Pelago cuts discount for Singapore Airlines customers to 10%

Back in August 2023, Pelago launched a 30% discount on all activities for any customer with a Singapore Airlines booking reference number (commonly known as a PNR). While the discount was capped at S$35, it was still extremely generous, and perhaps too good to be true.

It therefore wasn’t a big surprise when Pelago quietly nerfed the discount a few months later by capping the savings at S$10 for existing customers, and making it only available for activities in the destination or layover countries featured in the PNR. 

There’s now been another unannounced change which has already gone into effect, and it’s a mixed bag. While the savings per PNR can now be as high as S$150, the discount has been cut to just 10%.

Pelago 10% discount for Singapore Airlines passengers

Details

From now till 31 December 2024, Singapore Airlines customers with a valid PNR will enjoy a 10% discount on Pelago bookings, capped at S$50. Each PNR may be used up to three times, so the maximum savings per PNR are capped at S$150.

To use this offer, enter your 6-character PNR and last name under the “Singapore Airlines Promo” field during checkout. 

Do note the following:

• The discount is valid for both award bookings and cash bookings
• PNRs can only be used from the date of their issuance up till the date of the last segment of the booking. For example, if the last flight in your PNR is 20 November 2024, you must use the discount by 20 November 2024
• PNRs must be for confirmed flights; waitlisted bookings will not trigger the discount
• Pure Scoot bookings are not eligible; however a mixed itinerary involving Singapore Airlines and Scoot flights is eligible provided the ticket is issued by Singapore Airlines 
• The discount is only valid for Pelago activities in the destination and layover countries featured in the PNR

If you have more than one passenger on a given PNR, you can call up Singapore Airlines customer service and ask them to split the booking so that each passenger has a unique PNR. This will then allow you to enjoy the discount as many times as you have passengers.

All Pelago activities are eligible for the discount, excluding the products found on this list. 

What card to use with Pelago?

Pelago transactions code as MCC 4722: Travel Agencies and Tour Operators, which means you can pay with the following cards to earn an additional 4 mpd. 

Card	Earn Rate	Remarks
UOB Lady’s Solitaire Apply	4 mpd	Max S$2K per calendar month. Must choose Travel as bonus category Review
UOB Lady’s Card Apply	4 mpd	Max S$1K per calendar month. Must choose Travel as bonus category Review
DBS Woman’s World Card Apply	4 mpd	Max S$1.5K per calendar month Review

Avoid using the Citi Rewards Card, as MCC 4722 is classified as a travel transaction and explicitly excluded from earning the bonus 4 mpd rate for online transactions. Also, the HSBC Revolution Card is no longer an option, following the January 2024 removal of MCC 4722 from its bonus whitelist. 

For avoidance of doubt, the KrisFlyer UOB Credit Card will not earn 3 mpd on Pelago transactions, because Pelago is still not part of the SIA Group- at least as defined by the T&Cs. My understanding is that this will eventually change, but I’m not sure about the timeline. 

Earning and redeeming KrisFlyer miles on Pelago

Earning KrisFlyer miles

All Pelago users will continue to enjoy 3 mpd on all bookings, upsized from the previous 1 mpd from 28 June 2023 onwards. This is capped at a maximum of 5,000 miles per booking. 

Miles will be automatically credited to your KrisFlyer account up to one week after completing the booked experience. 

For miles to be credited:

• your KrisFlyer membership number must be reflected on the booking details page
• Your Pelago booking must be made under your name as it appears in the KrisFlyer membership records

In other words, you can’t earn miles on bookings made for other people.

KrisFlyer miles will be awarded on the final amount paid for Pelago bookings (including taxes), after eligible discounts have been applied. 

Redeeming KrisFlyer miles

KrisFlyer members normally redeem miles on Pelago at a rate of 150 miles= S$1. This values 1 mile at just 0.67 cents, which is well below what you should be accepting. 

Pelago sometimes upsizes the rate to 105 miles = S$1, which boosts the value to 0.95 cents. That’s better, of course, but still below the value you’d derive from an award flight redemption.

Keep in mind that Pelago takes an all or nothing approach to redemption. You must pay the entire amount with KrisFlyer miles; there’s no option to mix cash and miles! This means that you couldn’t even use Pelago to selectively burn a small number of miles that are due to expire.

A few other things to note:

• Pelago bookings redeemed with KrisFlyer miles must be made under your name, or the name of one of your redemption nominees
• Pelago bookings redeemed with KrisFlyer miles can be cancelled, subject to the activity’s T&Cs. If so, miles will be refunded within two weeks. They’ll still have their original expiry date tagged to them, so you won’t be able to use this as a roundabout way of extending miles.

Conclusion

Pelago is now offering a 10% discount for Singapore Airlines customers, capped at S$50 per booking. Each PNR can be used up to three times, so you could save up to S$150 per PNR- though this only benefits you if you’re booking big ticket activities. Remember, Pelago lacks a basket function, so you can only book one activity per transaction.

To the extent that Pelago is pricing the same as Klook, KKday or other competitors, you might as well take the discount. Don’t forget that Pelago is now the only activities platform that offers KrisFlyer miles on top of the regular credit card miles, so that’s an extra sweetener to consider too.