LATAM Airlines Chile is the only carrier to serve Puerto Natales and has scheduled the service to connect conveniently with international flights
Puerto Natales is located in Chilean Patagonia, 70 miles (112 km) from Torres del Paine National Park, named the ‘Eighth Wonder of the World’ by VirtualTourist
LATAM Airlines Chile today operated its inaugural flight from Santiago to Puerto Natales for summer 2017-18, becoming the only airline to serve the port town in the south of Chilean Patagonia.
The flight departed Santiago at 11:00 and landed in Puerto Natales (Teniente Julio Gallardo Airport) at 14:10 local time. In November, December and March, LATAM will operate two weekly frequencies (on Tuesday and Saturday) and in January and February, it will operate four flights per week (on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday).
The flight times have been scheduled to enable convenient connections with international flights to and from the United States, Europe, and other international destinations. LATAM Airlines Chile flight LA001 departs Santiago at 11:00, arriving in Puerto Natales at 14:10, with a journey time of 3 hours 10 minutes. The return flight (LA002) departs Puerto Natales at 15:30 – stop in Punta Arenas – and arriving in Santiago at 19:50, with a journey time of 4 hours 50 minutes (all times local).
The service will be operated by Airbus A320 aircraft, transporting approximately 16,000 passengers over the summer months, a 35% increase from last year.
“We are pleased to serve Puerto Natales for the second year in a row and continue expanding connectivity in Chile and the rest of the world,” said Gonzalo Trucco, Head of Airports, LATAM Airlines Group. “Chile is increasingly being recognized as one of the world’s most attractive destinations and as an ambassador for tourism, LATAM is committed to offering unparalleled connectivity throughout the country. Over the last decade, the number of non-national passengers has doubled and last year alone we transported 2,161,335 international passengers to Chile.”
The port of Puerto Natales, located in the south of Chilean Patagonia is only 70 miles (112 km) from the world-famous Torres del Paine National Park, which Natural Geographic named as the fifth most beautiful place on earth and was voted as the Eighth Wonder of the World in a survey by VirtualTourist.
Recently, Lonely Planet also named Chile as its top country to visit in 2018, citing the diversity of its landscapes, including Patagonia, the Andes mountain range and the Atacama desert.
LATAM serves southern Patagonia year-round with more than five daily flights between Santiago and Punta Arenas and has increased capacity by over 30% over the past two years. It also serves the principal tourist destinations throughout Chile, including San Pedro de Atacama (via Calama), Chiloe and Easter Island, the remotest island on earth.
New routes from São Paulo
Tickets also went on sale today for LATAM’s new flight between São Paulo and Boston, with four frequencies per week starting 1 July 2018, as well as new services from São Paulo to Mendoza and Tucumán, which will begin in March and June 2018 respectively.