Yahoo Finance How Much Do Singapore Airlines’ Home Delivery & Inflight Meals Cost Anyway?
Editor’s Note: We will never get those quiet, WFH Covid-19 pandemic years back. But we lived to tell our kids that an SIA Restaurant A380 existed in our time. Oh, memories!
Some time in October 2020, while the rest of us normies were watching Emily in Paris in our PJs, approximately 900 people boarded a plane for Singapore Airlines’ inaugural Restaurant A380 “dining experience”.
Yes, these people paid money to sit on a plane, eat a pre-packed meal and (presumably) queue to use the restrooms, all without a holiday destination at the end of it all to look forward to. I am just as mystified as you are.
And, whoa, just how much does this Sisyphean experience cost? Let’s take a look.
Restaurant A380: Singapore Airlines “inflight” meals
According to the Singapore Airlines web page for Restaurant A380, this is how much it cost to dine on a grounded airplane.
Restaurant A380 @ Changi | Price (incl. GST) |
Economy Class | $53.50 |
Premium Economy Class | $96.30 |
Business Class | $321 |
Suites | $642 |
Even though Restaurant A380 is payable in cash only (not KrisFlyer miles), all four days were sold out almost immediately.
Just like “real” inflight dining, you get to select your dishes. Of note: There’s a Peranakan menu designed by Lee Kuan Yew’s niece, Shermay Lee, featuring nasi lemak. It also comes with up to 2 alcoholic drinks and free-flow non-alcoholic beverages, a tour of the A380, an inflight movie and a souvenir.
Inside SIA: Singapore Airlines tours
Other than inflight meals, Singapore Airlines also launched Inside SIA, behind-the-scenes tours of SQ’s training facilities. Inside SIA was sold out in a matter of hours.
This is how much aviation enthusiasts paid:
Inside SIA | Price (cash) |
Adult (13 years & up) incl. meal | $32.10 |
Child (3 to 12 years) incl. meal | $16.05 |
Add on: Flight simulator experience | $535 (for 3 pax) |
Add on: Junior cabin crew experience | $94.16 |
Add on: Wine appreciation | $40.66 |
Add on: Grooming workshop | $94.16 |
The basic admission fee includes a meal + goodie bag. You can add on extra $$$ if you want the following specific experiences.
Flight simulator experience: Play in the same flight simulator SQ pilots use for training. Price is for up to 3 pax.
Junior cabin crew experience: Get your kids to role-play as cabin crew and “learn customer service skills” for a day.
Wine appreciation: Wine-tasting session (4 wines with cheese) with SQ sommeliers.
Grooming workshop: Learn how to “achieve the Singapore Girl look” through a makeup and hair tutorial.
SIA@Home: Singapore Airlines home delivery meals
Finally, here’s something that’s not sold out: SIA@Home, which is basically an inflight meal delivered to your home. It’s kind of like Restaurant A380, minus being confined in a tight space with plebs.
Here’s the price list for the 7 packages.
SIA@Home | Price (cash) | Price (miles) |
Business Class Wine and Dine for 2 | $308.16 | 38,520 |
First Class Signatures for 2 | $350.96 | 43,870 |
Business Class All-Inclusive Experience for 2 | $415.16 | 51,895 |
First Class Wine and Dine for 2 | $479.36 | 59,920 |
First Class Champagne and Dine for 2 | $607.76 | 75,970 |
First Class Wine and Dine, with Tableware for 2 | $736.16 | 92,020 |
First Class All-Inclusive Experience for 2 | $950.16 | 118,770 |
There are many permutations available, so let’s just imagine we have unlimited money and run through the options. Decisions, decisions…
Seat class: Only Business Class or First Class available. First comes with caviar; Business doesn’t. Opt for Business if you’re poor.
Extent of experience: The cheaper “Wine and Dine” experiences do not come with plates. Meanwhile, the “All-Inclusive Experience” comes with a 22-piece tableware set so your SQ Suites-themed dining room can finally be complete. Either way, you need to do your own washing up.
Cuisine: Choose from French, Australian, Indian, Indian vegetarian or Japanese. For simplicity, we used the prices for the first 3 — the Indian veg one is a little cheaper and the Japanese one more expensive.
