Avianca Reviews 

I am extremely disappointed with Avianca and would not recommend this airline.

Their customer service agents over the phone are dismissive, unhelpful, and seem to have no compassion for passengers—even during serious emergencies. I clearly explained that I needed to travel that day because someone had been critically admitted to the hospital. Their response was that if I wanted a cheaper fare, I could travel the following day. I repeatedly explained that waiting another day was not an option because this was an emergency, yet they showed absolutely no understanding or compassion.

I also explained that I did not need checked luggage, but I was still forced to purchase a more expensive fare that included it. Their excuse was that all fares without luggage had been sold, so I “had to” buy one with luggage. That made absolutely no sense and felt like a way to charge me extra while I was already in a desperate and stressful situation.

They then suggested a cheaper flight with a layover. My mother is 71 years old, has severe knee problems, and a direct flight is much safer and more manageable for her. She also has PTSD from a previous traumatic experience involving wheelchair assistance, which caused her to miss her flight during the devastating time when my brother—her son—passed away. Despite explaining all of this, the agent offered no empathy and continued suggesting options that were completely unsuitable for her.

LifeMiles is another complete disappointment. They repeatedly claim they cannot locate flights or award miles, even when customers provide valid boarding passes and reservation numbers. A loyalty program is worthless if the airline continually creates obstacles when passengers try to receive the miles they rightfully earned.

It feels as though Avianca takes advantage of customers because it is one of the few airlines offering direct flights on certain routes. I continue considering them mainly because a direct flight is safer and more convenient for my elderly mother—not because Avianca provides good service.

Between the heartless treatment during emergencies, dismissive agents, unnecessary charges, unsuitable travel suggestions, and unreliable LifeMiles program, dealing with Avianca has been exhausting and upsetting. If you have another reasonable option, I strongly advise choosing a different airline. Avianca does not make its customers feel supported or valued—it makes them feel trapped and taken advantage of.

If I could give negative stars I would. This is the most corrupt airline I have ever dealt with. Flying from Buenos Aires to Bogota in August 2026, the woman at the check in desk insisted that we had to check our carry on suitcases. I hate checking bags since I have dealt with theft and lost bags numerous times and asked repeatedly if we could keep our bags especially since we were checking in over 2 hours early but the Avianca worker said we did not have a choice since our final destination was Bogota and we did not have a connection (we are experienced travelers domestically and internationally and I have never heard of this). She rushed us at the desk and did not give us time to go through our bags. She made sure to ask about explosives but did not mention valuables which would have triggered my memory that my jewelry was inside of my makeup bag which was in my carry on. When we boarded the plane, the overhead compartments were almost completely empty so this seems to be a ruse that they consistently use in order to steal their customers' items.

When we arrived in Bogota and received our luggage, the zipper of my bag was open. I did not think too much of it since my bags had been searched before during international travel. Once we got to the hotel and I opened my bag, my makeup bag was also open which is when I realized all of my jewelry had been stolen (it was at the bottom of my makeup bag so they had to remove everything to find it). I had not planned on checking the bag and did not even think about it being in there…

I tried to go online and file a report immediately but their website is terrible and it won’t let you submit the form about missing items or luggage and there is no customer service line to call. We reached out via What’s App and email but still no response. We have since been told by other international travelers that Avianca workers target anyone with a passport from the United States...

When we were flying out of Bogota a few days later, we had to go to customer service to file a report and it took over an hour since there were about 10 other people also filing stolen or damaged luggage reports. Avianca is claiming that it is not their fault or responsibility and will not reimburse us in any way including flight credits (not that I would ever fly their airline again).

On top of that our flight was delayed out of DC to Bogota by 45 minutes which caused us to almost miss our flight. They did not make a single announcement in the airport about the delay, did not update the board, and did not update the boarding passes to reflect the delays. The flight attendants on the plane did not care about the delays and did not assist people with close connections to get off the flight first. We had to sprint through the airport which was extremely difficult due to Bogota’s high elevation. The only reason we made our connection was because our flight to Buenos Aires was also delayed with no notice, shocker! Of the 4 flights we took, every single flight was delayed with no notification.

Also my husband and I fly without paying for seats every single time. Between 4 different flights Avianca put us on opposite ends of the plane even though the flights were not full. In all my years of flying I have always been sat next to my husband even when we do not pay for seats.

Whatever you do, DO NOT FLY AVIANCA unless you want delayed flights, being forced to check your bags and your items stolen while they claim nothing is their responsibility.

I do not recommend flying with Avianca. Today due to a mistake , I missed my flight; I thought it was scheduled for 2 PM, but it had actually departed at 2 AM. When I spoke to the staff at the counter to ask for help getting on another flight, they told me I had missed the original one and cancelled my return ticket as well. I lost $450, and they didn't offer me a single option to take the next flight. I called their toll-free line, and they told me the only way I could fly was by purchasing a new $900 ticket. I find this completely disrespectful. Do not fly with this lousy company; they will steal your money if, for any reason, you are unable to make your flight.

