Who Are Scoot Airlines?
Scoot Airlines is a Singapore-based low-cost airline. It is a subsidiary of Singapore Airlines, an airline known for its high-quality service and safety record.
The airline operates a modern fleet of Boeing 787 Dreamliner and Airbus A320 aircraft, totaling 56 aircraft. The fleet features a vibrant yellow livery, and some planes are even decorated with Pokemon!
When looking for an affordable airline, Scoot ticked all the boxes for me. A bit of research online told me they were safe, reliable, and competitively priced. But, do they actually offer a good experience, and is it worth the savings?
Where Does Scoot Fly To?
Scoot flies to 71 destinations, across 15 countries. I have listed the most popular below:
- Singapore
- Australia – Sydney, Perth, Melbourne
- Europe – Berlin, Athens*
- Thailand – Phuket, Bangkok, Krabi, Chiang Mai
- Hong Kong
- Japan – Tokyo, Osaka
- Taiwan – Taipei
- South Korea – Seoul
- Vietnam – Ho Chi Minh, Hanoi
- China – Tianjin, Qingdao, Guangzhou, Xi’an
You can view all the countries that Scoot flies to on the destinations page of their website.
TIP! The Singapore to Athens route is usually very affordable, it is something to keep an eye out for if you plan on travelling between Asia and Europe.
Is Scoot A Safe Airline?
For fellow nervous fliers, sometimes flying with a budget airline, especially one you have never flown on before, can feel like you are taking a risk, compromising safety for a cheaper ticket. This is just not true; you are really just compromising on a no-frills experience.
Scoot is completely safe; it adheres to all IATA, ICAO, and other aviation standards. It has received a 7/7 safety rating based on audits from ICAO and IATA. This is the highest rating any airline can receive!
Scoot Baggage Allowance
All passengers (except infants) are entitled to two pieces of cabin baggage. The bags must fit within the following dimensions:
Bag one: 54cm x 38cm x 23cm
Bag two: 40cm x 30cm x 10cm.
If you are flying economy, the bags can have a combined weight of 10kg. This is quite generous, considering that most other budget airlines provide an allowance of only 7kg. However, if you are flying Scoot Plus (more details below), you get a carry-on allowance of 15kg.
For checked baggage, there is an allowance of up to 40kg, but each individual bag must not exceed 32kg.
Scoot Ticket Types
Economy
Included in the economy fare is 10kg of cabin baggage; checked baggage will incur an additional fee.
Scoot in Silence
Available only on Boeing 787 Dreamliner flights, Scoot in Silence is designed to provide a quieter experience, with no one under 12 allowed to sit in this section of the cabin.
It offers the same benefits as economy class but with extra legroom in a smaller cabin at the front of the plane.
ScootPlus
Available only on Boeing 787 Dreamliner flights, the ScootPlus cabin is located at the front of the plane and features large reclining leather seats, extra legroom, and more.
Included in the ScootPlus fare are 15kg of cabin baggage, 30kg of checked baggage, reclining leather seats, an in-flight meal, priority boarding, and 30 MB of WiFi.
If you have booked ScootPlus and have a connecting flight on an Airbus, then only some of the ScootPlus perks are available on your Airbus leg of the journey. You will no longer have access to the cabin with the reclining seats or WiFi, but everything else remains the same.
Does Scoot Have A Frequent Flyer Programme?
Scoot’s frequent flyer program is called KrisFlyer, which is the same program as Singapore Airlines. It enables members to earn points across 40 different partners. As a KrisFlyer member, you will earn 1 mile for every SGD$1 spent on a Scoot flight.
You can also use KrisFlyer miles to partially pay for your flight.
Sign up here to join the KrisFlyer programme.
Inflight Services
Scoot Cafe – serving hot meals, snacks, and beverages. I ordered a can of Pringles and coconut water, which came to an eye-watering SGD$14! Cash and cards are accepted.
