Chile Forum

I am planning on moving to Chile in late May of this year, and my girlfriend and I are planning on bringing our cat. I was just wondering how difficult this whole thing is going to be. I know we have to get an examination from a vet here in the States first, but as far as actually the process of bringing the cat on the plane and picking her up at the airport in Santiago... what am I getting myself into here?

Bringing an animal was amazingly easy (a 65 pound psycho dog). The charge for us was $50 through the airline. We printed out the form from the Chilean consulate for our vet to fill out, had the dog checked out, a blood test. Once we arrived in Santiago, there was a person who glanced at the documents, stamp, sign, and we were done.

If anyone has a large animal that will have to travel in the cargo hold, there are certain times of the year where you cannot transport an animal there due to cold temperatures.

Also, Charles is quite right, having a place to land in Santiago that allows pets is the other glitch. Cats certainly will be much less a problem, than a large dog.

Just get your forms, coordinate with the airline, and have an animal friendly place to stay.

Good Luck

Having a place to bring the cat won't be a problem... my girlfriend's mom is a real estate agent and is going to have an apartment waiting for us in Viña when we arrive. Thanks for all the advice. A secondary question, I am probably going to buy the tickets to Chile through a priceline.come or something like that, am I going to have problems coordinating the transport of the cat if I purchase through a website like that and there are multiple airlines involved?

jalundberg wrote:... I am probably going to buy the tickets to Chile through a priceline.come or something like that, am I going to have problems coordinating the transport of the cat if I purchase through a website like that and there are multiple airlines involved?

I don't understand your strategy. IMO, YES you will have a problem. For something this important to leave in the hands of multiple carriers on a PRICELINE purchased ticket is asking for trouble. Would you be this cheap if the cat were a human, say a son or daughter? I mean how much difference in price are we talking here? Please provide starting airport and approx. date of travel and maybe we can help you find an economical price with minimal air transport hassle.

Point taken. What I'm trying to arrange is a one-way ticket from Minneapolis to Santiago sometime towards the end of May (20th - 25th or so). Any help would be appreciated greatly.

I collect my miles and maintain elite status with AA so a willing Delta expert will have to give a separate analysis.

Here is my analysis as of the afternoon of March 6:

-I assume MSP is your home airport.
-I would route through DFW (Dallas) as that airport has less problems than MIA (Miami) with luggage and has generally better customer service.
-I would leave on a Tuesday to avoid maximum crowds and to get the lowest fare possible.
-I would buy a discount round trip ticket with the intention (only known to you) that you will not use the return as a pure one-way ticket will be more expensive than a discounted RT.
-The return should be setup within one month of departure and route through MIA which will bring down the total fare a fraction.
-The aa.com website has details on transporting animals.
-The only AA discount I know of is the 5% Entertainment Book. This can only be used when you use the RT tab on the aa.com site to setup your flight (cannot be applied when using the "Multi-City" tab to setup your flights).

This is the best I could come up with the afternoon of March 6 playing with the RT tab:

AMERICAN AIRLINES
2473
MSP Minneapolis-St Paul
May 20, 2008
03:35 PM
DFW Dallas/ Fort Worth
May 20, 2008
06:05 PM
738

AMERICAN AIRLINES
945
DFW Dallas/ Fort Worth
May 20, 2008
09:30 PM
SCL Santiago
May 21, 2008
08:00 AM
763

AMERICAN AIRLINES
912
SCL Santiago
Jun 02, 2008
08:30 PM
MIA Miami
Jun 03, 2008
05:00 AM
763

AMERICAN AIRLINES
2049
MIA Miami
Jun 03, 2008
08:10 PM
MSP Minneapolis-St Paul
Jun 03, 2008
10:50 PM
738

Average Fare per Person - 1126.56 USD
Additional Taxes and Fees per Person - 102.80 USD

Thanks for all the information. I actually found a ticket from Miami to Santiago via Bogota for only around 400. Might just end up finding a cheap ticket to Miami through NWA and time it with the other flight. See any pitfalls in that plan? I hope not, but any suggestions would be appreciated.

Allow lots of time between different tickets for delays, misconnects etc.

Remember the airline on the next ticket has no obligation to help you in a misconnect situation. They may make you buy a new ticket at walk-up fare prices and if you missed the only flight of the day, you will be paying for a hotel on your tab lugging a cat around. If the flights are booked for the next couple of days, that won't be fun.

So it looks like after flight one to Miami, need to pick up cat and check-in again at MIA.

Then hope everything goes fine on the next ticket. Do you change flights in Bogota? Each plane switch adds an unknown factor that could really make your day and night a long one. I feel for the cat (and I'm not a cat lover).

Hope none of the airlines you are taking are like Aerolineas Argentinas.

Suerte.

eeuunikkeiexpat wrote:Each plane switch adds an unknown factor that could really make your day and night a long one.

Hope none of the airlines you are taking are like Aerolineas Argentinas.

Suerte.

Mate dont be cheap.. if I were u i'd pay the extra $ and get the cat and the mrs to chile without any problems.. but u could always wing it and save $! u'll probably need as many USD as you can, now that the CLP is going up

Unfortunately money is a big issue. I'll be graduating in May from college so money isn't exactly abundant. Cheapest way is the best way for me, extra patience is a resource that I do have.

OK understood.

Just realize that if something goes wrong you could easily end up paying as much as an advance purchase discounted one stop/plane change Delta or AA ticket if you end up having to purchase new tickets at walk-up fares, pay for hotels, meals and other expenses.

jalundberg wrote:Unfortunately money is a big issue. I'll be graduating in May from college so money isn't exactly abundant. Cheapest way is the best way for me, extra patience is a resource that I do have.

ahh.. well good luck mate! let us know how it all goes...

Thanks for all the info. I'm hoping to buy the tickets this weekend, so we'll see how it all goes.

Well as much as my cheap spending habits tried to keep me from doing it, I finally heeded y'alls advice and bought a regular round-trip ticket to make sure we all get there safe. I'm sure I'll be thanking y'all for the advice when I'm safely on the ground in Santiago instead of stranded in Bogota.