Pluna is betting on Brazil, low fares and Montevideo's emerging role as The Hub of the South.
When it comes to flights between Argentina and Brazil, the major carriers may look at Uruguay as simply flyover country. But Montevideo-based Pluna sees its home country as the nexus for a well-oiled regional machine with a linchpin of low fares the big boys can’t match. The second part of the Pluna playbook involves more flights to new destinations in Brazil, the market company president Matias Campiani says Pluna has looked to as a strategic destination since 2008.
The low fare strategy is Pluna’s way of compensating for the inability to provide direct service between Argentina and Brazil. And the compensation is generous considering the minor trade-off of ninety minutes additional flight time (2h45m direct from Ezeiza to Guarulhos vs. 4h15m with a quick layover in Montevideo’s cushy Carrasco terminal). A random search for an April round-trip fare from Buenos Aires to Sao Paulo (Click image above) found Pluna’s fares are anywhere from 38% to 92% cheaper than rivals Aerolineas, LAN and TAM.
The economic boom in neighboring Brazil means more real-toting tourists on the beaches of Maldonado and the parrillas of Puerto Madero, so Pluna is wisely serving more Brazilian markets, a move that will pay dividendos in reverse when more Argentines and Uruguayans flock to Brazil for the upcoming Summer Olympics and World Cup 2016.
Pluna just added Belo Horizonte, its eighth Brazilian market, earlier this month, a route which generated over 2,000 reservations before the first flight between Montevideo and Belo Horizonte. Talk about pent-up demand for underserved markets. Much like Atlanta Hartsfield in the U.S., it’s easy to look at the route map and understand why Pluna is describing its Montevideo-based efforts as “Creating The Hub of the South.”
For more information about unique travel destinations in Uruguay, download the new issue of InvestBA Privada.