You can pay for SIA@Home with your KrisFlyer miles if you wish. That’s probably a sensible choice given these dreadful times we’re in — who can say when we can redeem flights again? Even The Milelion, who famously ordered a First Class for 2 and lived to tell the tale, paid in miles.
Why do people even pay for these “experiences”?
Now that I’m done gaping at the expensive price tags and downright bizarreness ($94 for a chignon tutorial? Really?) of these Singapore Airlines experiences…
The real question is: Why are people paying good money to eat airline food?
That was also the question on this Straits Times journo’s mind. But she’s infinitely braver than I am: She actually posed the question to some interviewees. It takes guts to cross-examine people about their privilege in the middle of a recession.
As expected, most gave answers along the lines of supporting Singapore Airlines and helping to save jobs. Hm… virtue signalling much?
Meanwhile, another ST article about the opening of Restaurant A380 gave us a more prosaic (but believeable) answer: some are spending on these experiences to “make up for not being able to [travel]”. Now, that’s the self-interested Singaporean we know and love!
In any case, it’s your money (or miles), so don’t let my sour grapes get to you.
Which credit card should you use on KrisShop?
Planning to support Singapore Airlines with your money? Here’s which credit cards you should use to maximise your KrisShop.
If you’re a true SQ believer, then duh, use an SQ-cobranded credit card to earn extra KrisFlyer miles. Not sure when you’ll get to redeem them though…
Earn Miles on Everyday Spending
KrisFlyer UOB Credit Card
More Details
Air Miles Features
$1 = 3 KrisFlyer Miles on Dining, Food Delivery, Online Shopping and Travel, and Transport spend with a min sum of S$500 annual spend on Singapore Airlines Group
$1 = 3 KrisFlyer Miles on Singapore Airlines, SilkAir, Scoot and KrisShop purchases
$1 = 1.2 KrisFlyer Miles on all other spend
3,000 miles for 1st spend
10,000 renewal bonus miles
Up to 6 additional miles per S$1 spend with KrisFlyer UOB Deposit Account
No miles conversion fee
Exclusive airline privileges (eg Scoot: complimentary seat selection, priority boarding and check-in, additional baggage allowance, booking flexibility waiver; S$20 KrisShop rebate and Fast track to Elite Silver upgrade)
Exclusive travel privileges (2x $15 Grab and ChangiWiFi)
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Convenience & Perks for Frequent Flyers
American Express Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer Credit Card
Get up to 27,000 worth of KrisFlyer Miles from Amex when you apply. Min. spends of S$2,000 within the first 3 months of Card Approval required. T&Cs Apply.
Valid until 30 Sep 2022
More Details
Air Miles Features
S$1 = 3.1 KrisFlyer miles for Grab Singapore transactions, capped at S$200 per month
S$1 = 2 KrisFlyer miles for spending on eligible purchases made on singaporeair.com, SingaporeAir mobile app and KrisShop (in-flight and online), with no cap.
Earn 2 KrisFlyer miles for every S$1 equivalent in foreign currency on eligible purchases during June and December each year, with no cap.
First Year Fee Waiver of S$176.55
Receive 5,000 KrisFlyer miles upon first spend on card
Zero conversion fee, all KrisFlyer miles earned are conveniently credited directly into your KrisFlyer account
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American Express Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer Ascend Credit Card
Get up to 40,000 worth of KrisFlyer Miles from Amex when you apply. Min. spends of S$3,000 within first 3 months of card approval and payable annual fee required. T&Cs Apply.
Valid until 30 Sep 2022
More Details
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1.2 KrisFlyer miles = S$1 for all eligible card spend
2 KrisFlyer miles = S$1 in foreign currency spent overseas on eligible purchases in June & Dec
3.2 KrisFlyer miles = S$1 for Grab Singapore transactions, capped at S$200 per month
Receive 5,000 KrisFlyer miles upon first spend on card, Applicable for first-time American Express Singapore Airlines Credit Card applicants only
Spend above S$15,000 on eligible purchases on singaporeair.com within first 12 months of Card approval and get upgraded to KrisFlyer Elite Gold Membership
Up to $1 million travel insurance coverage
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