The last time I flew LAN Airlines was in first class on my way to Ecuador, so naturally when I found out I was flying economy to Chile for this year's TravelMart Latin America, I was a little bummed. But as I settled in, I thought the opposite: "Why would anyone get business or first class on this carrier when their economy class is just as good?"
Basically just make sure you don't have a middle seat and you're good. Now, I'm a simple man, so my criteria for a good flight is pretty basic- I want alcohol, preferrably free, but as long as I can get it whenever I want. I want a ton of movies to watch and I want a decent meal. This flight met all of those requests. The steady service of drinks was perfect and the personal TVs every passenger got was stacked with newly released movies like the comedy "Adventureland" or the drama "State of Play" with Russell Crowe along with some classics like "Officer and a Gentleman."
Now, the foot space wasn't as a good as it was when I flew first class but the reclining space was excellent. I went back so far that it felt like I was in sleeping in my own bed. I began dozing off midway through my second episode of "Friends" (episode where Rachel and Ross throw a party for their one-year old daughter).
I woke up, felt energized and was ready to see what Chile had to offer.
Bottom line: Chile is expensive to fly to, plus you have to pay an entry tax of $130 so no need to pay any extra on LAN when you can feel like first class in economy.
Visit www.lan.com.