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![The Best Ways to Fly to Spain With Points and Miles [Step-by-Step]](https://upgradedpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/Spain.jpg?auto=webp&disable=upscale&width=1420&height=650&fit=crop)
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Spain is no stranger to U.S. tourism. Even more popular than Italy and Germany, Spain enjoys over 80 million visitors from around the world every year! Home to bullfighting, delicious food, siestas, wine, and art, Spain is a cultural paradise.
If you’d like to see this tourist hotspot for yourself, Upgraded Points has your back — we’ll show you how to fly to Spain with your hard-earned points and miles.
And don’t worry: if you don’t have enough points, we’ll help you along that avenue as well.
Spain is home to Iberia and Air Europa, which are 2 of the largest airlines headquartered in the country. While Iberia is a Oneworld partner, Air Europa is a Skyteam partner. This gives you plenty of options when flying to Spain on points and miles.
In this guide, we will explore all the major airline alliances and discuss the best ways to fly to Spain on points and miles. We’ll also show you some ways you can try to avoid the infamous fuel surcharges, too.
We’ll start off with our top recommended redemptions that cost the least and are the easiest to book. Then, we’ll work down the list for some alternatives that could still be worth your while.
Because Spain happens to be a Oneworld hub, the best flight availability tends to be through American Airlines or Iberia. Here are the flights offered to Spain on American Airlines or Iberia:
| Airports With Nonstop Flights to Madrid on American Airlines | |
| Dallas-Fort Worth (DFW) | New York City (JFK) |
| Charlotte (CLT) | Philadelphia (PHL) |
| Miami (MIA) | |
| Airports With Nonstop Flights to Barcelona on American Airlines | |
| Charlotte (CLT) | New York City (JFK) |
| Chicago O’Hare (ORD) | Philadelphia (PHL) |
| Miami (MIA) | |
| Airports With Nonstop Flights to Madrid on Iberia | |
| Boston (BOS) | New York City (JFK) |
| Chicago O’Hare (ORD) | San Francisco (SFO) |
| Los Angeles (LAX) | Washington, D.C. (IAD) |
| Miami (MIA) | |
Booking any of these flights will have round-trip costs of 45,000 AAdvantage miles in off-peak economy, 60,000 miles in economy, and 115,000 miles in business.
Hot Tip: To make things even better, American will not pass on all fuel surcharges on Iberia or its own flights! You’ll only pay $150 round-trip in taxes and fees. This is a super-easy way to save hundreds of dollars!
Off-peak economy for flights to Europe booked through American Airlines is from January 10-March 14 and November 1-December 14.
If you’re planning on flying economy, the off-peak pricing is very hard to beat. Otherwise, 115,000 miles for round-trip business class is a great deal, especially if you have AAdvantage miles from holding the co-branded American Airlines credit cards from Citi or Barclays.
| Cabin Class | AAdvantage Miles Round-Trip Price | Taxes and Fees |
| Economy Off-Peak | 45,000 | ~$50-$100 |
| Economy | 60,000 | ~$50-$100 |
| Business | 115,000 | ~$50-$100 |
Using your AAdvantage miles to fly to Spain is an easy process! You’ll want to use the British Airways website to search for award availability. Here are some great example routes you can take:
Here’s how you can book on American Airlines:
Hot Tip: Although American is known to “hide” availability on routes where it flies its own planes, it can now show Iberia award availability. Even if British Airways has the best way to search award availability, it can sometimes glitch out. Searching on aa.com is an option in this instance if the British Airways website is being glitchy!
Need help booking? See our step-by-step guide for booking American Airlines business class.
You can earn AAdvantage miles pretty easily, and you can top up your miles balance with credit card sign-up bonuses.
In particular, the AAdvantage® Aviator® Red World Elite Mastercard® is a great option since the spending required to achieve the bonus is quite low. That means you can fly one-way to Spain just by opening the credit card, paying the $95 annual fee, and making some purchases (usually $1,000 or even 1 purchase).
The business equivalent credit card offers a similar sign-up bonus, so opening both would definitely get you closer to flying to Spain.
