#75 out of 94 Airlines A minimum of 10 flight-reports within the past two years is required to appear in the rankings.
58 reviews
It's been a wonderful week vacationing looking after auntie Cecilia's cat in Santiago.
Now, following the fine example set by some of you I'll take the long way back home.
Besides, this will allow me to experience a route recently opened by Sky Airline: Santiago, Chile, to Bariloche, Argentina.
From Bariloche I'll take a bus home, since my hometown is just across the border.
My original idea was to start my holidays in Bariloche, and fly to Santiago from there.
However, see what happens:
The ticket from Santiago to Bariloche…
…is 67,480 CLP (85 USD) with taxes.
Be careful!! Sky Airline will try to trick you into going for the most expensive fare. See the message in the green box down there. "WE have selected this fare for you because WE think that is it's the most convenient for you."
Who do they think they are?? Huh??
These are the measurements and prices for the different kinds of baggage. 21,600 CLP = 27 USD; 28,800 CLP = 36 USD.
No need to pay for my baggage. I am getting used to traveling with only a small backpack. Watching Marie Kondo's show "sparks joy!"
I pick a standard seat. The only reason I - a notoriously tightfisted traveler - ever spend some extra money on a seat is that I want a window seat.
It would be 74,870 CLP (95 USD) altogether.
Now, what would it be like if I had chosen to go the other way round and start my holidays in Bariloche, and fly to Santiago from there?
Behold!
Even before picking a seat, the various tasas (taxes) applied to flights leaving Argentina make the ticket almost twice as expensive!
Airlines complained last year when a new "security tax" was announced, when as much as 54% of the price of a plane ticket in Argentina is taxes!
So, gracias, pero no, gracias.
HOWEVERRRR…
…after my previous, cramped flight, I decided that the time has come to travel a little more comfortably. It won't be F. It won't be J. It won't even be W!! But for the first time ever, I squeeze five extra bucks from my credit card, and pay for a seat with extra legroom!
I was eagerly expecting this chance to review SCL's new international terminal.
I get there by bus, as usual. It's TurBus this time. They have their own bus station outside Universidad de Santiago metro station. You walk straight from the metro station all the way to the bus platforms, where you'll see a separate section for the airport buses, with their dedicated ticket booths.
The ride to the airport is about 35 minutes. The first stop at the airport is the domestic terminal (T1)
Then we go for a tour of the premises on our way to the international terminal (T2), like this:
The bus will drop you…
…on the second level…
…where the whole process - from check-in to passport control to boarding - takes place. No stairs!
The check-in counters area looks busy today. Remember that January and February are the peak of the summer holidays down here.
I think the size of the hall is OK…
…but the restaurant located in the middle section - facing the FIDS - creates a bottle neck…
…that makes it difficult not to bump into someone if you are in a hurry.
By the way, you can order and pay and then pick your order. Ha. I had not seen this at SCL before.
On the other hand, the queuing areas for the different flights are clearly defined…
…and look away from each other…
…so the line for your flight is easier to find.
The middle section of the room is dominated by the imposing FIDS, where the information is displayed in Spanish…
…and English.
Kudos to the architects for those huge skylights.
I have flown more that 100 times, but I have never used a self check-in kiosk! No need to do it now…
…but I'll do it in the name of science. Reporting science, that is.
I'm so glad to see small Sky rubbing shoulders with all those big ones over there. I choose the airline and Documento de identidad in this case. No passport needed when you travel between most South American countries.
Then you pick the passenger. Tip: if it's purple, it's already selected. I touched the button and actually de-selected it and had to repeat the process. Duh!
You agree to the usual terms and conditions, and…
…the magic happens!
I have printed my own BP for the first time! Mom will be proud.
"You're ready. Have a nice trip!" The whole process took just about a minute!
So, where to, now??
This floor plan of T2 is very detailed, but I still have some difficulty understanding it. I'm standing in the middle of the check-in area, between counters D and E. "Up" in a plan means "ahead" to me. According to this plan, I should see the restaurant in front of me…
…but what I see is the access to security check. Hmm…
Oh, I see! The plan is upside down!
This is much better. At least for me!
Am I the only one who sees the shape of a womb in that floor plan?? Well, you can say that flights are "born" here. lol
Whatever. Now that safety control is ahead of me in real life and in the plan, I can describe the route you take to get all the way to your gate.
As you see, all you have to do is shake your little tail and move up the middle section of the building from the check-in area (2)…
…to passport control (3) - aka PDI (Policía de Investigaciones) - which is crowded today!
Nevertheless, 30 of the 34 booths are open, so we move quite fast. I join the queue at 12:23 and exit passport control at 12:40. Seventeen minutes. Not bad at all considering that the line was kilometric! There are separate booths for the elderly and people with special needs.
Immediately after passport control you come to security check (4)
You stand in the line with a view on this (replica of the?) plane that was used to cross the Andes between Santiago and Mendoza for the first time in 1918.
I entered security check at 12:40, and was through at 12:51.
