Monday 9 Dec 2019

Volaris Costa Rica

Depart GUA 22:12

Arrive SJO 23:57

Class: Economy

Volaris Costa Rica is a low-cost airline based at Juan Santamaría International Airport in Alajuela, Costa Rica. It is a subsidiary of Mexican airline Volaris. Announced in March 2016, the airline began operations in November with flights to Guatemala City. Besides Volaris, Avianca and COPA also fly this route, but the timings were not suitable for us so we chose to fly with Volaris instead.

It has destinations to El Salvador, Guatemala, Mexico, Nicaragua and US. For the flight that we are taking today, Q6 4069, it operates as part of a two-segment flight, from Mexico City to Guatemala City, then onwards to the home base San Jose, Costa Rica. There are six weekly flights between San Jose and Guatemala City.

Even though Guatemala City is the capital of the country, the airport is small and quiet actually. It was the second last flight of the day to depart Guatemala City and there were a few flights going to US (Dallas and Miami) departing after midnight.

La Aurora International Airport serves the capital of Guatemala, Guatemala City, and is the country’s main gateway and fourth busiest airport in Central America. Unlike many other international airports, La Aurora airport is located pretty much smack in the middle of Guatemala City, just 6.5 km from the city centre. Since Antigua is also a short distance away from the airport, many visitors to the country bypass the capital entirely and travel straight between the airport to Guatemala’s major tourist destination.

I had read many bad reviews online regarding Volaris. Since it is a budget airline, it was prone to delays. They also charged for extras like check-in baggage and food on board. Since we were traveling with luggage on our one month trip, I had to add on the check-in baggage allowance. The check-in process was fast as there was only one family in front of us.

Boarding started around 10pm. The airport was quiet as most of the shops were closed. Even the Macdonalds which we had dinner just now closed at 8pm. At the boarding gate area, there was one shop selling drinks and snacks. Boarding was not chaotic because it was around 40-50 passengers. There were already other passengers on board who had come in from Mexico City.

As the plane took off into the night sky, we said goodbye to the city lights of Guatemala. It was a bittersweet memory for me in this country. While I enjoyed riding the chicken buses and checking out the volcanoes, lakes and ruins at Tikal, I was also upset at losing my phone in Antigua due to my carelessness. Nevertheless it was time to continue on our next segment of the journey – to Costa Rica!

On board the plane, there was an inflight menu for ordering some finger food. The inflight magazine featured San Luis Potosi in Central Mexico. It was a major gold and silver mining hub on the Camino Real de Tierra Adentro, a trade route during the mid-16th to the 19th centuries. It’s known for colonial buildings, like the imposing, baroque-era Templo de San Francisco, which dominates the lush Jardín de San Francisco. There was also a short write-up about the Arenal volcanoes and thermal springs in Costa Rica, a place that we planned to visit on this trip.

After one and a half hours, we landed without issue in Costa Rica. It was close to 11:45pm when we disembarked from the plane. Immigration was smooth and our bags were also on the conveyor belt within 15 minutes. We are happy to have reached Costa Rica. Stay tuned to my blog for more stories about our adventures in this new country!