It might be too late to catch Sunday's final but Etihad Airways' latest codeshare, with the Brazilian budget carrier Gol, will allow its passengers to fly to a host of Fifa World Cup cities.
Etihad flies direct between Abu Dhabi and Sao Paulo, and the tie-up will give its passengers access to Gol’s network of 51 other destinations in Brazil.
It will also increase Etihad’s connectivity to 14 destinations across Latin America, including Uruguay and Argentina.
The World Cup has brought attention to lesser-known Brazilian destinations such as Fortaleza, Natal, Manaus and Recife, all of them served by Gol.
"Etihad has arguably stolen a march on Emirates and Qatar Airways by getting together with Gol to codeshare on flights between Brazil and the UAE," said Saj Ahmad, chief analyst at StrategicAero Research.
“Notwithstanding the spike in business and tourism from the World Cup, Brazil is one of the world’s largest booming economies, and Etihad’s move to partner with Gol, the biggest domestic player in the country, will give their passengers a wonderful gateway.”
Etihad launched flights to Sao Paulo in June last year. The destination was its first in Latin America. Since then, Etihad said it has carried about 86,000 travellers between Abu Dhabi and Sao Paulo.
selgazzar@thenational.ae