No les recomiendo viajar por Avianca , el dia de hoy por mi error , tenia vuelo para viajar hoy 2 pm pero el vuelo salio a a las 2am , cuando trate de hablar con counter para que me ayudaran a volar en otro vuelo , me dijeron que habia perdido el vuelo y me anularon el tikect de regreso tambien , perdi 450 dolares y no me dieron ni una opcion para poder viajar el siguiente vuelo , llame a la linea gratuita y me dijeron que solo podia viajar si compraba otro boleto de 900 dolares , me parece una falta de respeto , no viaje en esta porqueria de compania les roban el dinero si no por alguna razon ustedes no puede volar

shocking... im surprised they are still in business. poor customer service, poor website, poor app.. "El Cielo es de Bananeros".....

My experience on flight AV528 was bad enough, but Avianca’s handling of my complaint was even more frustrating. I submitted a detailed complaint and received a generic response that did not address my concerns, yet my case was marked “Solved.” I was given no opportunity to rebut the response and no information on how to appeal or escalate it. I then had to call Customer Service myself, only to be told that the representative who handled my case could not escalate it because it belonged to another department. I was instructed to resubmit the entire complaint and specifically request escalation and compensation. Customers should not have to jump through these kinds of hoops simply to have a legitimate complaint meaningfully reviewed. Extremely disappointing experience from both the airline and its customer service.

We flew in to Medellin on 8/23. On 8/27, we received an email saying the following: “due to a situation beyond the airlines control, the boarding process for your flight took longer than expected. In this occasion, as a gesture of goodwill, we have issued you an EMD voucher that you may use for the full or partial payment for Avianca products and services”. When we clicked the link, we were told a $50 refund was on its way.

However, when we went to check in on 8/30, we discovered our reservation was cancelled. After two hours on the phone and another two hours at the airport, we were told “there is nothing we can do” and that we would have to purchase new tickets at a cost of $2,262 each. We originally paid $500 for round trip tickets. Avianca refused to help and left my children stranded in a foreign country.

Nothing in their email said anything indicating accepting a $50 voucher would cancel our flight. Not one single agent showed any willingness to do anything to help. We had to spend $2000 on another airline plus hotel and transportation a day later to make sure our children get home.

I have never seen such fraud and incompetence in decades of flying.

believe the reviews, worst airline i’ve been on so far. half their workers are rude, plus making me check my bag when a local beside me had the same exact bag as me. and taking our expensive items, that they did have the ability to write a security clearance for, after we already traveled with those items on two of their flights a week before. trust me…. pick any other airline. this is not my first bad experience with them.

The Worker at the Gate Desk before boarding the flight made us Check our Bags Last Minute and when we walked on the plane there was So Much Space both in the overhead cabins and in the seats. This plane was not jam packed with people at all. So her decision to force us to check our bags really screwed us over + delayed our travel process, we had a whole other separate drawn out journey after this flight and could have gotten out earlier but she caused us a lot more time and stress. Also our bags do meet the travel size requirements. There was SOOO MUCH SPACE for everyone's bags on board, and many people had empty seats next to them as the flight was not full, what she did was very unnecessary. Unfortunately the only person we could discuss this with was the flight attendant on the plane. She agreed and said there is indeed a lot of space still. I think that these clerks/workers at the gates should be given accurate info on how full an actual flight is instead of just guessing or making stuff up in their head and affecting people's travelling process with their reckless decisions. Other people were able bring their bags on, why she singled us out I don't know, the interesting thing though is karma is real and what you do onto others may indeed come back to bite you, that's how this universe works. The little dry snacks they gave to passengers on this flight were terrible. Thankfully had grabbed some food before the flight but the snacks they gave on board tbh they're not something for human consumption. They tasted so bad, like a snack for a dog. Disgusting, who thought that was acceptable to give to passengers? I feel bad for the other passengers that did not pack food or buy something bcuz those snacks on board like I said were absolute cr**. Bad company, definitely do not recommend.

Avianca will be my last trip with them
They are the worst airline
The agents do not forewarn customers in USA 7 oz is permitted but In Colombia the size is 3 fl oz so there is no consistent policy nor instruction so the customer ends up losing by losing items during lay over from country to country
The seats are super uncomfortable and the service extremely poor, rather fly next time with a USA airline , lesson learnt!!!

