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Avianca customer review :  4 May 2011 by K Warner   (Switzerland)

ZRH-MAD-BOG-CLO on A330-200. Madrid to Bogota was very pleasant, good ground staff, accommodated my last minute seat change request. Friendly cabin crew, plane in great condition with in-seat entertainment system. Compared to competitors (Air France, Iberia) you get great value for money. Only negative, the meal was rather disappointing, quality and quantity wise.

Avianca customer review :  25 April 2011 by F Bugg   (Australia)

MIA-BOG-EZE on new A330, clean and in excellent condition. Check it at MIA quick and efficient and priority access through security. Lounge in MIA was America's club which was very basic, but staff friendly. Very friendly Cabin Crew offering Champagne and menus prior to departure. Meal service was quick and efficient - basic for business class but good. Meal on BOG-EZE less substantial than the 3 hour from MIA which I didn't understand and I've received much better quality and quantity of meals when flying Singapore Airlines economy. The seat on the A330 is difficult to sleep, I'm 6'1 and I kept sliding down which made it hard to get comfortable. I found Avianca great value for money - considering its a new product and the US airlines business class on the same legs are old and tired.

Avianca customer review :  13 April 2011 by Pedro Gil   (Colombia)

BOG-SCL-BOG. Avianca's new business class is bad. I used to be a fan of Avianca. It's usually a reliable airline but it's new business class is a mess. On short haul (if you can call a 6 hour flight from Bogota to NYC or Santiago short haul) seat comfort is terrible: almost zero recline and ridiculous pitch between rows. On long haul (A330) they just installed new angled seats which are terrible to sleep on. So if you go to Europe, chose Iberia instead (fully flat) and within region, LAN remains unbeatable in comfort and service. In Avianca the food service is also mediocre and the wine choice (Trio and Trivento - both very average) is the same for 24 months now. The only good elements are IFE on demand and the flight attendants who are friendly. Boarding in Bogota is a mess (no priority lanes) and lounge is also mediocre, without enough seats on peak periods.

Avianca customer review :  14 March 2011 by Richard Winger   (USA)

JFK-MED-BOG-JFK, Avianca business class is taking a rapid nose dive. It's not just that food is getting worse (the new menu to NYC is basically inedible), you can't get a glass of wine on domestic routes (free rum and whiskey only), the uncomfortable A320 turns up on more and more NYC routes and the lounges are stuffy and overcrowded. The most disappointing part of the service is that Avianca makes absolutely no effort to ease the way for premium passengers through the deplorable Colombian airports. There are no dedicated security lines, no fast track through immigration (which can take up to two hours in BOG on bad days) and when you finally make it to the plane, there is no priority boarding. Obviously, equal misery for all is a well tested concept - it's called the discount airline. That seems to be where Avianca is headed - surely, with its present state of service, there is no way to mistake it for the serious world class airline it wants to be. The only reason I keep recommending Avianca is because Delta, Continental and American are hardly attractive alternatives. But if LAN ever opened a route between NY and Colombia.

Avianca customer review :  14 March 2011 by Pedro Gil   (Colombia)

BOG-JFK return business. Most of the time Avianca uses A319/320 in this route. These planes have a terrible business class seat, with limited recline. They are good for a 2 hour flight but not for a long flight such as BOG-JFK (aprox 6 hours). If you are lucky to fly 767 or the new A330 in this route you will have a good service from Avianca, but not in these smaller planes. AVOD has a decent choice and food service was OK (although I think that travellers would prefer a breakfast before arrival at 6am than a dinner at departure time on mid-night). It's sad to see Avianca placing a bet on this seat configuration for long routes such as Santiago or JFK, since comfort level is substandard.

