overall, the buffet was spectacular and I would strongly recommend purchasing access at least one day even if you can't access it on a complimentary basis as a Marriott Bonvoy elite.
Breakfast Buffett Drinks and Fruit
As a Marriott Bonvoy Platinum elite Christina also had access to breakfast (6:30-10:30 am), afternoon tea (2:30-5:00 pm), Hor d'overes (5:30-7:30 pm), and evening cocktails (5:30-9:30 pm) in the executive lounge.
Bridge Access to Executive Lounge
One morning we had breakfast in the executive lounge. The offerings were very similar to the Beach Road Kitchen breakfast buffet. Some differences included that the lounge offered different types of dim sum, fresh cooked eggs, and the lounge did not have table tea and coffee service like the restaurant. The best part of the lounge breakfast was how quiet it was in comparison to the restaurant.
Executive Lounge Breakfast
The evening hor d'oevers were also a great benefit. The options included a variety of cold cuts and a few hot snacks which all together were enough to make a meal. The lounge offered several types of wine and beer along with water in the evening. However, the stand out were the variety of complimentary evening cocktails which included a tequila sunrise, mimosa, and old fashion. This was another great benefit of Marriott Bonvoy Platinum elite status given the high alcohol prices in Singapore.
Amenities
One of the nice features of the hotel was that Wi-Fi was complimentary and available throughout the hotel without a need to login. This made it easy to access the internet throughout the hotel. The JW Marriott South Beach also featured two pools one on the 18th floor of the main East Tower and another called the SkyDeck located on the 6th floor of the West Tower. We checked out the 18th floor on our first day. The 18th floor had a wraparound balcony with amazing views of Singapore. On one side was comfortable lounging furniture facing the Marina including the Marina Bay Sands hotel. We really enjoyed relaxing on these chairs to have a bite to eat or read. 
Lounge Chairs
On the second side was a view of other South Beach Development buildings and games including pool and foosball. We had a lot of fun playing a few rounds of pool and foosball in this area.
Foosball Table
On the third side was the pool bar Flow 18 along with tables and chairs to eat, and the gym.
Flow 18
On the fourth side was the pool which had stunning views of downtown Singapore. When we walked towards the pool we were greeted by friendly staff who gave us towels and room temperature water, though we would have appreciated cold water given the hot temperature. The upper level the pool was shallow with three semi-submerged chairs and another chair with a table overlooking the Singapore's World War 2 Memorial. The upper level of the pool seemed to be set up to be photographed and looked more like a piece of art than a pool. The lower-level pool was much deeper and afforded the opportunity to swim. However, the water was ice cold! In the super humid tropical climate of Singapore a cold pool may sound good but this pool was freezing so cold in fact that we only lasted 10 minutes swimming. I was very surprised that the hotel did not do a better job to regulate the temperature of the pool and it seemed like they were pumping in ice cold water. If the pool had a more comfortable temperature I am sure it would be a social scene, however, almost every time we went up to the 18th floor the pool was empty which I assumed was due to the ice cold water.
18th Floor Pool
After the ice cold 18th floor pool we checked out the second pool on the 6th floor Sky Deck. This pool was located on the 6th floor of the west tower. In order to access the pool we needed to go down to the 2nd floor, across to the spa entrance then take an elevator up to the sixth floor. The set-up of this pool was awkward since it seemed to be set up for a bar and lounge atmosphere but there was no bar. There was a menu for Flow 18 at the pool but I never saw anyone taking orders. In fact, after multiple visits we only interacted with staff at the pool once when a staff member handed us a towel and asked for our room number.
Sky Garden Pool
We really enjoyed the Sky Garden pool since the water was room temperature, there was usually no one around and it also had stunning views of downtown Singapore.
View from Sky Garden Pool
Later in our stay we also checked out the gym on the 18th floor which we used once during our stay and it wasn't busy. The gym had a good mix of cardio machines and weights.
Gym
The gym provided cold towels, which were refreshing, cold bottles of water, wipes, and copies of the NYTimes and the Straits Times. Overall, it was a solid gym.
