It was the next best thing to a flying hotel at 35,000 feet -- for those who could afford such pampering.

"This is the Orient Express of the skies," said business executive Peter Smith as he relaxed in his light tan and acorn leather, 35-inch-wide, first-class seat.

On the mahogany wood table in front of him, a recently released Hollywood movie was playing on a sleek 23-inch LCD monitor. His luggage was stored under the seat's ottoman.

Later, Smith changed into a special "sleep suit" designed by fashion house Givenchy as a flight attendant in her sarong kebaya uniform turned down his big leather chair for sleeping. Bedding also by Givenchy.

Smith knows a thing or two about traveling in style. He's ridden on the famous Orient Express trains that are known for their exclusive first-class service.

This week, he was among the 227 passengers on Singapore Airlines' inaugural Boeing 777-300ER service from San Francisco to Seoul and then on to Singapore.

But this kind of luxury did not come cheap. A first-class, round-trip ticket was a little more than $10,000.

Passengers in business class probably paid from $4,000 to $6,000, according to a Singapore Airlines spokesman. They sat in 30-inch-wide seats that turned into beds during the flight, which took about 20 hours, including the short stop in Seoul.

And those crowded into the back of the plane without the turn-down bed service? A round-trip economy ticket ranged from about $1,400 to $1,700. But those passengers also had a little more room than normal.

Singapore Airlines is considered a trendsetter in the industry. It will be the first to operate the Airbus A380, which will supplant The Boeing Co.'s 747 as the biggest passenger plane.

The airline, known for its premier passenger service, spent four years and about $360 million developing this new level of passenger comfort.

The airline had planned to introduce some of these cabin products on the A380. But the 555-passenger, double-decker giant is nearly two years behind schedule, and Singapore Airlines won't get its first until October.

So Boeing's plane has the new-look interior first.

"This has kept us busy in engineering, but it was a lot of fun," said Ken Davis, an interiors engineer with Boeing Commercial Airplanes who was on the inaugural flight. He was there to assist the cabin crew if needed.

Although the Boeing 777- 300ER has been in airline service since 2004, the version ordered by Singapore Airlines has a number of interior "firsts" for Boeing.

It's the first 777 with no overhead luggage storage bins along the center of the cabin in business class, and no overhead bins at all in first class, giving the cabin a roomier feel.

Also a first is a space-saving lift system that allows the crew to store their luggage and other personal things above the cabin. This was one of the new features that Davis worried might be troublesome since the crew was not familiar with its operation.

"It's like the first time you use an ATM machine," he said. "It can be a little intimidating."

Singapore Airlines already operates nearly 60 777s -- more than any other airline in the world. It has ordered 19 777-300ERs

It took delivery of the first one last month at a ceremony in Everett. The airline has options to buy another dozen.

The Singapore Airlines 777- 300ERs have been in service for a few weeks in Asia and in Europe. January 15 was the debut of the airline's 777-300ER service between Singapore and North America.

Until they showed up at the San Francisco airport, most of the passengers who took the first flight were not aware they would be flying on the new plane. But they realized the flight was special when they arrived at gate 99 in the international terminal and saw the balloons, free food and beverages -- and the media. Three newspaper reporters went on the flight, as well as the travel editor and a cameraman from a San Francisco TV station.

"We thought maybe someone was having a wedding," Jan Bruneau said when she saw the balloons. She and her husband, Dave, from Alberta, were flying to Singapore and then on to Sydney, Australia, to visit their daughter.

They had seats in the economy class. At 19 inches wide, that's about 2 inches more than passengers have in economy class on Singapore Airlines' other 777 models, and its 747-400s.

Each economy seat also has a 10.6-inch monitor for in-flight entertainment, considerably bigger than the monitors in economy class of Singapore Airlines' other jets.

At least one economy-class passenger was disappointed -- not in the seat but the in-flight entertainment system.

Susie Thew of New Zealand was traveling with her two sons, ages 5 and 12, and good in-flight entertainment to keep them occupied was important to her, she said before the plane left San Francisco.

During the gate reception, Singapore Airlines offered literature boasting the entertainment system from Panasonic Avionics, with its 1,000 options, including 100 on-demand movies, that was making its debut on the 777-300ER.

When Panasonic Avionics learned that some media would be on the flight, they sent a couple of representatives to troubleshoot any problems. They were needed.

They said after the flight that the system worked on only one of the three monitors in the seats that she and her two boys were in.

Randy Schwarz, director of development testing for Panasonic Avionics, was on the plane and acknowledged there are software issues that are being worked out.

The problems were mostly in the economy section, he said. But that's also where most of the passengers were.

Singapore Airlines has configured its 777-300ERs with 228 seats in economy, 42 in business and eight in first class.

Business-class passengers Cathy and Peter Raica, who work for Chevron, were returning to Jakarta from vacation.

"This is better than any business seat I've ever sat in," Cathy Raica said during the 12-hour flight to Seoul.

The next leg to Singapore took nearly seven more hours.

"It was like being at home on my couch and watching TV," Peter Raica said when the plane arrived at Singapore's Changi Airport.

On the first leg from San Francisco to Seoul, only two passengers who paid full fare were seated in first class -- Andrian Miranda and Peter Smith. The other six seats had media and an airline spokesman.

Those wide first-class seats were the first thing that got Miranda's attention.

The seats were so wide that Miranda had problems deciding exactly where to sit.

"I could not decide what would be the better position, left, right, or in the middle," he said.

It didn't really matter. He found himself shifting in his seat during the takeoff.

Even his seat belt was big. That's because it had an air bag wrapped around it -- another unique feature in first class. The air bag works just like those in cars and would inflate automatically to help protect the passenger in a crash or violent event.

Miranda, 37, an organizational communications specialist, travels on international business four or five times a year, usually flying first class or business class.

He said the additional comfort is worth the extra cost.

"Some might seriously question the money, but for that extra comfort and level of service, I feel it is worth it," Miranda said shortly before a flight attendant buckled him in for some sleep about halfway into the flight to Seoul.

When he arrived in Singapore, Miranda said he got more sleep than he ever has on a plane, catching about four hours between Seoul and Singapore.

Fellow passenger Smith is president of Hydraulic Remanufacturing Solutions in Jakarta. His company remanufactures parts for the oil and gas industry that otherwise would be scrapped.

A frequent air traveler, Smith flew first class on several airlines on this latest business trip, including an American carrier from London to the United States. He said it had poor service and much smaller first-class seats.

"They have raised the bar one more time," Smith said of Singapore Airlines. "The opulence we have here reflects that. It will be interesting to see (how) some of the other airlines react."

Singapore Airlines is likely to have the same seats in economy and business on the A380 that are on its 777-300ERs. And the Airbus plane will have the same in-flight entertainment system. But the airline is keeping mum about first class on the A380 -- for those who can afford a flying hotel. (US dollar is the currency used in this report unless otherwise stated)