After the scanners, you emerge directly at the entrance of the duty free (5)
…and as you exit the duty free…
…you find this impossible-to-miss FIDS (6)…
…which - apart from displaying the usual information about flights and gates - show you the way - left or right - to your gate by means of those arrows on the right.
This is possible because - from this point on - you can only go left or right along what would be the "Fallopian tubes" in our womb-looking floor plan.
As shown here, the left Fallopian tube leads to the access to piers D and F, and the right one leads to the access to piers C and E.
If your gate has not been announced yet, you can wait around here, in the middle section.
This area has some Chile-themed decoration…
…with a large sign for selfies with the word Chile displaying a different kind of Chilean landscape on each letter (C: Atacama desert; H: vineyards in central Chile; I: Easter Island's Moai stone heads; L: somewhere on the coast; E: glaciers in the south of the country)
You might prefer "ELIHC"
There are some seats in the colors of the Chilean flag, and plenty of…
…cafeterias.
My gate is announced: E4. I start walking along the right Fallopian tube.
Just out of curiosity I take a peek of the walkway downstairs, where some arriving passengers are heading for baggage claim.
In each Fallopian tube there are toilets.
A visit to them is imperative for me.
And here we have come to the end of the right Fallopian tube (7). Those doors over there lead to the walkway to pier E. Again, FIDS at this point show you if you must go left or right to the correct pier.
We have left the "womb" now, and are walking down a long - freaking long - corridor that happens to be very spotter friendly!
Some of the tails you can see around here:
Air France, Aerolíneas Argentinas, and Latam.
Iberia, Sky…
United, and Delta.
The daily Qantas flight to Australia.
The other side of the walkway is not as interesting.
By now, my left heel is killing me after I got fascitis from walking a lot around Coyhaique in the wrong shoes. May God have the inventor of people movers in the blessing of his everlasting glory per secula seculorum. Amen.
At the end of the walkway…
…I'm surprised to see that - far from being just a series of gates - the pier is full of life, with lots of shops…
…and services. Good thing, too, because I'm not walking ten minutes back to the "womb" building for a bottle of water.
My gate is being used by an Aerolíneas Argentinas flight to Buenos Aires at the moment.
I'd love to explore a bit more of the pier, but my left heel says no.
Still more than two hours for departure.
The view on the apron from the pier is not very friendly, so I just slump my plump self onto a seat and take out my cellphone. My fellow passengers don't look particularly thrilled as I sing Happy Birthday to a teeny weeny acquaintance on the phone.
As we are waiting to board, an Argentinian man carrying two wheeled bags, several jackets, and an Italian imitation painting in his hands tells me about his former wife who's living on the Canary islands with their two kids. He says that flying back to Bariloche from Spain is much cheaper via Santiago than Buenos Aires, which must be true, considering the taxes I mentioned at the beginning. He also tells me that he paid for one bag only, and asks if I could carry some of his belongings to avoid being charged for additional baggage. I politely decline saying that it's my personal policy to never be in charge of someone else's baggage when I travel. He asks a fellow Argentine, but he declines, too. Poor thing, he gets caught at the gate and has to pay for his second bag.
And yes! Plenty of room!
It's wonderful that I can stretch myself at ease. Too bad the seats are the same old creaky type I found on my flight to Calama. And they don't recline.
Safety instructions on the seatback.
The (filthy!) USB port is down there. I hope these cabins will be retrofitted with the newer seats you can see in my previous reports of this series.
Say good bye to CC-BAF. It's time to leave for Bariloche!!
I'm in for a surprise! I should have checked this route on flightradar24.com first!
Pushback.
As we taxi to the runway, I can tell you that I selected seat 2F in the hope of having a view on the Argentinian side of the Andes
I suppose we'll cross the Andes some kilometers south of Santiago - as it has always happened on flights to Argentina - and I'll be treated to a view of the mountains.
I was expecting to see the east side of the mountains during my flight from Bariloche to Mendoza some years ago, but the Flybondi flight was so delayed that it got dark and I couldn't see a thing.
So this is the opportunity I was waiting for!
Up we go towards the south…
..above some towns south of Santiago, like Peñaflor.
However, we keep flying south along central Chile just like on my usual domestic flights. I start fearing I boarded the wrong flight!
Instead of mountains, I see the first wildfires of the season south of Talca. I wouldn't like to be under that cloud!
In the cabin, the BOB service is about to begin. The BOB experience was terrible on my previous flight. I have no intention to go broke for a sandwich the size of a postal stamp…
…so this time I came prepared. From a Taiwaneese foods shop in Santiago, truffle and black pepper flavored potato chips, blueberry mochi, and mango aloe drink. Now we're talking!
The sight of Temuco - 600km south of Santiago - makes me wonder how far south we will go before crossing into Argentina.
Buses always stop in Loncoche when I travel between Temuco and my hometown, Valdivia. It's a 2-and-a-half-hour ride.
Valdivia is 17km from the coast, surrounded by rivers.
No wonder this region is called Los Ríos (The Rivers)
We keep flying south. I can see Río Bueno…
…and then Purranque, 965km south of Santiago. The captain fell asleep at the wheel!!
Suddenly, we bank left. Is that…
…Chiloé island?