Water, Towels, Newspaper, Wipes
On our first day were really jet lagged so made a reservation at the onsite Spa by JW. We decided to have the jet lag couples massage which cost $150 Singaporean Dollars (SD) for 50 minutes. Before the massage we spent time in the separate men's and women's spa facilities. These included a jacuzzi and steam rooms. I found the steam room to be too hot but I loved the jacuzzi. The jacuzzi ended up being exactly what I needed after a long flight and after using it I realized just how sore my muscles were. After using the jacuzzi I went to relax in the spa lounge which was quiet and had cold water, magazines, and great massage chairs. I was very relaxed in this room until another client started working on his computer and fully opened the blinds. While in the spa lounge we were called into the massage room. I thought that the massage was really well done. My biggest complaint was that the masseuse was too hard on my sore muscles. Overall, I thought the couples massage was very good and worth the $150 SD.
Spa by JW
Service
Service at the JW Marriott South Beach could best be described as inconsistent. Prior to our arrival we reached out to the concierge about transportation options from the airport. The concierge offered us several options including the hotel's limo or private car options which were prohibitively expensive. When we let him know those options were too expensive he let us know about the less expensive airport shuttle. However, once we were on-site the concierge service was much less impressive. We tried to get a reservation to a Michelin star restaurant Lei Garden for lunch and after going to their website there were no openings. So we asked the concierge for help and he assured us that he would call us by 11:30 am to let us know if he secured any reservations. However, at 1 pm we hadn't received a call back so we called the hotel and left a message for the concierge. The concierge let us know that he made us a reservation for 1:45 pm. This meant we had to scramble to get back change and make it to the restaurant and this could have been avoided if the concierge had actually called us back earlier. The same dichotomy existed when dealing with the reservation agents. Christina received a welcome email for being a Platinum elite and when we checked in we were sent to the VIP check-in agent. However, we never received any communications about our upgrade or the extra points despite the agent's promise to follow. Moreover, our reservation was showing up in the Marriott app with a $750 extra person fee which we were not quoted in advance. When we went downstairs to speak with a check-in agent about these three questions his response ranged from uninterested to dismissive. He indicated that the app was just a glitch and refused to even look and let us know that the extra points would post after we insisted he look up the reservation. While he ultimately upgraded us he made it feel like he was doing us a big favor despite the promise at check-in. Christina suggested that the poor communications and disinterest we saw some of the time may be driven by the fact that the hotel seems to cater to business travelers and big groups which may make them lazy sometimes with other guests. Take Away We ended up enjoying our stay at the JW Marriott South Beach. It was a nice property with a great location in the heart of Singapore. The drawbacks of the property including poor communication, freezing cold 18th floor pool, and weak bathroom amenities were overcome by the positives. These positives included the cool decor, nice art work, stunning views, fantastic spa, and great rooms even at both the basic and suite levels. Ultimately the standouts of the property were the amazing location and the spectacular breakfast buffet. I would recommend staying at the JW Marriott South Beach in particular if it is your first stay in Singapore or if you are an elite with access to the executive lounge and breakfast buffet. By RamonRamon is the creator of Travelling Companion. He focuses on flight review, hotel reviews, and helping stretch your travel dollars, miles, and points further.
