u/Ok-Parsley695

I posted on Reddit about my poor experience with Avianca the other day and got so much abuse (“you have main character energy”, “feel better now princess?”) from Avianca employees / fans / people who want to defend them, that I took the post down. But I want to repost my experience as advice for anyone else who is not familiar with the airline and is considering them for an international flight. (I’m sure they’re just fine for domestic flights, for which I have lower standards.)

They are now considered a low cost carrier apparently. I did not know that because I had always only been aware of them as Colombia’s national carrier, and my ticket was not cheap. Be aware of that. It means no entertainment system even for long flights, a ham and cheese sandwich as your meal on multiple leg journeys and only water / coffee / orange juice unless you want to pay extra for other junk food, and uncomfortable and small seats that don’t recline.

They are knowingly overcharging people for checked bags by having a “glitch” on their website that makes it impossible to add the checked bag at the pre-check in price. The workers are fully aware of this “glitch.” Be aware that the price will be significantly higher once check in opens, and at the gate. Make sure to take screenshots and screen recordings of the “glitch” happening because that’s the only way they might give you the pre check in price, and if not you can use the screenshots as evidence when you contest the overcharge with your credit card.

They might confiscate any liquid or cream items you buy at the bogota airport, after you’ve gone past security. This happened to me, and according to what I’ve seen on the internet, to many other people.

For everyone out there who loves Avianca, enjoy your flights. For anyone else who is considering flying them versus another airline that might be slightly more expensive, or even cheaper .. I suggest you consider these points before booking.

I posted here about my poor experience with Avianca the other day and got so much abuse (“you have main character energy”, “feel better now princess?”) from Avianca employees / fans / people who want to defend them, that I took the post down. But I want to repost my experience as advice for anyone else who is not familiar with the airline and is considering them for an international flight. (I’m sure they’re just fine for domestic flights, for which I have lower standards.)

They are now considered a low cost carrier apparently. I did not know that because I had always only been aware of them as Colombia’s national carrier, and my ticket was not cheap. Be aware of that. It means no entertainment system even for long flights, a ham and cheese sandwich as your meal on multiple leg journeys and only water / coffee / orange juice unless you want to pay extra for other junk food, and uncomfortable and small seats that don’t recline.

They are knowingly overcharging people for checked bags by having a “glitch” on their website that makes it impossible to add the checked bag at the pre-check in price. The workers are fully aware of this “glitch.” Be aware that the price will be significantly higher once check in opens, and at the gate. Make sure to take screenshots and screen recordings of the “glitch” happening because that’s the only way they might give you the pre check in price, and if not you can use the screenshots as evidence when you contest the overcharge with your credit card.

They might confiscate any liquid or cream items you buy at the bogota airport, after you’ve gone past security. This happened to me, and according to what I’ve seen on the internet, to many other people.

For everyone out there who loves Avianca, enjoy your flights. For anyone else who is considering flying them versus another airline that might be slightly more expensive, or even cheaper .. I suggest you consider these points before booking.

You will be uncomfortable and stressed out

Go with another airline that entertains you, feeds you, doesn’t knowingly try to rip you off with suitcase charges and doesn’t make up its own arbitrary rules for what it thinks you need to throw out. Read on for details ..

I bought an economy class Avianca ticket to Rio de Janeiro with a layover in bogota, to save a little money over the other options. Yes, I know Avianca is a Colombian airline. I didn’t realize I suppose that it’s supposed to be low budget .. based on the prices being quite high and on par with other airlines on the same route

For starters, it is impossible to add a suitcase onto the booking in the days and weeks ahead of the flight. I have many screenshots and screen recordings showing I would get an error message every time I tried. I suspect this is so the airline can then charge a much higher fee to passengers who add their bag during the check in period or at the airport.

Knowing this, I came to the airport in Rio with screen recording evidence in hand. The Avianca worker acknowledged this is a known problem. But then said she couldn’t do anything but give me the last minute price. I said I would pay the higher amount (an extra $105) and then contest it with my credit card, by showing my bank the screenshots. She then decided to help me .. and she did end up charging the equivalent price I would have gotten online

As this was going on, a Canadian couple arrived for check in next to me and described the same exact issue. They were told they’d have to pay the higher price as they had no screenshots. I offered to give them some of my many screenshots, as I had made several over several days of trying.

