Guide: Booking infant tickets with Singapore Airlines

I recently wrote about the MileCub’s first-ever flight, a year-end getaway to Bali. That’s a developmental milestone by any means, and now that we’ve ascertained she can survive a pressurised cabin environment without a meltdown, it’s time to start bumping up the flight times bit by bit.

But I’m getting ahead of myself, because I haven’t yet written about the most important step of all: booking an infant ticket.

Although I’ve booked hundreds of tickets in my lifetime, booking an infant ticket was a completely new experience. It’s not rocket science, thankfully, but it does entail a different process, and in this post I’ll walk you through everything you need to know.

Do note that this article deals with infants, defined as those aged under two years old. If you’re travelling with a child (aged 2-12), that’s another article for another time (check back in two years). 

Booking an infant ticket

As a preamble: Singapore Airlines requires infants to be at least seven days old to fly, for obvious reasons. If you have medical clearance to fly with a newborn between 48 hours and 7 days of age, you will need to contact Singapore Airlines to assist you with the booking. 

Also, there is no option to redeem miles for an infant ticket. Regardless of whether you have a commercial or award booking, your infant ticket must be paid with cash.

Commercial tickets

If you’re booking a commercial ticket, it’s possible to add an infant online. The drop down menu for passengers has an option for infants.

On the next screen, you’ll see the usual familiar flight options. 

Do note that the prices shown here do not reflect the infant ticket cost yet. You’ll need to click on your preferred flights and fare class before the infant ticket is added to the total cost. 

To see exactly how much you’re paying, click on “cost breakdown by passengers”.

You’ll notice that the infant fare:

• is 10% of the adult fare
• does not require the payment of any airport or government taxes

On the next screen, you’ll enter the traveller details, both yours and the infant’s. All that’s required is the name as it appears in the passport, date of birth, and preferred meal.

Don’t forget to select the preferred meal; infant meals are not automatically catered! Your options are:

The BBML consists of three jars of Heinz baby food. 

The CHMLI is more substantial, and consists of pureed food items with a side of milk and fruits. 

Next up is seat selection. Passengers travelling with an infant can select a complimentary Forward Zone or Standard Seat in Economy Class, regardless of which fare type they purchased (such privileges are normally reserved only for those who book Economy Flexi tickets).

However, what I noticed is that when choosing your seat online, only bassinet seats will show as available for selection. Every other seat is blocked off. 

After selecting your seat, all that’s left is to make payment and you’re done.

Redemption ticket

If you’re booking a redemption ticket, things work quite differently.

It’s not possible to add an infant when redeeming online, so after finishing your booking, you’ll need to call up KrisFlyer membership services. Provide them with your PNR, and tell them you’d like to add an infant ticket.

Now, it’s commonly cited that infant tickets added to a redemption ticket cost 10% of the full fare ticket. That’s not correct. Infant fares cost 10% of the lowest available fare bucket available at the time of request, regardless of whether it’s a commercial or redemption booking.

The problem is: the calculation is done manually, and it’s possible for the CSO to get it wrong. Before calling up, make a point of doing a dummy booking to see how much an infant fare should cost on your flight, based on the lowest available fare bucket. This will give you an idea of how much you should expect, so you can challenge the CSO if overquoted.

I’ve personally encountered two occasions where the CSOs quoted me a higher-than-expected price. Both times I requested them to check it again, on the basis that the website was showing a lower figure. After checking, the fare was adjusted accordingly.

My infant ticket was ever-so-slightly more than 10% of the fare, but since we’re talking a couple of dollars I didn’t bother pursuing the matter.

The CSO will then assist you with meal selection and seat selection on the same call. The entire process should take 10-15 minutes or so, assuming the CSO gets the fare quote right the first time.

In case you were wondering, infant fares are not eligible to earn any KrisFlyer miles or status credits. 

Are infant fares refundable?

The refundability of infant tickets follows the rules of the fare type the ticket is issued under.

That’s to say, you can’t get a refund if the infant ticket is issued under the Economy Lite bucket, but you can if the infant ticket is issued under Economy Standard.