Flight Overview
The culinary journey and great service continued on this second leg. The Singapore Suites provided plenty of comfortable sleeping amenities and space but I was left wanting a softer bed for the overnight journey. Pros- Very Good Ground Experience in Frankfurt, Speedy Boarding, Great Service, High-End Sleeping Amenities, Wide Selection of Five Star Cuisine, First Class Meal Service, Krug and Caviar, Connected Suites , and a Bed in the Sky Cons- Dated Hard Product, Weak In-Flight Entertainment System, Hard Bed First Class Honeymoon Trip Report First Class Honeymoon Overview Delta Sky Club DCA Review Delta CRJ 900 DCA-JFK First Class Review Virgin Atlantic Clubhouse New York JFK Review Singapore Airlines A380 JFK-FRA Suites Review Singapore Airlines A380 FRA-SIN Suites Review JW Marriott Hotel Singapore South Beach Review Singapore Surprise Singapore Airlines 737-800 SIN-MLE Business Class Review The St. Regis Maldives Vommuli Resort Review Etihad Airways A320 MLE-AUH Business Class Review Al Maha, a Luxury Collection Resort & Spa Dubai Review The St. Regis Abu Dhabi Review Exploring Abu Dhabi Etihad Apartments A380 AUH-JFK Apartments Review 
Lufthansa Senator Lounge Entrance
Lufthansa Senator Lounge Frankfurt
Our Singapore Airlines flight from New York John F Kennedy Airport (JFK) landed around 10 am Frankfurt time. Upon deplaning we were greeted by a gate agent who escorted us on the very short walk from our gate to the Lufthansa Senator Lounge where we would spend our approximately two hour layover before continuing to Singapore in the Singapore Suites. Lufthansa has multiple lounges at their Frankfurt hub which can be very confusing. Passengers traveling in First Class on Lufthansa have access to the First Class Lounges while passengers traveling in Star Alliance First Class have access to the Senator Lounges. Initially, there were some issues entering the Senator Lounge since our boarding passes would not properly scan. It turned the out the issue was that our journey started the day before so the computer thought we were not eligible. However, the agent was able to clear up the issue and we were on our way. Once we walked through the door the actual lounge was located one level up and we went up to the lounge level using an escalator. My first impression of the lounge was very positive. I was very impressed by the amount of light flowing into the lounge and found the design to be very modern. 
Senator Lounge Bar
The lounge was very quiet at this time of the morning and had great views of the tarmac. I walked around the lounge to get a sense of the food and drinks available and was impressed by the wide selection. Also, while the lounge did not have champagne available, it had a large selection of sparkling wines on display even in the early morning. Despite the wide selection Christina and I did not eat or try out the sparkling wine in the lounge since we were still stuffed from the culinary adventure on our flight over to Frankfurt from JFK. Christina and I did not sleep at all on the transatlantic flight, since we were trying to adjust to Singapore time, and at this point we were exhausted and struggling to stay awake. Since we had just gotten off of an overnight flight and were falling asleep Christina decided to take a shower. The lounge had multiple shower rooms available and when the shower suite was available the buzzer went off. Christina loved the ability to shower after an overnight flight.
Senator Lounge Breakfast
Boarding
We left the lounge and headed to the gate for boarding in time to be the first people onboard the flight. When we got to the boarding area it was a zoo. Not only was Singapore Airlines boarding our A380 for the final leg of the journey to Singapore but, All Nippon Airways (ANA) was boarding a flight at the next gate over. On this second leg of the journey Singapore Airlines has pickup rights in Frankfurt and the flight was a mix of people who continued on from JFK and other passengers who started the journey in Frankfurt. In Suites Class only one other passenger, who seemed to be a businessman, continued the journey with us from JFK. Once again we ran into discrimination while boarding. We stood in the Suites line ready to board and the gate agent stared at us. We felt uncomfortable again and assumed he was thinking, why is this young minority couple standing in the Suites line? After a short while staring at us he asked us are you traveling in economy, premium economy, or business? We said no and let him know we were in Suites. He looked at our boarding passes, let us board and we ended up being the first people on board. Once again, Singapore Airlines impressed me with there boarding process they were able to board the entire A380 in 19 minutes. I think this process is driven by the fact that there were multiple sections to board each class, multiple boarding doors, and the staff did a good job directing passengers to their seats. 
Singapore Airlines Boarding Sign
Plane and Seats
Once we boarded we headed to 3C and 3D the same rear centre seats in Suites we occupied on the previous leg of the flight. The center Suites can be connected and turned into a double suite which is ideal for traveling companions and we were excited to use the beds and get some sleep on this second overnight flight. Even though we were in the same seats on the same plane I noticed some additional wear and tear at our seats and thought again how this version of the Suites is showing its age. On this flight there were only three other seats occupied. The gentleman who had joined us on our flight from JFK occupied one while the other two were occupied by another couple seated in the second set of center Suites (2C and 2D). 
