Introduction
Previously in my article titled GenX’s Live Travel Report Kuala Lumpur To Melbourne with Malaysia Airlines Business Class On Airbus A330 Again April 2024 (click here to read it), I mentioned I decided to go to Melbourne last minute and was blessed to secure 2 Business Class tickets for my wife and I with Malaysia Airlines by utilizing our Enrich Points.
For the return to KL, I could not find any Business Class tickets Melbourne to KL to redeem with either Enrich Points or KrisFlyer Miles. However, I did find that I can get 2 Business Class tickets with Singapore Airlines departing from Sydney and it was on Promo!
What does Promo means? It means I need to used less KrsFlyer Miles compared to Saver Option and thus the KrisFlyer Miles Promo is even better than Malaysia Airlines up to 20% Saving for Enrich Saver tickets! If you had read my article on Enrich Points 20% Redemption Sale 3rd & 4th May Only (click here to read it), where I had listed the Enrich Points required to many destinations including Australia where we need 63,800 Enrich Points per pax. Therefore with the Singapore Airlines Promo, I could get 2 Business Class tickets Sydney to KL for less than 100K KrisFlyer Miles which was a very good deal.
So I had to fly back to KL with Singapore Airlines departing from Sydney. But I was in Melbourne, haha.
Melbourne to Sydney with JetStar
Usually I dislike to fly with JetStar as they will combine all the weight of our carry on bags before boarding to ensure that we do not have more than 7kg combined carry on! And if you did not purchase extra carry on weight and you have more than 7kg, they will fine you on the spot! So if I do not have combined total 7kg carry on, it is like as if they are assuming we have which is like an insult…… but if I have more than 7kg and did not purchase extra carry on weigh than I guess I deserved to be fined, haha.
Another thing about Jetstar is we need to walk on the tarmac and then climb up stairs to get on the plane. FYI, DO NOT take photos when you are on the tarmac as Jetstar will kick you off the plane! No joke.
So I have been flying with Virgin Airlines for the past 2 years where the price of the ticket includes Check-In Luggage and they don’t weigh our carry on.
And there were cases where Jetstar cancelled flights last minute when all were allowed to travel again after covid. And later it was found that Qantas (which owns Jetstar) actually sold tickets for flights which were cancelled in advance. But that was more than 1 year ago.
However, for this trip, my wife and I did not have any Check-In luggage so we decided to try Jetstar again to save some money. Tip, if you do have check in baggage always compare price with Virgin Australia price and most of the time the price difference is negligible.
Anyway, to get to the Airport, I used UBER and I was shocked that the trip only cost me AUD28.13!!! This is the cheapest price I ever paid for a trip between Melbourne CBD and the airport.
And my ride from Melbourne CBD to Melbourne Domestic Airport (T4) was a Honda Odyssey which had nice captain seats at the middle row.
Since Jetstar is a Budget Airline, the Gates for Jetstar can me more than 10 minutes walk after security….. but this is considered pretty good compared to KLIA2 where it can take more than 30 minutes from Immigration to P & Q Gates to catch an AirAsia flight to Australia.
The flight from Melbourne to Sydney is only about 1.5 hours and therefore the uncomfortable Economy Class seat was not so much an issue for my wife and I. So we thought…….
And why did I said the seat was uncomfortable? Because both me and my wife had neck pain for such a short trip! The leg room was fine if we did not store anything under the seat.
Below is a photo taken on the plane of Sydney just before we landed.
At Sydney airport, we can use the Passenger Boarding Bridge by exiting the plane at the front or one can use the steps at the rear of the plane and walk on the tarmac and climb up steps again to get to inside the terminal. My wife and I have learned that it is much more convenient to exit the plane from the front door and if we are sitting towards the rear of the plane, we will not take the steps but wait till it is clear and walk to the front of the plane.
Sydney Domestic Terminal to International Terminal and Rydges Hotel
From inside Sydney Domestic Terminal, we could see Rydges Hotel on the other end where the International Terminal is located.
