Iberia Plus: What Are The Hidden Perks?

Iberia Plus is a popular European loyalty program. Since it switched to revenue-based earning for Iberia flights in 2022, you need to pay more attention to flights and earnings rates. Redeeming remains distance based for all flights, and there are some good value options here. This short guide shares some ideas for getting the most out of Iberia Plus, arranged as a series of tips based on earning Avios, spending Avios, and regarding elite status.

Earning Avios with Iberia Plus

Earning rates are distance based for all partner airlines. Although Iberia Plus now operates a revenue-based earning system for its own flights, all oneworld alliance and other partners earn Avios based on the distance flown. Especially for lower priced tickets and in premium cabins, this can be much more lucrative.

Photo: Iberia

Remember that several airline loyalty programs use Avios. Iberia, British Airways, Aer Lingus, and Qatar Airways all use Avios, and points can be transferred between the different loyalty programs. While it makes sense to stick as much as possible to one program to earn elite status, you can credit oneworld flights to any program. Consider this if earning rates are much better with another program. Iberia flights, for example, will earn based on distance flown and fare code if credited to another program. You can also utilize the partners and different redemption pricing methods of each program.

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Use the other airline partnerships. Iberia Plus goes further than just oneworld earning and redeeming. It has additional partnerships with Vueling, LEVEL, Binter Canarias, Avianca, and LATAM. These are particularly useful for anyone traveling to or within Central and South America. Since LATAM left the oneworld alliance, there has been a gap in South American coverage.

Consolidate earnings from other sources. Iberia Plus offers many other ways to earn miles through credit cards, travel bookings, and retail. Bringing all this together can really boost earnings. This is even more relevant if you frequently fly Iberia on low fares and only earn small amounts through the revenue based system.

Photo: Vincenzo Pace | Simple Flying

Spending Avios with Iberia Plus

Take advantage of the “blue” economy class deals for Iberia flights. When seats are available, the lower prices for Blue class economy are a great deal. Long-haul Avios prices do not go this low when booking with other Avios programs. These can still be changed or canceled, for a fee.

Photo: Iberia

Full economy tickets on Iberia can be canceled for free. This is an excellent benefit when making travel plans. Avios availability on popular routes goes quickly, and with free cancelations, it is easier to make plans in advance. This is not something offered by other Avios programs.

Photo: Iberia

Get good value from Iberia flights in higher Avios bands. Direct Iberia flights from Madrid to many international destinations are very good value use of Avios, particularly in premium cabins. For flights to the US, Madrid to US east coast cities, and Chicago prices at just 34,000 Avios off-peak in business class.

The next band up costs 42,500 Avios off-peak in business class – and includes Madrid to Bogota, Caracas, Guayaquil, Johannesburg, Havana, Lima, Los Angeles, Medellin, Mexico City, Quito, Rio de Janeiro, San Jose (Costa Rica), and Sao Paulo. The further South American destinations of Buenos Aires, Montevideo, and Santiago rise to 51,000 Avios – still excellent value for routes that can be expensive in cash.

Photo: Vincenzo Pace | Simple Flying

Use Avios for short flights. With straightforward distance-based pricing, the shortest flights are a great deal with Iberia Plus. British Airways Executive Club also prices this way, but other oneworld programs, such as American Airlines AAdvantage, price awards by zone (this had advantages for multiple connections but penalizes single short flights). The shortest one-way flights start at just 5,000 Avios (with Iberia) and 6,000 Avios with other partners. This works very well for short flights in Europe (with Iberia or British Airways) and in the US. There are great opportunities on expensive regional flights in Asia as well here with partners Cathay Pacific, Malaysia Airlines, and Japan Airlines.

Photo: Vincenzo Pace | Simple Flying

Be aware of taxes for partner bookings. Iberia Plus adds full taxes and charges to award tickets and a fuel surcharge in some cases (not on its own flights). There are fewer differences with other Avios programs than in the past, but it is still sensible to check specific routes. British Airways Executive Club, for example, uses a fixed add-on through the “Reward Flight Saver” scheme in lieu of full taxes. This is likely to make London departures with British Airways more expensive through Iberia Plus.

Partner awards cannot be canceled with Iberia Plus. Iberia and British Airways awards can be changed or canceled for a 25 Euro fee (or free for Full Economy class bookings). All other airline partner bookings are non-refundable and cannot be canceled after booking. This is unusual among frequent flyer programs and certainly limits the value. Do not book such awards through Iberia Plus unless you are sure of your plans. In contrast, British Airways Executive Club allows cancelation of any Avios tickets up to 24 hours before departure for a maximum fee of £35.

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Take advantage of the shared Avios currency. Avios is a joint points scheme used (currently) by British Airways, Iberia, Vueling, Aer Lingus, and Qatar Airways. Points can be transferred openly between the schemes, and in this way used for other flights. This opens up many possibilities. Cancelation policies are better with other airlines. Qatar Airways adds several non-oneworld redemption options, such as Bangkok Airways and Middle East Airlines.

Elite status with Iberia Plus

Status only comes from flying. Unlike many other loyalty programs (including most of the main US ones), there is no opportunity to shortcut status earning with credit card use or other methods.

Photo: Iberia

Look at sectors and fares to increase Elite Point earning. You earn Elite Points for each flight sector flown, depending on the booking class. In particular, there are big differences in earnings between discount economy and full economy or premium economy. This might make a higher fare/cabin worth considering when aiming for status. Likewise, breaking a flight with connections will increase Elite point earning in many cases.

Upgrades are only useful for some flyers. The ability to earn free upgrades at top-level Platinum is excellent (With British Airways Executive Club, for example, you need to go further than the top level to get upgrades). These upgrades are only applicable on full-fare tickets, though, so bear this in mind if you frequently buy lower priced fares.

Photo: Iberia

Do you use Iberia Plus for Avios earning and elite status? What are your favorite perks and benefits of the program? This guide has just shared some of these. Feel free to discuss these, and others you know or use, in the comments section.