Where can you fly on Iberia with your BA Amex 2-4-1 companion voucher?

One major Avios change that we’ve seen in the last two years was the opening up of Aer Lingus and Iberia Avios flights for American Express 2-4-1 companion voucher redemptions. Full details are here.

I am off to Boston today to check out Iberia’s new A321XLR business class product. Keep an eye on HfP in a couple of weeks for that review.

As a prelude to those pieces, I want to show you where you can fly on Iberia using your British Airways American Express 2-4-1 companion voucher. It is a follow-up to our December article on where you can fly on Aer Lingus long haul.

Where does Iberia fly long-haul?

I want to use this article to look at the Iberia route network. It is NOT an article discussing the costs, in Avios and taxes, of Iberia redemptions.

For Summer 2025, these are the routes that will be operated (E&OE – we had to put this list together ourselves):

From Madrid to the US and Mexico:

• Madrid – Boston
• Madrid – Chicago
• Madrid – Dallas Fort Worth
• Madrid – Los Angeles
• Madrid – Miami
• Madrid – Mexico City
• Madrid – New York JFK
• Madrid – San Francisco
• Madrid – Washington DC

From Madrid to Central and South America and the Caribbean:

• Madrid – Bogota
• Madrid – Buenos Aires
• Madrid – Caracas
• Madrid – Guatemala City
• Madrid – Guayaquil
• Madrid – Havana
• Madrid – Lima
• Madrid – Montevideo
• Madrid – Panama City
• Madrid – Quitox
• Madrid – Rio de Janeiro
• Madrid – San Jose (Costa Rica)
• Madrid – San Juan (Puerto Rico)
• Madrid – San Salvador
• Madrid – Santiago de Chile
• Madrid – Santo Domingo (Dominican Republic)
• Madrid – Sao Paulo

From Madrid to Africa and the Middle East:

• Madrid – Doha
• Madrid – Cairo (A321 short haul aircraft)
• Madrid – Dakar (check aircraft type – could be short-haul)
• Madrid – Tel Aviv (check aircraft type – could be short-haul)

From Madrid to Asia:

• Madrid – Tokyo

As you can see, Iberia has a very strong presence to the Americas. It opens up a lot of potential 2-4-1 voucher redemptions to cities such as Lima, Quito or Guayaquil which British Airways does not operate.

How do you connect to Iberia flights from the UK?

Both British Airways and Iberia have a good range of connections to Madrid from across the UK. There are usually more than 10 daily flights from London alone.

If you are looking for Avios seats I would initially search for the long-haul flight on its own and then see what connections can be added later. You don’t want to risk not seeing long-haul availability simply because the most convenient short-haul connecting flight isn’t available.

You will make a substantial saving by booking your UK-Madrid flight on a separate ticket, as this avoids long haul Air Passenger Duty. The downside is that your baggage may not be checked through and Iberia is not obliged to help you if you miss your connection.

Iberia and Iberia Express UK route network to Madrid:

• London Heathrow
• London Gatwick
• Manchester
• Edinburgh

Some of these may be seasonal.

Don’t forget that, for cargo reasons, Iberia normally operates a long haul aircraft on at least one daily Heathrow flight. You can enjoy the pleasures of a ‘proper’ lie-flat business class seat on the two and a half hour flight to Madrid.

How to use your American Express companion voucher on Iberia flights

Booking an Iberia flight using an Amex companion voucher is exactly the same process as if you were booking a British Airways flight, as it needs to be done from your British Airways Executive Club account.

This can be a problem if you want to book the ‘guaranteed’ Avios seats. Iberia Plus members can book seats from 360 days prior to departure (and so can you if you transfer Avios to Iberia Plus and book there) but British Airways only allows booking from 355 days before departure.

Make sure you are logged in at ba.com and then select ‘Book a flight with Avios’. You then need to tick the box to use your 2-4-1 companion voucher when entering your preferred destination and dates.

Remember that pricing will be driven by Iberia’s peak and off-peak calendar, even though you are booking on the British Airways website, which doesn’t always match BA’s peak and off-peak dates. It will also use Iberia’s pricing chart which normally matches BA but includes some bargains, such as 68,000 Avios return in Business Class from Madrid to New York off-peak.

Using a 2-4-1 voucher, two people can fly from Madrid to New York or Boston in Business Class, off peak, return, for just 68,000 Avios and (for two people) £430 in total. Yes, the taxes and charges are just £215 per person return. You can’t complain about that ….

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Want to earn more points from credit cards? – March 2025 update

If you are looking to apply for a new credit card, here are our top recommendations based on the current 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:

You can see our full directory of all UK cards which earn airline or hotel points here. Here are the best of the other deals currently available.

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.

Earning miles and points from small business cards

If you are a sole trader or run a small company, you may also want to check out these offers:

SPECIAL OFFER: Until 8th April 2025, the sign-up bonus on American Express Business Platinum is increased from 50,000 Membership Rewards points to 120,000 points. You receive 80,000 points when you spend £12,000 within three months and a further 40,000 points if you spend on the card between Month 14 and Month 17. Points convert 1:1 into Avios and many other programmes. Click here to apply.

SPECIAL OFFER: Until 8th April 2025, the sign-up bonus on American Express Business Gold is increased from 20,000 Membership Rewards points to 60,000 points. You receive 40,000 points when you spend £6,000 within three months and a further 20,000 points if you spend on the card between Month 14 and Month 17. Points convert 1:1 into Avios and many other programmes. Click here to apply.