A few weeks ago, Singapore Airlines announced that it would be accelerating its re-launch of nonstop service to the US by adding a new nonstop to San Francisco, operated by the Airbus A350-900 — most likely in response to United Airlines' brand new Dreamliner flight. It's been possible to book paid fares in business class, which start at $4,700 round-trip, but the airline just began releasing award seats within the last few days.
Singapore's new business class is definitely a step up from what I recently flew on the carrier's one-stop service from Changi Airport to New York-JFK, and being able to fly to Singapore without a stop in each direction makes this new A350 flight very appealing. So it's fantastic to see that you can now redeem (relatively few) miles to fly it.
Unfortunately Singapore restricts premium award availability for partners, so it's not possible to book these flights with United miles. However, Singapore's KrisFlyer program partners with all four major transferrable points programs, so while you might not be racking up KrisFlyer miles by flying, it's relatively easy to earn them. You can boost your KrisFlyer balance via the following programs and cards:
- Citi ThankYou Rewards - Citi Premier® Card and the Citi Prestige Card
- American Express Membership Rewards - The Platinum Card® from American Express, the American Express® Gold Card and the Amex EveryDay® Preferred Credit Card from American Express
- Chase Ultimate Rewards - Chase Sapphire Preferred Card and the Ink Plus Business Card
- Starwood Preferred Guest - Starwood Preferred Guest® Credit Card from American Express and the Starwood Preferred Guest® Business Credit Card from American Express
Of the above currencies, Citi ThankYou Rewards points are worth the least, at 1.6 cents each (based on TPG's monthly valuations), so that should be your first pick for a transfer. Once you have the points in your KrisFlyer account, you can book these flights. Let's take a look at award availability.
The cheapest (and most straightforward) option is to book the flight for one person for 68,000 miles plus $253 (one way). The first date I could find with availability is November 1. There are two award seats available on this date.
There's also award availability for 2+ people throughout next year, including this date in February:
You can also find a fair number of award seats on the return flight from Singapore — here's an award for 3 people on November 1, priced at 204,000 miles plus $871:
You can also book a flight beyond Singapore throughout Southeast Asia for the same number of miles and only a bit more cash, such as this connecting option to Bali:
Or you can visit Myanmar for just a few more dollars (and the same number of miles):
Australia is also a great option, though you'll spend much more time in the air if flying Singapore to Sydney rather than a nonstop option on United or Qantas.
There's availability for two passengers on this route as well. Note that you can add a free Singapore stopover on round-trip Saver awards.
It's great to see such wide availability on Singapore's fantastic new nonstop option from San Francisco. It's a great opportunity to try SQ's new business class on the A350-900, and you'll be able to visit Southeast Asia or beyond for a reasonable number of miles (or transferrable points). While United also offers an identical route, business-class award availability is nearly impossible to come by, and you're sure to have a more pleasant experience overall when flying Singapore Airlines.
H/T: One Mile at a Time
