Best ways to use Alaska Airlines miles on LATAM in...

Once I first visited South America in 2013, I took a nonstop 27-hour bus trip from Buenos Aires, Argentina, to Florianopolis, Brazil. I had no alternative, as my backpacker funds could not afford the last-minute $600 flight. Evidently, it was a horrendous expertise that I vowed by no means to repeat.

Over a decade later, factors and miles have completely transformed the way I travel.

Earlier this yr, I spent three months touring round South America and located my stash of Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan miles very helpful. For example, 50,000 miles obtained me two economy-class flights inside the continent, in addition to a business-class ticket again to the U.S. This financial savings allowed me to splash out on Carnival tickets and skydiving as a substitute.

So, I’ve put collectively this information to share how Alaska Airways miles may also help prevent cash when flying to and inside South America on LATAM.

Alaska Airways Mileage Plan nonetheless operates utilizing an award chart, even for associate redemptions. When you take a look at Alaska’s website, you will notice the “beginning at” award redemption costs for nonstop itineraries. Enterprise-class redemptions for flight routes between 2,001 and 4,000 miles begin at 35,000 Alaska miles.

My high advice

The most cost effective solution to fly LATAM in lie-flat enterprise class from the U.S. to South America is to fly to Lima from:

• Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta Worldwide Airport (ATL)
• Miami Worldwide Airport (MIA)
• New York’s John F. Kennedy Worldwide Airport (JFK)

This deal is a steal — yow will discover award costs beginning at 35,000 miles plus $34 in taxes one-way (taxes are about double that on the best way house, which continues to be a really affordable quantity).

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When you do not dwell in one in every of these cities, you possibly can:

• Search for award availability on a connecting flight on Alaska (most helpful for these on the West Coast) and guide each flights on one itinerary; nevertheless, this award area will be onerous to search out generally, and the connecting flight is prone to improve the value.
• E book a positioning flight, however make your layover no less than a couple of hours (if not in a single day) to guard your self towards delays and missed connections.

Different (costlier) choices

Flight routes between 4,001 to six,000 miles will value you no less than a further 15,000 Alaska miles, with business-class flights beginning at 50,000 miles.

Itineraries beginning at 50,000 Alaska miles embody the next cities:

• Boston, Miami, New York and Orlando to Sao Paulo
• Los Angeles, Miami, New York and Orlando to Santiago, Chile
• Los Angeles to Lima

And the award chart tops out at 60,000 miles from:

A 2-in-1 journey

If you wish to go to a tropical vacation spot on the best way to or from South America, you possibly can reap the benefits of one other candy spot.

You possibly can fly between Santiago and Cancun, Mexico, or Punta Cana, Dominican Republic, for simply 35,000 miles and fewer than $100 in taxes one-way. (Notice that these flights solely function a few days per week, often across the weekends.)

Many vacationers, particularly these within the jap half of the U.S., will be capable of fly nonstop between Cancun or Punta Cana and their house airport due to frequent connections.

The completely different business-class merchandise

Although it’s possible you’ll guide a lie-flat business-class seat, the precise type of seat differs primarily based on the aircraft and route you fly.

On the least fascinating finish of the spectrum are some LATAM Boeing 787-8 planes (those with 30 business-class seats in 5 rows of 2-2-2) and Boeing 787-9s (with 30 seats in 5 rows of 2-2-2). With these planes, you will expertise older-style seats which are principally chairs that recline to lie-flat beds. You may be sitting subsequent to a different seat, and window seats do not need direct aisle entry.

When you’re on a Boeing 787-9 (with eight rows of enterprise class), 767 or 777, you will fly within the VantageXL seat, which is ready up in a 1-2-1 configuration.

And when you’re on the Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner plane with 20 business-class seats (as a substitute of 30), you will be in a brand-new Recaro R7 seat with a sliding privateness door. You possibly can expertise this luxurious business-class suite on choose flights between MIA and Arturo Merino Benítez Worldwide Airport (SCL) in Santiago. The airline may also use this aircraft on nonstop routes from Los Angeles Worldwide Airport (LAX) and JFK to SCL.

You possibly can see in case your plane has a 1-2-1 or 2-2-2 seat configuration and what number of seats are within the cabin by trying on the seat map on ExpertFlyer (owned by TPG’s guardian firm, Pink Ventures), AeroLOPA or the LATAM website or app.

Lounge entry within the US

In Boston, Los Angeles and New York, LATAM business-class passengers get entry to the superb Delta One lounges.

At LAX, LATAM flights depart from the Tom Bradley Worldwide Terminal, so that you’d must think about strolling time from the Delta One Lounge in Terminal 3 to your gate.

In Atlanta and Orlando, you possibly can entry the usual Delta Sky Clubs. (Atlanta’s Delta One Lounge is still a few years away.) When you’re touring from Miami, you will entry the above-average LATAM lounge, operated by the airline itself.

As for scoring lounge entry in South America, Sao Paulo has the most effective lounge in LATAM’s community, in my view, adopted by the one in Santiago. Plus, Lima simply opened its new airport in June, with a LATAM lounge anticipated to open in 2026.

E book financial system flights inside South America from 4,500 miles

For brief home hops inside South America, paying money is commonly the smarter transfer, particularly when fares are low. In distinction, miles are greatest used when money fares are excessive and for journey between international locations.

