Iberia launches Johannesburg for low tax South Africa redemption flights

For anyone bemoaning the lack of Avios availability on British Airways flights to South Africa, there is some good news.

Iberia has announced a new ‘three flights per week’ service from Madrid to Johannesburg from August 2016.

It will depart on Mondays, Thursdays and Fridays, using a new Airbus A330-300 with a two class configuration.

The 23.45 departure time is convenient if you are travelling down from London after work, with the return landing into Madrid at 6.35am – meaning you still have a chance of getting back to your desk in London before lunch.

A return flight in Business Class is a bargain 85,000 Avios plus just €182 (£132) of tax.  Economy (blue class, ie Iberia’s cheaper redemption bucket) is 42,500 Avios plus €162.  This is off-peak pricing, which covers most of the last third of the calendar year under the Iberia Plus scheme (you can see the Iberia peak and off-peak calendar here).

You MUST book through Iberia Plus to get this pricing.  If you book via ba.com you will get a large fuel surcharge added to your ticket.  As long as your Iberia Plus account is 90 days old and has earned 1 Avios point (a transfer from Amex Membership Rewards would do it) you can use ‘Combine My Avios’ on ba.com to send them across for free.

To put this in context, a flight from London to Johannesburg on BA using Avios on an off-peak date will cost you a whopping 125,000 Avios + £523 – although, with Iberia, you need to factor in the cost of getting to Madrid.

Iberia availability is also very good – the standard two business class flights per seat are there – so you may be able to find seats for dates in early Autumn 2016 where British Airways is currently sold out.

Once in South Africa, you can book connecting flights around the region, including down to Cape Town, using Avios points on Comair, a British Airways franchise partner.

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How to earn Avios from UK credit cards (April 2025)

As a reminder, there are various ways of earning Avios points from UK credit cards.  Many cards also have generous sign-up bonuses!

In February 2022, Barclaycard launched two exciting new Barclaycard Avios Mastercard cards with a bonus of up to 25,000 Avios. You can apply here.

You qualify for the bonus on these cards even if you have a British Airways American Express card:

Barclaycard Avios Plus Mastercard

Get 25,000 Avios for signing up and an upgrade voucher at £10,000 Read our full review

Barclaycard Avios Mastercard

Get 5,000 Avios for signing up and an upgrade voucher at £20,000 Read our full review

There are two official British Airways American Express cards with attractive sign-up bonuses:

British Airways American Express Premium Plus

30,000 Avios and the famous annual 2-4-1 voucher Read our full review

British Airways American Express

5,000 Avios for signing up and an Economy 2-4-1 voucher for spending £15,000 Read our full review

You can also get generous sign-up bonuses by applying for American Express cards which earn Membership Rewards points. These points convert at 1:1 into Avios.

SPECIAL OFFER: Until 27th May 2025, the sign-up bonus on the ‘free for a year’ American Express Preferred Rewards Gold card is increased from 20,000 Membership Rewards points to 30,000 points. Points convert 1:1 into Avios (30,000 Avios!) and many other programmes. Some people may see even higher personalised offers. Click here to apply.

SPECIAL OFFER: Until 27th May 2025, the sign-up bonus on American Express Platinum is increased from 50,000 Membership Rewards points to a huge 80,000 points. Points convert 1:1 into Avios (80,000 Avios!) and many other programmes. Some people may see even higher personalised offers. Click here to apply.

American Express Preferred Rewards Gold

Your best beginner’s card – 30,000 points, FREE for a year & four airport lounge passes Read our full review

The Platinum Card from American Express

80,000 bonus points and great travel benefits – for a large fee Read our full review

Run your own business?

We recommend Capital on Tap for limited companies. You earn 1 Avios per £1 which is impressive for a Visa card, and the standard card is FREE. Capital on Tap cards also have no FX fees.

Capital on Tap Visa

NO annual fee, NO FX fees and points worth 1 Avios per £1 Read our full review

Capital on Tap Pro Visa

10,500 points (=10,500 Avios) plus good benefits Read our full review

There is also a British Airways American Express card for small businesses:

British Airways American Express Accelerating Business

30,000 Avios sign-up bonus – plus annual bonuses of up to 30,000 Avios Read our full review

There are also generous bonuses on the two American Express Business cards, with the points converting at 1:1 into Avios. These cards are open to sole traders as well as limited companies.

American Express Business Platinum

50,000 points when you sign-up and an annual £200 Amex Travel credit Read our full review

American Express Business Gold

20,000 points sign-up bonus and FREE for a year Read our full review

Click here to read our detailed summary of all UK credit cards which earn Avios. This includes both personal and small business cards.