You can top off your AAdvantage miles balance with Marriott points, but it wouldn’t be the best use of them unless you had a specific redemption in mind and were short a few thousand miles.
Marriott’s transfer ratio is 3:1 and transfers can take up to 2 business days.
Bottom Line: American Airlines AAdvantage offers very competitive redemption rates on off-peak economy and business class flights to Spain. The program is extremely easy to understand and book. Furthermore, its miles are easy to earn with all the different credit card offerings. Lastly, your out-of-pocket costs will be minimized since no fuel surcharges are passed on.
Another program worth keeping in mind is British Airways for its competitive economy awards and great transfer partners. On all the same flights mentioned above with American Airlines and Iberia, British Airways will only cost 35,000-50,000 Avios for round-trip economy tickets.
We use the term “Avios” loosely, because British Airways, Aer Lingus, Qatar Airways, and Iberia have similar points systems.
British Airways Avios are nearly identical to Iberia Avios, with a few subtle differences. Namely, there are different award charts for using British Airways Avios to fly on Iberia vs. flying on British Airways’ own metal. Additionally, there are different off-peak dates.
British Airways employs a distance-based award chart for its own flights along with partner flights.
Here’s the award chart for Iberia peak and off-peak flights booked with British Airways Avios:
| Iberia Peak Season | ||||
| Bands | Blue Class | Full Fare Economy | Premium Economy | Business |
| 1 (0-650) | 5,000 | 7,500 | — | 10,000 |
| 2 (651-1,151) | 8,250 | 12,500 | — | 16,500 |
| 3 (1,151 – 2,000) | 11,000 | 16,500 | — | 22,000 |
| 4 (2,001 – 3,000) | 12,500 | 18,750 | — | 31,250 |
| 5 (3,001 – 4,000) | 20,000 | 30,000 / 28,000* | 35,000 | 50,000 |
| 6 (4,001 – 5,500) | 25,000 | 37,500 / 35,000* | 43,750 | 62,500 |
| 7 (5,501 – 6,500) | 30,000 | 45,000 / 42,000* | 52,500 | 75,000 |
| 8 (6,501 – 7,000) | 35,000 | 52,500 / 49,000* | 61,250 | 87,500 |
| 9 (over 7,000) | 50,000 | 75,000 / 70,000* | 87,500 | 125,000 |
| Exceptions | ||||
| Madrid-Barcelona Shuttle | — | 4,500 | — | 9,000 |
| Madrid-London | 7,500 | 11,250 | — | 15,000 |
| Iberia Off-Peak Season | ||||
| Bands | Blue Class | Full Fare Economy | Premium Economy | Business |
| 1 (0-650) | 4,500 | 6,750 | – | 9,000 |
| 2 (651-1,151) | 7,500 | 11,250 | – | 15,000 |
| 3 (1,151 – 2,000) | 10,000 | 15,000 | – | 20,000 |
| 4 (2,001 – 3,000) | 11,000 | 16,000 | – | 21,250 |
| 5 (3,001 – 4,000) | 17,000 | 25,500 / 22,000* | 25,500 | 34,000 |
| 6 (4,001 – 5,500) | 21,250 | 32,000 / 27,750* | 31,750 | 42,500 |
| 7 (5,501 – 6,500) | 25,500 | 38,250 / 33,250* | 38,250 | 51,000 |
| 8 (6,501 – 7,000) | 29,750 | 44,650 / 38,750* | 44,250 | 59,500 |
| 9 (over 7,000) | 42,500 | 63,750 / 55,250* | 63,750 | 85,000 |
| Exceptions | ||||
| Madrid-Barcelona Shuttle | – | 4,500 | – | 9,000 |
| Madrid-London | 6,500 | 9,750 | – | 12,750 |
Here are some great example routes you can take:
The steps for booking with British Airways Avios are nearly identical to booking with American. This time, however, you can book awards completely online!
You can transfer American Express Membership Rewards points to Iberia, and you can also transfer Chase Ultimate Rewards points or Capital One Miles to British Airways and then to Iberia.
