From Brazil to Malpensa, crossing the Atlantic during the second wave.
The journey begins in Fortaleza and the final destination is Milan Malpensa, via Lisbon. Tap Portugal, given the [...]
Tap Air Portugal
LIS
The journey begins in Fortaleza and the final destination is Milan Malpensa, via Lisbon.
In this article:
Tap Portugal, given the strong influences of the Brazilian market for Portugal (and vice versa), has reactivated several routes since early summer, which is when the Brazilian government reopened the borders to all travelers, including tourists.
Contrary to what many other airlines have decided, Tap has connected its hub at Lisbon not only with São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro but also with the more touristy locations such as Maceio, Fortaleza, Recife and many others.
The Portuguese company, in order to sustain traffic, offers fares and promotions for South America with opportunities to travel from Italy for less than €500 in economy and just over €1,300 in business.
The current scenario presented to the eyes of the traveler is a ghost airport. It should be noted that over 7 million passengers passed through this airport in 2019! Today, seeing the monitors present all the movements of the day in just 2 screens still makes us reflect on what is happening in the world: in Brazil, where the first pandemic wave has never descended, and in Europe, where we are now in the midst of the second wave.
In the airport, almost all stores and eateries are open even in a situation of blatant lack of customers. Corridors perfectly neat, clean but desolately deserted, like a scene from an apocalyptic movie.
For Italians, travel to Brazil is prohibited according to the DCPM: only citizens and residents are allowed to return home, and they must undergo fiduciary isolation once they return to their homes. In case one decides to stopover in Portugal, however, it is necessary to be in possession of a swab with a negative result no older than 72 hours.
In our case we are returning to Italy after being in northern Brazil for reasons that cannot be deferred.
The flight
The procedures went smoothly, given also the low turnout as documented by the photos both at the check-in counters and in the airport in general.
Note how, over the next 18 hours, TAP's was not only the only intercontinental flight, but in general was the only international flight departing.
The flight was operated on one of the brand new A330neo: the Portuguese airline was the launch customer for this new version of the widebody made by Airbus. Indeed, thanks to a state-of-the-art fleet, TAP can boast one of the best ratios of CO2 saved on its flights.
The business cabin has the classic 1-2-1 configuration, so all passengers have direct aisle access.
The economy cabin with the 2-4-2 layout is also very spacious, each seat is equipped with a sizable screen, and WiFi can be used on board.
Upon arrival in Lisbon numerous health checkpoints, but for passengers who were continuing connecting on other flights more streamlined practices being different procedures from nation to nation.
In conclusion
The A330neo fleet is quiet and spacious thanks to the decision to have a central overhead bin designed differently from previous models. In-flight maximum attention to compliance, very competitive pricing, and excellent schedules for connections from Italy to South America. TAP offers solid service and deserves the current success the company is experiencing.