Singapore Suites Seat 3C
Food and Drinks
Once we settled in our flight attendant came by and let us know that the honeymoon cake which our previous flight attendant had generously offered to keep in the fridge for our second leg of the flight had to be thrown away because of hygiene standards. While we were disappointed to not be able to have more cake, we were really appreciative of how serious Singapore Airlines takes hygiene. Knowing how seriously they take hygiene standard makes us even more likely to fly them in the COVID-19 era. We were offered a drink during boarding and we chose water to make sure we stayed hydrated during the flight. Once we were in the air we tried out the cocktails. Christina ordered the famous Singapore Sling while I ordered a modified version the Kris Flyer Sling. Christina really enjoyed her Singapore Sling and found it to be fruity while my modified version was not as good. We decided that when we got to Singapore we would order the real thing at the Raffles Hotel Long Bar and compare the difference in taste. One thing that really impressed me was the glassware which also was from Lalique and had the Singapore Airlines logo.
When the flight attendant came around to confirm our order we asked for Krug, of course, and for an abbreviated meal service since we were still full after our flight from JFK. We skipped the bread, cheese, soup, and salad courses. However, what we didn't skip was the caviar course. The caviar paired with Krug was still amazing. Then for the appetizer we devoured the fantastic satay. The satay came with two types of meat and a dipping sauce that was sweet and yummy.
Satay
For this leg of our flight we chose from the Book the Cook lunch menu. Book the Cook allowed us to choose from an expanded menu in advance of the flight. There were an impressive, and almost overwhelming, number of choices with 16 items to choose from. It was like choosing from an expansive menu at a five-star restaurant. I ordered the 7oz beef fillet. It was served with roasted vegetables and grilled tomatoes. I found the beef fillet was cooked perfectly and quite tender. While I really liked this meal, I preferred the roasted rack of lamb on the first leg of the flight from JFK.
7oz Beef Fliet
Christina ordered the crab cakes which came with a side of roasted vegetables. Christina really liked the crab cakes and preferred the crab cakes to the lobster Thermidor she had on the flight from JFK.
Crab Cakes
For dessert we decided to share the apple tart with ice cream and the flight attendant brought over two plates and two spoons. Christina really liked the dessert while I thought it wasn't very good.
Apple Tart with Ice Cream
The next morning, for breakfast Christina and I both started off with fresh fruit and fruit juice. I ordered the apple juice while Christina ordered the orange juice. The fresh fruit was good while apple juice was okay, and the orange juice was freshly squeezed and very good. For the main course I ordered the fresh toast along with a hot chocolate and a chocolate croissant. The french toast and the hot chocolate were okay while the croissant like all the bread I had on Singapore Airlines, was great.
French Toast
Christina ordered the Prawn Wanton Noodle Soup through Book the Book, which was the only Asian choice on the breakfast menu, along with a vanilla latte. Christina really liked this dish and would highly recommend it. Overall, I thought Christina definitely beat me on the breakfast selection but I was left with the impression after two flights that breakfast is Singapore Airlines weakest meal.
Prawn Wanton Noodle Soup
Amenities and In-Flight Entertainment
On this flight I again found the circa 2000's Kris Flyer in-flight entertainment (IFE) system very underwhelming and the weakest part of the legacy Suites experience. Both the television, which was very low resolution, and remote needed an upgrade. The Kris Flyer system aboard the legacy Suites also had very limited options. We ended up watching reruns of the Big Bang Theory. To help keep me entertained on this flight I ended up using the WiFi. A great feature of Suites Class was that each passenger received 100 MB of free WiFi. On the first leg of the flight I was able to stay connected the whole time, however, on the second leg I ran out of data about 4 hours from arrival in Singapore. 