My flight with Singapore Airlines was the next morning at 9am+, so to make my life simple and convenient, I had booked a night at Rydges which is like next to the International Airport. In the past 2 years, I have visited Sydney a few times and stayed in the CBD; but this time I decided not to do so. Furthermore, besides needing to wake up early, catching UBER early in the morning from Sydney CBD to the airport is also kind of a hassle to me.
So we had to take the FREE Shuttle Bus from the Domestic Terminal to the International Terminal. All we had to do was follow the signage.
The bus was clean and it took about 10 minutes bus ride from the Domestic Terminal to the International Airport.
The Bus Stop at the International Terminal was right in front of Aerotel. There is also an entrance to the Aerotel from inside the terminal. Initially I wanted to book a room at Aerotel but it was fully booked.
As I mentioned, Rydges Hotel was next to the International Terminal. So dinner was not an issue as there are many restaurants inside the terminal besides in the hotel itself. BUT you need to know that Sydney airports closes early and most of the shops start closing by 8pm.
Below is my room, it was the cheapest room listed at Agoda but still cost me RM800+. For the price I paid, I can get a nicer room in Sydney CBD but like I said I booked Rydges because it was more convenient and made my life simpler.
Of course I could also use my air miles to book hotel rooms, thus having to stay for FREE. I used to book hotel rooms after air travel was opened again after covid as I had lots of air miles because we could not fly here and there during covid era. BUT today, as you all know, most of our credit cards have inflated their rewards program and thus we are accumulating air miles at a slower pace. So it would be wiser in my case to use air miles for First Class and Biz Class tickets where we get better value compared to redeeming the air miles for hotel rooms.
Anyway, if you have lots of Enrich Points, you can use them to redeem hotel rooms. Click here to my YouTube Chanel on Enrich Points for hotel rooms; and if you do further research you will find that Enrich Points give you the best value for hotels compared to KrisFlyer Miles or Asia Miles or Emirates Skywards.
Many of My Air Miles Disciples have been taught how to fly and stay for FREE, i.e. experience Suite Class with Singapore Airlines and First Class with Emirates and stay at hotels for FREE with Enrich Points 🙂
In respect to the above, previously I had many reviews on hotel rooms as My Air Miles Disciples and I stayed at many hotels for free by burning our Enrich Points.
Singapore Airlines Business Class Sydney to Singapore on Boeing 777
Like I said, I managed to secure 2 Promo Biz Class tickets for this trip.
TRS – Tourist Refund Scheme
After we checked in and cleared Immigration, we headed to the TRS counters. Since it was still early in the morning, there were hardly anyone there and therefore my wife settled her refund thingy in less than 10 minutes.
Now the Tourist Refund Scheme is not only for tourist but even Australia citizens can claim for it. However if you bring the goods back to Australia, you are supposed to be taxed because if you claim TRS, it means the item will not be brought back into Australia. We have up to 60 days to claim for TRS.
Anyway, my wife had the TRS credited into her supp credit card account and it took less than a week for it to be credited. The actual money that she got back was 8.6% of the purchase price.
Singapore Airlines SilverKris Lounge Sydney
This was the first time I am entering SilverKris Business Class Lounge in Sydney. Back in 2022 I did enter the SilverKris First Class Lounge in Sydney as I was flying First Class back then.
And we were among the first few passengers there and therefore I could take photos of the lounge.
The food offered was not fantastic but it did have Nasi Lemak.
But I can tell you the spirits that were offered is really pathetic! No Cognac!!! If you had read my Live Travel Report Melbourne to KL with Malaysia Airlines March 2024, at least Mahabara Lounge in Melbourne Airport offered St-Remy VSOP, well St-Remy is not a cognac but at least it is still French Brandy, haha.
