The last night in Santiago was pretty short, as we had a very early flight to Lima, and then Cuzco in the early hours of the monday morning.
The good thing is that there is no traffic at 3 am in Santiago and Uber brought us to SCL international airport in no time from our hotel in Vitacura.
Back then, LATAM was a full member of the OneWorld alliance, so we headed straight upstairs to check our bags in for Cuzco. The premium check-in area had zero waiting time with a couple counters staffed, and the check-in process took no more than a minute.


We arrived shortly before 4 am


LATAM Premium check-in upstairs

The priority security and emigration counters located next to this preferential check-in area were unfortunately closed at those hours of the day so we headed back downstairs to clear security and emigration. The wait was not too bad as far as I remember, and then proceeded to the LATAM business lounge, open 24/7 but with limited service during night hours (the first floor was for instance closed and the F&B options limited).


SCL terminal




LATAM lounge

It was my second time in this lounge and I had very good memories of it. To my recollection this was the only lounge I visited where you could get a full Salvatore Ferragamo amenity kit when using one of the shower suites ! But at 4 am, the services were limited, and the place was more like a nap corner than a proper business lounge. Limited food and beverage was available, but again, it had the benefit to being open at 4 am !


Morning departures


TV corner


Lounge entrance










First floor closed during the night

We left the lounge around 4:50 to walk to the gate where the flight to Lima was already boarding.




LATAM Peru (LAN Livery) A320 CC-BAF



LATAM LA2370 – March 11th 2019
SCL Santiago de Chile Padahuel Intl – 05:25
LIM Lima Jorge Chavez Intl – 07:13
Airbus A320 – CC-BAF – Premium Economy, Seat 2A, Window (Central seat 2B blocked)

LATAM does not operate Business class per se within Latin America when using narrow body aircrafts. However, the soft and hard product is very similar to European Business class, the seat is the same as in economy, but the center seat is blocked. You also get a proper meal and a better service than in coach. Cherry on the cake, a pillow/blanket and small amenity kit was provided for this short 3 hour flight ! Since we booked using Avios, the premium economy rates were charged, so I could say that we got a better "bang for our buck" than when booking Business class in Europe !
The seat block was equipped with a power plug and the cabin had dedicated, although quite full, overhead bins.


Euro-style business class, but at Premium Economy award prices (Revenue bookings can be pricey in this part of the world)


Amenity kit and pillow


Leg room was decent


LATAM A321 and also the wet-lease 777 which operates sometimes the IPC route for LATAM

We pushed back right on time at 5:25 and I slept for most of the first hour until breakfast was served. There was a choice of Omelette or cold cuts. I opted for the former and my now better half opted for the latter. Service was attentive and the food alright as I recall.


Breakfast omelette


Breakfast cold cuts (other option)

We entered Peruvian airspace as the sun was raising...

Sunrise on (or behind) Peruvian coast

Approaching LIM

You can see a pollution smog on top of the city...

We landed a bit ahead of schedule and disembarked by bus after a short taxi time to the apron position. Another good opportunity to do some plane spotting...


LIM plane spotting







First time in Peru !


Disembarking by bus. They unfortunately do that here too...



As we booked both LATAM segments separately, and as Lima was our first point of entry, we had to clear customs and immigration there. We entered the terminal around 7:05. The immigration line was pretty short and went quickly with one new neat stamp on the passport! The luggage was already on the belt when we reached the luggage claim area and by 7:25 we were inside the check-in line for our domestic flight. Good job on the timing LATAM !


Domestic check-in LIM

Lima airport consists in a single main terminal, where the left part is for domestic flights and the right section for International departures.
We used the LATAM fast track for our next segment to Cuzco and headed straight afterwards to security.

The domestic part of the terminal has only one lounge, called "El Salon" which pretty small and accessible with Priority Pass (I don't think OneWorld status would have granted entry there).
There is not much offering there besides a bar and a small buffet, proper restrooms, seating and free wifi. But as usual, it was more comfortable waiting for the next flight there than inside the public area of the terminal... Too bad this was. a blind lounge with no windows though.


El Salon entrance


Inside the lounge, no windows, some seating and buffet


Buffet is a bit minimalistic but had also a bar.

We stayed about an hour and half in there catching up on emails etc...


Boarding for CUZ


LATAM A320 domestic CC-BFG



LATAM LA2049 – March 11th 2019
LIM Lima Jorge Chavez Intl – 10:17
CUZ Cuzco Intl – 11:44
Airbus A320 – CC-BFG – Economy, Seat 2B, Middle seat

There is only Economy class on LATAM domestic flights, but there was still a priority boarding announcement for this completely full flight. The legroom was certainly very tight for my standards and I knew when seating there that it won't be the best flight of my life.


Very tight legroom on row 2

The flight was packed, and the overhead bins pretty small and already full of the crew belongings. We were delayed at departure for some reason I did not completely capture. All announcements were exclusively made in Spanish with the PA set to maximum volume. We eventually departed the gate around 10:55. All food and beverages on board LATAM domestic flights are now on purchase, and the options offered were quite standard.
For some reason, which I guess was related to traffic congestion in Cuzco, we had to circle for quite some time. It gave me an opportunity to capture various window scenes at least !







We eventually landed shortly before 12:30 and walked on the tarmac to reach the terminal. I was happy this flight was over as the seating was pretty uncomfortable.




CC-BFG in CUZ

Luggage got on the belt 20 minutes after landing and you could already feel the altitude on your breathing (Cuzco is located at 3300 meters altitude). To counteract altitude sickness, the airport keeps available a local medicine available to the public : Coca leaves that you can chew to alter the effects of the high altitude !


Local medicine to counteract altitude sickness

CUZ airport

Although a bit tired, we were happy to arrive at Cuzco, our gateway to Macchu Picchu, and took a taxi to reach the very comfortable Hilton Garden Inn. We spent the afternoon walking in the city, but as some may have experienced there, we really felt the altitude on our breath and energy levels. But that's for the next episode...
Flights wise, I was satisfied with the first segment to Peru, but clearly those densified cabins on domestic LATAM flights are not for me. Both were paid with Avios for an unbeatable rate, so that compensate... Too bad LATAM is not anymore part of OneWorld...

Next: Visiting Cuzco and Macchu Picchu