Use money for many home flights

You is perhaps tempted to make use of simply 4,500 Alaska miles to fly LATAM all through:

• All of Colombia (besides to and from the island of San Andres, off the coast of Nicaragua)
• All of Peru
• Most of Chile (besides the northern and southernmost extremities of the nation)
• Brazil’s south and southeastern areas (consists of Florianopolis and Rio de Janeiro)

Nonetheless, money costs are sometimes across the $50 mark for these flights.

So, when you issue within the taxes and Alaska’s $12.50 associate reserving payment, it usually would not make sense to make use of your miles for these flights. The exception is when the costs are excessive since you’re touring on the final minute or throughout a busy journey interval (like Carnival, Easter or the vacations).

Use miles for different flights

Whereas money can handle most of your home flights, miles can come in useful for:

• Flights between South American international locations
• Longer home flights
• Final-minute journey
• Journey throughout busy journey durations

For instance, I used simply 7,500 miles plus $38 in taxes and costs to guide a one-way flight from Santiago to La Paz, Bolivia, one week earlier than departure. With money costs on this date across the $300 mark, I obtained a redemption value of three.5 cents per mile, greater than double our June 2025 valuation of Alaska miles.

Taxes have been a lot increased ($124) on one other 7,500-mile award I booked for journey from Santa Cruz, Bolivia, to Lima. With money costs once more across the $300 mark, I obtained a decrease (however nonetheless very respectable) redemption worth of two.3 cents per mile.

On each flights, I acquired a free checked bag, in addition to free emergency exit row seating, which was a pleasant shock. I additionally discovered the cabin crew to be extra useful and pleasant than the typical provider.

Candy spots

Flying between LATAM’s hubs and the next locations can usually see excessive money costs and, due to this fact, present good redemption worth:

• Argentina: San Carlos de Bariloche
• Bolivia: La Paz and Santa Cruz
• Brazil: Iguazu Falls and Manaus (gateway to the Brazilian Amazon)
• Colombia: Leticia (gateway to the Colombian Amazon) and San Andres
• Peru: Cusco
• Paraguay: Asuncion
• Uruguay: Montevideo

Galapagos Islands

Most vacationers to Ecuador’s Galapagos Islands cross via the nation’s largest airport in Guayaquil.

Flights to and from the 2 airports on the islands are typically fairly priced with money, however Alaska can supply good worth for 7,500 miles one-way.

Easter Island

LATAM has a monopoly as the one air route serving Chile’s Easter Island, which is an as much as 5 1/2-hour flight to and from Santiago. Within the excessive season (which is throughout summer season within the Southern Hemisphere, or between December and February), money costs are $550 to $900.

So, a round-trip financial system or business-class flight can begin at 35,000 or 70,000 miles, respectively, plus $41 in taxes and costs. This can be a good worth, particularly because the business-class cabin options lie-flat seats on this route.

• On-line reserving: LATAM awards are bookable on the Alaska website.
• Taxes and costs: These are typically low for redemptions on LATAM.
• Stopovers: You possibly can guide free stopovers on a connecting itinerary.
• Cancellations: These successfully value $12.50. You possibly can change or cancel your award anytime as much as the scheduled departure time and obtain a full refund of the miles and taxes (minus the $12.50 associate reserving payment).
• Award area alerts: I strongly recommend signing up for Thrifty Traveler to obtain alerts on when bulk LATAM award area turns into out there.
• Award searches: Use award search instruments like Point.me, Seats.aero and PointsYeah.
• Various packages: You can even redeem Virgin Atlantic Flying Club factors or use an Avios program to guide LATAM award tickets. Alaska redemptions are often priced cheaper, however award availability might differ between packages.

Associated: These 12 apps and websites make award redemptions easier to find

The quickest and best solution to earn Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan miles is to get an Alaska Airways or Hawaiian Airways cobranded bank card.

Alaska Airways playing cards

Financial institution of America points one private and one enterprise Alaska cobranded card:

• Alaska Airlines Visa Signature® credit card: Earn 50,000 bonus miles plus purchase one ticket, get one for simply the taxes and costs ($0 fare plus taxes and costs from $23) after spending $3,000 or extra on purchases inside the first 90 days from account opening.
• Alaska Airlines Visa® Business card: Earn 60,000 bonus miles and Alaska’s Companion Fare ($99 fare plus taxes and costs from $23) after making $4,000 or extra in purchases inside the first 90 days of opening an account.

Associated: Alaska Airlines Visa vs. Alaska Airlines Business Visa: Should you get the personal or business card?

Hawaiian Airways playing cards

Alaska and Hawaiian have merged, that means you possibly can transfer HawaiianMiles earned from the next playing cards to Alaska Airways Mileage Plan at a 1:1 fee:

The data for the Hawaiian Airways World Elite Mastercard and the Hawaiian Airways Enterprise Mastercard has been collected independently by The Factors Man. The cardboard particulars on this web page haven’t been reviewed or offered by the cardboard issuer.

Switch from Bilt Rewards and Marriott Bonvoy

You possibly can convert Bilt Rewards Factors to Alaska Airways Mileage Plan at a 1:1 ratio, with transfers usually occurring within a few minutes.

Marriott Bonvoy factors will also be transformed into Alaska Airways Mileage Plan miles at a poorer 3:1 ratio (with a 5,000-mile bonus when changing no less than 60,000 Bonvoy factors), with transfers often occurring inside 24 hours.

Associated: When does it make sense to transfer Marriott points to airlines?

Switch from American Categorical (for a restricted time)

Till June 30, you possibly can transfer your American Express Membership Rewards points to HawaiianMiles. Then, you possibly can convert your Hawaiian miles into Alaska miles.

Associated: TPG’s favorite hotels in Latin America