Singapore Airlines boosts Bali flights to five times daily

One of the most popular holiday destinations in the region for our readers is undoubtedly the Indonesian island of Bali, which has happily seen progressive relaxations of COVID-19-related travel restrictions from March 2022.

Since then flights have been ramped up and Singapore Airlines has now confirmed a fourth daily service, from the start of the northern winter season on 30th October 2022.

On top of that, a fifth daily flight is on the cards from 10th November 2022, bringing flight frequencies back to pre-COVID levels on this route.

These additional flights had been loaded on SIA’s schedule page for some time now, but only just became available for booking yesterday and today.

The schedule

The first extra service loaded is SQ936/937, one for the early risers with an 8.20am pushback out of Changi T2. On the plus side, it gets you to Denpasar Airport just after 11am, which should see you at your hotel or villa in time for lunch.

For the return sector a more leisurely departure time just after midday will have you touching down back in the Lion City by 3pm.

The second addition is SQ946/947, at the opposite end of the schedule with 6.05pm – 8.50pm operation from Singapore to Denpasar, and a 9.45pm – 12.20am timing on the way back.

Here’s how the full schedule including flight timings looks for the upcoming northern winter season from 30th October 2022, with the additional flights highlighted.

Singapore    Bali

30th October 2022
to 25th March 2023

			Days
			M	T	W	T	F	S	S
	SQ934 737-800
SIN 06:55		DPS 09:35
	SQ936 787-10
SIN 08:20		DPS 11:05
	SQ938 787-10
SIN 09:05		DPS 11:50
	SQ944 787-10
SIN 16:20		DPS 19:05
	SQ946^ 787-10
SIN 18:05		DPS 20:50

^ From 10th November 2022

Bali    Singapore

30th October 2022
to 25th March 2023

			Days
			M	T	W	T	F	S	S
	SQ935 737-800
DPS 10:30		SIN 13:05
	SQ937 787-10
DPS 12:05		SIN 14:55
	SQ939 787-10
DPS 13:00		SIN 15:40
	SQ945 787-10
DPS 20:15		SIN 22:55
	SQ947^ 787-10
DPS 21:45		SIN 00:20*

^ From 10th November 2022
* Next day

Singapore Airlines flights to Bali will operate from Terminal 2 at Changi Airport from 13th October 2022.

In addition to providing another option for local residents, the addition of SQ936 (SIN-DPS) each day will provide better connectivity (i.e. a shorter transit) for those en-route from:

• Amsterdam (SQ323)
• Chennai (SQ529)
• Zurich (SQ345)
• London (SQ305)
• Delhi (SQ403)
• Paris (SQ335)
• New York / Frankfurt (SQ25)
• Munich (SQ327)

This will leave the existing SQ938 at 9.05am better able to prioritise transit passengers from other popular origin points for Bali services, primarily including:

• London (SQ317)
• Houston / Manchester (SQ51)

Similarly the newly-added SQ939 will add connection options to the likes of Delhi, Mumbai and San Francisco, while the new evening SQ946/947 captures much of the Europe / US-bound traffic.

Fun fact: Most travellers on SIA’s Bali flights are in transit – typically flying to or from Europe, North Asia, North America or Australia – not Singapore origin / destination passengers.

Cabin products

Four out of five daily SIA Bali flights will use the airline’s Boeing 787-10 aircraft, with 36 of the new 2018 Regional Business Class seats, sporting flat-bed functionality and a 1-2-1 all-aisle-access layout.

These are complemented by 301 Economy Class seats in a 3-3-3 configuration – sadly not great for couples (come back A330 all is forgiven!).

Unfortunately there’s still one standout inferior cabin on the Bali route, in the form of the morning SQ934/935 service, using an ex-SilkAir Boeing 737-800.

These are not to be confused with the Boeing 737-8 MAX aircraft, also inherited from SilkAir but delivered directly more recently, with flat-bed Business Class seats and an Economy cabin close to long-haul standards.

