Tokyo Detour: Trip Planning

It’s been almost a year since I published my last trip report, Baby Supply Run. Since then, I’ve been doing piecemeal reviews of airlines and hotels instead, because trip reports require a lot of time and energy to write— most of it spent thinking of a witty title that becomes less clever each time you read it (my all-time favourites being Bavarians at the Gate and of course, Golden Showers).

But now I’m ready to love again, and it all started when Japan Airlines announced a limited-time deployment of its new flagship A350-1000 to Singapore.

This aircraft features JAL’s next generation First, Business, Premium Economy and Economy Class seats, with sliding doors, wireless charging, 4K screens, Bluetooth audio connectivity, USB-C ports and all kinds of bells and whistles I hope to eventually see on Singapore Airlines. 

It was just too hard to resist, and so I started making plans to fly to Tokyo.

And, as everyone knows, the best way of getting there is to fly to Kuala Lumpur first, and then right back to Singapore.

Flights

✈️ Tokyo Detour: Flights
✈ SIN-KUL
AK706 Cabin: Economy Aircraft: A321neo
Cost: S$66
✈ KUL-SIN	✈ SIN-HND
MH605 Cabin: Business Aircraft: B737-800	JL36 Cabin: Business Aircraft: A350-1000
Cost: S$1,521
✈ NRT-SIN
ZG53 Cabin: Full Flat Aircraft: B787-8
Cost: S$718

The whole purpose of this trip was to review Japan Airlines’ new Business Class, but award space on the JL36/37 pairing was close to non-existent (some seats can be found through JAL Mileage Bank, but without instant transfers, my fear was that they’d be gone by the time my miles were credited).

So I had to bite the bullet and pay with cash, and this required some out-of-the-box thinking.

A one-way Business Class ticket from SIN-HND would have cost a hefty S$2,427. However, by playing around with starting points, I found that if I booked KUL-SIN-HND, that same ticket would come down to S$1,521, notwithstanding the fact I was adding an extra Malaysia Airlines Business Class flight into the mix— that’s airline pricing for you! Even after adding the cost of a budget flight to Kuala Lumpur, I was coming out well ahead.

I’m not going to bother reviewing my Air Asia flight to Kuala Lumpur, but I do want to review the Malaysia Airlines B737-800 I flew from Kuala Lumpur back to Singapore. 

This aircraft had been refurbished with new Business and Economy Class seats, which the airline proudly says will save more than 91,000 litres of jet fuel per aircraft each year. What they don’t say is that the weight reduction was achieved by stripping out all the seatback entertainment systems and making the seats more slimline than ever, giving the cabin a Papa Smurf-meets-budget-carrier vibe.

Singapore to Tokyo, of course, is on a Japan Airlines A350-1000 where Business Class is outfitted with Safran Unity seats that offer a quantum leap in comfort and technology.

For starters, each seat has a fully-closing privacy door and 1.3m high walls, encasing a 56cm wide seat that extends into a bed 198cm long. Passengers can charge their personal electronic devices through the wireless charging pad, or a universal power outlet with USB-A and USB-C ports.

Inflight entertainment screens are 24 inches wide, with 4K resolution and personal Bluetooth connectivity.

But perhaps the coolest feature is the Euphony system, which uses built-in headrest speakers instead of headphones. In other words, you finally get to be “that guy” who watches movies on a plane without headphones— only you won’t be annoying everyone else around you. 

As much as I would have loved to review JAL’s new Premium Economy on the return leg, there was no award space, and cash tickets were ridiculously expensive. So I decided to do an updated review of my favourite budget airline ZIPAIR. 

Forget everything you know about low-cost carriers, because ZIPAIR offers a Full Flat cabin featuring JAMCO reverse herringbone seats in a 1-2-1 configuration with all-aisle access. These seats are 20 inches wide with 42 inches of pitch, upholstered in leather, and equipped with individual reading lights and chargers. Move aside Malaysia Airlines; this is a budget carrier vibe I can dig!

This ticket cost a total of S$753, before further add-ons like luggage and meals.

Hotels

For this trip, I decided to stay at the Mesm Tokyo, part of Marriott’s Autograph Collection. This property is relatively new, having opened in April 2020 just as Japan shut its doors to the world. 

The hotel is situated between the 16th and 26th floors of the WATERS Takeshiba building in the Hamamatsucho area. The location is probably not the best if you want to cover Tokyo’s key attractions, but I found its relatively quiet location to be a feature, not a bug. It was only a 10 minute brisk walk to the Hamamatsucho JR station and Daimon subway station, and the nearby Hamarikyu Gardens are lovely to visit during the day. 

There’s no swimming pool or traditional Japanese baths, but every room has an electric piano. How can you not love that?

I redeemed 129,000 Marriott Bonvoy points for a two-night stay, versus a cash rate of JPY 240,350 (S$2,163/US$1,616), so I’d say I got very good value for points. 

Lounges

While I did visit a few lounges on this trip, the only one I’ll be reviewing is the Malaysia Airlines Regional Golden Lounge in KUL. This is the smaller of the two international lounges that Malaysia Airlines operates at its base, the other being the International Golden Lounge in the Satellite Building.

In Singapore, I was able to do the full oneworld lounge safari, thanks to my Japan Airlines Business Class ticket. However, I’ve already reviewed all these lounges before, so check those out below if you’re interested.

• British Airways Lounge Singapore T1
• Qatar Airways Premium Lounge Singapore T1
• Qantas Business Lounge Singapore T1
• Qantas First Lounge Singapore T1
• Cathay Pacific Lounge Singapore T4

ZIPAIR Full Flat doesn’t come with lounge access. I did use my Priority Pass to pop into the I.A.S.S Superior Lounge -NOA- , but it was so crowded and chaotic that taking photos was virtually impossible. Long story short: you’re not missing anything. 

Conclusion

My first trip report in almost a year will cover Japan Airlines’ new flagship Business Class, and revisit ZIPAIR’s Full Flat cabin experience. The quirks of airline pricing have also created an opportunity for a bonus review of Malaysia Airlines’ “eco-friendly” B737-800, together with the Regional Golden Lounge in Kuala Lumpur.

On the hotels front, I’ll be staying at the intriguing Mesm Tokyo, a unique alternative to the otherwise cookie-cutter chain properties that hotel loyalty sometimes ties you down to. 

Stay tuned for all the reviews, coming your way soon!