Okay, so I have another update regarding my open-ended Latin America review trip, and I hope it’s one that most OMAAT readers will be happy about…
In this post:
Some background on my current review trip
Last week I embarked on a review trip, with the goal of checking out several premium airline products to and from Latin America. I started by flying LATAM’s Boeing 787-9 business class from Miami to Santiago, and then I flew Delta’s Airbus A350-900 business class from Santiago to Atlanta, prior to connecting to Mexico City.
My plan had been to continue my trip from there on some other airline products from Latin America, based on how award availability opened up. In particular, I was hoping to fly Aeromexico’s Boeing 787-9 business class, since I thought it would make for a good review. I’ve found that the airline opens award availability within a couple of days of departure, which is why I was leaving the trip so open-ended.
Fortunately award availability did open up, but not necessarily to the destination I had hoped. I couldn’t find Aeromexico Boeing 787-9 business class award availability to South America or Europe, but instead there was only availability on the 17hr20min flight to Tokyo (via Monterrey). So I booked that. Then for the return, I found Korean Air award availability on the Boeing 787-10 and Boeing 777-300ER.
I booked my tickets and shared my plans on the blog, though a fair number of people were disappointed by the routing. Hey, look, I respect and appreciate the feedback, but as I explained, I was going based on where I could find award availability, or a half decent deal.
I can assure you I wasn’t heading to Asia because it was somehow more enjoyable for me — honestly, 18 hours on an Aeromexico 787, followed by an eight hour layover at Narita, followed by a short flight to Incheon, followed by a 12-hour layover in Incheon, followed by a 12-hour flight to Chicago, didn’t sound terribly relaxing to me. 😉
But I ultimately took the feedback to heart, and I decided to rework the trip (fortunately I could cancel it at no cost, since it was within 24 hours of booking). I flew Aeromexico’s Boeing 737 MAX business class from Mexico City to Miami, I regrouped, and I started all over.
The second portion of my Latin America review trip
So, what experience did I decide on instead? I’ll be flying three products that are very much from Latin America, which I think OMAAT readers will enjoy. Here we go, in chronological order!
Boliviana de Aviacion A330 business class(!!!!)
The wait is over, and at long last, I’ll be flying Boliviana de Aviacion from Miami to Santa Cruz de la Sierra on the Airbus A330. As longtime OMAAT readers know, I’ve been wanting to fly Boliviana de Aviacion for years, and the carrier recently acquired a pair of former Virgin Australia Airbus A330s.
So I’m excited to experience the carrier’s “flagship” product. Pricing on this route is incredibly reasonable — a paid business class ticket for the flight was just under $700, which isn’t bad for a seven hour flight in a reverse herringbone seat.
I can’t even say how excited I am about this flight, as I truly have no clue what to expect. The only recent thing out there on Boliviana de Aviacion’s A330s is how the Miami flight got canceled a bit over a week ago, after 13 kilograms of cocaine were found on the plane, leading to the arrest of 26 airline crew members, and 11 aircraft cleaners. Nice! Hopefully I don’t have to do any live reporting of such an incident.
GOL 737 MAX premium economy
From Santa Cruz de la Sierra, I’ll be continuing to Sao Paulo, flying GOL’s Boeing 737 MAX premium economy. This is the premium product of this major Brazilian carrier, and best I can tell, it’s most comparable to intra-Europe business class.
I’m not necessarily expecting all that much from this flight, though I still think it’ll make for an interesting review. By the way, speaking of the pre-flight experience, just how bad is Viru Viru International Airport? I’ll have quite a bit of time in the airport, and it looks like lounge options are fairly grim, eh?
Copa 737 MAX business class
Copa Airlines is a fascinating airline, as it’s kind of the Icelandair of the Americas, in terms of its route network. A couple of years ago, I reviewed the carrier’s Boeing 737-800 business class. I had intended to fly the Copa’s Boeing 737 MAX 9 business class, but there was a plane swap at the last minute, so it didn’t work out.
As a result, I figure it’s time to give it another try. Copa’s 737 MAX 9s have fully flat beds in business class, and are used for the carrier’s longer, premium routes. So I’ll be flying Copa on the 737 MAX 9 from Sao Paulo to Panama City, and then I’ll connect to Miami.
I do have a couple of questions, for those familiar with Sao Paulo Airport and Copa’s longer flights:
- Does anyone know what exactly Copa’s 737 MAX business class service is like on the 1-4AM departures from Sao Paulo to Panama City? Is it just a one meal flight, or do they do a meal and a snack, and when are they usually served?