Avianca customer review :  24 February 2011 by Cristiano Miro   (USA)

Miami-Bogota-Guayaqui-Bogota-Fort Lauderdale. With the exception of BOG-GYE on a Fokker100, all segments on a new A320. Good legroom and large individual touch-screen entertainment- including a nice pillow, blanket and quality head-seats. A small but tasty meal is served, with colombian coffee and good-quality whisky. All free of charge! Female flight attendants are courteous and attentive, but their male counterparts can be less so. One downside, not Avianca's fault, is the international wing at Bogota's Eldorado airport. Completely uninspiring, not providing even an intercom system. Flights are called by the gate agents in loud voices, as if we were in a bus station. However, major construction is already underway and it should improve considerably the experience for the connecting passenger. All is all, this is one of my favourite airlines when flying to South America. Not top-notch, but above average at competitive prices.

Avianca customer review :  9 January 2011 by J Escobar   (UK)

JFK-BOG-MDE. Overnight flight from JFK on A319. Ground staff efficient, and did a good job of trying to control excessive luggage. Still, overhead bin room ran out fast, with arguments ensuing. Onboard service fairly dismal - a small cold wrap offered by a mostly unfriendly and uninterested crew,e xcept one young FA. Cabin felt excessively hot and uncomfortable. Seats fitted with PTVs but uncomfortable. Only water round was before landing on a 5 hour flight - not even OJ offered. Connection in BOG at dawn was fairly easy. Domestic flight was on an A320, fine legroom for a short segment. A drink offered. Crew seemed much more professional and interested in doing their job than the ones on international flights.

Avianca customer review :  7 January 2011 by Vladimir Rouvinski   (Colombia)

CLO-BOG-SMR return. All flights on time, new A320, economy cabin seat equipped with a footrest and IFE offering good choice of short movies, music and flight info. Juan Valdez coffee, juices and small snacks are served. In addition, web check-in is working and useful.

Avianca customer review :  2 January 2011 by P Vernall   (Canada)

BOG-MED-BOG in economy class. Flights late both ways with no explanation. No announcements in English only Spanish so you just have to follow the crowd. Inflight service is virtually non existant with the exception of lousy coffee. For a Country that exports some of the best coffee in the world Avianca serves the sludge. Shame as the flight attendants look good in their uniforms but that is where it ends.

AVIANCA customer review :  12 December 2010 by Uwe Bode   (Colombia)

MAD-BOG in A330 with the family. Very attentive FAs serving in a very friendly way. Quiet and comfortable cabin, lie flat seats with slight angle, but comfortable for seating and sleeping. Good AVOD with nice selection. Food excellent, although they should change the menu and wine card more often, it has been the same for years now! Good amenity kit, duvets good, breakfast selection excellent. Nice little details like typical Colombian flowers accompanying the dinner, and Colombian coffee as farewell present.

AVIANCA customer review :  1 December 2010 by A Easton   (USA)

LAX-BOG-MDE return in Economy. Seating very tight and food inferior on both the long legs. On the return MDE-BOG we were mingled in with passengers coming in from Madrid to Medellin and it was quite chaotic getting back into the domestic group in Bogota as I was staying a day there. I felt there had been a serious decline in passenger service in the last 12 months even allowing that when I did the same trip a year ago it was in Business. But the check-in staff at LAX were very friendly, more-so than in Bogota. Too little English spoken inflight and I think the non-Spanish speaking passengers get a pretty raw deal.

AVIANCA customer review :  3 November 2010 by M Sierra   (USA)

Had my flight scheduled for night of Nov 1st from Bogota to New York. They let all passengers check-in process through security and to the waiting room. Flight was scheduled for 11pm. At 1130pm when all passengers are seated waiting for boarding they announce Flight cancelled (Delayed according to them). We have to leave and come back at 5am. They keep the bags. They seem to have joined to flights since new faces showed up at the 0715 flight. We confirmed with them that since it is another plane are bags will make it to JFK on the same plane with us and 3 staff members say YES to this. We arrive at JFK and and on baggage claim there is one lady from Avianca. She announces that over 100 bags were left in Bogota and they do not know when they will come. The plane in which we came was smaller and could not handle all the luggage. Bottom line is we are getting a run around on the bags and nobody knows when and if I might get them. Never again with them.

