Singapore Airlines to launch new Vancouver route this year

Singapore skyline at Marina Bay. (Shutterstock)

Just in time for the Christmas holiday season this year, Vancouver International Airport (YVR) will gain a new direct, non-stop flight route to Singapore Changi Airport (SIN).

Singapore Airlines has officially confirmed it will launch a four-times weekly service from SIN to YVR, initially on a seasonal basis starting on December 2, 2021 until February 15, 2022. This a Fifth Freedom route, with Vancouver as the stopover between SIN and Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (SEA).

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Two of the flights into SIN will operate under the Singapore government’s Vaccinated Travel Lane (VTL) designation, which provides quarantine-free travel to fully-vaccinated travellers. Singapore is expanding its VTL to Canada and the United States starting later this month.

The VTL flights will leave SEA on Thursdays and Saturdays at 11 am, and arrive at YVR at 11:45 am. From YVR, the VTL flights will depart shortly after at 1:15 pm and arrive in SIN the next day at 10:05 pm. Passengers on these flights must ensure they meet VTL eligibility criteria.

All other flights will be non-VTL flights, open to anyone ineligible to enter Singapore under VTL. These flights will depart SEA on Tuesdays and Fridays at 11 am, and arrive at YVR at 11:45 am. From YVR, the flights will take off at 1:15 pm and arrive at SIN at 10:05 pm the next day.

For return trips, the flights will depart SIN on Tuesdays, Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays at 9:15 am, and arrive at YVR at 7:30 am on the same day. The flights will then depart YVR at 8:40 am and arrive at SEA at 9:30 am.

All flights will use Singapore Airlines’ Airbus A350-900, which has 253 seats, including 42 business class seats, 24 premium economy class seats, and 187 economy class seats.

Marina Bay in Singapore (Shutterstock)

Gardens by the Bay in Singapore. (Shutterstock)

Tickets for the SIN-YVR-SEA route will be made available for sale at noon on October 12, Singapore time. Travellers intending to take a VTL flight should note that Vaccinated Travel Pass applications open on the same day as well.

“With the new Singapore-Vancouver-Seattle flights and the conversion of San Francisco-Singapore to a VTL service, Singapore Airlines customers can enjoy even more seamless travel options to North America during the year-end holiday season,” said JoAnn Tan, senior vice president of marketing planning for Singapore Airlines, in a statement.

“Singapore Airlines will continue to monitor the demand for air travel, and adjust its services accordingly.”

Prior to the pandemic, YVR did not have a direct, non-stop route to Singapore, but there has been growing demand for such a service, and in 2018 it was noted by Changi Airport officials to be one of their top new route priorities.

Such a route would not only provide a direct link to the major tourism, economic, and financial hub city state, considered one of Asia’s most livable cities, but also enhance connection options to destinations across Southeast Asia.

Singapore Airlines previously served YVR up until 2009, when the route was cancelled due to the impact of the global financial crisis. They operated a three-times weekly service between Vancouver and Singapore, with a connection in Seoul.

“The decision to suspend service is most regrettable, as Singapore Airlines has served Canada for over 20 years,” reads a Singapore Airlines press release in early-2009. “However the economic conditions and performance on the route has been badly affected by the global economic downturn. The reduction is part of Singapore Airlines continuing commitment to ensure capacity is best matched with demand in the current economic conditions.”

Flag carrier Singapore Airlines has long been widely regarded as one of the world’s top airlines, with a second place ranking by Skytrax in 2021.

As well, Changi Airport, one of the world’s busiest airports, is consecutively ranked by Skytrax as one of the world’s best airports, for reasons that include being an amenity-rich attraction.

In 2019, it opened the Jewel Changi Airport — a 1.5 million sq ft retail and entertainment complex that links the existing three passenger terminals, and provides expanded arrival hall and baggage claim space. The 10-storey complex features the world’s largest indoor waterfall in a forest-like setting, and attractions such as an indoor park with a seven-storey suspension bridge, a hotel, and 300 retail and dining outlets.

Jewel Changi Airport in Singapore (Shutterstock)

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