The first time I visited Costa Rica three years ago, I saw way too much of it from the window of a van, while bouncing along bad roads. This time I vowed to spend more time where I wanted to be and to get a big picture view of the country from above. After four great flights on Nature Air, I’d definitely go the same route again.

Nature Air stands out in a lot of ways. It’s an independent operation (not part of a larger conglomerate) and is a carbon-neutral airline—the first one to be able to claim that designation. Whatever it can’t conserve or resuse, it offsets with carbon credits going to reforestation. I have trouble putting much faith in carbon credits normally, but in Costa Rica I saw a lot of reforestation work in motion, so it seems like more than an ambiguous concept.

The airline flies to 14 airports in its home country, plus three in Panama and one in Nicaragua. It hits all the places you would probably want to go, like Liberia, Tamarindo, Arenal, Quepos, Puerto Jiminez, Limon, and Tortuguero.

In a small country like Costa Rica, obviously these are not big jets making the runs. These are small prop planes holding either 7 or 19 passengers. Three of my flights were on the latter, but on my last one, from Quepos to San Jose, I was about to sit down as #6 when the pilot asked me to move—into the co-pilot seat! With a front view taking off and landing, that’s definitely a flight I won’t forget.

Don’t expect a lot of frills with these flights: that’s not the point. Many cost under $100 and none of them are very long. These are more like air taxis than commercial planes. There’s an in-flight magazine, but that’s about it. These planes are so small that the pilot just turns around and tells you how long the flight will be and if you’re stopping anywhere along the way to drop off and pick up passengers. Don’t worry—announcements are in both English and Spanish.

If the clouds aren’t too heavy, you’ll spend most of the time looking out the window anyway. This is a great way to see how lush and green the landscape is in Costa Rica and you can actually make out the topography and coastline that you’re seeing on a map.

When you go to book a flight on Nature Air, you’ll notice a wide disparity in fares. The two main variables are refund options and weight allowances. The weight allowances are so low at the bottom end that you pretty much have to be traveling with nothing more than an overnight bag: 15 pounds for checked luggage, 10 for your carry-on. If you have a laptop and an SLR camera in your carry-0n, you’re probably already over the limit. If you have these things plus a typical 22-inch wheelie bag, you’ll be coughing up an extra $40 at the counter. So get out a calculator and buy and pack accordingly after looking at the guidelines on their website.

Their Nature Vacations arm also books vacation packages with a variety of itineraries and styles (adventure, romantic, eco-tourism), all with domestic flights folded into the package prices. They know the country inside-out, plus the prices are competitive.

I’ve written before about my underwhelming experiences flying LAN Peru and their annoying two-tiered pricing system, but last week marked the first time I’ve flown on a proper long-haul LAN international flight. I flew round-trip from Mexico City to Santiago, Chile and this was a whole different story. It was an impressive experience all around, even though I was stuck in economy class.

When you spend eight hours or more on a plane, little details can easily make or break the trip, so fortunately LAN gets a lot of the details right on these long flights. There was a blanket and pillow waiting on every seat, in contrast to the penny-pinching ways of most U.S. airlines. There was also real food that was edible—with two meals even. The trays came with real silverware, they served decent Chilean wine in coach, and all this was delivered with a friendly smile. (It was love at first sight with my flight attendant on the way back too, but I can’t guarantee you that same experience.)

Each seat on these long flights has an entertainment console on the seat in front. I could watch a movie or TV show in English or Spanish, play a video game, or listen to one of many music channels or specific albums—good ones too. A remote control attached to the seat controls the screen and the overhead light. Well in theory anyway. On my second flight it wasn’t working and I had to keep pressing the screen to choose anything, which I’m sure the guy in front of me wasn’t thrilled about. But everyone else’s was working fine.

A few other nice details: a cup holder on the seat in front and headrests with adjustable flaps on the sides to make it easier to catch some sleep during the flight.

The seat configuration on my flight was 2-3-2, so only one poor sap gets stuck in a middle seat for each row. SeatGuru says the seat pitch is 32 inches, which is certainly not generous, but this Boeing 767-300 version has an extra inch of width (18 inches) at least and all the diversions sure helped make it more bearable.

I couldn’t try out business class first hand, but there was clearly far more space than I’ve seen on the U.S. carriers, Taca, or Copa. LAN says the seats recline to full lie-flat position and the pitch is 72 inches—six feet. I assume the wine selection is a showcase for what Chile has to offer.

Lan flies to South America from 30 cities in North America, so there’s a good chance you can get on one of these frmo where you live and be far more comfortable than you would be on a U.S. alternative. See more at LAN.com

I did a post recently on how to get into airport lounges when you fly as they can make your layovers a whole lot more pleasant or productive. I noted in there that my choice is the American Express Platinum card. It’s a hefty $450, but gets you into the lounges of three major airlines, with your guests/family.