The refund fee for an adult ticket will cover the infant’s ticket too (since it’s seen as an add-on). For example, if I book an Economy Standard ticket with an infant attached to my booking and later cancel my flight, the cancellation fee will include both mine and the infant’s ticket.

What if I’ve booked 2x one-way tickets?

It’s quite common in the miles and points game to book 2x one-way tickets instead of a single round trip ticket. 

For example:

• You might be booking tickets 355 days in advance to snap up Saver awards, so you have to book each leg as soon as it becomes available
• You might be booking one leg as a Spontaneous Escapes award, and the other as a regular Advantage/Saver award (Spontaneous Escapes awards can’t be mixed with regular Advantage/Saver awards)

In such cases, infant commercial tickets can still be purchased and issued as a return ticket, a fact I’ve confirmed with a Singapore Airlines spokesperson. That’s good news, because 10% of a one-way fare would be significantly more expensive!

Unfortunately, in practice I’ve read several reports about passengers being told by CSOs that if they have 2x one-way tickets, their infant ticket must also be priced based on 2x one-way tickets. The only solution here is to hang up and call again, until you find a CSO who is willing to ticket it as a round-trip.

What if there’s no bassinet seats left?

If you’re travelling with an infant, you’ll presumably want a bassinet seat, which allows your little one to get some proper horizontal rest. 

It’s not guaranteed, however, since these seats are allocated on a first-come-first-serve basis. If all the bassinet positions are occupied, your infant will need to be seated in your lap, with an infant seatbelt provided. I have yet to experience that, but I assume it might not be a very pleasant experience for all concerned. 

If you have a Scoot flight in your itinerary, do note that Scoot does not provide bassinets. 

How does the bassinet work?

The bassinet is brought out once the aircraft reaches cruising altitude, and the baby needs to be secured with a “seat belt” (more of a flap, really) whenever inside. 

When the seatbelt sign comes on, infants must be lifted from the bassinet and seated on your lap, with the infant seatbelt fastened. I understand the safety aspect, but it’s really annoying when it happens, especially if your baby is the kind who wakes up easily and takes a long time to fall asleep again.

Bassinets on Singapore Airlines measure 768mm (L) x 298mm (W) x 158mm (H), and can support a maximum weight of 14kg.

What is an infant’s luggage allowance?

Babies don’t travel light, so thankfully an infant ticket entitles you to: 

• An additional piece of hand luggage, up to 6kg
• A checked bag
  • For flights to the USA or Canada, the allowance is 23kg (Economy, Premium Economy) or 32kg (Business, First)
  • For flights to all other destinations, the allowance is 10kg
• A fully-collapsible stroller
• A car seat
• As much breast milk as you need

Your car seat and stroller (assuming it’s not carry-on sized) will be bagged up and sent to the oversized luggage area during check-in.

What amenities are available onboard?

Upon boarding, each baby receives a welcome gift. On my flight, it was a Disney 100 soft rustling book.

In addition to this, every flight is loaded with diapers and wet wipes, though not the gentle sort. These are antiseptic wipes which may not be suitable for your baby’s skin. 

Milk powder and baby snacks are not loaded, so you’ll need to bring your own. I thought a baby would be a guaranteed way to get some more SIA teddy bears, but was told they aren’t loaded on short-haul flights!

What if my infant becomes a child during the trip?

Here’s an unusual but completely plausible scenario: what if your infant has their 2nd birthday while overseas? In other words, what if they leave as an infant, and return as a child?

In that case, you’ll need to contact Singapore Airlines to make your booking, as you’ll essentially be booking an infant ticket on the way out, and a child ticket on the way back.

Unlike an infant ticket, a child ticket allows you to use a full seat. The child ticket will also be eligible to accrue KrisFlyer miles (the minimum age to open an account is two).

They grow up so fast, don’t they?

Conclusion

Adding an infant is relatively straightforward if you’re buying a commercial ticket, but if you’re booking an award ticket, you’ll have a phone call to make.

It seems odd that in 2024 we still need to pick up the phone to get things done, though at least the agents are quite familiar with the process. You should, however, make a point of checking the infant fare for a commercial ticket before calling, because misquotes can and do happen. 

Once your ticket is booked, remember to select the preferred meal for your baby and choose a bassinet seat.

Any other tips for booking infant tickets?