Airlines · South America

Hello, some (potentially) good news for Brazil lovers—GOL airline is launching a route to Europe from Rio, starting in September for Lisbon, then Paris at a later date that hasn’t been announced yet. They’ll be using their new A330-900 neo. No prices have been announced so far, but hopefully we’ll find direct flights from GIG at a more interesting fare than AF or Latam…

Hi there. I’m planning a trip to Chile, and the fares from the Colombian airline Avianca are really appealing. Way cheaper than Air France, for example. That said, the reviews I’ve seen online aren’t great. What do you think of this airline? Have any of you taken long-haul flights with Avianca? Thanks in advance for your replies. Eric

Hi,

We’re planning a trip to Santa Cruz de la Sierra with our pets. We’ve seen a lot of really negative reviews about BOA and AirEuropa, but it looks like the options are limited.

So, I’m looking for recent firsthand experiences with these two airlines—especially if you’ve traveled with animals.

Thanks so much!

Hello, We're heading to Peru at the end of July 2026 for 18 days. We're a couple with two teenagers aged 14 and 16. I'm considering booking our Paris - Lima - Paris flight with AVIANCA because the fare is very competitive compared to other airlines. The return trip would include a 15h30 stopover in Bogota, with the idea of spending the night in a hotel near the airport to catch the 1:30 PM flight the next day. The arrival and departure times in Bogota work well. Have any of you already flown with AVIANCA on a Paris - Lima route? What was your experience with this airline? Thanks in advance for sharing your thoughts. I'm hesitant to book with them, but the price difference with the cheapest alternative (Air France) is 1500 €, which is significant... thanks for your help! !

Hi there,

I’m flying to Bogotá with a one-way ticket in early January. A friend told me that I’ll likely have trouble boarding in France if I can’t show a return (or onward) flight out of Colombia. He was in the same situation but from the US and had to buy one at the airport before leaving.

So, I’m thinking of buying a ticket that I can get refunded once I’m there. Are there still airlines that offer full refunds without any reason? Is there a legal timeframe within which I can do this?

Thanks!

Levelo.

CUSCO-LA PAZ FLIGHT Hi, I’d like to fly from Cusco to LA PAZ (to save time… so I don’t want to deal with a canceled flight). Any feedback on Avianca? (It’s the only direct flight I’ve found.) Thanks

Hi, I bought a flight ticket to Colombia with Lufthansa, but I’m giving up on this trip because of the pandemic in South America. The airline is only offering to refund the airport taxes. Is this normal? Has anyone else run into this issue? Thanks for your replies! Anne-Elise

Hi, I'm taking flight tickets from Puerto Montt via Arica.. There's a long wait at Santiago airport. It's with Sky Airline. Do I need to collect my checked luggage and check in again, or not? The wait is almost 8 hours! Thanks for the reply! !

Hi there,

We’re heading to Chile in September 2025, and we booked a Paris–Santiago flight (AF) that was supposed to arrive in Santiago at 7:45 AM, with a same-day connection to Calama on LATAM at 2 PM. Air France just changed the arrival time to 8:45 AM in Santiago. Do you think we’ll still have enough time for the connection to Calama, or should we change our 2 PM flight to one the next morning? The other same-day options are too late. How long should we budget for customs, health checks, and baggage claim—since we’ll need to recheck our bags for Calama?

Is moving between the international terminal and the domestic terminal time-consuming?

Thanks so much for your help! :)

I'm flying Paris CDG to Santiago de Chile with KLM, then Santiago de Chile to Buenos Aires with Jetsmart. Since these are two international flights, can I check my luggage in Paris so it goes straight to Buenos Aires?

I’m planning to take Air France from Paris to Trujillo with my 2 bikes in boxes. I have a layover in Lima and a change to LATAM Airlines for Trujillo. On the way back, it’s Santa Cruz in Bolivia via Lima (LATAM Airlines) and then Air France to Paris. During the layovers in Lima, do I need to collect my luggage and the bike boxes and re-check them for the second flight? It’s really hard to get through to Air France for this kind of question.

Hi,

I’m leaving for Brazil in two weeks with my partner and just realized I made a mistake on the flight ticket regarding the middle name. Usually, I never include one, but this time I wanted to add my partner’s middle name—and instead of putting it on his ticket, I put it on mine. So now I have an incorrect middle name (a male one, no less!). Otherwise, the first and last names are correct. Do you think this could cause a problem, given that the middle name is optional? Thanks!

Hi, I’m trying to book 2 flight tickets on SATENA’s website. After entering my personal details, it asks for: "Business name, fiscal identification and fiscal ID"... and I can’t skip this step. Can anyone help me out? Thanks in advance

Hi everyone,

I’m leaving this Saturday the 30th with Iberia, and they’re not responding to emails or picking up the phone 😐. So I’m trying here with my three questions:

1 - On the way there, I’d like to check a pack of water (Vittel 1.5L x6 bottles) in my hold luggage since it’s not allowed in the cabin. I’d like to know if this is allowed or if there are any restrictions in the hold as well (aside from the maximum weight of the luggage, of course)?

2 - I have a disability, and my health hasn’t been improving, so I’ve needed a cane to get around for a while now. At the airport, they’ll put me in a wheelchair with special assistance (I’m used to it). I’ve brought a folding cane for the trip—am I allowed to have it in my carry-on luggage? (It’s a basic walking cane that folds, no fancy handle that unscrews with a sword inside or anything like that). The wheelchair is great, but before the flight, I’d like to stretch my legs a bit .

(The question might seem silly, but I’ve had some weird surprises at airport security before—a glass knick-knack that confused them for a while, even though it was just a small glass rose under a dome, or another time, my empty hair spray bottle caused a lot of hesitation.)

3 - I never received an invoice for my Iberia flights (booked in February), and I’ll need it (since a small part might be reimbursed by my works council). I’ve checked my Iberia personal space, but there’s no invoice anywhere. Do you know how I can get it? (Given that they don’t respond to emails—or if they do, it’s off-topic—and they don’t answer the phone.)

Thanks so much for your help!