Singapore Air's A380 restaurant tickets sold within 30 minutes of opening

Singapore Airlines Ltd. said all seats on its Airbus SE A380 jetliner pop-up restaurants were reserved within 30 minutes of bookings opening Monday.

With flights largely grounded by the coronavirus pandemic, Singapore Airlines is trying novel ways to raise money, including using two of the superjumbos parked at Changi Airport as temporary eateries.

A meal in a suite costs S$642 ($474), while seats in business class are going for S$321, dropping to S$96.30 for premium economy and S$53.50 for economy. Customers can also pay with frequent-flyer miles.

After lunch on the initial dates of Saturday and Sunday, Oct. 24 and 25, sold out, Singapore Airlines said it will extend the offer for a further two days the following weekend and also add a dinner option on all four days.

About half the seats in each aircraft will be used for dining, in line with restaurant guidelines on group limits and distancing, the carrier said in a statement. In normal flying service, the carrier’s A380s can seat as many as 471 people, according to its website.

Singapore Airlines, which suffered a record S$1.12 billion ($827 million) net loss in the quarter through June and is laying off about 20 per cent of its workforce, is also selling a range of first- and business-class meals and offering a service whereby a private chef reheats, plates and serves customers in their homes.

Meanwhile, demand is soaring for spots on two cruise ships that will start sailing from Singapore next month on round-trip journeys as the city-state aims to give residents an outlet for their wanderlust.

Operator Genting Cruise Lines has received more than 6,000 bookings in 5 days, while competitor Royal Caribbean International said bookings are up 500 per cent compared with the past two weeks, reported the Straits Times. The boats will sail at a reduced capacity of 50 per cent and the journeys are only open to residents of Singapore.