If you want to transfer your miles from British Airways to Iberia, sign up for an Iberia Plus account. To transfer, your Iberia account must be at least 90 days old and must have had points activity.
Although British Airways is known for levying fuel surcharges on its own flights, it does not do so on Iberia and American flights.
Unlike American, however, British Airways is a transfer partner with Chase Ultimate Rewards, American Express Membership Rewards, Capital One, and Marriott! Chase, Capital One, and Amex transfer nearly instantly at a 1:1 ratio, while Marriott transfers in 1 business day at a 3:1 ratio with a 5,000 Avios bonus for every 60,000 Marriott points transferred to British Airways.
You can also earn lots of Avios by looking at the British Airways Visa Signature® Card!
Recommended Chase Cards (Personal)
A fantastic travel card with a huge welcome offer, good benefits, and perks for a moderate annual fee.
The Chase Sapphire Preferred® card is one of the best travel rewards cards on the market. Its bonus categories include travel, dining, online grocery purchases, and streaming services, which gives you the opportunity to earn lots of bonus points on these purchases.
Additionally, it offers flexible point redemption options, no foreign transaction fees, and excellent travel insurance coverage including primary car rental insurance. With benefits like these, it’s easy to see why this card is an excellent choice for any traveler.
A top player in the high-end premium travel credit card space that earns 3x points on travel and dining while offering top luxury perks.
If you’re looking for an all-around excellent travel rewards card, the Chase Sapphire Reserve® is one of the best options out there.
The card combines elite travel benefits and perks like airport lounge access, with excellent point earning and redemption options. Plus it offers top-notch travel insurance protections to keep you covered whether you’re at home or on the road.
Don’t forget the $300 annual travel credit which really helps to reduce the annual fee!
Business owner? See our list of the best Chase business credit cards.
Bottom Line: Though slightly confusing with the different types of Avios and peak dates, using your British Airways Avios is a great way to avoid fuel surcharges and fly economy to Spain. You can earn Avios very easily through transfer partners and co-branded credit cards. We do not recommend booking business or premium economy class due to the unfavorable redemption rates.
Yet another Oneworld partner, Cathay Pacific’s Asia Miles program provides great opportunities to fly to Spain. If you wanted to fly to Spain on business class, Asia Miles is a great way to do so.
Since Asia Miles is an American Express transfer partner, Citi ThankYou transfer partner, and Marriott transfer partner, you won’t run out of transfer options, especially if you have credit cards that earn Citi ThankYou Points!
All but one of the routes mentioned above in the American Airlines AAdvantage section will cost 100,000 miles plus fuel surcharges. The Los Angeles – Madrid route will cost 150,000 miles plus fuel surcharges.
Fuel surcharges can be in excess of $400, so be aware of this when booking with Cathay Pacific.
We recommend using the Qantas or British Airways website to find award availability first, then using the Cathay Pacific Asia Miles search engine to confirm availability that you found on the other websites.
Hot Tip: If visiting Spain wasn’t your only goal, you can consider using Cathay Pacific’s generous award routing rules to construct complex but very valuable itineraries!
Here are some great example routes you can take:
Here are the steps for booking flights using Asia Miles:
Earning Asia Miles is relatively easy since there are quite a few transfer partners. As mentioned above, Cathay Pacific partners with American Express Membership Rewards, Citi ThankYou Rewards, Capital One Miles, and Marriott Bonvoy.
Amex, Capital One, and Citi transfer at a 1:1 ratio and Marriott Bonvoy transfers at a 3:1 ratio. Amex takes around 5-7 business days to transfer, whereas Citi takes 1 business day, Capital One takes around 36 hours, and Marriott takes up to 10 business days.
Lastly, you can look into the Cathay Pacific Visa Signature® card offered by Synchrony Bank to top off your balance. The best offer in the past has been 75,000 miles, so it might be worth holding out for that offer before grabbing this credit card.