I booked a plus seat needing more legroom for my disability and because I was traveling with a pet. The plus seat is just as terrible as all the other seats. I tried to ask a flight attendant before take off if I could move to the empty seats at the back. She snapped at me to sit down. Is that how professionals speak to consumers? I'm not confrontational, but that was an unprofessional, bully move. I find flight attendants do this more and more. If you confront them then they hold the power to expell you from the flight. After takeoff I asked another flight attendant who were very helpful and I moved. Returning home was more ridiculous. I had a flex ticket and was missing paperwork. The check in fellow said I would pay nothing more to move my flight ahead. That was a lie. I ended up staying an extra night in Cuenca and 2 nights in Quito. I paid 700.00 plus US dollars to get home. What happened to my flex ticket? People shouldn't be treated like cattle. Take a row or two of seats out and charge 10.00 more. It's greed, not customer service.

Avianca airlines really sucks and the employees are madd nasty and has bad service. When you asked them a question they answered you with attitude and I been trying to get in contact with customer service and it been impossible + they forgot to send my luggage.

I’ve called this airline nine times now. Nine times I’ve gone through the menu and selected that I speak English and I need to talk to a representative that speaks English every single time it connects me to someone who can’t speak English and they just send me back to the main menu nine times. I actually don’t know what the heck I’m supposed to do.

Confiscated 2 of my belongings that followed every rule regulation and law of the county and country of arrival of avianca the shithole company and of the airport when I showed the miserable lady the proof she said it wasn’t up to her and wouldn’t bring her manager so I could talk to him cheers avianca

Horrible experience I pay 4 bag and I want pay another one then charge $275 like another flight ticket also the lady and the supervisor was so extremely bad attitude with or customer . I try flying and stay enjoying with my wife to are country . The look like want more money customer pay for baggage or looking small think . You guys can pay more money look what wrote on top $275 for another additional baggage not fear.. I won’t recommend to flight I feel honestly not good this flight take anymore . Won’t do it is lot money ticket and baggage today he’s supervisor horrible experience

I will never EVER fly with this airline again. Absolutely dangerous luggage handling, insisting you check your carry on even if it has power banks and a laptop and medication in it. Staff are rude. Seats don’t recline. Never EVER again.

Excellent experience with Avianca. We lost a connection due to unexpected problems at the airport and they changed our tickets for free without additional fees. The ground personnel was very kind and we would like to thank Flora and Diana in Cusco Airport.

Took a group of 10 on surf trip to Nicaragua. We all bought “Flex” tickets (their top tier ticket), which includes a checked bag with the fare. The only checked bag that each of us submitted was our surfboard bag. We were charged an additional $175 each per bag each way. This additional charge was not explained without going deeply into multiple screens on their website. In addition to the sketchy transparency, the amount of the fee is 3-4 times more than any competing carrier’s charges for surfboards. After sending a written request for reimbursement, I was told that their policy was clear and that the charges would not be reimbursed. In response, I explained that our group of 10 surfers will be flying with a competing airline in the future. If you are a surfer and want to bring your own boards, be aware that Avianca charges significantly higher fees for boards than other airlines. Can’t wait until Alaska establishes a route to Nica - much better airline.

Extremely unacceptable treatment by Avianca — one of the worst airline experiences I have ever had.
Our flight was delayed twice, then canceled, and then delayed another two times, leaving passengers stranded for hours with little to no reliable information. What made the situation even worse was Avianca’s customer service. Representatives were unable and unwilling to provide clear answers, meaningful assistance, or accurate information about the delays, cancellation, rebooking, or what passengers were supposed to do next. We were left waiting for hours while constantly having to search for information ourselves.
The way Avianca handled the situation was completely unacceptable. I understand that weather, airport conditions, mechanical issues, or other circumstances can cause delays and cancellations. What is unacceptable is abandoning your customers when those problems occur. Passengers deserve communication, transparency, and actual assistance—not hours of uncertainty and being passed around without answers.
The food voucher policy was another major disappointment. The vouchers were so restrictive that passengers had to spend exactly the amount specified. If the food cost less, the vendor would not accept the voucher, and if it cost more, the passenger had to pay the difference out of pocket. This is not meaningful assistance—it effectively forces stranded customers to spend additional money just to eat while waiting for an airline-caused disruption to be resolved.
Meanwhile, passengers are left dealing with the financial consequences of missed connections, hotels, rental cars, transportation, meals, and other prepaid arrangements. Avianca needs to understand that customers are not simply flight numbers. Real people are losing time and money while being given little information and virtually no support.
This was an extremely frustrating and unacceptable experience. Avianca’s handling of this disruption demonstrated a serious lack of customer service, communication, and concern for its passengers. Delays and cancellations may sometimes be unavoidable, but treating your customers this poorly is a choice. Avianca needs to do much better

Zero stars would be more accurate if it were possible. Rude staff, seats that don’t recline, a frozen sandwich on a 7-hour flight, and just a single cup of water — any more and you have to pay for it. Old, slow planes: on my flight from Santiago to Bogotá, we lost an hour in the air despite departing on time, which put my connection at risk. Avoid this airline if you can — it’s the worst!