Written by Julie Jones, Have Wheelchair Will Travel, February 8, 2023
I find it hard to believe that in all our years of travelling we’ve never flown with Singapore Airlines. Working in the travel industry, I always received amazing feedback about the airline, and they have steadily held their position as being well-respected in the industry. I always like to share our travel experiences, so I thought I’d do a review on Singapore Airlines economy class.
Find budget Singapore Airlines fares here.
Singapore Airlines economy class review
When we were searching for flights for our trip to Europe, the decision over which airline to choose came down to the best price and the most efficient airline to get to our destination. We didn’t have much time In Europe, so we wanted to maximise our time on the ground and minimise the travel time. Singapore Airlines won out on price and in efficiency in getting us to our destination.
I think it’s always tough to go into any situation with high expectations. Even on our ride to the airport our driver was chatting to us about how amazing Singapore Airlines is and how she had never heard a bad word about them. It was therefore difficult not to expect excellence.
Singapore Airlines economy class extra legroom seats
Check-in was seamless, as was boarding and our flight was on time. We had booked extra legroom seats which cost around $150 extra per person per sector. So Sydney to Singapore cost $150 per person to have the extra legroom, Singapore to Paris, Rome to Singapore and so on. It was an expense on top of an already exorbitantly high airfare, and keep in mind, Singapore Airlines provided us with the best value for money with our airfares. Hubby thought we could do without it on the shorter flights but I was determined to arrive in Europe in the best shape possible and on our return we knew we would hit the ground running. So, we paid for the extra legroom and I think it was money well spent. It was great to be able to stretch out, we could get up and down as often as we liked, without squeezing past people, and there’s just something less claustrophobic about having space around you.
Our seats were in the exit row on most of our flights, which is not available to people travelling with a disability as you are supposed to be able to assist in an emergency if necessary. I’m not sure that everyone sitting in those sits would help, let alone could help, but perhaps that’s me being cynical.
There are however, some extra legroom seats that are not classified as exit row, so if you are booking with an airline, and can afford them, it might be worth checking out that option. Flying Singapore to Paris we had the extra legroom seats pictured above which are non-exit row seats and they offered a lovely amount of space to stretch out.
On the return to Australia, Hubby and Amelia booked the row behind the exit row which only offers one seat (next to the window) which has the extra legroom. You can see in the picture above and the one below what that seat is like.
This may be of assistance if you only have one family member that really needs the space. For example, if we were travelling with Braeden, we’d put him in that extra legroom seat by the window and the rest of us could manage having a seat in front of us. At least we’d know his restlessness would be less likely to bother people and he’d have more space to stretch out.
Booking the extra legroom seats did mean we were located near the toilets. This wasn’t a problem for us and from my bird’s eye position, I can tell you that Singapore Airlines cabin crew are the most attentive I’ve seen in regards to hygiene. The toilets were cleaned so regularly and thoroughly it was seriously impressive. On the A380 flights there was a larger bathroom for use for people with a disability.
Singapore Airlines economy class catering & entertainment
The entertainment options were fine. It wasn’t a mind-blowing selection but it did keep us all sufficiently entertained. I found a much wider selection when I flew with Delta Airlines to the US last year. I did find myself getting back into Grey’s Anatomy after dropping it many moons ago. Wow, I’ve missed a lot.
Singapore Airlines economy class food was good Sydney to Singapore and Singapore to Rome.
I wasn’t a fan of the options on my return flights. I found the meals on the way home were heavily salted and absolutely swimming in soy sauce. I like soy but in measured amounts. I also missed getting eggs for breakfast.
Amelia was flying home a few weeks after us so I suggested she order vegetarian meals and she reported that they were good. In retrospect I’d order vegetarian meals in the future too if I was flying with Singapore Airlines.
On our flights from Australia to Europe we received a lovely Connoisseur ice cream as a snack. I may have slept through any snacks on the return leg as I didn’t see any come around. I did notice other passengers asking for snacks overnight and they received a variety of salted snacks including Doritos and chips. I couldn’t see any snack bar on the plane for help-yourself-snacking.
Amenities kits are not provided but toothbrushes and toothpaste is available in the bathrooms.
Disability assistance
Braeden wasn’t travelling with us this trip, but I watched as passengers who needed mobility assistance were helped. As usual, passengers with a disability were assisted to board the aircraft first, and were required to leave the aircraft last. If you are booking a trip with Singapore Airlines, or just considering them as an airline, you may like to start your research on their Disability Assistance page.
It was great to see Auslan on the inflight safety briefing video. After learning a lot about Auslan while Amelia was studying, I agreed with her that the person doing Auslan in the video should be wearing black, or there should be a dark background behind her to make it clearer.
We found the flight attendants to be polite and accommodating. Singapore Airlines economy class was good. It didn’t live up to the high expectations I had and the food on my return journey was a let down but perhaps I’d heard too much hype. The extra legroom was well worth the money and I’d book those seats again if I was travelling on a long-haul flight.
Most importantly, all our fights arrived on time at our destinations, even when the flights were delayed leaving from certain cities they made up the time in the air. Hubby’s lost luggage could have been dealt with in a better manner and of course that caused a negative feeling at the end of his trip (you can catch up on the saga of the lost luggage here). Both Amelia and I had no problem with our luggage arriving.
I’m keen to hear if you’ve travelled Singapore Airlines how you found them. I’m especially keen to hear about the disability assistance services.