yestravel

Arriving from the USA in EZE and transferring to another airline to go to Chile. How much time should we allow for the connection? Thanks

Graziella5b

Buenos Aires has two airports first of all are both flights arriving-leaving from EZE.>? If so I would leave at least three hours to be sure . Flights from US usually arrive in time or maybe aprox 30' late but then you have customs, passport control etc and then you need to be sure to check with the second flight. The best would be to fly LAN-AMERICAN or AEROLINEAS -AEROLINEAS so things will be smoother than changing airlines from different groups. May be on a second thought if you are simply on transfer you will avoid all the red tape and simply change planes. ....anyway I would leave at least three hours in between.

avrooster

I would say yestravel is clearly flying into EZE and also leaving from EZE, on another international flight.

I also believe it may well be impossible to avoid the red tape.

Or maybe you would be considered "in transit"? I simply don't know.

Susan7

I've been in transit at EZE on the way to Brazil and didn't have to go through any red tape. It's a fairly compact airport and as long as your bags are booked all the way through to the final destination, 2-2 1/2 hours should be plenty of time.

I think it's only the US that doesn't have transit.

yestravel

I may have a US flight that goes from the US to EZE and then I transfer to either an Air Canada flight or Lan flight to fly onto Santiago, Chile.

Flying into the US from outside the US, wherever u land first, u have to get your bags, go thur customs etc, then recheck you bag and continue to your connecting flight. From what you all are saying landing at EZE from the US I would be in transit and thus not have to clear customs, passport control etc. Is this right?

And yes, AV, I will then be departing from EZE at the end of the trip.

Susan7

Yes, that's correct if your next flight also leaves from EZE, you don't need to clear customs or go through passport control.

I'm not as sure about the bags and rechecking if you are flying from the US. Flying from Australia you can almost always book bags all the way through, with multi-stop flights (except if you are going to Canada via the US) but I have found departing from the US, some American airlines don't seem to let you do this. Something about airline agreements, maybe. Perhaps someone else here, or on the airline board, can give you more precise help on that one.

avrooster

Yestravel: I meant connecting in EZE for your flight to Chile, not leaving Argentina at the end of your trip.

I understand that at this stage you don't yet know on which airline you will be initially landing in EZE?

Once you tell us which airlines will be involved in your trip from the USA to Chile, I would ask my travel agent. Maybe that isn't a factor?

Being a local, I would never connect in EZE, so, I don't really know, as I said above. That's why I didn't answer your question, which was posted several days ago.

yestravel

AV -- I'm looking at 2 different options for flights. What I want to avoid is paying the ARG reciprocity fee just for transfering flights at EZE. I will pay the one in Chile when I arrive in Santiago. I want to fly on United for the miles and I have status for better seats.

Option 1 -- I will fly on United into EZE and transfer to an Air Canada flight which would be part of the United ticket. Ticket would be IAD-EZE-SCL-all ticketed by United as one ticket. This has a 5-6 hour layover in EZE.
Option 2 -- Fly on a United ticket into EZE, but then transfer to a LAN flight to SCL which would be a separate ticket. This has about a 1 hour 45 minute layover and not sure that is enough time.

At this stage I am trying to figure out which option is the best price wise and with the least layover time. Any light that can be shed on it woudl be great! I realize in general locals wouldn't know about transiting in EZE.
Thanks!

avrooster

I would be extremely worried about taking the flight with only about a 1 hour 45 minute layover.

About the reciprocity fee, wouldn't you have to pay it anyway, when you finally enter Argentina?

Or maybe you don't plan to finally enter Argentina via EZE?

yestravel

Thanks! That's what I thought about the 1 hour 45 minute layover--it would be tight and if the inbound flight from the US got delayed there could be a real problem. I've flown into EZE but never changed planes so don't know how big it is etc.

We will come back into Arg via land or with a flight into AEP. I understand u only pay the fee when entering via EZE. Is that still correct?

avrooster

If I were you, yestravel, I wouldn't count on being able to avoid the so called "reciprocity fee".

Our present government is rather good at collecting taxes and fees. They are also very good at not paying what they owe. I expect we'll be rid of them by late next year.

Graziella5b

If I were you I shall check with the airliner I am flying from the US if I can be listed by the airliner as a passanger whose final destination is Santiago. Thus you will be considered in transit in Ezeiza. Ideally the luggage will be handled by your airliner to the final destination and you will not be able to leave the area designed TRANSIT in Ezeiza.

Graziella5b

Further more when checking in the US they will check you in the second airliner giving you the boarding pass and your luggage will have a tag to the final destination.
So they should give you two boarding passes, one US to Bue, and the second BUE to Santiago.

yestravel

Thanks -- that sounds good. We genrally have carry on so the luggage isnt the problem.

WanderingTrader

The security at EZE is a joke, nothing like the big lines and security in the United States. If you would say hour and a half should be ok between flights. Any large airlines like LAN or any american airlines are most likely ontime. If your taking a smaller carrier then at that point make more time. (every flight on my trip to venezuela was 3 hours late... lol)

hope that helps
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