This is clearly a known problem at Avianca and I very much I believe an intentional one

So let’s get to the actual flights. For just about $50 in savings than if I had flown American Airlines .. this is what I had to deal with:

Smaller planes (3 seats, the row, then another 3 seats - they are airbus a320 neos) which are not commonly used on long haul flights. For both the New York to bogota, and bogota to Rio legs, both ways.

On these planes turbulence can, in my opinion, be felt more strongly. So I had a particularly hard time sleeping, especially over the jungly and mountainous regions in Brazil where there’s often turbulence.

Economy passengers have a choice of a revolting and cold ham and cheese, or just cheese, sandwich to eat. On tasteless bread with a gross spread. That’s it. On every leg of the flight. Their only item; and it’s barely edible. To drink you are offered water, coffee or orange juice. Of course, if you want to shell out more money, you can buy delicacies such as cup ramen and Coca Cola.

There are no entertainment systems on the backs of the chairs. Which do not recline. If you turn the light on to read, you likely will be bothering your neighbor, and a young boy next to me asked me to turn mine off

And to top all this off .. during my bogota layover, I bought a $42 body lotion across the gate from where I boarded. They then pulled me aside for extra screening, probably because of my last name. At that point they told me I had to throw the cream out, although I had bought it at an airport shop, well past security. I said I would empty it in half, since it’s 200 ml, to make it 100 ml, but I was told that wasn’t ok. No explanation for why all kinds of liquids and creams sold at airport duty free shops are allowed onto flights but this item wasn’t deemed ok by them

So that’s been my Avianca experience! I’m actually writing this while still on board because I need to find some way to pass the time with no television or light for reading.

Also - most airlines allow you to change your seat for free during check in, perhaps not to every available seat, but to ones in the same section. Not Avianca! And the permitted carry on is just 10 kilos. So carry ons are not just regulated by size, as is common, but also by weight

So much stress and discomfort for so little money saved (and possible none at all considering their high baggage fees and the money I paid on one leg to get out of a middle seat ). You may be forced to used Avianca within Colombia but I do NOT recommend it’s as a layover airline

You will be uncomfortable and stressed out

Go with another airline that entertains you, feeds you, doesn’t knowingly try to rip you off with suitcase charges and doesn’t make up its own arbitrary rules for what it thinks you need to throw out. Read on for details ..

I bought an economy class Avianca ticket to Rio de Janeiro with a layover in bogota, to save a little money over the other options

For starters, it is impossible to add a suitcase onto the booking in the days and weeks ahead of the flight. I have many screenshots and screen recordings showing I would get an error message every time I tried. I suspect this is so the airline can then charge a much higher fee to passengers who add their bag during the check in period or at the airport.

Knowing this, I came to the airport in Rio with screen recording evidence in hand. The Avianca worker acknowledged this is a known problem. But then said she couldn’t do anything but give me the last minute price. I said I would pay the higher amount (an extra $105) and then contest it with my credit card, by showing my bank the screenshots. She then decided to help me .. and she did end up charging the equivalent price I would have gotten online

As this was going on, a Canadian couple arrived for check in next to me and described the same exact issue. They were told they’d have to pay the higher price as they had no screenshots. I offered to give them some of my many screenshots, as I had made several over several days of trying.

This is clearly a known problem at Avianca and I very much I believe an intentional one

So let’s get to the actual flights. For just about $50 in savings than if I had flown American Airlines .. this is what I had to deal with:

Smaller planes (3 seats, the row, then another 3 seats - they are airbus a320 neos) which are not commonly used on long haul flights. For both the New York to bogota, and bogota to Rio legs, both ways.

On these planes turbulence can, in my opinion, be felt more strongly. So I had a particularly hard time sleeping, especially over the jungly and mountainous regions in Brazil where there’s often turbulence.

Economy passengers have a choice of a revolting and cold ham and cheese, or just cheese, sandwich to eat. On tasteless bread with a gross spread. That’s it. On every leg of the flight. Their only item; and it’s barely edible. To drink you are offered water, coffee or orange juice. Of course, if you want to shell out more money, you can buy delicacies such as cup ramen and Coca Cola.