- When it comes to lounges in Sao Paulo, I’ll try to review the Amex Centurion Lounge and Star Alliance Lounge, but are there any other lounges I’d have access to that are worth checking out, like some Priority Pass lounges?
Bottom line
Well, I ultimately decided to keep my open-ended Latin America review trip very Latin America centric, as I’ll be flying Boliviana de Aviacion’s A330 business class, GOL’s 737 MAX premium economy, and Copa’s 737 MAX business class.
While this might be a bit less luxurious than an Emirates first class trip, I’ve gotta say, I couldn’t be more excited. These are all products I’m curious about, and I look forward to experiencing them.
Any predictions, thoughts, or tips, on how this is going to go?
Time to work in some of the 5th freedom flights between any of GRU/EZE/SCL
Ben, Terminals 2 and 3 are connected by an airside corridor, roughly a 20min walk each way.
GOL is based on T2. There's also a Plaza Premium landside lounge at T2.
As for T3, Latam and SafraBank Lounge (former Star Alliance) offer the best facilities and food options, followed by Amex (the menu is superb if you have a Centurion card).
Also, there are Visa and Mastercard (two Black lounges and one...
Ben, Terminals 2 and 3 are connected by an airside corridor, roughly a 20min walk each way.
GOL is based on T2. There's also a Plaza Premium landside lounge at T2.
As for T3, Latam and SafraBank Lounge (former Star Alliance) offer the best facilities and food options, followed by Amex (the menu is superb if you have a Centurion card).
Also, there are Visa and Mastercard (two Black lounges and one The Club, only for cards issued by two local banks).
Never been to the Plaza Premium but I've good feedback from friends.
Having flown on 3 different Boliviana business class seat configurations, I can say the older one with the center throne seats would have made for a better review. Hopefully by now they have the new planes figured out. The IFE screens were useless when I last flew MIA-VVI this time last year. They just showed an image of our estimated arrival time.,. in Cyprus. Apparently that was the last destination that had been successfully entered into the system.
That’s exciting. I think Boliviana won’t be a good cutting edge product but exciting experience. My prediction is lots of turbulence.
oh, you missed my ex-hometown Monterrey! but to be honest, ANY destination is more exciting than that hot, ugly and charmless city in the north of Mexico.
Glad I left it more than 30 years ago!
@Lucky please manage your expectations re Gol Premium Y. I've flown it a couple of times between GRU and PUJ. Very underwhealming seat and food. At least the wi-fi works.
As a few others have noted, we definitely need Aerolineas Argentinas. That would be much more interesting than Copa.
And then Caribbean Airways and Cayman Airways.
Living in Mexico as an permanent immigrado, wish I was tagging along on with you on this one. HAVE FUN!
WOOOHOOOOO LETS GO BOLIVIANA DE AVIACION
(this is something i’ve been waiting for)
Bo ! Li ! Li ! Li ! Via !
Regarding São Paulo lounges: This airport seems to have several non-traditional lounges affiliated with resorts and others relationships I might not understand (perhaps local banks?). It would be cool to learn about these. Some have a nightclub-like vibe.
And I recently flew GOL PE (GRU-ASU) and there was an interesting confrontation between a self-upgrading passenger and crew. The crew was very firm and super professional, but couldn't budge the passenger. I don't know if there...
Regarding São Paulo lounges: This airport seems to have several non-traditional lounges affiliated with resorts and others relationships I might not understand (perhaps local banks?). It would be cool to learn about these. Some have a nightclub-like vibe.
And I recently flew GOL PE (GRU-ASU) and there was an interesting confrontation between a self-upgrading passenger and crew. The crew was very firm and super professional, but couldn't budge the passenger. I don't know if there were post-arrival consequences.
I just flew biz class from Asunción, Paraguay to Panama (then connected to JFK. The flight was very early morning. A meal was served (breakfast) about an hour after takeoff (roughly 7 hour flight). It was a choice of banana pancakes or tortilla española. A snack was served about 1.5 before landing.
Regarding the lounges at GRU (there are many), the Centurion Lounge is for me the best among the lounges but even better...
I just flew biz class from Asunción, Paraguay to Panama (then connected to JFK. The flight was very early morning. A meal was served (breakfast) about an hour after takeoff (roughly 7 hour flight). It was a choice of banana pancakes or tortilla española. A snack was served about 1.5 before landing.
Regarding the lounges at GRU (there are many), the Centurion Lounge is for me the best among the lounges but even better (food wise) is the Bleriot cafe. The $28 goes a reallly long way in Brazilian reais. I had delicious short ribs, another time a delicious steak sandwich and a third time a great cheesburger. All with fries, a soft drink, a freshly squeezed OJ , a delicious cappuccino (served in a glass) and dessert.
