Another public holiday and another short trip to a regional destination, this round to the less visited capital city of Vietnam, Hanoi. My last visit to Hanoi was almost 8 years ago when everything still felt very 70s and was curious with the changes right now. Flights were booked on SQ, going up in Business Class and returning in Economy.
Flight departure from Singapore was at a reasonable timing in the morning at 0920am. With no check-in bags, it was a breeze to obtain boarding pass at the Terminal 2 check-in counter, speed through immigration and to the T2 Silver Kris Lounge.
Staff were offering sandwiches and coffee/tea/juice on carts in the lounging section.
Buffet area. I must say, the breakfast selection, though varied, is nothing inspiring.
Boarding pass with some of the bites from the buffet.
Proceeding to board at Gate E3. Look, a mini SQ chief stewardess!!
07 November 2015
Singapore Airlines
SQ 176
Singapore (SIN) - Hanoi (HAN)
A330-300
9V-STV
Business Class
Flight Time: 2h47m
9V-STV will be operating the flight to Hanoi this morning.
Boarded through the 1st door, welcomed and directed to my seat at 15A. On each seat was a huge pillow and a blanket. Headsets and a bottle of water was also pre-set at each seat. SQ has changed the headrest and pillow designs on its regional business class seats. Blankets are also changed to a new, thicker kind.
Boarding in progress. Business Class was about 20/30, while I heard Economy was totally full. 3 crew members would be serving in Business this morning.
Shortly after seated, I was offered a choice of juices or water, hot towel and selection of newspapers and magazines. Had an apple juice to start.
Inflight magazines.
Boarding was swiftly completed and doors were closed before the STD. Pushback commenced for the almost 3hr flight to Hanoi.
Safety video played.
Taxi towards Rwy20C.
Surprisingly there was not much of a queue this morning for takeoff and we were soon on our way, departing from Rwy20C.
Making a left turn shortly after lift off.
Overflying Changi, with the eastern part of Singapore also in clear view.
Sockettes were handed out after seatbelt signs were switched off. Reading other SQ trip reports, it seems that longer flights would get the slippers and socks. Eyeshades were only provided upon request.
Not sure if it is sector specified, but no post-takeoff drinks and nuts were offered. Instead, lunch was served immediately after takeoff, a tad too early I think for an almost 3hr flight departing at 920am.
Lets check out the menu for the flight.
Light Lunch served on this flight. 'Light' means no cheese, fruits and pralines offered.
Menu of the return SQ175 HAN-SIN sector. Also a Light Lunch served.
The eye-boggling beverage selection.
Quick visit to the lavatory before meal service.
Table linens handed out.
Meal trays were delivered.
Starter of Scallops crusted with black sesame, with cherry tomatoes, Asian slaw and Singapore dressing. I had garlic bread and lavosh from the bread basket. To drink, had water and champagne.
Cheers with Charles Heidsieck.
For the main, I had Booked-the-Cook the Classic Lobster Thermidor.
Lobster tail sautéed in butter, flambéed in brandy, sprinkled with cheese, and served with creamy mushroom sauce, garlic and spicy mustard, and buttered asparagus
It was my first time trying this dish and found it rather tasty, except for the mushy asparagus which were overcooked. However, as the main courses on this flight were not plated, the dish came in a pool of sauce, which is not too visually enticing.
My travel partner BTCed the peranakan selection of Ayam Buah Keluak.
An iconic Peranakan dish, chicken and baby pork ribs stewed in buah keluak and tamarind gravy, served with traditional Nonya vegetable stew (chap chai) and steamed rice
Similarly, this dish was not very visually-appealing, but was in fact very tasty!
Dessert of Water Chestnut Pudding with coconut cream and fruit salad. A very simple Asian style dessert. I would have preferred something more sinful.
Ending off the meal service with a TWG tea. No pralines offered on this regional flight.
Service was up to the expected SQ standards. Responsive, friendly and professional. No complaints here. The one reason why passengers loved SQ is the consistently good service offered in the premium cabins, with the occasional outstanding flight if one is lucky to encounter superb crew.
Nice cloud formations below.
View of the comfortable Business Class cabin.
With slightly less than 2hrs to go, I settled down for the rest of the flight to watch a movie. Noise-cancellation headphones was Phitek-branded.
Reclined my seat and watched the comedy Pixels.
Before long, we were starting the descent into Hanoi. It was rather cloudy throughout the approach.
Almost there.
Short video of the descent and a glimpse of the Business Class seat.
Approaching Hanoi Noi Bai International Airport.
Video of the approach and landing into Noi Bai Rwy11R. We landed almost 30min early as our flight path was changed mid-flight to a more direct route, shelving at least 10min off the flight time.
Spotted a couple of VN B787s, including one parked at the old terminal, now known as Terminal One or the domestic terminal.
A couple of Jetstar Pacific A320/321 as well.
Reaching the brand new International Terminal or Terminal Two, just opened in January this year. We parked in between a CI B77W and a KE B772.
More views of the cabin while waiting to disembark.
Out on the jetbridge.
The immigration hall is just right out of our arrival gate and with barely a few persons in queue, we were across immigration and customs within 10min.
Baggage claim area, though I have no check-in bags.
View of the brand new terminal building, with newly-minted access roads as well.
We were original booked to stay at Hanoi La Siesta Hotel, but I suspected that due to overbooking, we were offered to be put up at the sister Elegance Ruby Hotel down the road for a night and was offered the Penthouse Suite. We were given complimentary massage service as well for the inconvenience. The Suite was huge, with a balcony overlooking the city of Hanoi.
The remaining 2 nights, we were put up at our original hotel, La Siesta Hotel. Had booked the Duplex Suite, which was a beautiful room with free minibar and all. Service was excellent and the buffet breakfast offering was awesome. One of my best stays ever in a hotel!
The bustling streets of Hanoi Old Quarters.
Upscale commercial area in French-architecture buildings.
Made a day tour to Hoa Lu (ancient temples) and Tam Coc (known an the inland Halong Bay).
Hoa Lu temples
Travelling down in the river in Tam Coc
Back to simplicity