Kris Flyer IFE
On this second leg of the flight we were given a second set of pajamas, socks, and slippers but not a second amenity kit. Once our lunch was done we asked for the flight attendants to turn our seats into connected beds. The flight attendants pulled the beds out of the wall which revealed reading lights. I found it so amazing that are seats were able to so quickly be turned in to a bed in the sky!
Singapore Airlines Suite Double Beds
All of the amenities we received including the pajamas were from Lalique. We found the pajamas to be soft and super comfortable. The biggest issue I had with the pajamas were that they did not have pants pockets. This was annoying and meant that if I carried my phone around I had to hold it in my hand or in the shallow shirt pocket. The sheets, which were also from Lalique, were okay though I expected a higher thread count in Suites. However, the blanket was very comfortable and better than most blankets I have at home. While it is hard to complain about a bed in the sky I must say the bed was very hard and really could have used a mattress pad. I have always had issues falling asleep on a plane and I wondered going into this flight if the combination of having a bed in the sky and being exhausted from a long flight would allow me to sleep longer. During the flight I feel asleep for the first time for one hour and then went to sleep a second time for three hours. I was surprised that even in Suites I couldn't get a full nights sleep. I believe this was driven by the significant noise in the cabin along with a very hard bed and I would be curious to see if I would have been able to sleep with a softer bed and quieter cabin.
Lalique Pajamas
Service
After the spectacular service we received on the first leg of the flight from JFK we had high expectations for the service on this flight. While this flight didn't top the first leg from JFK the service was great and it is clear that Singapore Airlines understands the value of service. One example of the things that impressed me about the service was the attention to detail of the flight attendants. Whenever we walked away from our respective suites the flight attendants refreshed our areas with more water and folded our blankets. Furthermore, the flight attendants were very attentive and I was always amazed that as soon as Christina opened her suite door a flight attendant was there to serve her. On one occasion after we woke up and asked for water the flight attendants brought us over snacks including mini-snickers and German cookies I had never tried before. 
Singapore Airlines In-Flight Snack
The flight attendants were able to strike the balance of being helpful and attentive without being overbearing. Another feature of the service I really appreciated were the towel services and on multiple occasions during the flight we were offered refreshing hot towels.
Arrival As we arrived into Singapore Changi Airport (SIN) I sat in one of the window Suites to get a view of our arrival and I was treated to a spectacular early morning view. 
View from Singapore Airlines A380
We landed at SIN Terminal 3 and were off the plane quickly and ended having no wait at all immigration. We did end up having a short wait at baggage claim but our bags were among the first out because of our Suites tags. While we waited I was blown away by the SIN arrivals area which was bright, modern, airy, and made it feel like we were in the middle of a jungle.
Singapore Changi Terminal 3 Baggage Claim
Take Away
On the second leg of our Singapore Airlines Suites journey Singapore Airlines continued to impress. We continued our culinary journey with a wide selection of restaurant quality dishes and attentive service. The Singapore Suites sleeping amenities were high-end and despite finding the bed to be too hard we really appreciated having a double bed in the sky. Singapore Airlines impressed me and I wouldn't hesitate to take the airline again especially in Suites. Hopefully next time we fly them we can try out the new Suites product. By RamonRamon is the creator of Travelling Companion. He focuses on flight review, hotel reviews, and helping stretch your travel dollars, miles, and points further.