I flew Copa business once, and what a waste of United miles that was ! I sat in a bare bone worn down leather seat, the interior of the cabin was the most unattractive since I stopped over in a rest stop in East Germany 50 years ago, when I asked for a gin tonic I got a blank stare, and the food was the most unappetizing thing I have ever seen presented on a plate.
I few a fifth freedom flight from Buenos Aires to Santiago via KLM few years ago. I thought that was interesting. Unfortunately not too many commercial luxury planes flying around South America. Often times premium economy is all there is. Be very careful when you arrive in Bolivia. The elevation is over 13,000 ft. You will def feel it and make sure you take it easy and walk slowly. Headache is most likely coming your...
I few a fifth freedom flight from Buenos Aires to Santiago via KLM few years ago. I thought that was interesting. Unfortunately not too many commercial luxury planes flying around South America. Often times premium economy is all there is. Be very careful when you arrive in Bolivia. The elevation is over 13,000 ft. You will def feel it and make sure you take it easy and walk slowly. Headache is most likely coming your way due to elevation. LATAM lounge in Santiago is probably the nicest looking airport lounge in South America.
@Jetsetfly - your altitude comment is incorrect. La Paz is at 13000', yes, but Lucky isn't flying there - he's going to Santa Cruz which is barely above sea level.
Yeah a cup of cocaine leaf tea will cure the altitude sickness.
Perhaps I'll see you, as I am also flying the VVI-GRU in GOL premium economy in the upcoming week. Cool routing, now after the COPA Airlines flight, then head on AM over to Narita and do it all!
I recommend entering Bolivia, even if a visa is 160$ (payable only by CC now). Seeing as you'll be at the front, hustle to immigration and it'll take 5-10 minutes max. Bolivia is my third favorite...
Perhaps I'll see you, as I am also flying the VVI-GRU in GOL premium economy in the upcoming week. Cool routing, now after the COPA Airlines flight, then head on AM over to Narita and do it all!
I recommend entering Bolivia, even if a visa is 160$ (payable only by CC now). Seeing as you'll be at the front, hustle to immigration and it'll take 5-10 minutes max. Bolivia is my third favorite country in the world, and worth going in for a little bit to have breakfast even. There is a very special energy to the country.
I would even say, stay a couple of days and take BoA to see the salt flats. Compare and contrast their long-haul vs shorthaul and see one of the most beautiful places in the world.
It's like the good old days again, brilliant.
Banco Safra and LATAM lounges are usually considered the best in T3 in GRU. I don't think LATAM lounge accepts priority pass though. On Copa economy class, only one meal is usually served out of GRU. I can't say for business, since I don't fly business class
The LATAM lounge accepts Dragonpass, but only at off-peak times.
LATAM is quite good, but does not accept Priority Pass. I find AmEx Centurion in GRU much better than the Safra lounge, which only allows Priority Pass at certain times (I think as of 11 p.m.) and they apply this strictly.
Hey Ben
The W Premium Lounge - The Pier, near gate 328 at Terminal 3 is quite nice and has great runway/tarmac views. Enjoy GRU!
I took GRU to PTY. It served an optional quick late night snack followed by a breakfast 60 to 90 mins before landing.
BOLIVIA! FINALLY!!!! Which hotel will you be reviewing when in Santa Cruz? Do the Marriott , please!
Well played Ben, well played.
But in all seriousness, I am appreciative of the changes to your itinerary. It will be nice to see more reporting from down south.
I'm not sure about PP lounges in GRU, but there are a lot of lounges that can be visited with LoungeKey or DragonPass. Talking about it, these are two lounge subscriptions that are much more common in Brazil, as very few credit cards actually offer PP, and many more credit cards offer one of those other subscriptions. Could be a good idea to start including information about other lounge subscriptions that you could access certain...
I'm not sure about PP lounges in GRU, but there are a lot of lounges that can be visited with LoungeKey or DragonPass. Talking about it, these are two lounge subscriptions that are much more common in Brazil, as very few credit cards actually offer PP, and many more credit cards offer one of those other subscriptions. Could be a good idea to start including information about other lounge subscriptions that you could access certain lounges with in your lounge reviews, at least for me this would be extremely helpful and likely for many other Brazilians as well.
I second JC's idea of more info on lounge subscriptions. As a novice it's nice to pick up "pro tips" from Lucky and his readers, especially on subjects that aren't broadly discussed.
