The day started early with a hop to Madrid T4 for a quick flight to Malaga. This morning check in took some minutes as there was an inconvenient with my booking. I originally booked the trip in Economy with 0 bags as I hold status with three different oneworld carriers.During the check in online, I was offered the chance to upgrade for 60EUR and skipped the option of paying 15EUR upfront for my only piece of lugggage to check in for the flight. At the moment of talking to the agent in the terminal, he was surprised that the system was asking him to charge me the piece of baggage -11kg- ( having been upgraded to J and on top with Sapphire in BA,AA and AB!). Well, after a couple of calls to the supervisors we discovered that the J upgrade in IB does not allow any piece of luggage and with the basic fare there is zero bags included in the ticket!
As time was passing by I just dropped the discussion with the agent (who was very proactive and friendly during the process) and paid 30EUR for checking in one bag…now, come on Iberia…how cheap can you people be for charging a piece of luggage to a Sapphire of your sister/mother company BA and flying J! I cannot be further surprised anymore as recently LH introduced hand bag only fare even if you are a holder of a *A Gold card. But, on a J class upgrade offer too? Just plainly ridiculous!
Anyway, after making the payment my BP was issued and I was directed to the fast track lane. Security took only five minutes and in no time I was seated at the Dali Lounge.
Busy morning
Iberia has one of the best lounges in Europe, Dali and especially Velasquez are one of my favorite lounges in the world for J class travel. Decent wines, Haagen Dazs, lunch and dinner buffet etc… truly a place where I could spend some hours waiting for my next flight.
After a couple of espressos I headed my way to gate H16. The bird for today was an IB Express A-320 featuring the new slim line seats which I found classy and comfortable. The cabin attendants were very professional and welcoming during the boarding process.
Pushback as usual on time with Iberia and after a quick taxi we took off making a left turn to the south…
Barajas airport climbing towards Malaga
After a few minutes the breakfast was served, it was small but convenient for such a short flight… it included a croissant,sandwich with ham and butter and some fruits together with real orange juice…now how impressive is that? :)
I have to tell you people that coffee was delicious for airplane standards!
Descent started towards the Gold Coast and Malaga airport was visible with a beuatiful sunny CAVOK conditions and a temperature of 15 degrees at 09:30am!
Landing before schedule and a quick taxi to the gate with a low cost welcome to Malaga airport!
Port promenade
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Verdict
Iberia Express
7.4/10
Cabin7.0
Cabin crew8.5
Entertainment/wifi7.0
Meal/catering7.0
Iberia Sala Dalí - 4
8.5/10
Comfort8.5
Meal/catering8.5
Entertainment/wifi8.5
Services8.5
Madrid - MAD
9.0/10
Efficiency9.0
Access9.0
Services9.0
Cleanliness9.0
Malaga - AGP
9.4/10
Efficiency9.0
Access9.5
Services9.5
Cleanliness9.5
Conclusion
In general I have to admit I am very pleased of flying Iberia. Despite the scandal of charging for a piece of luggage when flying J upgraded and having OW SAPPH, it really satisfies me to see the big change of Iberia in attitude, quality and service to the customer after the take over by IAG.
Cabin crew was very friendly, professional and extremely available during the whole flight. Catering was adequate and I had a good seat with a decent legroom for a flight of this characteristic.
Thank you for reading and feel free as always to leave a message!
GC.
0 LIKESLIKE TO THANK THE AUTHORTHANKS ! FLIGHT-REPORT LIKED
Charging elite customers flying in J for a piece of luggage is the aviation joke I've heard so far in 2016. Absolutely outrageous from IB. Hope they didn't make you pay for fast track security at MAD :) IB is surely part of IAG but they are CHEAP compared to BA.
The 60EUR UG is IMO not worth it, I tried it last year on MAD-CMN and I wasn't really impressed since it's just classic middle seat blocked type of business. If I get offered the same upgrade to fly on their mid haul A319s (the ones they send to Russia, Israel, Equatorial Guinea, Senegal..) then yes I'd go for it.
I only have to agree. BA is luxury compared to IB in Economy Class. ClubWorld and Business Plus are similar though...but charging bags for elites it is indeed a joke!
Rest assured I won't pay a single euro for an upgrade in IB again!
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2 Comments
The 60EUR UG is IMO not worth it, I tried it last year on MAD-CMN and I wasn't really impressed since it's just classic middle seat blocked type of business. If I get offered the same upgrade to fly on their mid haul A319s (the ones they send to Russia, Israel, Equatorial Guinea, Senegal..) then yes I'd go for it.
Thank you for the FR.
I only have to agree. BA is luxury compared to IB in Economy Class. ClubWorld and Business Plus are similar though...but charging bags for elites it is indeed a joke!
Rest assured I won't pay a single euro for an upgrade in IB again!
GC.
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