First Class Honeymoon Trip Report
First Class Honeymoon Overview Delta Sky Club DCA Review Delta CRJ 900 DCA-JFK First Class Review Virgin Atlantic Clubhouse New York JFK Review Singapore Airlines A380 JFK-FRA Suites Review Singapore Airlines A380 FRA-SIN Suites Review JW Marriott Hotel Singapore South Beach Review Singapore Surprise Singapore Airlines 737-800 SIN-MLE Business Class Review The St. Regis Maldives Vommuli Resort Review Etihad Airways A320 MLE-AUH Business Class Review Al Maha, a Luxury Collection Resort & Spa Dubai Review The St. Regis Abu Dhabi Review Exploring Abu Dhabi Etihad Apartments A380 AUH-JFK Apartments Review 
Ramon and Christina in Dubai
Introduction
After a lot of planning and saving our miles and points Christina and I embarked on our amazing First Class honeymoon to Asia in May 2019. During our honeymoon we went to Singapore, the Maldives, and Dubai and Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates(UAE). The goal of this trip was to get to the Maldives, an island nation in the middle of the Indian Ocean. I first heard about the Maldives in the documentary film The Island President in 2012. After being blown away by the beauty of the islands, I committed to one day visiting the Maldives. It wasn't difficult to convince Christina that this beautiful remote island destination should be the place for our honeymoon, that we should fly international First or Business Class, and that we should stopover in Asia since neither one of us had ever been to Asia. The changing political climate in the Maldives which moved closer towards dictatorship as our planning was underway almost led us to go to another destination such as Thailand or the Seychelles. In the end the Maldives held new elections in 2018 and we ended sticking with our original plan to go to the Maldives. The Maldives was even more gorgeous than I had imagined. It was a great place for the seclusion we desired during our Honeymoon. However, some of the places we envisioned just being stopovers also left significant impressions on us. In the case of Singapore it was a very positive impression and it ended up being our favorite city we have every visited together. In the case of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) the impression was negative and we are unlikely to visit again. Booking Flights For our honeymoon we set out well in advance saving all our our miles and points to ensure that we would fly the long haul segments to the Maldives in First Class and all of the shorter segments in Business Class. We also wanted to try out two of the best First Class products in the world for traveling companions; the Singapore Suites and the Etihad Apartments. Both of these products allow traveling companions to connect suites, sleep side by side on beds, and dine together. While I will leave the full details for the reviews I can tell you we were very impressed and neither product disappointed. 
First Class Honeymoon Flight Routing
Singapore Airline's Suites are only on their flagship A380 aircraft. In the United States the airline only use this aircraft to serve New York John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK) via Frankfurt International Airport (FRA). This meant to start off our trip we had to fly from Washington D.C. to New York JFK. For this flight we booked a Delta First Class tickets for 12,000 SkyMiles and $5.60 taxes and fees. You should know that SkyMiles fluctuate in price generally based on the actual cost of the ticket. These tickets were selling for $161.20 each meaning we got a value of 1.03 cents per mile which was a mediocre value for SkyMiles. However, at the time we didn't plan to fly Delta for a while and the overall SkyMiles cost was low so we went ahead and used our SkyMiles.
Delta CRJ 900
For the next leg of the trip in the Singapore Suites the only redemption option was utilizing Singapore Airlines Kris Flyer miles. We booked the tickets from JFK-FRA-Singapore Changi (SIN) for 120,000 Kris Flyer miles and $65.80 SDG (~$49.22 USD) each. These tickets were selling for $8,415.78 USD each meaning we got an amazing value of ~7 cents per mile! For the complete details on how we booked these tickets you can read my post on the booking process here. Since the time we booked these tickets the cost on this route has increased to 132,000 miles per ticket which I believe is still a great value.
 Singapore Airlines A380
To get to the Maldives from Singapore we flew in Business Class on Singapore Airlines affiliate Silk Air since there were no First Class flights available on this route and the timing of the Silk Air flight worked better than the mainline Singapore Airlines flight. For this flight we booked the tickets using 39,000 Kris Flyer miles and $49.80 SDG (~36.88$ USD) in taxes and fees each. These tickets were selling for $1,416 USD each so we got a great value of 3.54 cents per mile.
Silk Air (Singapore Airlines) A320
For our flight from the Maldives to the UAE we chose to flying Etihad from Male Veleana International Airport (MLE) to Abu Dhabi International Airport (AUH). Even though we were heading to the Dubai desert for this leg of the trip, we decided to fly into Abu Dhabi because Etihad had a non-stop flight from MLE and we could use our AAdvantage miles. We booked this flight for 30,000 American Airlines AAdvantage miles and $51.40 in taxes and fees. These tickets were $1,480 per person meaning we got a great value of 4.76 cents per mile.
