Avis du vol entre Singapore et Macau en classe Economique avec Scoot

INTRODUCTION

Hello everyone,
when Summer 2024 vacations approached I decided not to book anything in particular. I made this choice for two reasons: first of all prices were incontrolably high and second, but not less important, I wanted to spend my two weeks work-break in total relax
This choice had a result by the way: planning a trip for the following Spring.

Around September I realized I could merge Easter '25 vacations with Italian Liberation Day, respectively the 20th and the 2th April 2025. Four day-offs would result in ten days at home, giving space for a good vacation

At first I had two options:
1. A tour of the Pearl river's delta, visiting Hong Kong, Macau, Shenzhen and Guangzhou
2. Azerbaijian with the option of a few days in Istanbul
The second option was on stage in case the first one resulted too expensive

Searching on the internet and asking a couple of people I realized the first option presented an issue: both Shenzhen and Guangzhou don't prove too interesting to be part of a porpouse trip
My father suggested me to try visiting Singapore and Kuala Lumpur, stopping over in Malacca for a night. Even if the plan was interesting and I've always wanted to visit Singapore (being an F1 fan too) I wasn't so sure leaving HK and Macau apart. Specifically, I made a 2-hour layoover in Hong Kong in 2019, while going to Vietnam, but due to ongoing protests it was not wise to organize a couple of days there.

After a brief check on prices for Singapore to HK/Macau flights, which proved quite cheap, I ended up with this itinerary:
19th to 22nd April in Singapore
22nd to 23rd April in Macau
23rd to 26th April in Hong Kong

Due to flights' scheduled I was supposed to leave Italy in the afternoon of 18th April and return home in the early hours of the 27th.

BOOKING OPTIONS

As I was deciding the three cities to visit I tried to understand which sequence was preferred in term of price and "logistic"
Even if the prices was almost the same arriving in HK and leaving from Singapore has more cons. The return in the early morning of Sunday would have meant one more night sleeping in Singapore and would have force me to wake up very early. Moreover, departing from Linate and arriving back to Malpensa would have been quite a trouble, having a car to park somewhere

All the solutions with that price all comprises Air India for the return, which a dear friend who spent one year going back and forth to New Dehli for work warmly invited to avoid

After a few days of researching I ended up with this solution wholly handled by Lufthansa Group
Leaving on Friday late afternoon would have give me enough time to go to MXP, while the 23:25 return flight would have gave me the entire day of Saturday to stay around HK

LH-website confirmed the price for the solution found on SkyScanner
I was able to choose the Economy Basic fare, which came with a checked-luggage and a carry-on
The total price was 959 euros

On October 10th, after speaking to my manager, I booked the flights

Regarding the Singapore to HK/Macau flight SkyScanner gave me no doubt: flying into Macau with Scoot presented the cheapest fare, around 100-150 euros. Much lower than any flight between Singapore and Hong Kong with CX or SQ, rated around 1.5x more

According to my itinial plans I chose this flight, in order to have time to go with calm to Changi Airport and visit the Jewel

Since the far came with carry-on baggage only I added a checked 20 kilos one for 30 euros. I also selected the seat in advance for 10 euros, bringing the total to 177 euros

The flights in total costed me 1136 euros

18th April 2025 - Milan-Malpensa (MXP) > Frankfurt (FRA) - Lufthansa LH 255 - Airbus A319
18th April 2025 - Frankfurt (FRA) > Singapore (SIN) - Lufthansa LH 778 - Boeing 747-8
22nd April 2025 - Singapore (SIN) > Macau (MFM) - Scoot TR 904 - Airbus A321neo
26th April 2025 - Hong Kong (HKG) > Zurich (ZRH) - Swiss International Air Lines LX 139 - Boeing 777-300ER
27th April 2025 - Zurich (ZRH) > Milan-Malpensa (MXP) - Swiss International Air Lines LX 1612 - Airbus A320

ROUTING

Some stats:
7th out of 9 flights of 2025 (as of May '25)
First time flying with Scoot
First time on SIN-MFM route
First time landing into MFM

BEFORE THE FLIGHT

Once I booked the flight I already chose the seat selection for 10 euros
Usually I don't get this add-on, but flying into a totally new route, moreover during the day, pushed me to do so
I chose 5F, the first row available at that price

The decision to get the seat on the right side was drive by the approach into Macau Airport
When landings are on runway 34, the approach is completely over the sea, while landing on runway 36 happens with Macau on the right and the water on the left
I didn't know at that time which approach is more common, but staying on the right would have gave me 50% chance to see something more than sea… 

At some point between the booking and the departure date I got an e-mail from Scoot informing me the arrival time was changed from 18:55 to 18:50

Even if check-in was available online prior to departure, I decided to skip this operation and do everything at the airport, considering my seat was assigned and I'd have check my bag