It just got better though: now you can add USAirways to that list as well. True, this airline is perpetually at the bottom of the rankings when it comes to customer satisfaction, but if you do get stuck flying with them, at least your time between planes will be better if you’re passing through Charlotte or another hub where they have a lounge.

This post from Dan’s List runs down all the benefits of the card—and there are a lot—plus if you’re a new customer you can get 25,000 miles upon approval that you can deposit into a bunch of different airline and hotel programs. Sweet deal!

I always find something useful in Wendy Perrin’s column in Conde Nast Traveler and when catching up on my magazines lately I ran across an especially good one. How to snag a bargain seat in business class delivers on the title.

There’s nothing specifically about flying to Latin America, but the same tendencies apply. Often a business class seat from a major U.S. city to a major one in South America will be less than double the price of a coach ticket. As she points out, as airlines (especially U.S. ones) have starting tacking big co-pays onto business class upgrades, often just buying a business class ticket will be cheaper than upgrading from coach—while gaining miles instead of using them!

Her specifics on landing a good fare range include some good resources and advice:

- Consolidator Etravelbid.com – right now they’re advertising NYC to Rio, Buenos Aires, and Santiago all under $3,000.

- JoeSentMe.com charges $49 a year, but offers access to the best business class fares each week. There are a lot of services promising to do that, but this one gets consistently high marks from users.

- Book at least two months ahead to see the best selection

- Look at foreign carriers you don’t expect to fly that route. Granted there aren’t as many of these serving Latin America, but you can fly on Copa to Buenos Aires from New York or Santiago from Los Angeles, for example. Taca goes to a whole long list of cities via its hubs in Central America and LAN serves a lot of routes as well. I’ve found the best representation of foreign airlines (though it’s far from complete) to be on Vayama.com.

- Fly to business capitals. For obvious reasons, you’re going to find a lot more business class seat selection between places where business travelers fly. So Sao Paulo is easier than Rio, Lima is easier than Montevideo. And if you don’t live in a major U.S. business city, you’ll probably need to buy two separate flights. One from your airport in coach, another from the major city in business class.

If you travel regularly, or take a few flights a year with long layovers, getting into the more refined space of an airport VIP lounge can make your trip much more pleasant. More comfortable furniture, work spaces, snacks, and even a shower in some of them. Road warriors who put in enough miles to get to the elite level of an airline usually get access for free, but the rest of us need to pay for a shortcut.

Here’s how to buy your way in, apart from getting a day pass on the spot (usually $40-$50 per person).

Credit Cards with Lounge Perks

Most of the airlines offer some kind of “platinum” or “president” card that charges a hefty annual fee in exchange for a list of perks that elite travelers get, like the ability to check one bag for free and a year-long pass to the airport lounges. Continental’s high-end card, for example, is a hefty $399 a year ($304 the first year), but you also get “access to United and US Airways lounges; first and second checked bag fees waived; Hyatt Platinum elite status; 1,000 Flex elite-qualifying miles per $5,000 in purchases; priority check-in, boarding, and express security screening.”

Priority Pass

This company’s card gets you into the widest range of lounges available, including foreign carriers, but carries a fee of $249 for 10 visits or $399 for unlimited visits. It’s worth it if you fly solo a lot internationally, but for vacationers you will need to pay $27 for each guest. Get a discount if you purchase through this link: Priority Pass – 10% Off

American Express Platinum

This has been my method of choice for the past few years and while it pains me to pay the $450 a year for the card, I feel like I’ve gotten my money’s worth. Just flash the card, your boarding pass, and your passport and you get into the lounges of American, Delta, and Continental. What really makes it worthwhile is you can bring your family in, which I’ve done multiple times flying to Mexico or across the U.S. The card also includes emergency evacuation service, which is also a few hundred dollars in value, plus it gets you extra perks when you use it at many luxury hotels, like free breakfast or a room upgrade. And of course the Membership Rewards mileage program, which is very handy for topping off different mileage/points accounts from airlines and hotels. The downside is, you have to be flying on the airline to use the lounge. So if you fly into Santiago on LAN instead of one of the U.S. carriers, you’re out of luck.

Buy a membership

This is the worst choice because you pay top dollar just to get into a single airline’s lounge (and sometimes their partners’ as well). You’re better off just getting their credit card or an Amex Platinum card since the cost can be north of $400. You do get to bring in family or a guest though, which can really bump up the value compared to something like Priority Pass. Be advised though that some lounges–like American’s—are much stingier with what they give you than others, like Continental’s—where free cocktails and Wi-Fi are standard. Choose accordingly.