WiFi – available only on 787 Dreamliners. Data plans start from 20MB and go up to 1GB. It is cheaper to purchase these plans 4 hours prior to boarding. For example, the 20MB plan is $2.50 if purchased before boarding or $5 if bought on the flight. You can purchase WiFi under the “manage my booking” section of the website.
Entertainment – Although there is no TV with movies, there is ScootHub, which, when it works, is okay. ScootHub is a portal that passengers can connect to through their mobile phones. From there, you can access games, browse a travel magazine, and view the interactive map. Will it keep you entertained for hours? No, but it’s a nice little extra for a budget airline.
Where to book cheap flights
I find the best deals on Skyscanner, a flight comparison site that provides you with several options for your travel date and destination. It includes all airlines that either fly directly or combine a few to offer you the best possible price for that day. If the best deal is directly through Scoot, Skyscanner will redirect you to their website.
You can also book flights through Scoots easy to use website.
Scoot Flight Review
I flew Economy on flight TR 605 from Bangkok to Singapore, with a flight duration of 2 hours and 15 minutes. The aircraft was an Airbus A321 neo.
This is my experience flying with Scoot.
Check in & Boarding
I booked my flight through Skyscanner for €65, plus an additional €17.50 for 20kg baggage and €8 for seat selection.
The check-in counter opened 3 hours prior to departure. Since I had already checked in online, I could join a shorter queue to check my bags in, which was brilliant because the regular queues were very long.
There were no queues at security or passport control, so I had about 2 hours to pass before the gate opened. I’ve been to Bangkok airport numerous times, so I spent the time at Bonchon Chicken.
I headed to the gate when they announced the flight was boarding but had to wait for about 20 minutes until our row was called.
Seat Review
The aircraft was an A320, so it had the usual configuration of one row with three seats on each side. I chose to sit in row 52B, which was towards the rear of the plane.
The seats were standard, featuring an adjustable headrest, a tray, and a pocket to store the safety card. This is where I placed my portable fan because it was SO warm in the cabin while we waited for the plane to taxi.
The Flight
The flight experienced a few bumps but was relatively smooth for the duration.
However, the ScootHub was not working, which was frustrating. The portal would sometimes appear, but it wouldn’t allow me to connect. Also, the QR code you need to scan to log in to the portal is located in random spots on the aircraft and not easy to find. The nearest one on this flight was on the back of someone’s seat, meaning I had to put my arm and phone in front of someone to scan it. I felt like I was disturbing this passenger, even though they did not seem to care. Anyway, what I don’t understand is that they have a cloth over every chair advertising ScootHub. Why isn’t the QR code or steps to access it on that?
As mentioned above, I ordered Pringles and coconut water, which cost SGD$14. No meal was included with my economy ticket.
We landed on time in Singapore. Even though we were at the back of the plane, the disembarkation process was quick and well-organised.
Would I fly with Scoot again?
So, would I fly with Scoot again?
I had a pleasant experience on Scoot Airlines flight TR605 and would definitely book with them again. They have an excellent safety record, are reliable, and fly to many wonderful destinations around the world at a seriously competitive price.
The planes were comfortable and clean. The economy seats could benefit from more legroom, but they are okay for short-haul flights and still excellent value for money. Although the entertainment portal ScootHub did not work, I was prepared with a few episodes of a TV show, so I did not mind. Most budget airlines do not offer any entertainment, so it’s a nice little perk.
Even with these minor issues, I enjoy traveling with them. They have become my airline of choice for traveling around Asia!
Cancellation Policy
Scoot has a very limited cancellation policy, most tickets are non-refundable and non-cancellable. They will allow a refund for the following reasons:
- Medical reasons – medical cert is required
- Death of passenger or immediate family members – copy of death cert required
- Schedule change or disruption affected with retiming of 4 hours or more
How to arrange special assistance
Having previously arranged special assistance with Scoot I found it to be surprisingly easy.
You just need to fill out this form within 48 hours of the flight, which will be followed by an email with various questions. When we responded to that email it bounced back therefore we needed to use the live chat feature on the website. Thankfully you get to speak to real people and not a bot, the live agent confirmed our request and that we would pick up a wheelchair at check in.