What it was like on Singapore Airlines' inaugural flight to Brussels

Jetting over to Europe just got easier, as Singapore Airlines launches direct flights to Brussels, for the first time in more than 20 years. 

Flying to Europe just got a little bit easier for Australians with Singapore Airlines launching direct flights to Brussels for the first time in more than 20 years. The inaugural SQ304 departed Singapore at 1155pm on April 5, arriving at the Belgian capital the next morning at 720am.

It will make the trip four times a week, departing Singapore on Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Sunday with return flights on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday.

The resumption of the route, which was delayed from October 2020 due to the pandemic, will be a bonus for Australian fliers as it introduces another gateway city for us to fly into, and right in the heart of the transit hub of Western Europe. It means we now have an alternative to flying into popular Paris, Amsterdam or London.

The new route will provide Aussies with more options for flying into Europe

Singapore Airlines will fly to Brussels on its long-haul Airbus 350-900s which offers 187 seats in economy, 24 in premium economy and 42 in business class.

I settled into my business class pod with a celebratory glass of Piper-Heidsieck Vintage 2014 to enjoy the 13-hour inaugural flight.

Once in the air dinner was served; a smoked salmon salad entrée was followed by the Singaporean classic, Hainanese chicken rice. And as we had departed Singapore at around midnight, sleep won out over reading and movies. A flight attendant had my flat lay bed prepared in under a minute and it was silk eye mask and lights out for me.

Bed and breakfast at 40,000ft... Picture: supplied

But no matter how comfortable I was, I could not sleep a wink on the nighttime flight, which is no shade on the Airbus 350-900. I very rarely sleep on a flight, no matter how much my chair reclines, or indeed lies flat.

Breakfast service – fresh fruit and a pastry followed by scrambled eggs, sausage, baked beans, sautéed spinach and a potato rosti - signaled the near-arrival of our flight into Brussels.

This new route offers many drawcards for Australian travellers. More direct flights into Europe increases competition and helps keep flight prices down. And, for those keen to use frequent flyer points, a less-popular destination like the newly-added Brussels means you have a better chance of using your points on the fare or on upgrading your seat category.

This new route will be great for those looking for a points upgrade

Plus, it may just encourage travellers to explore the quirky city of Brussels, often overlooked in place of nearby Paris, London, Amsterdam and Berlin whose countries border Belgium. Brussels is perfectly based in the heart of north western Europe making it a great gateway city for the rest of the continent, with Paris less than 90 minutes away and Amsterdam less than three hours away by high-speed train. It’s also home to the European Union and headquarters of NATO.

More importantly for Aussie visitors, Brussels is just an hour from the prominent World War 1 battlefields of Ypres and Passchendaele and memorials to our fallen soldiers such as Tyne Cote, which is the largest Commonwealth cemetery in the world.

This writer was a guest of Singapore Airlines 

Originally published as What it was like on Singapore Airlines' inaugural flight to Brussels