Avianca caps you at two checked bags between the US and several Latin American cities during its own peak seasons. That is a real ceiling. It catches travelers who assumed Avianca baggage rules worked the same way all year.
The two bag ceiling that only shows up twice a year
Routes linking New York, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Ontario, and Washington with Bogota, San Salvador, Quito, Guayaquil, and Pereira get a lower cap. Two windows trigger it: June 5 through September 10, 2026, and November 15, 2026 through January 23, 2027. Inside those dates, you can check just two bags.
Outside those two windows, the same routes allow up to six checked bags. Families flying home for the holidays or a summer visit are exactly the travelers who hit the lower cap.
Nothing on Avianca’s general baggage page flags this. You have to dig into the help center article on buying checked baggage to find the dates.
What flies free on every fare
A personal item is included no matter what you paid. It has to fit under the seat ahead of you. The size cap is 45 x 35 x 20 cm, or 18 x 14 x 8 inches.
A carry-on bag is a different story. Avianca caps it at 55 x 35 x 25 cm, or about 22 x 14 x 10 inches with wheels and handles. Weight tops out at 10 kg, or 22 lb.
Whether that carry-on rides free depends on your fare. That is where most Avianca baggage rules confusion actually starts.
Basic fare strips the carry-on, not just the checked bag
Book a domestic Basic fare and only the personal item is free. The 10 kg carry-on becomes a paid add-on.
You can buy it at booking, during online check-in, or at the airport for more money. That is a step further than most US carriers go. It is a detail most summaries of Avianca baggage rules skip entirely.
Frontier and Allegiant charge for overhead bags too, but Avianca applies the same logic to its cheapest domestic tier. The international equivalent, called Light, is more forgiving. It includes the free carry-on and only charges for a checked bag.
Checked baggage weight and size
Standard checked bags top out at 23 kg, or 50 lb, in economy on Classic and Flex fares. The size limit is 158 linear centimeters, about 62 inches, measured as height plus length plus width.
Business Class Classic and Flex fares raise the weight cap to 32 kg, or 70 lb. Those fares typically include two checked bags rather than one.
Elite members of Lifemiles, Smiles, or Star Alliance Gold status get an extra allowance. It stacks on top of whatever their fare already includes.
What travelers report at the gate
Avianca publishes a firm 10 kg carry-on limit. Travelers on Tripadvisor’s Colombia and general air travel forums consistently report that gate staff rarely put a bag on the scale at all, on both domestic and international routes.
Size draws more attention than weight. Travelers describe bags getting pulled and gate checked for looking oversized long before anyone questions the kilos, especially once the overhead bins start filling up.
The airline enforces the fare rule far more reliably than the number on the tape measure. A Basic fare traveler without a purchased carry-on add-on gets stopped regardless of how light the bag is, while a Classic fare passenger with a slightly heavy bag routinely boards without a second look.
What an extra bag actually costs
A first checked bag on international economy routes generally starts around USD 80 to 95. The exact figure depends on the route and how far ahead you buy it.
Buying more than 48 hours before departure is consistently cheaper than paying at the airport. A second or third bag runs anywhere from about USD 35 to USD 200, depending on the destination.
Domestic Colombia flights price separately, starting near COP 79,900 for a first bag. Avianca does not publish one flat number for every route. Trust the price shown during booking for your itinerary.
Overweight and oversize fees on North America routes
A bag between 25 and 32 kg on a North America route adds about USD 160. Push it to 33 through 45 kg and the fee rises to roughly USD 200.
Europe routes cap hard at 32 kg. Avianca will not carry anything heavier on those flights at any price.
Oversize charges on North America routes run about USD 160 to 185 for bags between 158 and 230 linear cm. The higher end applies in busier travel periods. Past 230 linear cm, bags get routed to Avianca’s cargo division instead.
The bottom line
Avianca baggage rules read simply until you hit a fare code or a travel date that changes the math. Check which fare tier you actually bought before assuming your carry-on rides free. Confirm current figures on Avianca’s own baggage page before you fly, since fees and peak windows shift by season.
Check the calendar too, before assuming you can bring six bags home. Run your bag dimensions through our size checker before you pack. Price out an extra bag with the baggage cost tool instead of guessing at the airport rate.
Weighing Avianca against a US carrier flying the same Bogota route? Our pages on American Airlines and United Airlines cover their own checked bag limits.
Not sure which fare or bag setup fits your trip? Our bag finder tool can narrow it down.
The general carry-on rules page explains what stays consistent across nearly every airline, Avianca included. See our editorial policy for how we source figures like these directly from each carrier.
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More airlines in Latin America
See every carrier in the Latin America index.