I'm a bit disappointed. Korean Air's new 787-10 was a review I was looking forward to, especially since I plan to be on this in the near future.
This seems to defeat the purpose of the feedback since their thoughts were you could leverage MEX to pivot more into South/Central America, but you returned to MIA anyways though.
Agreed, Ben should also review KAL B78X (maybe A21N too?) C soon - while this is pretty personal, South American carriers don't really interest me, even if some of them could be said unique.
I flew business from Lima, PE to Panama City on Copa over night similar to the flight you are taking. They served one meal as soon as we hit cruising altitude and they did it very quickly. No other service was provided. I believe they were trying to maximize the amount of time you had to sleep.
Plaza Premium lounge in GRU terminal 2 is a solid but not spectacular lounge. Comfortable way to spend a long layover in Brazil. Would say it’s worth a review.
If departing from Terminal 3, there are 3 PP lounges. There are 2 W Premium Lounges (5th Avenue and The Pier) and Espaco Banco Safra. I've been to the 2 W Premium Lounges are they are adequate (e.g. feel small and cramped). Access to these lounges is limited to 3 hours. The Espaco Banco Safra has more space and simply feels more open and airy. Do note, however, access to this lounge is permitted 2...
If departing from Terminal 3, there are 3 PP lounges. There are 2 W Premium Lounges (5th Avenue and The Pier) and Espaco Banco Safra. I've been to the 2 W Premium Lounges are they are adequate (e.g. feel small and cramped). Access to these lounges is limited to 3 hours. The Espaco Banco Safra has more space and simply feels more open and airy. Do note, however, access to this lounge is permitted 2 hours prior to departure and entrance as a PP member is restricted to 23:00-14:00 daily.
Exciting!
Are you planning on eventually trying Clase Premier on the 787-9? Maybe a MIA-EZE with Aerolineas Argentina followed by EZE-MEX with Aeromexico?
VVI lounges are average/standard, good place to spend a couple of hours. They only take "Visa priority pass". Also if you plan to exit the terminal they have a ~$160 VISA on arrival fee, VISA is good for 10 years. Most people are nice/friendly, but you might encounter the random sketchy security agent that wants to take advantage of you by trying to tax your electronics or convert your dollars to the local currency lol
Probably free visa (or no visa required to be precise) for Ben on his German passport though.
Take it easy in Bolivia, make sure you don’t succumb to altitude sickness!
He should be ok at VVI. Just 1,200 ft above sea level.
Ah, so Lucky doesn’t always take the best miles-and-points/award-availability product into consideration. He listens to his readers and takes fun products! :) Now if only you’d take Azul instead… but Gol in itself is a big win for me, given that there are negligible non-Portuguese reviews of the airline on the 737 MAX. Anoher shot at Copa’s 737 MAX 9 ‘Dreams’ business class is only the icing on the cake.
We love you, Lucky!
yeah... Azul VCP-FLL would've been great but I don't blame Ben for not wanting to figure out GRU-VCP travel. I assume that would have to be a bus?
Flying MIA-VVI tonight?
I will be in that on tonight.
Nice! This is why this is the best travel blog! The enthusiasm is contagious! ( And of course we hope for some harmless amusement on Boliviana!)
When I flew Copa business class from EZE to PTY, departing at 12:30am, there was 1 meal service which was breakfast about 90 minutes before landing. They may have offered drinks shortly after take-off but it seemed like everyone wanted to get right to sleep. I certainly did.
On a 2am flight from MVD to PTY with Copa in Business class they served only a hot breakfast in the end of the flight, panncakes or omelett.
In GRU, I usually just enjoy using the PP credit you get at Bleriot. I get that it'll only be useful to people who have PP thorough Citi, but it's fun to sit at an actual Brazilian style bar and order food/drinks. They automatically add gratuity (but it comes out of your credit, you don't pay it), so if you leave without spending all your credit, the bartender will force you to take chewing gum and kit kats with you.
Not only Citi. I have it on other banks
Laugh all you want, but it's tough to beat the GRU Olive Garden for pure entertainment value (and some amazing breadsticks)
Very soon, the only airline review missing here will be Aerolineas Argentinas...
Aerolineas unión is in a suicide fight with Milei right now so the review may be worthless, as my AR AEP-FTE-AEP tickets for this Southern summer
At GRU I have done all Lounges and for me no one beats the Star Alliance Lounge.
it is nice, I agree.
Not exactly GRU-PTY, but my mom flew YYZ-PTY. She only got a PDB and nuts, followed by no food whatsoever until right before landing. Disappointing for sure.