AVIANCA customer review :  31 August 2010 by Uwe Bode   (Colombia)

Bogota-Guayaquil in F100, flight 1 hour late due to thunderstorm at El Dorado airport, flight very nice, meal service with starter, main dish, dessert, and welcome champagne on the ground. Seat, 2x2 configuration, wide enough and seat pitch decent. Crew very attentive on this flight, offering a very personalized service. As it was an early afternoon flight, even the AV lounge at El Dorado airport was enjoyable, almost empty, so lots of space and tranquility. Regrettably the same poor food and beverages in the lounge.

AVIANCA customer review :  24 August 2010 by Andrea Arbelaez   (Netherlands)

Madrid-Bogota-Madrid via Medellin - horrible, flight delayed of around 4 hours waiting on the plane due to technical problems, no information about the issue until people started to complain. The service was unfriendly, staff did not speak good English, food was bad, the plane is uncomfortable for such a long trip. Baggage missing, worst experience ever.

AVIANCA customer review :  1 August 2010 by Alfonso Moscoso   (Peru)

Avianca was my choice on my last trip to Washington, with an 1 hour connection in Bogota. Nice planes (A330/A320) good flight attendants, IFE. On the way back to Lima, a storm stopped all operations at IAD. The flight attendants were courteous and polite with passengers, serving drinks all the time we stood stranded. On arrival at Bogota, Avianca quickly rebooked all of us on other flight to Lima the following day. They sent us to the Crowne Plaza, a four star hotel and covered all the expenses.

AVIANCA customer review :  22 June 2010 by Norman Mitchell   (UK)

BOG-GYE-BOG operated by Avianca’s SAM subsidiary although you would never know apart from reading that fact from the small notice printed on the side of the aircraft and the aircraft, a Fokker 100, the entire fleet of which, in Avianca colours, are operated by SAM. However, for all intents and purposes, this is an Avianca service and after check-in, I went to the Avianca Business Class Lounge at Bogota. This Lounge proudly advertises the fact that it has won awards for the best Business Class Lounge in Latin America – it’s difficult to understand why as it is large, very impersonal and depressing and has the absolute minimum of food choice. It seems that when the Fokker 100s are used on international services, they are parked off-gate on a remote stand which means the dreaded bus. Business Class comprises a cramped 2 rows of 2x2. The hot meal service started about 1 hr into this 1.5 hr flight. Even then, service was slow and by the time this service reached Row 2 where I was sat, we were well into the descent and the service was withdrawn. The return service was much better but the on-time arrival benefit was lost whilst we awaited a tug to push us back onto the remote stand and then another delay waiting for the bus. Meanwhile, another two international flights had arrived and a huge line awaited us in the Immigration Hall.

AVIANCA customer review :  6 June 2010 by Uwe Bode   (Colombia)

Bogota-Lima-Bogota on A320/A319. Attentive crew, good food, beverage selection quite good apart from Wine list - the same wines for years. All flights punctual, good IFE.

AVIANCA customer review :  14 May 2010 by Richard Winger   (USA)

Recently in J class BCN to MED, connecting through BOG. The transatlantic leg pleasant. The connection through BOG a total disaster. Tight to begin with and even tighter after a delayed departure. Nobody to meet transit passengers at the gate (J class plus highest elite status apparently not worth any extra attention). On own initiative despite an endless line I still made it through immigration with half an hour to spare, plenty of time to make it to connecting plane. But no, transfer desk looked aghast at my early appearance and stood firm that all domestic transfers had been closed. Overnight in Bogota but, oops, all of Bogota sold out except the downtown Tequendama which I don't wish on my worst enemy. That's where this airline, despite major improvements over the last couple of years, still allows bureaucracy to kill customer service initiative. Had there been an agent to take us through immigration and put us into a car to our connecting plane, AV would have made friends for life. (And saved a bunch of money.) Which, by the way, wouldn't be a bad move after having drastically cut the benefits for their top frequent fliers.