There are no entertainment systems on the backs of the chairs. Which do not recline. If you turn the light on to read, you likely will be bothering your neighbor, and a young boy next to me asked me to turn mine off

And to top all this off .. during my bogota layover, I bought a $42 body lotion across the gate from where I boarded. They then pulled me aside for extra screening, probably because of my last name. At that point they told me I had to throw the cream out, although I had bought it at an airport shop, well past security. I said I would empty it in half, since it’s 200 ml, to make it 100 ml, but I was told that wasn’t ok. No explanation for why all kinds of liquids and creams sold at airport duty free shops are allowed onto flights but this item wasn’t deemed ok by them

So that’s been my Avianca experience! I’m actually writing this while still on board because I need to find some way to pass the time with no television or light for reading.

Also - most airlines allow you to change your seat for free during check in, perhaps not to every available seat, but to ones in the same section. Not Avianca! And the permitted carry on is just 10 kilos. So carry ons are not just regulated by size, as is common, but also by weight

So much stress and discomfort for so little money saved (and possible none at all considering their high baggage fees and the money I paid on one leg to get out of a middle seat ). You may be forced to used Avianca within Colombia but I do NOT recommend it’s as a layover airline

You will be uncomfortable and stressed out

Go with another airline that entertains you, feeds you, doesn’t knowingly try to rip you off with suitcase charges and doesn’t make up its own arbitrary rules for what it thinks you need to throw out. Read on for details ..

I bought an economy class Avianca ticket to Rio de Janeiro with a layover in bogota, to save a little money over the other options

For starters, it is impossible to add a suitcase onto the booking in the days and weeks ahead of the flight. I have many screenshots and screen recordings showing I would get an error message every time I tried. I suspect this is so the airline can then charge a much higher fee to passengers who add their bag during the check in period or at the airport.

Knowing this, I came to the airport in Rio with screen recording evidence in hand. The Avianca worker acknowledged this is a known problem. But then said she couldn’t do anything but give me the last minute price. I said I would pay the higher amount (an extra $105) and then contest it with my credit card, by showing my bank the screenshots. She then decided to help me .. and she did end up charging the equivalent price I would have gotten online

As this was going on, a Canadian couple arrived for check in next to me and described the same exact issue. They were told they’d have to pay the higher price as they had no screenshots. I offered to give them some of my many screenshots, as I had made several over several days of trying.

This is clearly a known problem at Avianca and I very much I believe an intentional one

So let’s get to the actual flights. For just about $50 in savings than if I had flown American Airlines .. this is what I had to deal with:

Smaller planes (3 seats, the row, then another 3 seats - they are airbus a320 neos) which are not commonly used on long haul flights. For both the New York to bogota, and bogota to Rio legs, both ways.

On these planes turbulence can, in my opinion, be felt more strongly. So I had a particularly hard time sleeping, especially over the jungly and mountainous regions in Brazil where there’s often turbulence.

Economy passengers have a choice of a revolting and cold ham and cheese, or just cheese, sandwich to eat. On tasteless bread with a gross spread. That’s it. On every leg of the flight. Their only item; and it’s barely edible. To drink you are offered water, coffee or orange juice. Of course, if you want to shell out more money, you can buy delicacies such as cup ramen and Coca Cola.

There are no entertainment systems on the backs of the chairs. Which do not recline. If you turn the light on to read, you likely will be bothering your neighbor, and a young boy next to me asked me to turn mine off

And to top all this off .. during my bogota layover, I bought a $42 body lotion across the gate from where I boarded. They then pulled me aside for extra screening, probably because of my last name. At that point they told me I had to throw the cream out, although I had bought it at an airport shop, well past security. I said I would empty it in half, since it’s 200 ml, to make it 100 ml, but I was told that wasn’t ok. No explanation for why all kinds of liquids and creams sold at airport duty free shops are allowed onto flights but this item wasn’t deemed ok by them

So that’s been my Avianca experience! I’m actually writing this while still on board because I need to find some way to pass the time with no television or light for reading.

Also - most airlines allow you to change your seat for free during check in, perhaps not to every available seat, but to ones in the same section. Not Avianca! And the permitted carry on is just 10 kilos. So carry ons are not just regulated by size, as is common, but also by weight

So much stress and discomfort for so little money saved (and possible none at all considering their high baggage fees and the money I paid on one leg to get out of a middle seat ). You may be forced to used Avianca within Colombia but I do NOT recommend it’s as a layover airline