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Flight Review: Arajet - Mexico City to Santo Domingo

​​Posted: March 13, 2025

Arajet DM 4161 on the tarmac at SDQ airport in Santo Domingo
Flight: Arajet DM 4161
From: Felipe Ángeles International Airport (NLU) To: Santo Domingo (SDQ)

I flew with Arajet from Felipe Ángeles (Mexico) to Santo Domingo (Dominican Republic)
​Arajet Airlines is the flag carrier and largest airline of the Dominican Republic, with its headquarters in Santo Domingo. Established in 2022, the airline provides low-cost flights to destinations in North, Central, and South America.
Despite the bed reviews, I had booked this ticket back in September 2024 said to myself that I would make my own judgement.

​Flying these days is not as footloose and fancy free as it used to be. Check-in staff can and do ask for an onward ticket, and immigration officers can and do ask to see proof that you intend to leave. I wanted to stay 6 months in Mexico, and it sure is easier when you have a flight out.

Fast forward 6 months, I am now married, I have my temporary residency card, so I don't actually have to leave, but I will always travel. My wife knows that, and the flight I had booked would take me to the Dominican Republic, my 111th UN-Member State.

You are required by law to register on the Electronic Ticket portal for entering and leaving the Dominican Republic.

Dominican Republic eTicket screen grab
Dominican Republic e-Ticket screen grab
Dominican Republic Electronic Ticket screen grab
It's pretty easy. Just follow the steps. I made an arrival and departure electronic ticket separately and emailed myself the documents after each process.

Also, a bit of confusion in that the Centro district in Santo Domingo was NOT listed, nor my hotel, so I put down another town I had booked for later on and filed it under private lodging as my hostel was not listed.

The e-Ticket is free. If you are asked to pay, you are NOT on the correct website.
The Felipe Ángeles International Airport (AIFA) is located 40 km from Mexico City. I took a bus from the Central del Norte Bus Station:
ETN Turistar/VIVA bus at the Felipe Angeles Airport
It was a night flight, scheduled to depart at 23:44 and arrive at 05:59. The Dominican Republic is on Atlantic Standard Time, which is four hours behind GMT and two hours ahead of Mexico City. (Mexico abolished daylight saving time a few years ago.)

In reality, takeoff was at 11:50 pm and arrival was at 5:30. The total flight time was 3 hours 40 minutes.
Flight plan Arajet Mexico City to Santo DomingoScreen Grab
I booked SMART and had a 20 kg checked-in bag and a 6 kg personal item for my laptop and other essentials, which easily fitted under the seat in front.
Arajet baggage allowance screen grab
Departures board at the Felipe Angeles Airport
I was checking my main bag. I was asked for the e-ticket, and I was asked for a return ticket (which I had). I got my boarding pass, and now, since I have temporary residency in Mexico, I am required to tell everybody when leaving Mexico. So, the agent gave me a new boarding card with RT scrawled on it and told me that I must go to the IMM first. This I knew, but the exact process was new to me.
Boarding pass for the Arajet flight to Santo Domingo
So I headed off to the IMM office, hidden away in a corner of the Felipe Angeles Airport:
IMM at the Felipe Angeles Airport in Mexico
Everyone who comes in here has residency. My documents were taken: passport, temporary resident card and boarding pass. Some guy starts flicking through the passport. 4 of them are discussing my 180 entry stamp, which was expiring that very day. I am told to wait.

Another dude comes in. He's processed within 30 seconds. I asked if there was a problem. "No problem, sir".

​I chimed in that I had arrived as a tourist, gotten married here in Mexico and applied for residency. They enter the details again. I waited some more.

After a long 20 minutes, my passport was stamped, and all documents were returned to me.

I head to security.

They checked the documents. I give them my card first and tell them I have temporary residency. "Did you go to Immigration?"

Again, they are looking like they have never seen a residency card. They tap the details into the computer, and I am handed the card back.

All very complicated. Why can't they just scan the card?

I am waiting for my flight:
gate 114 A at the felipe Angeles Airport in Mexico
photo of the ing of the ARAJET aircraft
Arajet is a no-frills airline. There are some pretty bad reviews about Arajet, especially customer service but to be honest, people just love to complain and a lot of the reviews are written by people (or bots) who are paid to leave bad reviews. Customer Service at Ryanair, Easyjet, Volaris and British Airways is equally as bad.

​Well mine is a genuine review because I actually flew with them.

There was no free food or drinks. None were offered. I asked twice for a vaso de agua. The air was very dry, so I masked up.
​
I flicked through the in-flight magazine:
Arajet magazine Conexiones
Nomadic Backpacker holding inflight magazine
Arajet fly to 24 destinations in 17 countries, with Santo Domingo and Punta Cana as their hubs:
Photo of the route from Arajet
Arajet brochure
I had 3 seats to myself, and for once, I was pretty comfortable. I reckon I slept for 30 minutes.

Arrival in the Dominican Republic:
Arajet DM 4161 on the tarmac at SDQ airport in Santo Domingo
I was quickly through immigration. I had a 30-day stamp:
30 day passport stamp for Dominican Republic
I was expecting to have to pay 10 USD for a tourist card. Maybe it's incorporated into the ticket now. I have no idea, and I definitely did not get a tourist card.

​Welcome to the Dominican Republic!

I drank a coffee, checked out the airport, then walked to the highway to get the GuaGua to Santo Domingo.
Previous Post: ​ATM Withdrawal Fees In The Dominican Republic
Next Post: ​Columbus Lighthouse and Mausoleum in Santo Domingo

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