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The Verdict
PROS: Friendly and funny crew service, seating pad offered, old and dated seats but still provide ample legroom and space.
CONS: Leased white plane with no logo, super old and dated seats, angle-flat seats, small entertainment screen and does not work. Things on this particular Boeing 777-200 seem to be falling apart. Mediocre food.
Booking
I purchased the ticket with cash and not points this time. I couldn’t find any availability using miles, and by using the “Chilean website” trick, I was able to get a round-trip business class ticket between Santiago and Easter Island on the dates that I wanted for around $800 for two people. The cost of two economy tickets were priced at $500. So for $300 more, it’s a no brainer to book into business class instead and I’ll be earning Alaska or America airlines miles since LATAM and Alaska or AA are Oneworld alliance.
Check-In & Lounge
We checked in online and submitted the Easter Island’s entry form online. I printed all the required documents (read this post for the documents) as they are required to pass through the police control’s desk in Santiago airport to get to Easter Island. Easter island belongs to Chile and thus the flight is considered domestic flight; however, travelers are still required to go through scanning security, then the police control’s desk before going to the gate and board the plane.
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| Easter Island Entry Requirements |
Unfortunately there’s no LATAM lounge in domestic terminal though there’s a Priority Pass lounge there, but we did not have time to use it because it took a terribly long time to clear the police control and security. There’s also no fast-track lane for business class passengers either. So go as early as possible because the queue is long and it takes awhile to complete all the formalities before getting to the gate. Right when we reached the gate, they already started boarding.
Pre-Boarding & Boarding
Boarding for business class passengers is Group 2. The flight was 30 minutes delayed but it was not a big deal. It was due to missing passengers so they had to verify the luggages again for safety reasons. I also think that part of the delay was due to the queues at the police control’s desk. The line was way too long and it moved very slowly.
Aircraft Swap & Seats
LATAM operates their new amazing 787-9 Dreamliner aircraft on this route Santiago to Easter Island. However, a few days before our departure, the aircraft unfortunately got changed and I only noticed that during the online check-in process because the business class seats start with row 11. Due to the change, LATAM used the Boeing 777-200 aircraft instead. It is known that the triple sevens were Singapore Airline’s old plane and LATAM leased it. As the result, the plane is completely white, no logo nothing.
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| LATAM’s Leased Plane is Completely White and Has No Logo! |
As far as the seats go, it’s still 2-2-2 configurations. There’s a little divider between seats for little privacy. The seats are purple color and you can see from the photos below that those seats have been heavily used before. Regardless, the legroom is very large and spacious. The seats look old and date. When they are turned into a bed position, it is angle flat and not lie-flat. That doesn’t bother me much, but I did see some passengers were having difficult time to get their seat controls to work. I believe one of those seats were 12D. The crew had to go over there to help the gentleman out.
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| Small Divider Between Seats |
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| Crew is helping a passenger with seat’s issue because the seat’s control does not work |
It is what it is! Although the aircraft got swapped from the new 787-9 to 777-200, I felt that it provided ample legroom seat, space and a lying position for a quick nap during the 5 hours flight.
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| Angle-flat Seat |
One noticeable thing that sets business class service with LATAM airlines different from other airlines business class is that the flight attendant came around and put the white seating pad on the seat for you if you’d like.
Entertainment Screen
One thing that I had to complain was the entertainment screen not working. The flight attendant said that there’s only one movie anyway when it does work. *Laugh Out Loud* The screen monitor is also very tiny compared to the 787 plane’s monitor. So if you like to watch something during the flight, take your iPad or tablet with you. There’s a plug-in in each seat to charge your phone’s or tablet’s battery otherwise.
Moreover, there are only two lavatories at the back in business class cabin, but only one was working at the time. Everything on this plane seems to be falling apart.
Food & Drinks
It was a morning flight, so they served breakfast. The breakfast was very simple of ham and cheese, breads and a sweet item. It is a basic breakfast but was sufficient to fill my hunger. The breads and cheese taste pretty good I have to say. As far as drinks go, coffee, coke, ginger ale, orange juice, water, beer you name it! I do enjoy those white plates, bowls and cups which remind me of Singapore Airlines.
There’s nothing memorable about the food and drinks on this business class flight though.
Amenity Kit
Crew Service
The service of the crew in the business class cabin was good. Rose, my flight attendant was nice and friendly. She never stopped to smile and even joked around with us a few times. We all did laugh out loud when she told us about only one movie when the entertainment screen works and she sincerely wished us the best with our adventures on the Easter Island and that when we fly back to Santiago we would get to experience the new 787-9 plane instead of the old 777-200 plane.
Her wish became true as we did not only have incredible time on the Easter Island, but we also got to experience the Dreamliner 787-9 from Easter Island – Santiago. That’s another review!
I am a dedicated travel enthusiast with a deep passion for miles and points. Always willing to share my expertise, I possess a wealth of knowledge on miles and points, extensively researching and staying up-to-date with the latest strategies for maximizing travel rewards through credit cards and loyalty program promotions.
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