Copa Airlines

Customer Reviews

3 star Skytrax Rating
Food & Beverages 12345
Inflight Entertainment 12345
Seat Comfort 12345
Staff Service 12345
Value for Money 12345
Customer rating from 414 reviews
4/10
3 star Skytrax Rating
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1/10

"Very disappointed"

(United States)

Trip Verified | Washington to Panama City. Departed out of IAD - At Counter - Could not Check-in bags directly to my destination DAV, In-flight the airplane is dated and need upgrades to be consider Business class. The attendant did no mentioned where to plug electronics and there were no entertainment at all on the plane. I follow the United Airlines instructions to login with no luck. Copa should not assume that travelers know all these things especially on this old type of airplanes. Arrived to PTY - Picked my baggage and pay for a luggage cart to go through customs after that I could not take the cart to go upstairs to drop off my bags to the COPA domestic counter I have to actually find a gentleman that carried my bags by hand . No signs, no directions, no one from COPA to ask what was next. Waited in line for about one hour, very hot and crowded counter with only one staff assisting in the web checked in counter. I had to asked twice to the staff at the counter where to go next, he seem not very knowledgeable. Return Flight from DAV - I was charged for my baggage and they could not send my bags directly to IAD. I was very frustrated because I did not want to go through what I experienced on my arrival to Panama.The lady at the counter said because my tickets were not purchased together, but I explained that I purchased the tickets at the same day and time. I found with today's electronic age that this simple change could not be made possible, I asked the staff to please call the manager. The "not too friendly manager" seems bother by my request and said that I have purchased my tickets separately and this was the policy and since I was flying domestic I needed to pay for my luggage, At this time I told the manager okay even though I think that the entire situation was absurd I will pay but please check my baggage directly to IAD - The manager literally looked at me, say nothing and then she tell the staff to check my baggage through and say nothing to me and walked away as if she was doing me a non desire service, it was very humiliating to beg for an hour. I was the last one entering the plane. Departure from PTY to IAD - the complete COPA terminal gates 1 through was extremely hot - about 90+ degrees no place to purchase water or cool off and all the belts for fast walking were not working. Even though I did stay in the COPA lounge I walked to the gate one+ hour earlier, but still very uncomfortable unhealthy environment at the gates. Again on this leg the aircraft was dated and no entertainment. The young man that attended was extremely polite and very nice, he really made the difference on my frustration of the whole trip. I purchased upgrades for the complete flight and felt as if I was flying economy (For an international Flight) The business class did not feel as such. I used to fly on COPA all the time until three years ago. I started using Delta or United planes and then go to DAV on AirPanama. After three years I decided to come back to COPA to be even more disappointed. I am not a complainer and I think this is my first review to an Airline ever, yes Copa seems convenient with the direct flight to PTY and DAV but living in the DC area, I have many choices on airlines, quality service and amenities. Very disappointed that I traveled with COPA.
Type Of TravellerBusiness
Seat TypeBusiness Class
RouteWashington to Panama City
Date FlownMarch 2019
Seat Comfort 12345
Cabin Staff Service 12345
Food & Beverages 12345
Inflight Entertainment 12345
Ground Service 12345
Wifi & Connectivity 12345
Value For Money 12345
no
5/10

"Friendly staff"

(Brazil)

Trip Verified | Panama City to Salvador. Excellent on time performance. Friendly staff. Over-aged seats, with limited recline. No foot rests. No plugs either, a 6 hours flight might be too much for your laptop. IFE about nonexistent. Food might as well come from a local hospital. Tasteless.
AircraftBoeing 737-800
Type Of TravellerBusiness
Seat TypeBusiness Class
RoutePanama City to Salvador
Date FlownMarch 2019
Seat Comfort 12345
Cabin Staff Service 12345
Food & Beverages 12345
Inflight Entertainment 12345
Ground Service 12345
Value For Money 12345
yes
5/10

"on the tarmac for 1.5 hours"

(United States)

Not Verified | Chicago to Panama City. Writing this review after sitting on the tarmac for 1.5 hours. Pay the premium price for an airline that can afford timeliness and WiFi infrastructure. I know I will next time. I have them a 5 for actually having planes. They met the basic requirements for a 5. Remove these airline from the Star Alliance, it’s giving you a bad name.
Type Of TravellerSolo Leisure
Seat TypeEconomy Class
RouteChicago to Panama City
Date FlownMarch 2019
Seat Comfort 12345
Cabin Staff Service 12345
Inflight Entertainment 12345
Ground Service 12345
Wifi & Connectivity 12345
Value For Money 12345
no
1/10