Singapore Airlines Business Class In-Flight Service
The so called Diamond Seat on Singapore Airlines Biz Class seat are wide BUT it does not necessarily means that it is comfortable. Why? Because both your arms can’t rest on the armrest at the same time! See below photo and you will note that one of my hand is on the armrest but the other one I had to use the pillow!
Since I am flying Singapore Airlines Business Class on a Boeing 777, confirmed that I will need to sleep senget, haha. For Airbus A380, SIA Biz Class are also the so called Diamond Seats where we need to sleep senget. On the other hand, for Airbus A350, some of the planes we get to sleep straight.
After more than an hour after take off, lunch was served. First we had tuna for appetizer.
And I had the Shiraz Australia Red Wine. I prefer Australia red wines as I find them sweeter.
Since I am not flying First Class, I did not get to order Lobster but for Business Class they had Seafood Thermidor which I kind of like. I also asked for a glass of Courvoisier XO.
As for dessert they were serving sorbet and lemon meringue which both I dislike and asked the stewardess if they had ice-cream. Well the stewardess went to the Economy Class and brought back Magnum (made in Australia) and it was really good. Too bad I did not take photos of it.
After lunch I went to sleep, senget of course, haha. I skipped the next meal before landing as I was still full, moreover I can go to the Lounge at Changi for better food.
Just before landing, the stewardess brought the 2 bottles of Hibiki I ordered.
This was the second time I bought Hibiki via KrisShop and have them delivered to the plane. I tell you, when KrisShop is having a sale, you should check out the Hibiki Master’s Select or Hennessy VSOP 1L which both to me are a steal. Alternatively if you are flying Singapore Airlines for the first time, you should get the Exclusive Singapore Airlines Kavalan Solist Vinho Barrique.
Singapore to Kuala Lumpur on Singapore Airlines Business Class
I will skip the SilverKris Lounge at Changi in this report as I have reviewed it many times in my past reports.
The flight from Singapore to KL was an Airbus A350-900 but the seats were also Diamond Seats, i.e. sleep senget. However, I manged to get a Bulk Head seat for this flight but too bad it was less than an hour, haha.
Overall I must say that the service by Singapore Airlines Cabin Crew for both my Sydney to Singapore and Singapore to Kuala Lumpur were very good. The stewardess addressed me by my surname throughout the flights. And I also learned that Singapore Airlines has In-Flight Auditor whom are more senior than In-Flight Manager! All this while I thought that the highest level for cabin crew was In-Flight Manager. Since I was flying Business Class this time, the In-Flight Manager did not even chatted with me, haha. However the In-Flight Auditor was helping out the Business Class Cabin Crew and she was really friendly and extremely humble (the most humble cabin crew I ever come across) considering that she was the highest ranking cabin crew on the plane.
Singapore Airlines First and Business Class Whisky and Cognac
In January 2024, I did fly with Singapore Airlines First Class Melbourne to Singapore and I was surprised that they were serving Glenmorangie 19 Years Old.
The other whisky that was served in Singapore Airlines First Class was Johnny Walker Blue Label. As for Cognac, we have Hennessy XO, which is also served at the Private Room in Changi T3.
As for Singapore Airlines Business Class, besides Courvoisier XO, they also serve Glen Deveron 16 Years and The Chita. Below photo was taken back in 2023 when I flew from Singapore to Brisbane.
Most Singapore Airlines Business Class seats are Diamond Seat but a few Airbus A350, we actually get to sleep straight.
Below was the Airbus A350 I flew with Singapore Airlines Business Class in February 2024 where both the flight from KLIA to Changi and Changi to Brisbane had the same seat.
Above and below photos are window seat
I sat in the middle with my wife next to me for the February flight. As you can see, we get to sleep kind of straight on this A350.
For more recent flights reports (mainly post covid) please visit my HomePage and for more Live Travel Reports mainly pre-covid, please click here to my Live Travel Report Page where there are many Singapore Airlines Suite Class and Emirates First Class reports by My Air Miles Disciples.
GenX GenY GenZ 
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