Bottom Line: The generous transfer partnerships (particularly with Citi) and reasonable business class prices make Asia Miles a worthwhile program to consider. Be sure to think about using more miles to add in stopovers, open jaws, etc. Be cautious of fuel surcharges, as Cathay Pacific passes on American and Iberia fuel surcharges to Europe.
This is the last Oneworld partner we’ll be looking at.
Japan Airlines is a complicated frequent flyer program. On one hand, it has been one of the most treasured programs for several reasons: lots of luxury airline partners, decent award redemption prices, and no fuel surcharges.
However, Japan Airlines has come out with huge devaluations and added fuel surcharges on a host of carriers, including Emirates.
The problem with Japan Airlines currently is the lack of quality transfer partners. Japan Airlines partners only with Marriott, and its co-branded U.S. credit card, JAL USA CARD, offers a lackluster sign-up bonus.
As a result, it can be difficult to rack up enough points for these flights. Even so, let’s examine some potential areas of value.
Round-trip economy flights to Spain will run you 45,000-50,000 miles, and business class will cost 80,000-100,000 miles. The price will depend on the distance you fly.
Hot Tip: With Japan Airlines, it’s not too surprising that you’ll be on the hook for some fuel surcharges. These surcharges will cost around $450 if flying on Iberia. If you fly on American Airlines, you will be free of fuel surcharges!
Here are some great example routes you can take:
If you’re ready to book with Japan Airlines miles, follow these steps:
Japan Airlines is a transfer partner with Marriott, and you can earn Marriott points with the following cards:
A great option for Marriott hotel fans who want a no annual fee card and automatic Marriott Bonvoy elite status.
Casual travelers who like to frequent properties that are part of the Marriott Bonvoy collection of brands may want to consider the Marriott Bonvoy Bold® Credit Card.
The Marriott Bold card rewards cardholders for Marriott stays and gives them a boost towards Marriott Bonvoy elite status.
Marriott loyalists will love this card's annual free night award, automatic elite status, and up to 17x points per $1 on Marriott hotel stays.
If you’re a frequent traveler and a Marriott loyalist, there’s a lot to love about the Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® Credit Card. The card comes packed with several great benefits like a free hotel night once a year, automatic Silver Elite status (with a fast-track to Gold Elite status), and multiple options for redeeming points.
Terms Apply / Rates & FeesThe Marriott Bonvoy Bevy card gives you automatic Marriott elite status and helps you earn more Marriott Bonvoy points on your everyday purchases.
The Marriott Bonvoy Bevy™ American Express® Card, the latest mid-tier offering in the Marriott Bonvoy lineup of cards, offers cardholders automatic elite status and ways to earn more Marriott Bonvoy points on each of their stays and daily purchases.
Terms Apply / Rates & FeesA premium card for Marriott fans who want perks like an annual statement credit and Free Night Award, plus a fast track to Marriott elite status.
The Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant® American Express® Card is a premium card designed with road warriors and Marriott Bonvoy loyalists in mind.
So is the card a worthwhile addition to your wallet?
Marriott transfers at a 3:1 ratio, with a 5,000-mile bonus for every 60,000 Marriott points transferred to Japan Airlines. Also, transfers take around 7 business days to process.
Bottom Line: Have lots of Marriott points? If you use Japan Airlines, you can book Oneworld airline flights, including Iberia and American Airlines. You’ll still be responsible for fuel surcharges if you fly on Iberia, but you can avoid fuel surcharges by flying American Airlines.
Until now, we’ve been focusing on Oneworld partners and redemptions, but we’re moving on to Star Alliance. Although we don’t see as many routes available, there is still tremendous opportunity to be had here.
ANA offers so many sweet spots, and Europe is no exception. Keep in mind that ANA only allows round-trip bookings, so one-ways are not an option here.
