Iberia is traditionally not considered a top airline partner of the transferable point programs. There are several reasons for this but it’s primarily due to a couple of factors including how you use Iberia Avios.
That doesn’t mean Iberia is a program to sleep on. Iberia does offer sweet spots both domestically and on select international routes. One route, in particular, is one of the best ways to fly in a premium cabin to Spain.
Credit Cards to Earn Iberia Avios (Miles)
A great way to earn Iberia Avios is to put your spending on a transferable point credit card. Iberia partners with American Express, Chase, and Marriott making it easy to earn Avios.
For personal credit cards, check out the American Express Green, American Express Gold, and Chase Sapphire Reserve. Green cardmembers earn 3x on dining and travel. The Gold earns 4x points on dining and US grocery stores. Reserve cardmembers earn 3x points on travel and dining.
For business credit cards, consider applying for the American Express Blue Business Plus and the Ink Business Preferred. The Blue Business Plus earns 2x points on all transactions. Ink Business Preferred cardmembers earn 3x points on travel, among other bonus categories.
Additional Ways to Earn Iberia Avios
The Iberia Plus program is free to join and with a membership, you’ll have the ability to both earn and redeem Iberia Avios for a number of activities including award flights.
Flying on Iberia or one of its partner airline flights is the first way that you can earn Iberia Avios. If you’re flying a partner airline, make sure to credit that flight to your Iberia account.
A second way to earn Iberia Avios is to use Iberia’s car rental and hotel partners. By renting a car or staying at an affiliated hotel, you’ll earn Iberia Avios at the end of your rental or hotel stay.
Consider using the Iberia shopping portal if you want to earn Avios with your online shopping. This is another ideal way to earn Avios with spend that you are already incurring.
Basic Iberia Avios Redemption Rules
Iberia is similar to airlines like Virgin Atlantic and Etihad Airways that have separate award charts for each of its airline partners. What’s important to know, as shown below, is that some partner airline flights are priced on a round-trip basis.
For example, Iberia requires you to book round-trip American Airlines flights. If you need to book a one-way American flight, consider using British Airways to book the flight.
When redeeming your Avios, below are several important rules to know before booking a flight:
- Fuel surcharges for Oneworld partners are generally lower than with using British Airways Avios
- Iberia uses distance-based award charts
- American Airlines flights must be booked round-trip
- Iberia has its own award charts and charts of each of its partners
- Iberia has peak and off-peak pricing for its own flights
Using the Iberia Avios Search Engine
Generally speaking, the Iberia search engine is not user friendly. In addition, not all airline partners can be booked on their website. For example, you need to use the Royal Air Maroc website to search for its own flights, and then call Iberia to book the flight.
As a general rule, you want to use the search engines below for these Iberia partners:
- American Airlines and British Airways for Oneworld partners
- Flying Blue and Delta Air Lines for SkyTeam partners
- Air Canada Aeroplan and United Airlines for Star Alliance partners
Best Ways to Use Iberia Avios
Iberia Avios are easy to accumulate because the airline partners with AmEx, Chase, and Marriott. AmEx point transfers take < 24 hours at a 1:1 ratio, Chase points transfer instantly at a 1:1 ratio, and Marriott point transfers take < 24 hours at a 3:1 ratio.
1. AA US Domestic <2,000 Miles
Short-haul American Airlines partner flights are an interesting sweet spot offered by Iberia. Iberia requires you to book round-trip American Airlines flights so keep this in mind before booking your flight.
With 17,000 Avios, you can book a round-trip American Airlines economy flight that’s less than 2,000 miles. British Airways requires 22,000 Avios, American Airlines requires 25,000 miles, and Cathay Pacific requires 30,000 miles to book similar flights.
Examples of round-trip flights in this zone are:
- Los Angeles (LAX) <> Seattle (SEA)
- Dallas (DFW) <> Charlotte (CLT)
- Chicago (ORD) <> Portland (PWM)
2. AA US Domestic <4,000 Miles
A second sweet spot when flying American Airlines are on what I’ll call medium-haul flights. These are award flights that are up to 4,000 total miles. Like the short-haul flights, American Airlines award flights must be booked round-trip.
With 23,000 Avios, you can book a round-trip American Airlines economy flight that’s less than 4,000 miles. American Airlines requires 25,000 miles, British Airways requires 41,500 Avios, and Cathay Pacific requires 54,000 miles to book these flights.
Examples of round-trip flights in this mileage range include:
- Los Angeles (LAX) <> Atlanta (ATL)
- Dallas (DFW) <> Costa Rica (SJO)
- Miami (MIA) <> Ecuador (UIO)
3. Iberia Central/East US to Madrid
One of the most well-known sweet spots when using Iberia Avios is for award flights between the US and Spain. The key when booking these award flights is to confirm that you are booking during off-peak award dates and that the flight is 3,001-4,000 total miles.
With 34,000 Avios, you can book a one-way Iberia business class flight from the US to Spain. In addition to the Avios, you need to pay $208 in taxes and fees. Comparable award flights with American Airlines require 57,500 miles, British Airways requires 62,000 miles, and Cathay Pacific requires 50,000 miles.
Examples of flights to Madrid (MAD) that you can book include:
- Boston (BOS) <> Madrid
- New York (JFK) <> Madrid
- Chicago (ORD) <> Madrid
4. Iberia US to Madrid >4,000 Miles
Another sweet spot from the US to Spain is for flights between 4,001 – 5,500 miles. Flights from Miami and the west coast fall in this band in the award chart. Before booking this flight, confirm you are flying during off-peak dates in the award calendar.
With 42,500 Avios, you can book a one-way Iberia business class flight from the US to Spain. Booking this flight with American Airlines requires 57,500 miles, British Airways requires 77,250 miles, and Cathay Pacific requires 50,000 miles.
The flights in this band are:
- Los Angeles (LAX) <> Madrid
- Miami (MIA) <> Madrid
- San Francisco (SFO) <> Madrid *seasonal
5. Royal Air Maroc US to Morocco
Royal Air Maroc is an Iberia airline partner that you may not think of when redeeming your Avios. The airline flies to a handful of US destinations making it easy to access North Africa from the US.
With 46,000+ Avios, you can book a one-way Royal Air Maroc business class flight from the US to Morocco. Search for flights on Royal Air Maroc and then call Iberia to book your flight. In addition to the miles, you need to pay $472 in taxes and fees.
Examples of flights to Morocco (CMN) that you can book include:
- Boston (BOS) <> Casablanca
- Miami (MIA) <> Casablanca
- New York (JFK) <> Casablanca
- Washington–Dulles (IAD <> Casablanca
Conclusion on How to Use Iberia Avios
The ability to use Iberia Avios to book US domestic flights as well as flights to Europe and Africa is fantastic! One downside with Iberia is that it does not show the same award availability that you will find on American Airlines and British Airways.
How do you use Iberia Avios with airline partners? Are there airline partners that provide you with more value than others? Please let me know in the comments below or by sending me an email on my contact page.
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