"unpleasant experience"

(United States)

Trip Verified | Panama City to New York. After having gone thru 2 security screeners we where herded like cattle into a small waiting area where their where not enough seats for everyone and air conditioning was not working. Very hot and unpleasant experience. I will think twice before flying Copa again.
Type Of TravellerCouple Leisure
Seat TypeEconomy Class
RoutePanama City to New York
Date FlownMarch 2019
Seat Comfort 12345
Cabin Staff Service 12345
Food & Beverages 12345
Inflight Entertainment 12345
Ground Service 12345
Value For Money 12345
no
10/10

"very pleasant experience"

(United States)

Not Verified | Curacao to Panama. A very pleasant experience. We had a smooth flight going from Curacao to Panama. The flight was on time, more comfortable legroom than some airlines, the cabin temperature was fine and the plane did not smell funky. The flight attendants were pleasant and the restrooms were clean. We had a ham & cheese sandwich which was hot and very nice- the best short flight snack ever! The only downside was we couldn't access the website to check in and get seats assigned from our hotel which was not a big deal. When their ticket counter at the airport opened, check-in was quick and efficient. We would definitely fly COPA again.
Type Of TravellerCouple Leisure
Seat TypeEconomy Class
RouteCuracao to Panama
Date FlownOctober 2018
Seat Comfort 12345
Cabin Staff Service 12345
Food & Beverages 12345
Inflight Entertainment 12345
Ground Service 12345
Wifi & Connectivity 12345
Value For Money 12345
yes
2/10

"practices systematic overbooking"

(Switzerland)

Trip Verified | David to Panama city via San José. Copa airlines practices systematic overbooking. We were many passengers to be denied boarding, while we all had our boarding passes in hand and the baggage was already registered. This occurred during two connecting flights. The company took care of the accommodation costs; On the other hand, they refused any financial compensation, whereas we had to pay the night for the hotel reserved for the final destination, where we arrived one day late. The only compensation proposed by Copa airlines is a voucher that can not be transferred and valid only with their company. Miserable! Copa airlines is the shame of Star Alliance and deserves no star. FR: Copa airlines pratique le surbooking systématique. Nous étions de nombreux passagers à être refusés à l'embarquement, alors que nous avions tous nos cartes d'embarquement en main et que les bagages étaient déjà enregistrés. Ceci s'est produit lors de deux vols en correspondance. La compagnie a pris en charge les frais d'hébergement ; elle a par contre refusé tout dédommagement financier, alors que nous avons dû payer la nuit pour l'hôtel réservé à la destination finale, où nous sommes arrivés avec un jour de retard. La seule compensation proposée par copa airlines est un bon (voucher) intransmissible et valable uniquement auprès de leur compagnie... Misérable ! Copa airlines est la honte de Star Alliance et ne mérite aucune étoile.
AircraftE190
Type Of TravellerSolo Leisure
Seat TypeEconomy Class
RouteDavid to Panama city via San José
Date FlownJanuary 2019
Seat Comfort 12345
Cabin Staff Service 12345
Food & Beverages 12345
Inflight Entertainment 12345
Ground Service 12345
Wifi & Connectivity 12345
Value For Money 12345
no
1/10

"they lost my checked bag"

(United States)

Trip Verified | Quito to San Francisco via Panama City. To start the holiday, they informed my boyfriend and I that they overbooked the flight. Great no worries, we still managed to make it to our destination. To improve their case, they lost my checked bag upon my arrival home. I have been calling the SFO baggage claim every day for twelve days trying to track my bag. I spoke with the supervisor two days after returning home and I confirmed three items in my bag. I made a second phone call to confirm which address they needed to forward my bag to. The new representative had no record of finding my bag. You can’t do this to customers that have spend hundreds of dollars on airfare through your company. I have been calling relentlessly without a single return phone call.
Type Of TravellerCouple Leisure
Seat TypeEconomy Class
RouteQuito to San Francisco via Panama City
Date FlownDecember 2018
Seat Comfort 12345
Cabin Staff Service 12345
Food & Beverages 12345
Inflight Entertainment 12345
Ground Service 12345
Wifi & Connectivity 12345
Value For Money 12345
no
1/10

"wasting time looking for bag"

(United States)

