When travel bloggers score ultra-luxury first class seats, it’s usually thanks to points and miles. Matthew from Live and Let’s Fly wrote about his experience on such a flight a couple of years ago.
Having enough points and miles to cover that kind of expense is impressive. However, some people are willing (and able) to pay cash for these cherished seats. I’m not one of them, of course. But some people are.
An influencer named Antoine, who goes by the handle @Loungeguru on YouTube, recently decided to pay for one of Singapore Airlines’ A380 Suites—to the tune of $13,980.
A Canadian currently working in marketing in Dubai (his travel content is his side hustle), he said he booked the seat fully in cash. “No miles or loyalty points were used. It was, without a doubt, the most expensive ticket I have ever purchased.”
And of course, since Antoine is an influencer, he posted his experience on ye olde internet.
Here’s his original video, which has gotten over 10 million views since being posted on January 7th.
That video was only about a minute long. A few days later, Antoine posted another video—this one is over 8 minutes long and goes much more into the nitty gritty:
His description of the flight is equally impressive, and I encourage you to read it.
People’s response
Watching the two videos was, of course, fascinating. However, the responses from the people who watched them were equally interesting.
The response to the first video was chock full of people who questioned, judged, and had otherwise not-all-that-great things to say about someone spending $14,000 on a flight:
The fact that sh*t costs $14,000 is insane. If it was like $1,500–$2,000 I’d understand, but wtf.
Still has the loud airplane noise. We just took Amtrak—seats larger than a 1st class airline seat, twice the leg room, no security hassle, they check your ticket after the train is underway, and much more quiet.
$14K plane ticket and you’re trying to say the B&O headphones were “free.”
Yes, when something goes wrong with the plane… you go down with the rest of ’em!!
$14,000 for a plane ticket… this is beyond wild.
The responses to the second video (the longer one) tended to run very different. There were still the occasional “You paid $14k for that???” comments, but there were many more replies from people who had experienced Singapore Airlines’ suites (or at least appreciated the experience):
Truly awesome experience. Did it London to Sydney 3 years ago with my wife, on Valentine’s Day. Very romantic. Heading off to do it again in late February.
If you have a comfortable life AND money… live like it’s your last day on earth. You deserve it!
Great video, thank you for sharing. You have impeccable manners and seem well deserving of such luxury. All the best.
My first business class experience was on SQ and I always remembered the green-uniformed stewardess wishing me a good journey in the most beautiful manner. Subsequently I took ANA and Air France business class as SQ’s business class faced stiff competition. As a Singapore citizen, I hope one day I can enjoy first class too.
My response
I’ll be the first to admit that I am not a travel geek—that’s my husband, Joe. I love traveling, but I’ve always preferred the more “quirky” parts of it over the “luxurious” aspects.
Which isn’t to say that if Joe were to say tomorrow, “Hey, we have enough points to fly Singapore Airlines’ A380 suites… wanna go?” that I’d say no. Of course I’d do it. Partially to enjoy the experience because YOLO… but mainly for him and his enjoyment.
But I’d be just as happy sitting in economy.
OK, OK… premium economy, if it were a really long flight.
That being said, what other people do with their own money (or points and miles, since those have value too) is none of my business.
I’m going to assume Antoine wasn’t spending his last dollar to take this flight. Although really—even if he was—it’s still none of my business what he did with his own money.
Meanwhile, he looked like he had an amazing time, so yay for him.
Want to comment on this post? Great! Read this first to help ensure it gets approved.
Want to sponsor a post, write something for Your Mileage May Vary, or put ads on our site? Click here for more info.
Like this post? Please share it! We have plenty more just like it and would love it if you decided to hang around and sign up to get emailed notifications of when we post.
Whether you’ve read our articles before or this is the first time you’re stopping by, we’re really glad you’re here and hope you come back to visit again!
This post first appeared on Your Mileage May Vary
