The Star Alliance and its Brazilian newcomer Tam have just launched the Star Alliance’s Brazil Airpass. For a fixed price that depends on the number of flights and the booking class you can fly throughout Brazil.

The website Brazil Airpass contains all the information related to the pass. This is our summary of the most important points:

• The airpass is available to residents of a country outside of Brazil in conjunction with travel to/via Brazil on a Star Alliance carrier. This includes Brazilians living abroad and excludes expatriates living in Brazil.
• A coupon is required per flight. The minimum coupons issued is 4; the maximum limit currently stands at 9 coupons.
• The maximum stay is limited to three months and the validity of the Brazil Airpass cannot be extended beyond the validity of the International/Intercontinental ticket.
• The airfare is valid on TAM flights within Brazil and additional travel to the city of Ciudad del Este, Paraguay. Flights which are operated by other airlines under a code-share or commercial agreement are excluded, which means Fernando de Noronha is out of the pass (TAM flies to Noronha in an agreement with Trip).
• Use the fare calculator to set up your itinerary and find out the cost of your pass.
• To book your flight, generate your itinerary and visit your local travel agent or contact one of the Star Alliance member airline reservation centres directly.
• You are not required to confirm all flights in advance. The first segment must be confirmed before departure, the rest may be left open.
• Rebooking is permitted at a charge of 30 USD for flight or date change. Cancellations are permitted before departure and are refundable subject to a charge of 100 USD. Cancellations made after departure are non-refundable.
• All flights taken with this airfare will accrue miles to your nominated Star Alliance Frequent Flyer Programme depending on the rules of your chosen Frequent Flyer Programme.
• Surface sectors are permitted, however they are excluded from the fare. Surface sectors are at the expense of the passenger. For example a passenger may fly in Sao Paulo and use the next coupon to depart from Rio de Janeiro. The journey between Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro will be excluded from the fare and any fares accrued from surface sectors must be paid separately.
• A stopover can be defined as a stay of more than 4 hours. If you have to connect at an intermediate point to reach your destination, the flights will be considered separate and will require one coupon per flight.
• Your free baggage allowance is in accordance with the airline policies in relation to your international flight.

Is the pass worth it?

We replied to a similar question when we introduced you to TAM’s Brazil Airpass. Our answer there is relevant here too: it depends on the time of the year you intend to travel, on the distances you are going to fly, the domestic market at the time (whether there are enticing flight deals or not) and of the time you have to complete your trip. There are so many things to consider that it is very difficult to answer the question. The consumers need to assess their trip, compare prices and work out whether it pays or not.

All the info you need is on Brazil Airpass’ website. Issuing a pass demands a certain knowledge of how airline tickets work. If you feel you need assistance, you will discover a good travel agent can work miracles for you. Don’t forget to ask them to budget for you the cost of your Brazilian itinerary using individual tickets. Sometimes the class tariff allows for a stopover, hence paying for one ticket while visiting two destinations.

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RELATED POSTS:
Brazil Airpass and South America Airpass by Varig and Gol
TAM’s South America Airpass
TAM’s Brazil Airpass
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We were preparing a blog post with details of Varig (and Gol’s) Brasil Airpass and South America Airpass when we discovered, much to our surprise, that Varig’s webpage is no longer functional and send the customer to Gol’s website. Here there is no mention whatsoever of the passes.

We have direct links to the sections on Varig’s now deactivated website that contain information on the passes. But we are afraid of mentioning the information contained there as there is no indication whether the passes are still being sold or not. We contacted Gol/Varig’s press office but as usual, there was no reply from them.

The day Gol decides to inform openly about the passes you will read about them here in the blog.

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RELATED POSTS:
TAM’s Brazil Airpass
TAM’s South America Airpass

Subscribe to D Airfare by Email

Tam has just announced the 2009 edition of its Brazil Airpass and also of its South America Airpass.

The South America Airpass is aimed at those living outside South America, wanting to travel to the cities Tam flies to in Argentina, Bolivia, Brasil, Chile, Paraguay, Uruguay and Venezuela. The pass must be purchased outside South America and must be issued along with an international flight to any of the destinations served by Tam in South America.

The calculation for the pass is based on the number of miles flown, and it has two tariff classes (airfare terminology). Prices start from USD 339 to USD 402 to fly between 1200 and 1900 miles and USD 1236 to USD 1470 to fly between 7201 and 8200 miles – prices if the international flight is operated by Tam or Tam Airlines. If you arrive in Brazil with a company that has an interline agreement with Tam or on a code share flight, the pass will set you back USD 402 to USD 564 to fly between 1200 and 1900 miles and USD 1470 to USD 1800 to fly between 7201 to 8200 miles.

The maximum number of flights allowed is 8, with a maximum of 5 flights per country.

You have 30 days to use all the vouchers, counting from the day of your first flight.

Airpasses can be bought up to 31 December 2009 for flights before 10 July 2010. For those taking part in Tam’s frequent flyer program (Fidelidade Tam), flights flown by Tam or Tam Airlines earn you 90% of the total amount of points.

There’s a another series of rules you should be familiar with before you approach your travel agent or Tam to purchase the airpass.

Is it worth it?

It depends on the time of the year you intend to travel, on the distances you are going to fly, the domestic market at the time (whether there are enticing flight deals or not) and of the time you have to complete your trip (under 30 days). There are so many things to consider that it is very difficult to answer the question. The consumers need to assess their trip, compare prices and work out whether it pays or not.

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RELATED POSTS:
TAM’s Brazil Airpass

Tam has just announced the 2009 edition of its Brazil Airpass and also of its South America Airpass.

The Brazil Airpass uses vouchers. Each voucher corresponds to a flight in economy class. You can buy from 1 to 9 vouchers (from 1 to 4 vouchers the price is the same). When you buy the vouchers, you have to specify which of the four reserve classes (not to be confused with the service classes, more information in airfare terminology) you want. The more expensive the class reserve the likelier you are to find seats available.

The airpass must be purchased and issued abroad (you can’t just arrive in Brazil and try to buy it here). It must be purchased along with an international ticket to Brazil.

If you arrive in Brazil with an international flight operated by Tam or Tam Airlines (former Tam Mercosul) you will pay slightly less for the airpass. Depending on the reserve class, the airpass will cost you between USD 551 to USD842 (for 1 to 4 vouchers) and USD 1241 to USD 2001 (9 vouchers). If you arrive in Brazil with a company that has an interline agreement with Tam or on a code share flight, the pass will cost between USD 635 to USD 926 (for 1 to 4 vouchers) to USD 1511 and USD 2201 (9 vouchers).

You have 30 days to use all the vouchers, counting from the day of your first flight.

The luggage allowance for the internal flights equals that of the international flight that brough you to Brazil.

There is a fee of USD 100 for cancellation or if you want to change the dates. Once issued, you cannot change the routes. There’s a another series of rules you should be familiar with before you approach your travel agent or Tam to purchase the airpass.

Airpasses can be bought up to 31 December 2009 for flights before 10 July 2010. For those taking part in Tam’s frequent flyer program (Fidelidade Tam), flights earn you 90% of the total amount of points.

Although it is called Brazil Airpass, you can include on your route flights to Ciudad del Este in Paraguay.

Is it worth it?

It depends on the time of the year you intend to travel, on the distances you are going to fly, the domestic market at the time (whether there are enticing flight deals or not) and of the time you have to complete your trip (under 30 days). There are so many things to consider that it is very difficult to answer the question. The consumers need to assess their trip, compare prices and work out whether it pays or not.

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RELATED POSTS:
TAM’s South America Airpass