GETTING TO CHANGI AIRPORT AND CHECK-IN

I decided to be at the airport around 3 hours before departure
This would have give me enough time to check my bags, have a walk around the Jewel and get something to eat
With the plane scheduled at 13:50 I left my hotel in Bugis around 10 

Getting the MRT at Bencoolen Station, located just 5 minutes walking from my hotel

Interchanging with the East-West Line at Expo Station, located just one stop from the Airport

At 10:45 I arrived at Singapore-Changi International Airport
The station is located between Terminal 2 and 3

The station is directly connected to Terminal 3
The roof design is amazing in my opinion

A quick Skytrain ride is required to get Terminal 1, which hosts all Scoot operations

Heading to row 8, dedicated to Scoot self-bag drop operations

The self-check-in and bag drop operations was quite fast and intuitive
In a matter of minutes I printed my boarding pass and the baggage tag
The area was equipped with dozens of machines and conveyors
I delivered my baggage in no time

EXPLORING THE JEWEL

As avgeek and architect I couldn't miss a walk around the Jewel, the massive shopping hall located between Terminal 1, 2 an 3
The building is linked straight to Terminal 1 arrival area

Being after 11 the waterfall had just started
To be honest, the structure is much more impressive than any pic could explain

Going upstairs to find a plane model shop, however the research was unlucky

The tropical garden is stunning, I think it was a good idea to create such a unique space in the landside area, generally more "Boring" in most of the airports

The top floor is flooded by natural light

WAITING AND PLANE-SPOTTING

Having nothing else to do I made my way to the airside area

Differently from most airports Changi doesn't have a security inspection to access airside, only the emigration control
Thanks to the e-Gates I cross the passport check in 3 minutes

The departure lounge is very pleasant and welcoming, full of high-luxury shops and flooded by natural light

TV screens around the terminal were broadcasting news about Pope Francis, who had passed away the day before

Since no lunch service was included in my plane ticket I went upstairs to get some food
As in style of Singapore hawker centers all the food kiosks shared a common seating area

I got some fried chicken with rice, egg and vegetables

After lunch I approached the large windows to get some spotting opportunities
However, the apron between pier C and D looked quite desert

Scoot A320

Singapore Airlines A380 and UPS Boeing 767F

Etihad Airways A380 with an Air Hong Kong A330F parked in the distance

Scoot Embraer E-190

Shenzhen Airlines Boeing 737 seen from the outdoor terrace, called "Discovery Garden"

Singapore Airlines Boeing 787-10
It's the 1000th DreamLiner produced, as remember by the sticker on the nose

Singapore Airlines 737 Max 8

Singapore Airlines A380s parked in the distance and another 787-10

My boarding pass showed D48 as boarding gate, however it was changed to D47 as I started moving that way
First time I've heard about a few of those destinations…

Even if the airport has great amenities, the piers are totally empty, apart from some vending machines
I understand centralized design is quite common in big airports, but some kind of service closer to gates would be appreciated
Especially considering how long those piers are

The gate was being prepared to open

AT THE GATE

Ten minutes before scheduled the gate was opened
The security inspection was carried at the gate and seemed enough meticulous
Unfortunately the hold room had no kind of service, apart from restrooms, a drinking water fountain and recharging plugs
It seemed to be large enough to let everyone sit

The big drawback of this layout is the total lack of any vending machine in the waiting lounge. Also considering liquids are thrown away at the inspection (even the ones bought at the airport) 

As boarding passes were checked the agent asked everyone if they wanted to check their hand luggage for free. I refused the offer

The plane was not yet at the gate, according to the ground staff the delay would have been around 30 minutes

The large windows gave more spotting opportunities, being our gate right in front of the take off point of the runway

Republic of Singapore Air Force A330MRT taking off, first time I saw that plane

IndiGo A321neo

The Shenzhen Airlines 737 I saw docked before

FedEx Boeing 767F

Garuda Indonesia Boeing 737

Vietnam Airlines A321

Cathay Pacific A350
In my opinion one of the best plane-livery combo

Singapore Airlines A350

Scoot Boeing 787 parking at the stand next to mine
I find this livery quite nice, very vibrant in its color and shapes

At 13:15 my plane landed from Penang, arriving at the gate minutes after

Today ride:
Scoot Airlines Airbus A321neo, 9V-NCI
First flight of the aircraft on 4th January 2022 (3.3 years), leased by Scoot since March 2022. It's the 7th A321neo leased by TR
It's equipped with 236 seats in full-Y configuration and  named "Ong Lai", a Chinese phrase used to celebrate good luck

Bigger and smaller brothers!

