Flying to Lima - What Airlines to Look at?

Heracles26 on 16/05/2017 - 12:46

Hi all,

I am hoping to fly to Lima (from Adelaide) later this year.

I have only looked at the Qantas website for flights which are around the $2k mark.

Can anyone suggest other airlines to look at and to book with directly?

Travel

Comments

  • toniyellow on 16/05/2017 - 13:02

    Try LATAM, formerly known as LAN

    You can look at a history of when they last had sales
    https://www.ozbargain.com.au/deals/lan.com
    https://www.ozbargain.com.au/deals/latam.com

    They have an office in Sydney, if you need to do anything complicated you can call them, I found it useful.

    • Heracles26 on 16/05/2017 - 13:53

      The last leg of the Qantas flights I have looked at use LATAM (from Chile to Peru I think).

      Have you flown with them? Are they decent?

      Thanks!

      • R-Man on 16/05/2017 - 14:21

        Flew LAN airlines in 2012, no complaints. Flights were on time, good entertainment, comfy seats, check in staff in Chile were very friendly.

      • toniyellow on 16/05/2017 - 14:22

        Yes they were fine.

        The flight on the way over was on a new dreamliner aircraft which was very comfortable, except I had a window seat, and they have these new electronically dimmable windowshades. Its built into the window somehow, like sunglasses that transition. It is good in one way, as you can dim your window like 75% as still see out, without glare, if you like to look out. But they get really warm to the touch, unlike regular window shades. I am used to getting cold on aircraft and instead the window acted a bit like a heater, and I had to take off layers to get down to a t-shirt.

        From the internet it seems a few airlines have had issues with the new windowshades and are looking at ways to make them cooler. I flew in July 2016, not sure if it is fixed now or not yet.

        The service was friendly, all spoke english. There seemed to be fewer flight attendants coming around than some asian airlines, but more self service, lots of extra snacks sitting out and available on the long flights in this rest sort of kitchen area up the back of economy.

        On the short flights I did within south america, the food was always a ham sandwich, which got a bit boring, but was fine, and at least it is hard to get sick from a plain sandwich.

        You should use a third party site to find the cheapest price, and call them if it is better elsewhere. They have an office in Sydney. Their website wouldn't give me a long layover which I wanted, even through the multi-city tab, and they fixed it on the phone and were nice.

        • Heracles26 on 16/05/2017 - 14:36

          thanks so much!

  • pantsparty on 16/05/2017 - 13:43

    From the looks of Skyscanner your only real options are Qantas and LATAM Airlines. Not sure of your dates but some dates you can get return for around $1,300

    • Heracles26 on 16/05/2017 - 13:54

      Thanks!

      I have seen some cheap flights (but also some really long layovers!) on Skyscanner.

      I don't think I would be comfortable booking through a 3rd party site however, I would rather book directly with an airline

      • scrambledeggs on 16/05/2017 - 14:40

        You can get the same flights that are on Sky-Scanner directly through the air lines. They are just an aggregate.

  • marcusv on 16/05/2017 - 16:02

    There was talk of LATAM operating non-stop flights from Melbourne - Santiago starting later this year. They are a oneworld airline so if you were to fly from Adelaide you could check your luggage in from Adelaide all the way through to Lima.

    • Heracles26 on 16/05/2017 - 16:09
      +1

      I wont be taking any luggage just carry on, but thanks!

      • stirlo on 16/05/2017 - 16:22

        Are you on a working holiday with an international cleaning company? Can I order some headphones?

        • Heracles26 on 16/05/2017 - 16:24

          How'd you know? ;) haha

      • marquise on 16/05/2017 - 21:31

        Are you going to wear one of those jackets with a million pockets to store the equivalent of a suitcase?

  • Colombian on 16/05/2017 - 19:02
    +1

    Cheaper travelling through USA. Qantas/LAN throught Chile are more expensive.

  • Stewardo on 16/05/2017 - 20:34

    Fly to lax
    Fly south on different ticket next day

    • Heracles26 on 17/05/2017 - 09:13

      I considered this but I think I would rather pay more and not have to worry about booking extra flights/accom etc

  • stirlo on 19/05/2017 - 12:51

    I made a similar trip last year (to Chile + Bolivia) and have a reasonable amount of advice.

    1. Chile has a reciprocity fee for travelers on an Australian passport arriving at SCL airport. While there are no visa fees it's important to know about this one as its basically the same thing. You have to pay $117 USD however contrary to some advice online it can be paid by credit card. The fee is charged before baggage collection so unless you have your bags checked through you will certainly need to pay it. That said in my tired and hurried state I did not see any pathway/transfer area where you would be able to take your next flight without entering Chile and paying the fee. It is probably best to check to confirm this as I've seen conflicting reports online.

    2. LAN flights are much cheaper if booked on the Spanish website rather than the English one. We found our flights were approximately half the price when booked in CLP on the local site vs the English one. If booking using credit card "Sin Quotas" is what you want for a normal payment. They have a weird system that allows credit card payments to be taken in installments (quotas) that can be a bit confusing.

    3. LAN flights were far cheaper if booked return. One way flights cost sometimes double the return flight cost (4x what you'd expect). We ended up booking a return flight with the second leg being a month in the future after we'd finished our holiday and departed the country. This was still less than half the cost of a one way ticket for just the first leg that we took.

    I think the LAN deal to SCL out of melbourne right now is a very good price (~$1250 return) and you'll be unlikely to do any better so that's what I'd book.

    • Heracles26 on 21/05/2017 - 21:21

      Thanks for the tips!

      So even if I am just in chile for a few hour layover I will need to pay the fee?

      • stirlo on 21/05/2017 - 21:32

        Double check with SCL airport but certainly if you enter Chile (eg: want to see Santiago for the afternoon) you have to pay. You might be able to transit not leaving the international part of the airport but make sure you check. What I've read online wasn't very clear and even being there it wasn't obvious.

        • Heracles26 on 21/05/2017 - 21:36

          Ok I will just play it by ear, from the limited info I've seen I'd only be in the airport for a few hours before flying to Lima. thanks again!

        • Karlotta - Margarita on 23/05/2017 - 20:50

          @Heracles26:

          Have transited a couple times through Chile and Argentina. Just ask at the airport and they will help direct you to your next flight without having to go through immigration same as most other airports. Qantas and Lan codeshare so no need to collect bags if on the one ticket. As long as you do not leave the airport, you don't pay the fee. IF you buy two separate tickets, you will need to go through immigration, collect your bags and check in again so you will need to pay the fee. If you have only a few hours, stay in the airport, there is nothing really to see outside unless you want the stamp in your passport.

          Personally, we prefer to fly direct SYD to SCL with QF even if we have to pay a little extra as LAN tend to stop in Auckland which adds enough hours to be annoying.

          LAN flights within South America have been fine. Try booking through LAN rather than Qantas to compare prices. LAN often have specials available.

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