No, these 737-800s have 12 Business Class seats in a 2-2 configuration, meaning the old SilkAir side-by-side recliners with little privacy (and a recline of just 8 inches), like this:

For most of our readers, these are certainly not seats to waste 21,000 KrisFlyer miles on to Bali.

If you’re connecting from a long-haul flight, from Europe for example, don’t count on getting an extra hour’s sleep on the Singapore – Bali sector, with a seat like this in store.

In Economy Class there is no device charging option, while both cabins lack both a built-in entertainment system and Wi-Fi connectivity.

You can stream entertainment content onto your personal device from an onboard server on the 737-800, but it’s no match for the full KrisWorld system on the 787-10s.

The lack of Wi-Fi is certainly a shame, with Singapore Airlines currently trialling an unlimited connection for Business Class and a complimentary 2-hour surf package for KrisFlyer members until further notice, though sadly neither of those perks will be of any use on these early morning Bali flights.

Avoid SQ934/935 if these things are important to you.

As we recently reported, Singapore Airlines is also deploying its Boeing 737-800 aircraft on all its Phuket flights between now and the end of March 2023.

Don’t forget we have a continually updated guide covering all Singapore Airlines Business Class seat types by route, including differences by individual flight number and date / season, through to March 2023.

We also have a similar page covering the deployment of the airline’s Suites and First Class seat products on the network.

How does the Bali schedule compare to pre-COVID?

Prior to the pandemic, Singapore Airlines was operating four Bali flights per day using a mixture of Boeing 787-10s and Airbus A330s (remember those?).

In addition, SilkAir was flying a daily Boeing 737-800 service.

The old morning SilkAir service is what has actually become SQ934/935 (the SQ Boeing 737-800 flights), with identical timings to MI176/175 pre-COVID, so this new five times daily schedule represents a complete restoration of frequencies on the Bali route.

The use of larger Boeing 787-10 aircraft, compared to the smaller A330-300s on some flights before COVID-19, means that SIA will offer 10,570 seats each way each week on the Bali route from 10th November 2022, 107% of pre-pandemic capacity operated by SilkAir and SIA combined (9,842 seats per week).

KrisFlyer awards

The addition of two more flight options to and from Bali each day sounds like great news for award space.

Unfortunately, SIA is not offering any award space at all, in either cabin, on the newly flights at the time of writing, even though cash fares are now available.

That’s likely to be a temporary issue though, and we expect awards to be loaded in due course, so do keep an eye out in the days and weeks ahead for this.

Once awards are (hopefully) loaded, the bad news is that Singapore Airlines recently hiked KrisFlyer redemption rates across its network, including for travel to and from Indonesia.

Update: Singapore Airlines has now added six saver award seats in Business Class on practically every Singapore – Bali and Bali – Singapore SQ946/947 Boeing 787-10 flight from 10th November 2022 onwards. Jump on these quick, while they last!

Here are the latest one-way KrisFlyer award rates you’ll pay for the Singapore – Bali route.

KrisFlyer Redemption Singapore ⇄ Bali
	Saver	Advantage
Economy	8,500	15,000
Business	21,000	35,000

Other Bali options

35 weekly Singapore Airlines flights to and from Bali aren’t the only option on this route during the upcoming season.

Here are the other options available, some of which offer relatively competitive fares and potentially more useful timings.

• AirAsia: 28/wk (A320)
• Garuda Indonesia: 3/wk (738, becoming 333 from Nov)
• Jetstar: 9/wk (A320)
• Scoot: 21/wk (789 x 14, A321neo x 7)
• KLM: 7/wk (772 or 77W)

Overall there will be 103 flights per week between Singapore and Bali this winter season, compared to 125 per week pre-COVID (based on January 2020 schedules).

Requirements when flying to Indonesia

Back in May this year, Indonesia scrapped pre-departure COVID-19 testing for fully vaccinated visitors, having also removed on-arrival testing the month before.

You must still be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 to visit Indonesia quarantine-free, which means to head to Bali you must have:

• a COVID-19 vaccination certificate (physical or digital) showing that you were fully vaccinated at least 14 days before departure.

The certificate must be issued in both English and the local language of the country where you were vaccinated, if different.

