The key to get these ultra-low rates is flying during the off-peak season, which lasts into late June before the peak summer travel season pushes award rates up to 50,000 miles each way. This is also available in Premium Economy and Economy on flights lasting more than 4 and a half hours. By comparison, these are 50,000 and 62,500 Avios on British Airways, respectively. While not industry leading, Iberia offers a solid business class experience, with comfortable seats, excellent and reasonably priced Wi-Fi, and good enough food and service. . Along the windows, seats alternate between being closer to the aisle and closer to the windows, and if possible youll want to select one of the seats closer to the windows, as theyre much more private and cozy. But airlines dont have a star rating (apart from the Skytrax scam). modern one. Our points-obsessed staff uses a plethora of credit cards on a daily basis. At 26 inches across, it's plenty wide to sit and sleep in. IB redemptions, availability and promotions (especially to customers in Spain) are fairly good and hard product still quite solid. Now Flagship Lounge guests are offered a glass of champagne upon arrival in the lounge, which was much appreciated after our security experience. Thrifty Traveler Premiummembers get award space alerts like this one first, along with cheap domestic and international flights. About 45 minutes before landing the captain announced that wed soon start our descent, and that we should be arriving early thanks to a strong jet stream. Some aren't able to book this far in advance. On select Iberia routes between the U.S. and Spain, you can fly in a lie-flat business-class seat for as little as 34,000 points each way (plus taxes) when you book on off-peak dates. I slept through breakfast so no shots of what was offered but considering how dull the rest of the food was I doubt I missed much and was just as happy grabbing breakfast in the lounge in Madrid as we had a number of hours before our next connection. Let's take a closer look at this great opportunity to exchange shoveling snow for tasting tapas. Find flights to Madrid from $748. Overall it was a completely adequate flight. The seatbelt sign was turned off just five minutes after takeoff, the and crew quickly made preparations for the dinner service. #36 out of 74 Airlines 285 reviews. Again, decent but nothing special. But your point about protecting workers may well still be relevant - in Europe the culture is that cabin crew (especially male) would be expected to help a elderly female passenger put her bag in the overhead bin, whereas I suspect American flight attendants specifically got that excluded in their contracts? Looks like they just extended the schedule through April 2022! If you're lucky and there are empty seats nearby, you might want to snag an extra pillow to prop up your head more. Both the duvet and pillow are on the thin side, though they were plenty comfortable. Extra digit is not letting me get transfer done , Your email address will not be published. I'm 5 feet 10 inches and had no issues stretching out, but I can't imagine the space being an issue for anyone under 6 feet 6 inches or even taller. And that underscores one of the biggest downsides of these seats: There's just not much storage. Get our daily email for the latest in travel, flight deals, and how to save on your next trip. Editorial Disclaimer: Opinions expressed here are the authors alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, airlines or hotel chain, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of these entities. By your head, there's a small reading light. Premium Iberia passengers at Miami Airport can use the American Flagship Lounge, located in the D Concourse. I just (2/4/21) flew the 10 hour flight from SJO-MAD on the A330. So all in, I think it cost me about $600 for 2 tickets after taxes for this route in biz class. Redeeming just 68,000 Chase or Amex points for a round-trip, business-class award flight from the U.S. to Europe is a fantastic deal, especially considering that many programs would require a similar amount (or even more) for a one-way ticket. It's a comfortable lie-flat bed for the seven-plus hour flight across the Atlantic with some really good meals onboard all for the typical price of flying economy. Service is centered on getting passengers fed and put to bed. Iberia Checked Baggage Allowance All checked bags must adhere to a max weight of 50 pounds (23 kg) and max linear dimensions of 62 inches (158 cm). As you can see, Iberia has opted to operate flights to America solely using Airbus aircraft. I went for the shrimp and scallops in saffron sauce with rice. My first time on Iberia. We had a smooth touchdown in Madrid at 12:30PM, and as we barreled down the runway we passed some parked British Airways A380s, that seemed to be stored here. Only dates in red will incur a higher charge. Don't get me wrong: The seats are plenty comfortable, and you won't find me complaining about flying business class. There were dozens of movies and TV shows to choose from. But the airline charges 57,500 miles each way, so you'll use up a bigger part of your balance as well as some extra fees. The flight was an hour late leaving, surely mot their fault, but then the RUSH, PRESSURE, QUALITY OF THE FOOD..awful! Waiting at each seat upon boarding was a pillow and blanket. While other airlines dress them up differently, you'll find the same basic seat on Emirates, Hong Kong Airlines, South Korea's Asiana, and more. The seat itself is reasonably comfortable and plenty spacious. Learn now how to apply! As an example, when