Recently, I was told to clear my annual leave and to stop stocking them up.
When I shared my first-world problem with my friend, she said:
“Why don’t you head to somewhere you’ve never been before? Like… Los Angeles!”
She’d just came back from her trip to LA and was talking about it non-stop, trying to convince me to visit the place where Kevjumba resides in.
So I figured that there’s no harm checking out the flight prices and went to SIA’s website to do a quick search on their ticket prices to Los Angeles.
“From S$1,268! That’s quite reasonable…” I mused as I looked at the prices. Considering that LA is at the other end of the world, I thought that it would cost me close to S$2K just to head to the US. (Maybe I’m still living under a rock)
While doing my research, I also found out that Singapore Airlines won the World’s Best Airline 2019 award!
And yes, this is probably the only time I would willingly opt for the best and probably the safest airline possible, especially since I’m going to be on a plane for over 15 hours.
FYI: I’ve never been on a plane for more than 6.
Wondering which airlines are considered the world’s best? Here’s the top 10:
The World’s Best Airlines 2019
| Ranking | Airlines |
|---|---|
| 1 | Singapore Airlines |
| 2 | Air New Zealand |
| 3 | Qantas |
| 4 | Qatar Airways |
| 5 | Virgin Australia |
| 6 | Emirates |
| 7 | All Nippon Airways |
| 8 | EVA Air |
| 9 | Cathay Pacific |
| 10 | Japan Airlines |
Source: AirlineRatings
How Much Does It Cost To Fly From SIN To LAX Via The World’s Best Airlines?
Back to my not-so-concrete-plans to travel to LA, knowing that it costs S$1.2K to fly to LAX to find meet Kevjumba, I wondered how much it would cost to fly on the other best airlines like Qatar for example.
Here are their prices as compared to Singapore Airlines
| World's Best Airlines | Return Flight (SIN to LAX) | Higher or Lower than SQ | Details | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Singapore Airlines | From S$1,268 | - | Book by 30 Sep 2019 |
| 2 | Air New Zealand | Doesn't fly from SIN to LAX | ||
| 3 | Qantas | From S$974 | Cheaper | Travel by 31 Mar 2020 |
| 4 | Qatar Airways | From S$1,409 (1 stop) | More Ex | No Promo |
| 5 | Virgin Australia | Doesn't fly from SIN to LAX | ||
| 6 | Emirates | From S$1,389 | More Ex | Travel by 12 Dec 19 |
| 7 | All Nippon Airways | From S$1,050 | Cheaper | Through Skyscanner |
| 8 | EVA Air | From S$1,100 | Cheaper | No Promo |
| 9 | Cathay Pacific | From S$1,300 | More Ex | No Promo |
Note: For airlines with no promotions, travel dates used are from 1 Sep to 14 Sep 2019.
And…shucks, I’ve always thought that the middle eastern airlines would cost more and true enough, it’s more expensive to fly with Qatar. The good thing is that – looking at the list – there are cheaper options like ANA, Eva Air, and Qantas!
I’ve got a confession to make. The recent spate of aircraft accidents and planes disappearing has made me slightly paranoid and I’m actually more inclined to fly with Qantas since they were awarded the World’s Safest Airline 2019.
That said, what if things like comfort and peace of mind didn’t matter to you as much? All you care about is just: price, and you want the biggest bang for your buck. Let’s use Skyscanner and Google Flights and see what we get.
Cheapest flights from SIN to LAX using Skyscanner and Google Flights
| Airline | Layovers | Duration | Price | Platform |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Air China | 1 stop | 24 hours | $852 | Skyscanner |
| Air China | 1 stop | 24 hours | $884 | Google Flights |
| Xiamen Air | 2 stops | 43 hours | $919 | Skyscanner |
| China Eastern | 1 stop | 34 hours | $989 | Skyscanner |
| China Airlines | 1 stop | 23 hours | $1,010 | Skyscanner |
| ANA and UNITED | Nonstop | 21 hours | $1,047 | Skyscanner |
| China Airlines | 1 stop | 23 hours | $1,067 | Google Flights |
| Xiamen Air | 1 stop | 19 hours | $1,069 | Google Flights |
With these lower prices, something’s gotta give – so the travel hours are WAY longer. To put things into perspective, SIA takes 15 hours 45 mins to fly from SIN to LAX.
Back to the list of top 10 world’s best airline 2019, awards were awarded for different aspects of the flight experience, even best in-flight entertainment is considered!
If you’re curious, SIA won best first class (duh).
Awards For Specific Categories
| Awards | Airlines |
|---|---|
| Best First Class | Singapore Airlines |
| Best Business Class | Qatar Airways |
| Best Premium Economy | Air New Zealand |
| Best Economy | Korean Air |
| Best Cabin Crew | Virgin Australia |
| Best Catering | Qatar Airways |
| Best Lounges | Qantas Airways |
| Best In-Flight Entertainment | Emirates |
| Regional Airline of the Year | QantasLink |
| Most Improved Airline | Philippine Airlines |
| Best Ultra-Low-Cost Carrier | VietJet |
| Best Long-Haul Airline | Emirates (Middle East), EVA Air (Asia-Pacific), Lufthansa (Europe), and Delta (Americas) |
| Best Low-Cost Airline | Westjet (Americas), AirAsia/AirAsia X (Asia-Pacific), and Wizz (Europe) |
Our very own Singapore Airlines won ‘Best First Class’ after unveiling their new First Class suites in 2017. They also recently released their very own retail bond that yields about 3.03% p.a. (Psst! Did you get your hands on any?)
On the same note, if you are keen on adding SIA to your investment portfolio, you may want to check out what the Community thinks of SIA (SGX: C6L).
“I personally think that SIA isn’t very profitable due to high staff costs, depreciation and fuel expenses. Weak cashflows…” Read More
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