There are many options that involve either the U.S. or Canada. All Canadian flights will be aboard Air Canada, and all flights departing the U.S. will be on United Airlines.
| Nonstop Air Canada Routes to Spain | |
| Montreal (YUL) – Barcelona (BCN) | Toronto (YYZ) – Madrid (MAD) |
| Toronto (YYZ) – Barcelona (BCN) | |
| Nonstop United Airlines Routes to Spain | |
| Newark (EWR) – Barcelona (BCN) | Washington, D.C. (IAD) – Barcelona (BCN) |
| Newark (EWR) – Madrid (MAD) | Washington, D.C. (IAD) – Madrid (MAD) |
| San Francisco (SFO) – Barcelona (BCN) | |
To fly economy round-trip will cost 55,000 miles, and you’ll pay 88,000 miles in business. Luckily, ANA does not pass on fuel surcharges on Air Canada or United flights.
Hot Tip: ANA offers 1 free stopover AND 1 open-jaw OR 2 open-jaws on round-trip award bookings. If Spain is not your final destination, you could work in some extra value with this generous award routing.
Here are some great example routes you can take:
When flying Star Alliance partner United Airlines to Japan, search for award space on United’s website and then confirm availability on ANA’s website.
Be careful when using United Airlines to search for award space! Sometimes United Airlines has “phantom” award space, so double-check with Air Canada Aeroplan before booking your Star Alliance flight on ANA.
When you’re ready to redeem ANA miles for travel to Spain, follow these steps:
ANA partners with American Express Membership Rewards and Marriott.
Amex has many personal and business cards to choose from that earn Membership Rewards points, making it easy to accumulate the necessary points for this booking. Amex points transfer to ANA at a 1:1 ratio. Keep in mind that transfers usually aren’t instant and can take 24-48 business hours.
Marriott transfers at a 3:1 ratio with a 5,000-mile bonus for every 60,000 Marriott points transferred to ANA. Transfers may take around 7 business days to complete.
Bottom Line: We keep reiterating that ANA has some excellent business class sweet spots, and this is one of them. You can fly business class round-trip for 88,000 miles, add a stopover and open-jaw, and avoid fuel surcharges when flying to Spain. What’s not to like?
Singapore Airlines is another viable Star Alliance partner for booking award flights to Spain. You’re going to fly Air Canada or United, but it will cost you 61,000 miles in round-trip economy and 162,000 miles in round-trip business.
When would you rather use Singapore Airlines over ANA to fly to Spain, you might ask? You would only use Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer to fly to Spain if 2 conditions were met:
If you only have Chase Ultimate Rewards points, you can use Singapore Airlines, which will cost more miles than ANA but still be bookable.
United MileagePlus from the U.S. has Singapore Airlines beat in this case since it only takes 120,000 miles (Saver level) to fly round-trip business class from America to Spain while Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer will run 162,000 miles.
Here are some great example routes you can take:
Here are the steps you’ll want to follow to book using Singapore KrisFlyer, as these bookings should be made over the phone:
KrisFlyer miles are easy to earn, but it can cost a lot of miles to redeem for flights (as we see above when compared to ANA).
Singapore Airlines is transfer partners with Chase Ultimate Rewards, American Express Membership Rewards, Citi ThankYou Rewards, Capital One Miles, and Marriott Bonvoy. As a result, there are countless credit cards that make earning KrisFlyer miles easy.
Chase, Amex, Capital One, and Citi transfer at a 1:1 ratio, while Marriott Bonvoy transfers at a 3:1 ratio with a 5,000-mile bonus for every 60,000 Marriott points transferred to Singapore Airlines.
Chase, Amex, Citi, and Capital One take around 1-2 business days to transfer, whereas Marriott points take around 6 days to transfer.
Bottom Line: KrisFlyer miles are an option when you have lots of Ultimate Rewards points and are flying from Canada via Air Canada. Otherwise, you’d rather use ANA with your American Express points or use United MileagePlus if departing from the U.S.
United Airlines has a couple of advantages in this situation: it has a straightforward booking process and has reasonable business class redemptions from the U.S. However, United MileagePlus offers variable award pricing, which means that the mileage cost will fluctuate over time.
Round-trip economy flights cost as little as 60,000 miles, and business class from the U.S. costs as little as 120,000 miles. We include United Airlines here because its Saver level business class rate is one of the most competitive among Ultimate Rewards partners.