The vaccination requirement does not apply to passengers younger than 18 years, who are able to follow the entry requirements of their accompanying parents, guardians or travel companions.

Those aged 18 or over who are unable to be vaccinated for medical reasons are allowed to travel test-free and quarantine-free to Indonesia, but they must carry a supporting doctor’s certificate from the country of departure.

Since early April 2022, those holding one of nine ASEAN passports, including Singaporeans, no longer need a Visa on Arrival (VoA) to visit Bali, meaning a nice cash saving compared to the original reopening process, where this was a requirement.

Here are the approved ASEAN visa-free nationalities, for those arriving in Indonesia as tourists.

• Brunei
• Cambodia
• Laos
• Malaysia
• Myanmar

• Philippines
• Singapore
• Thailand
• Vietnam

Visa-free ASEAN tourist arrivals are limited to a 30-day stay in Indonesia, which cannot be extended.

Over the last few months, Indonesia has also restarted its Visa on Arrival (VoA) process at a cost of IDR 500,000 (~S$47). The list has most recently been expanded to those holding 86 nationalities.

If you hold one of the following nationalities (click to expand), based on your passport used to enter Indonesia, you will be able to obtain a VoA at Denpasar airport. Payment is by cash or credit card.

Indonesia VoA-eligible countries 1 Albania 46 Malta 2 Andorra 47 Mexico 3 Argentina 48 Monaco 4 Australia 49 Morocco 5 Austria 50 Myanmar 6 Bahrain 51 Netherlands 7 Belarus 52 New Zealand 8 Belgium 53 Norway 9 Bosnia and Herzegovina 54 Oman 10 Brazil 55 Palestine 11 Brunei Darussalam 56 Peru 12 Bulgaria 57 Philippines 13 Cambodia 58 Poland 14 Canada 59 Portugal 15 Chile 60 Qatar 16 China 61 Romania 17 Colombia 62 Russia 18 Croatia 63 San Marino 19 Cyprus 64 Saudi Arabia 20 Czech Republic 65 Serbia 21 Denmark 66 Seychelles 22 Ecuador 67 Singapore 23 Egypt 68 Slovakia 24 Estonia 69 Slovenia 25 Finland 70 South Africa 26 France 71 South Korea 27 Germany 72 Spain 28 Greece 73 Suriname 29 Hong Kong 74 Sweden 30 Hungary 75 Switzerland 31 Iceland 76 Taiwan 32 India 77 Thailand 33 Ireland 78 Timor Leste 34 Italy 79 Tunisia 35 Japan 80 Turkey 36 Jordan 81 Ukraine 37 Kuwait 82 United Arab Emirates 38 Kazakhstan 83 United Kingdom 39 Laos 84 United States of America 40 Latvia 85 Uzbekistan 41 Liechtenstein 86 Vatican 42 Lithuania 87 Vietnam 43 Luxembourg 44 Malaysia 45 Maldives

This VoA is valid for 30 days, and can be extended once (for a maximum of 30 further days) by making an application to an immigration office once you are in Bali. You must extend your visa within the initial 30 days, to avoid an overstay fine.

You can also opt for a VoA as an ASEAN national, if you wish to have the flexibility of an extended stay (up to 60 days), however the IDR 500,000 fee will be payable.

Flights from Singapore to Indonesia require mask-wearing on board, but since 1st September 2022 those flying in the Indonesia to Singapore direction have been mask-optional, for both SIA and Scoot passengers.

Singapore Airlines will hike its Bali schedule to four times daily from 30th October 2022, then five times daily from 10th November 2022, with both Business Class and Economy Class now for sale on these additional Boeing 787-10 flights.

Award space has yet to be loaded, but do keep an eye on this since there should be more redemption opportunities to follow in the weeks ahead on this popular route.

Unfortunately the airline continues to schedule its Boeing 737-800s on an early morning Bali service each day through the winter season – one to avoid if you’re looking for the latest cabin products in either Business or Economy.

Stick to the four daily Boeing 787-10 services if you can.

(Cover Photo: Plane’s Portrait Aviation Media / Malcolm Lu)