Planning a trip to Latin America? Whether you’re heading to Ecuador, Peru, Colombia, or beyond, getting there safely and smoothly is step one. In a post-pandemic world, flight disruptions like delays or cancellations are more common—and dealing with booking platforms, fine print, and unclear refund policies can be overwhelming.
This guide will help you navigate flight options, avoid costly mistakes, and choose the best booking strategies so your adventure to Latin America starts off on the right foot.
We at Terra Sur Travels offer to book all flights for you! Domestic or international, from Europe, the US, Australia, or anywhere else in the world, it doesn’t matter.
When you book with us, we will make sure that you have everything in order:
Also, we would advise you to book directly from airlines rather than internet booking platforms.
There will most certainly be a difference pricewise, but in case anything goes wrong, airlines usually make rescheduling, rebooking or reimbursements a lot easier than having to go through a third party.
Missed connections, lost or delayed baggage can happen. The airlines usually do their best to put you and your bags on the correct flight. Still, it happens and it is aggravating to go through something like that and might also cause delays at your destination, when the much needed bag is somewhere else and you have to wait for it for sheer endless hours.
These times are now unpredictable and might have doubled (if not more!).
It’s very important to check with your local airport beforehand, as well as with airports you are traveling through. High season, local holidays or shortage of staff might make this even more complicated.
Of course, the best airports in the world allow as little as 45 minutes to get from one plane to the next. Nevertheless, we would always give us 2 to 3 hours at any airport to make sure everything will be alright and also for the peace of mind.
Because there are some parameters that play a role and you might have overlooked! Like:
As stated before, the less connections, the better.
From Europe and the United States, there are several continental airlines that have direct flights to Latin America.
Like Delta, American Airlines, or United. Also budget airlines have direct routes like Spirit Airlines.
South American airlines also serve those routes, like LATAM or Avianca.
The major hubs are Miami, Atlanta, New York and Houston, among others.
Here are a variety of airlines going to Latin America.
Lufthansa, KLM, Iberia or Air France, as well as the budget airlines like Air Europa.
Major hubs here are Amsterdam, Madrid, Frankfurt, Charles de Gaulle (Paris) or Heathrow (London).
From South America, airlines like LATAM and Avianca serve European destinations.
There are very few direct flights, only Arabian airlines like Emirates or Qatar Airways fly to cities like Sao Paulo or Buenos Aires.
It is almost inevitable that you have to transfer more than once. In Europe, Turkey or the Middle East.
From East, South or Southeast Asia, there are no direct connections at all.
Or, the other way around the globe: To North America and then head down south.
LATAM and Qantas are the major carriers on these routes.
