Interlining in Brazil
Aug 20, 2008 | 6:30 am
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Dec 2005
Posts: 278
Interlining in Brazil
I need your advice please: I am traveling tonight to Sao Paulo and will connect on either GOL or TAM to another Brazilian destination. Which airline can I use to interline on and that way check my bags all the way through from EWR? (I am trying to avoid the hassle of a new check-in in Sao Paulo and also the Brazilian airline's stingy baggage allowance).
Thanks
Thanks
Aug 20, 2008 | 7:17 am
#2
Join Date: Feb 2005
Location: OH
Programs: CO OP PLAT, PC Plat, HH DIA
Posts: 22
I can give you some recent experience which may partially help. A few weeks ago, I did not interline outbound from EWR, but things worked out fine on the return from VIX (Vitoria) on TAM having my bag interlined back to EWR. CO pulled the bag in GRU to replace the TAM tag with a CO generated tag.
Aug 20, 2008 | 8:02 am
#3
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Aug 2005
Location: DCA
Programs: Kommissar Giga-Posting Direktor, PWP; Fasano Nouveau Aristocrat; CO Platinum; BD Gold; MR Gold
Posts: 18,733
I would recommend not interlining on the way into GRU, as I would not trust TAM or GOL to properly interline the bags. You will have to stand in line at the ticket counters to get a boarding pass anyway, so it would be better just to recheck it at the TAM or GOL ticket counter. In my experience, TAM is a bit more generous with baggage limits than GOL. I successfully talked TAM agents into allowing my rollaboard as a carryon on a few occassions, whereas GOL is a bit more strict. You also might consider having your bag wrapped in plastic at the wrapping kiosks set up near the ticket counters, but I never did this and never had any problems with checked baggage loss or pilfering. YMMV.
Aug 20, 2008 | 2:26 pm
#4
Join Date: Jan 2005
Posts: 253
While I'm not an expert on inter-lining bags, I do recommend that you be sure that you're on-top-of-your-game once you're in Brazil. It was a very confusing travel experience, unlike anywhere else we've experienced in the world. No one seemed to have clear answers about the bag pick-up/re-check process (or even connecting flight status, for that matter), every airport representative had a different response and we finally, somehow, just figured everything out. That said, have a great trip!
Dec 16, 2008 | 7:28 am
#5
Join Date: Oct 2003
Location: A Capital City on The East Coast
Programs: CO-Dirt,SPG-Nothing,Marriott-Gold, Hilton-Blue, Hyatt-Plat, HI-Plat
Posts: 6,872
Not sure if this news will help with interlining-seems it would\should though
"Brazil's low-cost, low-fare airline, announces an agreement with Continental Airlines whereby passengers flying with Continental will be able to purchase tickets on all routes served by GOL for connections in Brazil and South America."
more
"Brazil's low-cost, low-fare airline, announces an agreement with Continental Airlines whereby passengers flying with Continental will be able to purchase tickets on all routes served by GOL for connections in Brazil and South America."
more