Adventures of Getting an Economy + Business Return Flight to Bali For S$266.60
This is not travel advice
I recently went to Bali for the third time this year and managed to snag a really sweet deal on my flights — we took an Economy Class flight to Bali and Business Class on the way back for just S$266.60 per person! Getting really cheap flights to nearby destinations (not just Bali) is still possible for a relatively short window of time, though it requires a bit of luck, promo snatching… and making sure you select the dates on your booking correctly.
Getting heavily discounted flights with Trip.com’s promo
The first thing I did was to book my flights through Trip.com which has a promo offering a staggering 50% off Economy flights if you book a pair of Economy tickets with a DBS card at 12PM each Monday of December. The discount is capped at S$200 which is a generous enough amount of savings for a regional destination like Bali, though as you might expect it is limited to a tiny number of redemptions so it was fastest fingers first… and I have very fast fingers
Singapore Airlines was exactly S$370 per pax for the dates I wanted, which was a bit steep, but I was booking it on 1st December for a flight barely a week later on 9th December so I was alright with the premium. My travel companion had to be there for work anyway, so his ticket is covered by work, and a S$200 discount would make tickets for two passengers just S$570 which is a lot more palatable.
With quivering anticipation, I tapped away on my phone at 12PM and…
I got it, of course. Pfft, years of ordering iPhones for launch day has trained me well for moments like this. All there was left to do was to show up at the airport on 9th February 2026 and…
Wait, February?!
In my hurry, I had picked the wrong dates… and no, I wasn’t even drinking (yet).
Thankfully, but still feeling defeated, it was possible to get a complete refund which I think is due to Singapore Airlines’ more generous refund policy. This probably wouldn’t be possible with many other airlines.
Getting heavily discounted flights with Trip.com’s promo, part 2
So it was 8 days before we were due in Bali (well, only my travel companion actually) and we were flightless and potentially jobless (he can join my predicament) if I didn’t salvage the situation (that I caused).
Like any sane person would, I booked the flights at the full cost and… No, we have to try again! I am (self-proclaimed) Captain of Team Value and if my quest to get very cheap flights causes my companion to lose his job, that is a sacrifice I am willing to make!
The next Monday would be 8th December, just a day before we needed to be there. Like you, I could also hear the pleas of “please Seth, I’ll pay the difference” but I’m not unreasonable; 8th December would indeed be too late (maybe).
We hence had to look at alternatives and I found that Citibank has been offering a similar deal on Fridays. It’s the same 50% off, though capped at a slightly lower S$150 (boo), and there are simply no 4 miles per dollar Citibank cards to book flights with (double boo).
Nonetheless, the date was marked and le compagnon de voyage endured 4 full days of anticipation. 5th December: cheap flights, we would prevail!
KLM has pretty cheap flights to Bali
My abject failure to recognise that February 2026 wasn’t in fact December 2025 turned out to be quite the blessing in disguise. While searching again, I soon came across KLM Economy flights for just S$185 per person.
A full-service flight for practically the same price as budget airlines? Yes please.
I previously flew KLM for my first trip to Bali earlier this year, taking a combination of Scoot and KLM. I had a decent experience with KLM’s Economy back then, and hence I decided to do the whole return flight with the airline this time given how it was too cheap to pass.
On 5th December 2025, 12:00PM, a victory soothed the dishonour I experienced on 1st December: tickets at S$110.60 per person… and with the correct flight dates no less.
3 more chances to try this month – here are some tips
If you want to try your hand at getting cheap Economy flights, below are the details for the rest of December 2025:
| DBS | Citibank | |
|---|---|---|
| Remaining Dates | 12PM on 22nd December 2025 12PM on 29th December 2025 | 12PM on 26th December 2025 |
| Discount | 50% capped at S$200 (for 2 pax in Economy) | 50% capped at S$150 (for 2 pax in Economy) |
| Promo Code | DBSDEC50LOVE | CITIDEC50DEAL |
You have to enter the promo code at 12PM sharp and check out as soon as possible because the codes are usually fully redeemed within well under a minute. If you don’t have a Trip.com account yet, sign up for one first (using my link gives me each of us some vouchers/discounts, but I haven’t had time to look into the details yet).
Here are some tips:
- Save your DBS/Citi credit card details in your Trip.com account first (Account → My Cards)
- Save your companion and your travel details first (Account → Frequent Info → Frequent Traveller Info)
- A little while before 12PM, select the flights that you wish to book until you hit the Enter info page where you can enter Promo codes
- Make sure all your travel details are correct here (yes, especially dates) and select your preference for insurance otherwise there might be an extra prompt
- At 12PM, enter the promo code and quickly head to Continue to Pay. This button is located at the bottom right corner of the screen asking you to pay extra for seat selection and in-flight meals and I doubt you have time to add these frills so just skip them
- At the payment screen, select the right card and prepare the CVV as well as your app verification/OTP
Best of luck and I hope your fingers are fast!
Last-minute Business
I was happy enough with my S$110.60 return ticket, but on the way back, I noticed something really interesting while checking in online for my return flight: the Business Class upgrade was almost affordable.
This is certainly dynamically priced and we got lucky that the return flight’s Business Class cabin was pretty much empty. It’s a good reminder for me to pay more attention to how much it’d cost to upgrade my flight nearing the departure the next time I travel in Economy.
By this time, my parents had joined my trip (a long story on its own) and I decided to do the filial thing:
KLM was entirely pleasant
This was my second time taking KLM’s Economy Class and the Business Class flight was a first. I’m not about to go on a full review now that this post is way too much for the attention span TikTok has imposed upon us, but the gist is that the flights in both Economy and Business were entirely pleasant and yes, in case you were wondering, completely rat-free.
In fact, there were quite a few things that I thought KLM did a lot better than SQ ranging from the seat itself to even the food and service, but I’ll probably elaborate in a separate piece so stay subscribed for that.
All in all, the trip worked out rather nicely. Despite a few stumbles, I managed to emerge with an Economy + Business return flight for S$266.60… and nobody lost their job or captaincy in the process!
Seth Wee was a licensed financial adviser representative from 2009 to 2025, with over 16 years of experience in Singapore’s financial advisory industry.
He started Sethisfy.com in 2019 to share practical insights on credit cards, banking products, and miles strategies, helping readers identify financial products that deliver the best value. Seth has been featured in CNA, Channel 8, Today, and a host of other publications. In 2025, he was also part of a panel at CPF’s Ready For Life festival.
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