Trip Verified | Bogota to Orlando via Panama City. Inefficient, I checked my bag, which should have had priority labeled and it did not arrive in Orlando. I had to wait in Customs for more than 20 minutes for COPA Airlines personnel, there were supposed to be 3 agents taking care of 2 flights, but they appeared 20 minutes later, after wasting my time looking for my bag, then I had to go to another place in the airport where there was supposed to be a baggage agent to do report, to my surprise agent was not in her place and I had to go out looking for her. In addition of been inconvenience with luggage that did not arrive I had to wait for COPA staff to come to their places.
AircraftBoeing 737-800
Type Of TravellerBusiness
Seat TypeEconomy Class
RouteBogota to Orlando via Panama City
Date FlownNovember 2018
Seat Comfort 12345
Cabin Staff Service 12345
Food & Beverages 12345
Inflight Entertainment 12345
Ground Service 12345
Value For Money 12345
no
1/10

"couldn’t care less about you"

(United Kingdom)

Trip Verified | I took a flight from Managua to Panama with Copa Airlines (CM) on 21/02/18 returning on 23/02/18. On the return i arrived at the airport nearly 3 hours before scheduled take off, but had to queue for 2 hours to get to the check in desk. At the desk the Copa operative told me i couldn't fly to Managua because i didn't have a yellow fever inoculation card. I wasn't warned about this when i booked the ticket on the website, and i wasn't warned about this when i checked in at Managua 2 days earlier. The first time that Copa decides to tell me i need a yellow fever inoculation card is when my flight is due to take off in 1 hour's time. The operative told me that it's my responsibility to ensure that i have the necessary documentation to travel. Later the same day i had a flight scheduled from Managua at 1.30pm to Houston USA and then a connecting flight to London UK. After much arguing i was issued a boarding pass as I “could be” in transit at Managua. In September the same year I had to make another journey to Panama, Tuesday 04/09/18 to Thursday 06/09/18. Aware that I needed a yellow fever inoculation card, I asked the CM check in staff at Managua Airport if this was still necessary for us to return to Managua in two days time. They said yes although for my wife, who is currently breast feeding, she is exempt from this. In Panama I paid 100 USD for a yellow fever inoculation. The following day I return to Panama airport to catch my plane to Managua and I’m told I can’t have a boarding pass because my yellow fever card isn’t 10 days old yet!! Again, no mention of this when I checked in at Managua Airport even when I specifically asked about the need for a yellow fever card. My wife and daughter flew to Managua without me and I spent a further 2 days in Panama before acquiring a letter from a doctor about my allergy to eggs thus making me exempt from the yellow fever card requirement. After returning to Managua I wrote a letter of complaint to CM demanding compensation as I believe CM are plainly negligent in this case. The reasonable person would say that the information that CMs employees used to deny me a boarding pass at Panama should have been provided to me by their employees at Managua two days earlier to prevent me from my financial loss. Especially given that I asked their employees at Managua if I would need a yellow fever inoculation card to return two days later. CM eventually acknowledged they are at fault. My claim was for 2 additional nights in a hotel and a partial loss of earnings on one day making a total of 394 USD. I believe my claim was entirely reasonable given the circumstances. However, CMs offer of compensation was for a travel certificate valid for 12 months worth 204USD. Given that I don’t intend to fly with CM any time soon this offer of compensation is virtually worthless. If you are considering flying with Copa Airlines then please read clause 9.1.2.1.1 and 9.1.2.1.2 from the contract of carriage, because it basically says that even if their employees misinform you about your travel requirements it’s your own responsibility anyway. In a recent email to me from Copa Airlines it starts:- “Thank you for choosing Copa Airlines Your opinion is very important to us and helps us provide you with world class services.” I think more appropriate and honest would be:- “Thank you for choosing Copa Airlines Your opinion is of no importance to us and we really couldn’t care less about you.”
AircraftBoeing 737 700
Type Of TravellerFamily Leisure
Seat TypeEconomy Class
RouteManagua to Panama
Date FlownSeptember 2018
Seat Comfort 12345
Cabin Staff Service 12345
Food & Beverages 12345
Inflight Entertainment 12345
Ground Service 12345
Wifi & Connectivity 12345
Value For Money 12345
no
8/10

"service was very good"

(Uruguay)

Not Verified | Montevideo to La Habana via Panama. The service was very good, the crew was very kind and the plane was clean. the food service could be improved but is not bad. In general all the flights that I flew with Copa Airlines was good.
AircraftBoeing 737-800
Type Of TravellerFamily Leisure
Seat TypeEconomy Class
RouteMontevideo to La Habana via Panama
Date FlownSeptember 2017
Seat Comfort 12345
Cabin Staff Service 12345
Food & Beverages 12345
Inflight Entertainment 12345
Ground Service 12345
Value For Money 12345
yes