BOARDING AND TAXIING

20 minutes after the plane was connected at the gate boarding operations started
People were called onboard strictly following group division
My group was number 1, but reverse order was followed, meaning I would have been among the last onboard
Stepping into the finger almost one hour after the plane landed

Corporate door and wing shots

After giving the Flight-Report form to the hostess I made my way to my seat
The cabin looked in a very good condition, being the plane quite new

The seat is equipped with a table and a pocket 
The pocket contained a sick bag, safety chart and the F/B and duty free catalog

Legroom was decent, very good for a 3.5 hour flight

Luckily no one was sitting on the middle seat, giving me more room

Reverse order boarding proved quit effective
10 minutes after getting onboard doors were closed and armed

At 14:30, forty minutes beyond scheduled, we pushed back

More spotting while heading to the runway

Singapore Airlines A350

Ethiopian Airlines Boeing 787

Singapore Airlines Boeing 737 Max

Singapore Airlines heavies sitting at the remote stands: A350 and Triple-7

Gulf Air Boeing 787 carrying a promotional sticker for the Formula 1 Bahrain Grand Prix

Low cost line up at Terminal 4
Air Asia, Jetstar and VietJet A320s

We'd depart from runway 02C, the same I landed on three days before

TR 904 FLIGHT FROM SINGAPORE TO MACAU

One hour beyond planned we finally line up for take-off

The sound of the engines were totally pleasant from that fore row

Terminal 5 expansion area visible in the background

Stored A380s parked on the taxiways

Goodbye Singapore, thank you for everything!

Climbing above Malaysia, with sky painted by clouds

Later on the ground totally disappeared under the clouds

Being very tired a made a one-hour nap
I woke up while floating over Southern Chinese Sea
Vietnam west of us

Mood lighting was set to orange
Meanwhile the cabin crew were delivering food and duty free

I got some cookies and a bottle of water, for the equivalent of 6.20 euros
The box of cookies was definitely large, more than one time snack

While I was snacking I gave a try to Scoot Wi-Fi 
Free navigation permits to browse F/B and duty free catalogues, play some games and listening to a short selection of music
A simple air show was provided too
The portal gives also the possibility to buy a full Wi-Fi connection, but I didn't go for it

One hour to Macau nothing but water was visible underneath…

…alternated by clouds and fog

During the entire flight we encountered a couple of light turbulence, but nothing bothering
In general the crew was really polite and available to passengers' need

ARRIVAL IN MACAU

3 hours into the flight the cabin was prepared for landing
Some Pearl River's Delta Islands appeared below us

After a long descending spiral we were descending above Taipa Island
Taipa Racecourse, a horse racing track, is visible beyond the clouds

Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge Immigration Building, built on an artificial island
It serves as one of the starting point of the aforementioned bridge, connecting Macau, HK and Mainland China

Macau Peninsula, the historical and most populous part of the city

The area of Praça de Ferreira do Amaral, with its famous casinos like Wynn and Grand Lisboa (hidden by clouds)

Pointing north of the peninsula before lining up to the runway

Banking over Zhuhai, Mainland China

The sunset projected the shadow of the plane on the clouds 

Last banking before entering the final approach path

Flying over Zhuhai

Hengshan Island

Jiuzhou Port 

The immigration building is so huge

Macau Peninsula appeared in the background, painted by a wonderful sunset

Grand Lisboa Hotel feels like an alien spaceship that just landed

Last moments on air passing by Macau Bridge, connecting Taipa to the Peninsula

I'm not lying when I say that this is one of the most beautiful landing I've ever experienced: the place, the sunset and the sea, everything was perfectly matching

Landing on runway 16, built on an artificial island

At 18:29, thirty-eight minutes later than scheduled, we roughly touched down at Macau International Airport

Braking was quite smooth

Taxiing on a narrow causeway surrounded by water doesn't happen every day…

Eva Air A330 welcoming me to Macau, surrounded by other local birds

Maybe the most unique spotting occasion of the entire journey, a Dubai Royal Air Wing Boeing 747

Docking at the terminal next to an Air Asia A320 and a Xiamen Air 737

Taxiing to the gate was quick, due to the relative small size of the airport

It took a few minutes for the jetway to be connected
Being in the first rows allowed me to get off the plane quickly
The hostess gave me the flight report form, apologizing for the patience (no worries for it)

So impressive to see a 747 as a private jet

An anonymous corridor leading to the passport control area

No VISA is required to enter Macau
The passport control was quite fast and the agent handed me a small paper ticket to be kept until departure

So strange to see Portuguese accompanied with Chinese

Bags took almost 15 minutes to appear on the belt, mine was among the last

The arrival hall was crowded and a bit messy
It's also quite anonymous, especially compared to Singapore

Since my hotel was located in the Peninsula, 5 minutes walking from Senado Square, taxi proved to be the fastes way to get there
However, almost one hour of queue was at the taxi stand

Adviced by an airport staff member I got on the Macau Light Rapid Transit towards Barra, the sole station on the Peninsula
There I was able to find a taxi in no time
It took me a whole hour to finally step into my hotel

Stay tuned for the return flight…