Iberia Introduces New Semi-Flexible Economy Class Fares

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Iberia has announced the introduction of a new Economy Class fare which offers customers a little more flexibility and a few more benefits than the airline’s standard Economy Class fares. The new ‘Comfort’ fares are available on all the routes that Iberia offers but they’re restricted to bookings on Iberia-operated flights only.

Iberia Comfort Fares

Here’s what Iberia says the key selling points of its new Comfort Fares are:

• Passengers can choose their preferred seats at the time of booking.
• For domestic and European flights, passengers booking Comfort Fares get access to Iberia’s new XL seats (extra legroom seats).
• Comfort Fare bookings get Boarding passes issued at the time of booking.
• Customers booking Comfort Fares receive Priority boarding (Group 2).
• Comfort Fares allow customers to make one change without penalty (up to 15 days before the flight).
• For long-haul bookings, Comfort Fares can be cancelled fee-free and in exchange for a voucher worth 100% of the fare as long as the cancellation is made up to 15 days before the flight.
• For short-haul and medium-haul bookings, Comfort Fares can be cancelled fee-free and in exchange for a voucher worth 80% of the fare as long as the cancellation is made up to 15 days before the flight.

Interestingly, a quick check of Iberia’s fares appears to indicate that while the number of Avios that a Comfort Fare earns is greater than than the number of Avios offered by a Basic Economy or Standard Economy fare, the number of ‘Elite Points’ remains unchanged.

Example Costs

The difference in cost between the various Economy Class fares that Iberia offers will vary from route to route and from date to date, but to give you an idea of how much more a Comfort Fare can cost, here are three examples:

Miami – Madrid (8 – 15 September 2021)

– Roundtrip Basic Economy – $495.75

– Roundtrip Optimal (Standard) Economy – $635.75

– Roundtrip Comfort Economy – $865.75

Madrid – Rio de Janeiro (8 – 15 September 2021)

– Roundtrip Basic Economy – $849.70

– Roundtrip Optimal (Standard) Economy – $965.70

–  Roundtrip Comfort Economy – $1,201.70

Madrid – London (8 – 15 September 2021)

– Roundtrip Basic Economy – $102.39

– Roundtrip Optimal (Standard) Economy – $166.39

– Roundtrip Comfort Economy – $242.39

Finding The Fare

You won’t see the Confort Fare displayed the moment you see your search results…

…but as with all other Iberia Economy Class fares, you’ll see it offered as soon as you select an Economy Class fare.

Quick Thoughts

For flyers with oneworld Sapphire Status or higher, the only big selling point of the new Comfort Fares is the extra flexibility that the fare offers (oneworld Sapphire and Emerald elites already get to choose seats at the time of booking and already get priority boarding) so elite flyers will have to decide just how much more they’re prepared to pay for that flexibility

For flyers without elite status, the ability to select seats at the time of booking and the ability to select XL seats (on short-haul fares) will be two nice options to have. When those options are combined with the ability to make a free change to a booking and/or the ability to cancel a booking with up to 100% of the value of the booking being offered as a credit towards future travel, these Comfort fares may start to make quite a bit of sense…but it will all come down to cost and the route being flown.

A non-elite flyer who is unlikely to book a Basic Economy fare could well be tempted into paying $230 more for their Miami – Madrid roundtrip booking to get seat selection and added flexibility, but I don’t see many people paying $80 more (50% more than the standard fare) on shorter routes like Madrid – London where an Avios booking would be cheaper and offer even more flexibility.

Bottom Line

Iberia has rolled out a new semi-flexible Economy Class fare that it’s calling a ‘Comfort’ fare. The option to book a Comfort fare is open on all of Iberia’s routes but the value of booking such a fare will vary significantly depending on the cost, the elite status of a passenger making the booking, and the distance being flown.

Would you book an Iberia Comfort Fare?