British Airways can provide round-trip Oneworld economy flights for 35,000-50,000 miles, and Singapore Airlines can provide Star Alliance economy flights for 55,000 miles. These rates are more competitive than United’s economy prices.
United Airlines slightly edges out Singapore Airlines for United business class flights from the U.S. to Spain (120,000 United miles vs. 144,000 KrisFlyer miles).
Hot Tip: When using United Airlines’ search engine for awards, be sure to use the award calendar. You can book awards completely online using United Airlines.
Here are some great example routes you can take:
Here are the steps you can take to book United MileagePlus awards:
There are a few Chase co-branded credit card options that will allow you to earn United miles directly.
You can earn Chase Ultimate Rewards that can then be transferred to United and the other Chase transfer partners. Furthermore, United is a transfer partner with Marriott. Chase transfers at a 1:1 ratio nearly instantly. Marriott transfers at a slightly improved 3:1.1 ratio with a 5,500-mile bonus for every 60,000 Marriott points transferred. This means that you’ll earn 27,500 United miles for every 60,000 Marriott points transferred.
In the end, you have 3 options to earn United miles:
Bottom Line: Using United miles is more convenient than almost any other frequent flyer program. You will get good value when booking United Airlines from the U.S. to Spain in business class for 120,000 miles and ~$6 in taxes and fees.
The last Star Alliance partner we’ll be mentioning is Avianca LifeMiles. LifeMiles, while full of quirks, is still a viable option in this case.
Round-trip flights between North America and Spain will cost 60,000 miles in economy, 126,000 miles in business class, and 174,000 miles in first class. To get the one-way cost, simply take half the price.
Asia Miles, a fellow Citi ThankYou partner, offers better business class redemption rates, but LifeMiles does not levy any fuel surcharges! This is a sure-fire way to save $500 in extra fees. So, the extra miles are saving you a handsome amount of money.
Here are some great example routes you can take:
Here are the steps to book your flights:
If you spend a lot on Citi credit cards that earn ThankYou Points, it may be worthwhile to consider LifeMiles, especially if you don’t feel like paying $500 in fuel surcharges with Star Alliance partners.
On the other hand, Avianca LifeMiles is transfer partners with American Express Membership Rewards, Citi ThankYou Rewards as well as Capital One Miles.
You can transfer from Amex, Capital One, and Citi at a 1:1 ratio, and transfers are almost instantaneous.
You can also transfer Marriott points at a 3:1 ratio.
As a last resort, you can also purchase LifeMiles. There are often sales of up to 150% bonus miles, so be on the lookout for these when they come around.
Bottom Line: LifeMiles provides a great opportunity for a niche group of travelers: Citi loyalists and those who don’t want to pay for fuel surcharges with Asia Miles through Cathay Pacific. You can also transfer from Amex, Citi, or Capital One, but there are more attractive partners than LifeMiles unless you want to avoid taxes and fees at all costs.
The last set of airlines we will be examining are those in the SkyTeam alliance. Similar to Oneworld and Star Alliance, SkyTeam has a variety of opportunities to travel to Spain.
The first SkyTeam partner we’ll dig into is Air France/KLM. We at Upgraded Points believe the main value in this program for flights to Spain is in business class. Why? Fuel surcharges will suck the value out of economy and premium economy flights.
Air France charges either 43,000 or 58,000 miles to fly in economy round-trip, but it passes fuel surcharges on. Basically, you could be spending nearly 60,000 miles and still have to pay $500! That sounds pretty much like throwing away your hard-earned points, so we’ll pass.
Overall, there are quite a few flight options on SkyTeam: you’ll either fly Air Europa or Delta.
| Nonstop Delta Routes to Spain | |
| Atlanta (ATL) – Barcelona (BCN) | New York City (JFK) – Barcelona (BCN) |
| Atlanta (ATL) – Madrid (MAD) | New York City (JFK) – Madrid (MAD) |
| Nonstop Air Europa Routes to Spain |
| New York City (JFK) – Madrid (MAD) |
| Miami (MIA) – Madrid (MAD) |
All of the above flights can be booked through SkyTeam. Since Air France uses a variable award chart, we can’t exactly pinpoint the award costs, but we can provide a range. It will run somewhere between 106,000-120,000 miles for round-trip business class aboard Delta or Air Europa with ~$500 in surcharges.