Etihad Airways A320
Etihad's Apartments are only on their flagship A380 aircraft and JFK is their only U.S. A380 destination. For this flight we booked the Apartments using 115,000 AAdvantage miles and paid $49.31 in taxes and fees. The tickets were selling for $8,535 meaning we got an amazing value ~7.38 cents per mile. For the complete details on how we booked these tickets you can read my post on the booking process here.
Etihad A380
For the final flight to Washington Regan National (DCA) from JFK we bought two First Class tickets on Delta. We chose Delta because the timing of the flights gave us a buffer in case our Etihad flight was late, the Delta terminals at JFK are near the Etihad's terminal 4, and we could access the SkyClub during our wait. We booked these two First Class tickets for $197.30 each. We each earned 855 SkyMiles, 750 Medallion Qualifying Miles, and 171 Medallion Qualifying Dollars.
Booking Hotels
For our Honeymoon we chose to stay only at Marriott luxury hotels since Christina has Marriott Platinum Status. In Singapore there are numerous Marriott hotels bookable with points including The St. Regis Singapore and the W Senosta Cove. However, for our trip we decided to book the JW Marriott Singapore because of its central location. We booked the JW Marriott Deluxe Room for $436 SDG (~$322 USD) per night. Christina earned 50,082 total Marriott points. 
Delta 717
JW Marriott Hotel Singapore South Beach
Marriott has multiple luxury properties in the Maldives including the W Maldives and the JW Marriott Maldives. However, for our stay in the Maldives we chose to stay at The St. Regis Maldives Volmmuli which is considered one of the best points hotel in the world and one of the best hotels overall in the Maldives. This hotel is located on a secluded atol about a one hour seaplane ride from Male, Maldives. We booked the Garden Villa for five nights at 60,000 points per night with the fifth night free, for total of 240,000 points, along with $1,450 in taxes and fees including the cost of the roundtrip seaplane ride. The cost of the Garden Villa was $1,473 excluding taxes and fees meaning we got a fantastic value of 3.7 cents per Marriott point. Please note that in the intervening time Marriott has implemented category 8 and peak and off-peak pricing. This means that the price of an award redemption at The St. Regis Maldives can range from 70,000-100,000 points. We also booked this reservation as a part of Marriott Points Advance which allowed us to lock in the price of the room before it increased. However, in the intervening time Marriott has Points Advance to only allow the member to hold a room and not lock in the price.
The St. Regis Maldives
Marriott has a large number of luxury hotels in Dubai including the Ritz Carlton Dubai and the W Dubai-The Palm. However, we decided to stay at Al Maha located in the desert about an hour outside Dubai because we wanted the seclusion of the desert experience and looked forward to enjoying the all inclusive food and activities. We booked a one bedroom Bedouin Suite for 60,000 Marriott points per night, for a total of 180,000 points, plus 60 AED (~17 USD) in taxes and fees for the whole stay. The cost of the garden villa was $870 per night excluding taxes and fees meaning we got a great value of ~1.5 cents per Marriott point.
Al Maha Dubai
Finally, for our stay in Abu Dhabi there were a number of Marriott luxury hotels available including The Edition Abu Dhabi and The St. Regis Sadiyaat Island Resort. However, we decided to stay at The St. Regis Abu Dhabi so we would have an opportunity to easily explore the city. We booked the Superior Room for $590 AED per night (~$142.33 USD). Christina earned 6,773 Marriott points.
The St. Regis Abu Dhabi
Summary
We had an amazing time on our First Class Honeymoon! We can't wait to share the photos, videos, stories from Singapore, the Maldives, Dubai, and Abu Dhabi! We felt very blessed to have had this experience and hope sharing some of our adventures will inspire you to travel when it safe to do so again or just bring a light hearted story for you to enjoy during your day. Let the First Class Honeymoon trip report begin! |
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