United Flight 1: San Francisco to Singapore

My first ever long haul international flight was San Francisco to Singapore on United Flight 1. Overall this was a good and comfortable flight despite it being one of the longest flights available. Here’s more about my experience on United Flight 1.

• United Flight 1 – San Francisco (SFO) to Singapore (SIN)
• Departed: Wednesday, March 1st at 10:20pm
• Arrived: Friday, March 3rd at 7:45am
• Flight time: 17 hours 25 minutes
• Aircraft: 787-9 Dreamliner

Check-in Reminder

Double check that your seat number is accurate! I paid for Economy Plus, but I realized shortly before boarding my assigned seat was located in Economy.

Not sure what happened, but I went to the front desk and had it fixed. They tried to pull a fast one on me.

What amenities are included?

• TV with a large selection of movies, TV shows, and games
• USB outlet on the seatback
• Two regular outlets per each row of 3 seats (1 on each side of the middle seat) found under your seat
• Pillow
• Blanket
• Headphones if needed
• Two meals and 1 snack
• Drink service
• Wifi availability (not free)

Where should I sit?

On United, the three cabin options are United Polaris First, Economy Plus, and United Economy.

United Polaris First

If you have the opportunity or the means, there’s no better way to fly than first class. The lay-flat seats, ample space, ultimate comfort, and tastier meals make any long haul flight much more enjoyable. 

Economy Plus

I opted for Economy Plus and sat in the lovely 17F. This is in the 2nd row behind first class which means less foot traffic. First class has their own bathrooms, and for Economy Plus the bathrooms are at the back of the section. The farther back you are the more disturbed you might be by people heading to the bathrooms.

The front rows of the section are nice for extra leg room, and each seat still has its own TV that comes out of the arm rest. However, there is no place for small personal items since there isn’t a seat in front of you.

The aisle of the middle section of seats is my preference so I don’t have to be disturbed by anyone needing to get up. 

Not all Economy Plus seats are priced the same. Once we were boarded, not all the seats were full and a flight attendant offered that people could move to empty seats if it would make them more comfortable. If that’s the case for you, you may be able to end up sitting in a nicer seat than what you paid for.

United Economy

The only difference between Economy and Economy Plus is 3 extra inches of leg room, which makes no difference for me. You get free alcohol in Economy Plus, but I only have one glass of white wine at the beginning of the flight and it wasn’t very good. Most long-haul flights offer free alcohol for everyone anyway. Blankets, pillows, and headsets are also available to everyone.

*In Delta’s upgraded seats, they also include a toiletry bag that contains an eye mask, ear plugs, toothbrush, and toothpaste. It wasn’t much, but a big value add. I didn’t bring any of those items for the flight because I thought United would do the same, but they didn’t.*

Is there WIFI?

WIFI was available for purchase by card or by points. I had a hard time finding the prices before the flight. Once on the flight, I decided not to purchase as the prices were too high for my liking.

Wifi prices were as follows (as of 3/1/17):

• 1 hour – $8.99 or 1,390 miles
• 2 hours – $14.99 or 2,310 miles
• Full flight – $29.99 or 4,620

What meals are served and when?

They served dinner about an hour into the flight. The options were chicken and rice or vegetarian fried rice, with a small salad and a roll with butter. I had the fried rice. I was glad I ate at the airport before leaving because the meal was pretty terrible. I didn’t touch the salad, but the roll was great!

A snack is served around halfway through the flight. The options were a turkey sandwich or a vegetarian sandwich, with M&M’s. I had the turkey sandwich, and it was much better than the dinner.

Breakfast was served with about an hour and a half left of the flight. The options were scrambled eggs or French toast, with fruit, a roll, and butter. I went with the French toast and it was actually good! Best meal of the flight.

Turbulence and Arrival

There was very minimal turbulence and we arrived about 20 minutes early. As I was leaving the plane, my legs were tingling and I noticed my ankles and feet were swollen.

They were back to normal the next day, but remember to drink plenty of water and move around often on long flights!

Have a nice flight!

Have you flown on United flight 1 from San Francisco to Singapore? Share your experience in the comments below!

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