Even though you’ll be paying for fuel surcharges with this method, it’s important to note that American Express and Citi often offer transfer bonuses of up to 35% to Flying Blue. This means that 120,000 miles will only cost ~88,888 points round-trip. This value is very difficult to beat, even with surcharges.
Hot Tip: Seriously consider transferring your points to Air France/KLM when transfer bonuses are offered by American Express and Citi.
Here are some great example routes you can take:
You can search for award availability through Air France/KLM and book awards completely online. Here’s how:
Looking for other ways to redeem Air France/KLM miles? Check out the best ways to redeem Air France/KLM Flying Blue miles for max value!
There are plenty of ways to earn lots of Flying Blue miles. It’s a transfer partner with all of the major transferable currencies: Chase Ultimate Rewards, American Express Membership Rewards, Marriott Bonvoy, Capital One Miles, and Citi ThankYou Rewards.
Chase, Amex, Capital One, and Citi transfer at a 1:1 ratio, while Marriott Bonvoy transfers at a 3:1 ratio with a 5,000-mile bonus for every 60,000 Marriott points transferred to Flying Blue.
Amex and Capital One transfer instantly to Flying Blue, whereas Chase takes around 1 hour and Citi takes around 2 business days. Marriott takes around 1 business day for transfers to complete.
Bottom Line: Air France is a great way to book SkyTeam business class awards to Europe. You’ll pay for surcharges, but with the frequent transfer bonuses from Citi and American Express, it can save you bundles of points!
We’d be remiss if we mentioned SkyTeam awards without talking about Delta. Delta’s true value in this situation comes from its economy flights.
Since Delta miles are very easy to earn with co-branded credit cards, American Express Membership Rewards, and Marriott, it’s worth looking into.
Getting to Spain will cost you 60,000 miles round-trip on Delta metal in economy and 65,000 miles round-trip on Air Europa in economy. Fuel surcharges are not levied in this case, so you’ll save hundreds of dollars.
We don’t recommend booking business class through Delta because it costs a whopping 164,000 miles round-trip. If you still wanted to use Delta miles for your business class flight to Spain, you would definitely save money on fuel surcharges.
Here are some great example routes you can take:
You can search for award availability through Delta and book awards completely online. To book, follow the steps:
Generally speaking, you can earn lots of Delta points directly with Delta credit cards from American Express, or transfer them from flexible rewards points through American Express or Marriott Bonvoy.
Amex transfers instantly at a 1:1 ratio, while Marriott Bonvoy takes 2 business days to transfer. Furthermore, the Marriott transfer ratio is 3:1.
Recommended Delta Cards
Terms Apply / Rates & FeesThis card provides bonus SkyMiles on all purchases, along with a free bag, priority boarding, and discounted award flights.
Frequent Delta flyers will love the Delta SkyMiles® Gold American Express Card. The card offers great benefits that will help save you money, effectively mimics low-level elite status with Delta SkyMiles, and helps you earn miles even faster, all for a low annual fee. Let’s dive into the benefits to see if the Delta Gold card is a good fit for your needs.
Terms Apply / Rates & FeesFrequent Delta travelers will enjoy this card's bonus categories, benefits, and ability to reach higher levels of elite status.
The Delta SkyMiles® Platinum American Express Card can be a great option for those seeking additional ways to obtain a higher level of status — or to maintain their current status — with the airline.
A key feature of this card is the ability to earn bonus Medallion Qualification Miles (MQMs) that are essential for earning Delta status. This could help you get closer to earning free flights and other valuable rewards.
Terms Apply / Rates & FeesDelta loyalists will love the fast track to Delta elite status, lounge access, baggage benefits, and upgrade priority with the Delta Reserve card.
The Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card is a stellar option for frequent travelers who always fly with Delta thanks to its lounge access, status boost, annual companion certificate, and many other great benefits.
Here is a full look at everything the Delta Reserve card can offer to you to help you decide whether the card deserves a place in your wallet.
The final option that we’ll be looking at in this guide is Korean Air’s own SKYPASS program. The drawback is that you’ll only be able to earn Korean Air miles from Marriott Bonvoy.
Korean Air charges 50,000 miles for round-trip economy and 80,000 miles round-trip in business class.
If you can earn these miles and you’re fine with booking round-trip flights, you’re definitely going to want to look at Korean Air miles. The drawback is that you’re going to pay a lot of fuel surcharges, so watch out for that.
As we alluded to, Korean Air miles are hard to earn. In fact, it is now similar to Japan Airlines and Asiana with Marriott as the sole transfer partner for its tempting award redemptions.
One frustrating part of the Korean Air SKYPASS program is that it doesn’t allow you to book awards for anyone who is not a direct family member. In addition, you are required to submit the SKYPASS Family Registration Application prior to booking for a family member.
Here are some great example routes you can take:
Although it’s possible to book partner flights online using Korean Air SKYPASS, it’s generally not recommended due to the clunkiness of the search system. Here’s how you can book:
Korean Air miles are among the hardest miles to earn. Their sole transfer partner is Marriott Bonvoy. Marriott transfers at a 3:1 ratio and transfer times will vary wildly, though it usually falls somewhere between 2-3 weeks.
Bottom Line: If you happen to have lots of Korean Air miles or Marriott points and are fine with paying fuel surcharges, definitely give this program a long, hard look.
It’s also possible to book with other airlines such as Asiana Airlines, Alaska Airlines, Air Canada, and Korean Air, but those were excluded here for the following possible reasons:
All routes from the U.S. or Canada have been examined in this guide, and we’ve provided ways to book economy or business class flights on all 3 alliances: Star Alliance, Oneworld, and SkyTeam.
Here’s where we’d look first for each one:
Bottom line, there’s a lot of value to be had when flying to Spain, especially when you fly there with points and miles!
The information regarding the AAdvantage® Aviator® Red World Elite Mastercard® was independently collected by Upgraded Points and not provided nor reviewed by the issuer.
The information regarding the Cathay Pacific Airways Visa® was independently collected by Upgraded Points and not provided nor reviewed by the issuer.
The information regarding JAL USA CARD was independently collected by Upgraded Points and not provided nor reviewed by the issuer.
The information regarding the Marriott Bonvoy Bold® Credit Card was independently collected by Upgraded Points and not provided nor reviewed by the issuer.
The information regarding the Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® Credit Card was independently collected by Upgraded Points and not provided nor reviewed by the issuer.
For rates and fees of the Marriott Bonvoy Bevy™ American Express® Card, click here.
For rates and fees of the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant® American Express® card, click here.
For rates and fees of the Delta SkyMiles® Gold American Express Card, click here.
For rates and fees of the Delta SkyMiles® Platinum American Express Card, click here.
For rates and fees of Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card, click here.
Cathay Pacific, Korean Air, and Air France each impose fuel surcharges on flights to Spain.
You can use Japan Airlines Mileage Bank to book Oneworld flights for 45,000-47,000 miles round-trip. You can also use Ultimate Rewards on British Avios for 40,000-50,000 miles round-trip, or American Express Membership Rewards on ANA for 55,000 miles round-trip.
Without a doubt, ANA has the best business-class value of 88,000 miles for round-trip business class. This also includes an open jaw or stopover for free!
If you have Marriott points, you can book business class for 80,000-85,000 miles using Japan Airlines Mileage Bank or 80,000 miles using Korean Air SKYPASS.
First class is not offered on routes from the U.S. or Canada to Spain.
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Stephen is an established voice in the credit card space, with over 70 to his name. His work has been in publications like The Washington Post, and his Au Points and Awards Consulting Services is used by hundreds of clients.
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