It is! It's Chiloé and the Chacao canal, which separates it from the continent. Wow! I wasn't expecting to see all this today! I started my summer holidays (and this series) in Puerto Montt…
…and now I'm back here! At this very moment, the captain informs that we are descending into Bariloche. I'm surprised. Are Puerto Montt and Bariloche really this close?
Actually, they are! That can be seen on flightradar24.com's register of this flight.
If I was lamenting that I didn't see the Argentinian side of the Andes, now I'm ecstatic for all the hidden corners I see down there. We keep descending eastwards above the mouth of Reloncaví fjord…
…lake Chapo…
…and river Petrohué pouring into the head of Reloncaví fjord.
Lush valleys covered in native forest…
…and lake Cormaz Vidal (never heard of it before now) are the last views before…
…we enter Argentinian territory.
Lake Fonck is down there…
…and lake Mascardi…
I fly right above the heads of my Airbnb hosts as we pass lake Gutiérrez down there.
Bariloche is very particular in the sense that it lies right on the line where Andean forests end…
…and the cold, arid desert of Patagonian steppes begin. The change in the landscape is sudden and impressive.
Not everyone looks excited to have made it to Bariloche!
We land at BRC at 5:54 p.m. That is 11 minutes ahead of schedule.
I have to mention that Sky was recognized as the most punctual airline in "Latin America" in 2022.
As for BRC…
…you'll find plenty of information and photos of its facilities…
…in some of my previous reports, like this one, and this one.
Hello there! Oh! Leaving so soon?
After the jetbridge…
…we have to go downstairs to "arribos." haha. It's funny how we speak the same language but use so many different words. Arrivals is "llegadas" in Chile.
From "arribos"…
…you get to baggage claim. Since I have no baggage to claim, I go straight to the far end of the room (right) where my bag is scanned in case I'm carrying some animal or plant product. Everyone is very kind. At passport control I'm asked if I'm leaving the country through the same airport, and they get my mugshot.
I emerge at the first (ground) floor. I'm free to roam around Argentina now!!
Auto Jet, on the right, is the company in charge of the transport. You can take a car, but a "combi" (transfer van) will be OK. It's just 1000 ARS (5 USD)
Since I was the first to go through passport and sanitary control…
I'll have to wait a bit until they get all the passengers for the "combi."
But I'm not in a hurry.
I'll stay just two days in Bariloche, and I intend to relax.
Ooooooh, yes… Peace and quiet. Lake Gutiérrez is a less visited corner of Bariloche.
Barely 10km west of the city…
…families and elderly couples come to enjoy its calm waters.
There's also a larger, stony beach for those who just want to lie in the sun or go kayaking.
Ahhh… This is the life.
Bariloche and Valdivia are connected by a daily bus service, too. The distance is not long, but the paperwork at both Argentinian and Chilean customs can be a bit cumbersome.
The only bus company running to Valdivia from Bariloche is Andesmar. The ticket was 30 USD the last time I traveled with them just before the pandemic. Suddenly it's 50 USD now!! Talk about monopolies.
The Andes are low and green down here…
…offering wonderful sights along the road.
Plenty of tourists waiting to cross the border today!
Bienvenido a Chile means…
…that my summer holidays - and this series of reports - have come to an end!
Thanks for reading! ?
Sky has become my airline of choice for domestic flights within Chile. It's halfway between the punctuality, modern cabins and services of Latam, and the ULCC model of JetSmart, which are the other two large airlines operating in Chile.
Too bad that they had to simplify their buy-on-board service, which makes them a bit less appealing to someone like me, who likes a nice warm beef sandwich onboard.
However, the possibility of having a seat with extra-legroom for a very convenient price is something I appreciate.
3 Comments
Wow, I can't believe you've never used a Kiosk, especially since LATAM basically force you to use them. I guess you don't have to if you have a Mobile Boarding Pass and no bags to check. And only a minute to check in...WAAAAAAAAY better than LATAM's sloooooooooooooow kiosks!
Aside from the very long walks, the departure experience is quite nice at the new T2. And you had to walk further than me going to E concourse.
Legroom looks really good in the Extra space section--looks like that extra $5 was worth it. Here in the US, extra legroom seats are at least $20 on a 2h flight like this, depending on the airline.
It's impressive how the forests end right before Bariloche and then it's so dry! It's very similar here in California with desert behind the mountains, but it's always impressive to see from the air. Was the water warm? I imagine it gets warmer than the lakes on the Chilean side in the summer?
Thanks for sharing!
Eggzactly, said the chicken. Besides, when I do have some baggage to check, the staff print the BP!
I agree. I loved departing from SCL. It was quite straightforward, simple, fluid, and fool proof.
Well, I was exaggerating a little. I think it was $6
Right. What amazes me is that this barrier blocking the rain and moist air from the west, causing this sudden change in the landscape, is invisible. And it's even more impressive in the southern tip of the continent because it's completely flat there! It must be a front of high pressure from the Atlantic, I suppose?
Not warm, but definitely not as cold as in Chile. In fact, I was able to get into the water without gasping or shivering! :D
Thanks for commenting, Kevin!
Saludos!
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