flyer

I'm thinking of taking Singapore Air New York to Frankfurt at the end of September. Their economy fare is the best around right now. My only concern is it gets into Frankfurt later than I would like (at 11:15 am) as I need to take a connecting train to Dresden. My other option would be to pay a couple of hundred dollars more and fly Lufthansa connecting in Frankfurt to Dresden.

This is going to be my first trip in economy in a long time. I usually fly Business but this is an "extra" short trip so I want to do it as economically as possible. That said, is Singapore Air really that much better than Lufthansa? FYI, They are flying the older 747 on that route. Should I pay the additional $50 each way for a preferred seat? Any chance of a paid upgrade at the airport?

Finally, I realize that there are never any guarantees, but does everyone think I should be able to make a 1pm train?

Thanks, as always, for the advice.

travelgourmet

<i>That said, is Singapore Air really that much better than Lufthansa?</i>

IMO, yes.

<i>Any chance of a paid upgrade at the airport?</i>

Highly, highly, highly doubtful.

<i>does everyone think I should be able to make a 1pm train?</i>

Assuming no delays, I think this should be fine.

flyer

Thank you!

tengohambre

Late September should see some fare drops. Already there are a number of fall "sales" for European flights. Thus, it may well be that the SIA flt isn't much cheaper at that time.

Yes, I really like SIA and recommend them. Yet, still to be flying those long in the tooth 747s on that route, for that airline, is an embarrassment. We were on those same planes over a year ago and at that time one of our seats was broken and the plane itself long ago had seen better days. When I say the seat was broken we weren't permitted to sit in it for takeoff. Had there not been another seat we would have had to deplane. The AVOD screens are small. Supposedly SIA was upgrading their 747s to 777s on this route awhile ago but, it still hasn't happened.

All in all, the flight is fine but it not a good representation of SIA.

DMBTraveler

Have you considered EWR to TXL (Berlin) on Continental or JFK to TXL on Delta? Both use 767's and I think it is easier to get to Dresden by train from TXL instead of FRA. TXL flights in late September arrive at 8am (CO) and 10am (DL).

Good luck with your travel plans.
www.dmbflyingcoach.blogspot.com

justshootme

SQ vs LH, SQ wins, hands down! Just don't expect an upgrade.

flyer

I did consider EWR to TXL. In fact, most of my miles are with Continental. That said, Continental has the 757 on the route at that time and I will not fly that in economy. I've also heard that Delta is pretty awful in Economy. Truth be told, it has been ages since I have been in the economy section of any plane and I'm sort of dreading it but this is an "extra", unexpected trip so I'm trying to do it as nicely and economically as possible.

Also, last year when I went to Leipzig, I flew Continental into Frankfurt and out of Berlin. While I grant you the train trip is faster to and from Berlin, getting right off the plane in Frankfurt and practically walking onto a train in Frankfurt, can't be beat.

J62

I've flown SQ JFK to FRA a few times in both biz and coach. IMO coach class on those older SQ 747 aren't special - it's a cattle car just like any other airline.

One thing I really dislike about SQ to FRA is that the SQ crew doesn't seem to treat it as a serious business redeye, but rather the 1st leg of a long journey on to Singapore - dinner food service takes longer, cabin isn't kept dark at dawn, and breakfast service seems to start earlier. I can get 2+ more hours of sleep on LH, which is important to me on a transatlantic flight.

Have you considered flying on to Dresden? It's only a 1 hr flight from FRA. Depending on your travel plans you can easily do an open jaw into Dresden then out of some other LH city, connecting back through FRA. I do that all the time.

flyer

I have considered flying on to Dresden. If I did that, I would fly Lufthansa.

flyer

Well, I did it. I booked the SQ JFK to FRA flight. I was able to secure 39C so at least I'll have some legroom and an aisle.
Remember the good old days when you didn't have to pay extra for the exit row? I'm connecting to a 1:05pm train to Dresden-- should be enough time.

Thanks for all the good advice.