I priced out a round-trip flight from Des Moines (DSM) with an economy-class flight to Chicago-O'Hare (ORD) connecting to an Iberia business-class flight to Madrid (MAD), the price came back at 144,200 Avios per person which doesn't match any Iberia award chart I've ever seen. I think Ben said once, that the star ratings in his reviews are more in relative terms than in absolute terms. The credit card offers that appear on the website are from credit card companies from which ThePointsGuy.com receives compensation. In contrast MAD is as well, but is IBs European hub and has enormous transit traffic between their world-wide ports, and that of other foreign airlines. Thanks to Iberia's distance-based award chart, flights from its other outposts will cost more. But in the looks department, it's all pretty grey. Here's a look at wide-open Iberia business class award availability from JFK for two passengers. 50,000 points transferred from Chase, sitting in Iberias program. When it's time for bed, it's easy enough to recline all the way back into bed mode. After getting caught up on a bit of work and having a couple of drinks, we headed to our departure gate. Im seeing the same. But I always thought that even in the Americas piece concept a bag in Economy Class can't be more than 23kg / 40lb and in Business/First not more than 32kg / 50lb. We flew these seats MIA-MAD in 2019 and the breakfast wasa piece of bread, some fruit and coffee/juice. Ren de Lambert is a contributing writer for EyeoftheFlyer.com - He is an avid Delta and SkyTeam flyer who has held Deltas top Diamond Medallion status for many years and flown millions of miles. Finally, and most importantly, adding an American-operated flight will take you far beyond your original award rate. It said chicken salad. Thanks for sharing and I look forward reading the rest of the trip report especially the Qatar's experience on the 787-9. Detailed seat map Iberia Airbus A330 300. Plan: Surf 3 hours (100 mb) Price 15 euro. Maybe it's some kind of "union" thingbut we could NOT have a drink bwfore departamentothey said something about US regulacinfine maybe again MOT their faultbut when ww were arbrea they came around ALREADY with meal traysNO MENU, NO CHOICESI said I would like -if it was possible- to have a glass of cava.meantime here comes RUSHING the meal cart!!! D is the best and most Iberia adding Madrid to Dallas flight For the summer of 2022, Iberia will operate 4x weekly seasonal flights between Madrid (MAD) and Dallas (DFW). At some point I decided to get up. And you're in luck, because it's one of the better business class lounges in the U.S. By U.S. standards, this lounge is positively massive. What a jerk American was amazing! MIA is horrible for the lines and how slow they move, and the lack of TSA-pre came as a shock to me too. I jumped on one of these deals with them in 2019, just to transfer points and had no luck in actually booking the seats they showed available. I finally figured out this would be the main way to dispose of trash on this flight! According to Iberia the pitch for Business Class is 30 to 32 inches while Economy is a tight 28 to 30 inches, but I felt it to be even a touch more than 32" (31" is standard Economy pitch for US Airlines). Madrid lounge was much better and you didnt miss anything. There's also a dedicated spot for a water bottle, but it's down so low toward the ground that it's pretty inconvenient. step-by-step guide on how to book these flights! This site does not include all credit card companies or all available credit card offers. We have had goos experiences with IBERIA before. The last time I flew Iberia, the airline charged for Wi-Fi based on data usage, with absolutely outrageous costs. We may receive compensation when you click on links to those products. Is that true??? The main course portion can be larger. On the console side, there's a small leather rest butting up against the area where you'll find both a wired entertainment controller along with the seat controls. I recall LAX and lines that ran outside from one terminal to the next. At the time of writing, here are the dates that currently have four business-class award seats on Iberia's nonstop flight: It's worth noting that many of the dates that don't have four awards right now do have 2-3 business-class seats designated for awards, so if you only need a couple, your available travel windows might be even broader. Thanks for sharing and I look forward reading the rest of the trip report especially the Qatar's experience on the 787-9. For example, the security line for the D Concourse stretched all the way to the J Concourse. Iberia doesn't always play nice with airport codes, so you may want to type in the city name (Chicago) rather than ORD. Why dont they? Iberia is not the world's best business class. Iberia 6171 Madrid (MAD) - Los Angeles (LAX) Thursday, May 25, 2017 Depart: 12:45 PM Arrive: 04:15 PM Duration: 12hr, 30min Aircraft: A330-200 Seat: 3C (Business Class) Because of my last-minute flight change, I was assigned a middle seat. It's divided into two small compartments, capable of holding just a pair of headphones, your amenity kit, and not much else. Maybe depends what concourse you use. In terms of product and convenience for getting to Spain, I definitely think IB is the best option. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. However, to the crews credit, they were always happy to fulfill any requests, when my coffee was empty they asked if I wanted another one rather than just removing it automatically, and they even smiled. I understand how you like those one tray dinner service on this transatlantic flight but I think a two-course meal should be offered in business class. With Clear and TSA Pre I'd guess it hasn't taken me more than 10 minutes to get through security in the last 5 or 6 years. But on the whole, dinner definitely exceeded my expectations. I hate driving the 2 hours to ORD and risking whatever traffic / construction delays I might hit. The Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card is the new must-have it card for travel lovers! 1 week ago Web Flight: Iberia IB 3170 Departure from: Adolfo Surez Madrid - Barajas Airport, MAD, Satellite Terminal T4S, Spain Take Off from: Madrid Runway 36L; length 4,350 m / . A very average product that would surely warrant a three star rating, right? Learn here how to apply. He assured me that specifically out of Chicago the plane is an A340-300, and that all "Business cabin" flights out of Chicago are now the Business Plus Seats (in one cabin,not a split cabin) and that all seats recline flat. Here's your ticket to do it next year for even less. Iberia unveils new A350 business class seat with sliding door iberia.com Tags: Bogota , Dallas Fort Worth International Airport , Iberia , Lima , Madrid Barajas , Montevideo Luckily, Iberia is insanely generous with how it defines off-peak. Only July and August are roundly considered peak season, with some occasional weeks and weekends throughout the year also blocked out for peak travel. As a result, as long as your flights are on or after that date, you can book these tickets for just 68,000 Avios (plus the same taxes and fees of roughly $225 per person). with quinoa and cherry tomatoes, cheese, a roll with olive oil, and some sort of chocolate cream tart with berry compote. TLDR: Iberia can be a total headache, but booking these flights can be done. So instead I burned up some Alaska points that I had been siting on for literally years. USB power, standard power and headphone plug placed low making it a bit awkward to plug in. The Flagship lounge furniture is literally the same as the Delta Sky Club. With that said, Ben is probably too young to remember the lines after 9/11. I can not tell you the one that was good (I know bad blogger sorry). The comments on this page have not been provided, reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any advertiser, and it is not an advertiser's responsibility to ensure posts and/or questions are answered. The trick is to fly during the off-peak season, when Iberia charges fewer miles. I figured this was some kind of virtue-signaling exercise and dutifully cleaned my hands, thinking theyd check and collect this right away but there was no follow up. Hes visited 52 countries (and counting) and has taken his 7-year-old daughter to 24 of them. I have flown Iberia quite some times over the past years, and for the prices and availability, I am always very pleased. Wait, say what? Heck, there are airlines that participate in TSA PreCheck that Ive never heard of (whats Key Lime Air? All rights reserved. Did MAD-JFK just prior to COVID in J, and I have to say it was the worst experience both on the ground and in the air. To kick off our trip to Oman, we first flew Iberia business class from Miami to Madrid. 2023 Thrifty Traveler. Both of these currencies transfer directly to Iberia at a 1:1 ratio, so if you have a card like the Chase Sapphire Preferred Card or American Express Gold Card, you can convert your earnings into Iberia Plus Avios. The 4 or 7 pm flights the dinner is more what you would expect in a premium cabin, at least pre-COVID. I just wish IB flew a nonstop JFK-BCN with their business class product instead of just the low-cost Level brand thats all-coach. I Why is that? Rent a car in Madrid and explore Spain by road, Land in Madrid and take trains to other cities, Explore Madrid for a few nights, then book a separate award ticket using Iberia Plus to another city like Seville (SVQ) or Granada (GRX). Shortly after, flight attendants brought around a tray with a small bowl of fruit, yogurt, a small croissant, and two crostinis was about all that was offered. Compare the cost in points or miles to cash, and see which option is best. My biggest complaint is they often We've flown IB between MIA and MAD quite a few times. The best part? There was also a map feature, which is the main way that I use inflight entertainment. Odd-numbered seats in the center section of Iberia's business class might be the best seats you'll find for couples. After takeoff I took a look at the inflight entertainment selection. 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Have flown Iberia quite some times over the past years, and how to save on your next.. Deals, and see which option is best with rice award availability from JFK for two passengers we these... Two passengers Icelandair, Azores airlines, LOT and more get our daily email for the latest in travel flight! 62,500 Avios on British Airways, respectively, flights from its other outposts will cost more side though. This site does not include all credit card offers that appear on 787-9! Main way to the next to accommodate anything larger than a pair of shoes or a reading... Ib between mia and MAD quite a few times on this flight Spain, I flew Iberia class. Waiting at each seat upon boarding was a pillow and blanket regularly fly this route in biz class a of! Comfortable, and website in this browser for the lines and how slow move..., at least pre-COVID dozens of movies and TV shows to choose from that ran from... Of shoes or a small reading light of trash on this flight reasonably. 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