Iberia

I did choose basic economy for the return trip as the price difference was greater, so I was willing to pay an extra $40 for each ticket for seat selection. Much to my surprise, in managing my booking, a fee of $18-$37 was being charged for EACH LEG of the trip, on both the outgoing and incoming flights, for regular seats (exit rows are even higher)! The only seats I was able to reserve for free are for the short ORD-CVG flight on AA, but NOT the AA flight out, from CVG-MIA. Seat selection is not even available at a price for that flight. I called Iberia to complain, in hopes they would assign seats for me. When the agent tried to do that for the MIA-MAD flight, the charge was $37 and she apparently couldn't waive the charge though she admitted I had booked an economy flight, not basic economy, and that the only difference between the two is (supposedly) seat selection, which I was being denied!

I asked for a supervisor to call me back last night, which of course never happened, I have now been on hold with them for 20 minutes, no msgs stating how long the hold time is, or anything. Now, in going to Manage My Booking, I see that the entire trip, all 3 legs, outgoing (the one I paid more for, for Economy rather than Basic Economy) now mysteriously says "seat selection unavailable"!! That happened since last night, so now there isn't even an option to pay for them! For the return trip (which I'd booked at Basic Economy, so DID expect to pay for seat selection, but only up to $40 for the entire trip, not 3 separate fees--well, for some reason the short AA flight was reservable for no fee, so it is the 2 Iberia flights now--of up to $37 each!!).

There seems to be no resolution to my complaint, I would have booked the Basic Economy flights the entire way, rather than a higher fare that was described as including seat selection, had I known. Or chosen a different airline, entirely, at a somewhat higher fare!! Presenting these fares side by side in search engines for comparison with higher fares that include seat selection, without an upfront disclosure, is highly deceptive! Does anyone here have any suggestions for possible recourse?

And I am STILL on hold, wondering now whether my number has been coded to never get a response! It is just dead silence, no music, no "continue to hold" or "leave number for callback" messages, NOTHING! I believe my booking, which was confirmed (before I knew about these outrageous extra fees) is nonrefundable, or at least with heavy penalty for refunds + I have already booked an Airbnb in Madrid for the overnight layover there.

On a European flight 4 days later, Madrid to London Heathrow, which was late, I asked the cabin staff if my messenger bag was okay under the seat across the aisle as I had no seat in front of me, he said no so I went to retrieve it and put it in the overhead lockers but as I did he closed them all in front of me. I and those sat around me looked quizzical but we thought we'd got it wrong so I put the bag back under the seat. When he came back later there was quite a performance at his insistence the bag be placed overhead! I went onto their website this morning to lodge a cancelled flight compensation request but when you pull up the page in English it switches from complaint to compliment! This airline is best avoided.

After an incredible runaround, they said they will only give a voucher if you are hospitalized. Think about that. They would prefer that someone with a highly contagious disease sit in the seat next to you. Here is a quick challenge for you - Go on the Iberia website and try to figure out how to contact Iberia's customer service. You can't and that is by design. As long as I live I would never, ever, ever fly Iberia. They are horrible.

Please talk to your staff. I have traveled in worse planes, with less space and less comfortable but I would 100% go back to that due to their customer service being so much better. Also, very poor organization to the point where my boarding pass did not have the same flight number or time. I only got to the right terminal and gate because there was only one flight going to Miami. Terrible! I am not one to write reviews but for the first time I could not just keep it to myself. And I am sorry, but I can definitely not recommend this airline to anyone.

No control over their rowdy passengers, they walk up and down plane whole time, gather all over the plane and hang over other passengers trying to get some rest, leaning over their seats, speak loud for hours, grabbing on to anything and everything around them, no respect for people, it's absolutely savage! Not ONE attendant in sight while this is going on. Turbulence came, it was pretty rough, seat belt sign never come on, not one passenger stopped talking or went to their seat, stuff was flying everywhere. Extremely loud passengers, no one checking them, no service, you ask for assistance, no answer, attendants are very aggressive if you go in the back and ask for any type of help with this! Plane is also dirty, captain doesn't speak a word of English even when he's speaking it, announcements were low and no one could understand what he was saying or try to say.

Also they will advertise wrong terminal (on your boarding pass as well as online) so be VERY careful to triple check when you land from USA to Madrid cuz info desk there WILL be empty and you might get stuck... There needs to be an undercover federal agent on one of these flights, I do not even understand how USA does business with them??? Seriously dangerous and sloppy ** airline, no diligence, serious danger. Do NOT even consider them!

I have tried to contact customer service by e-mail and phone. When calling, either the calls are not connected, or they are disconnected far more often than actually being able to complete a call with a customer service representative. The actual representatives have ZERO personality or compassion and speak as if they are preprogrammed robots. They also apparently do not have supervisors with which to speak... quite interesting. When e-mailing, which is recommended as the only way to remedy the situation when calling, the response time lapses for days and is also lacking any form of human undertone. Each e-mail response appears computer generated, impersonal and does not address the issue mentioned in my original e-mail. I have truly never experienced such dissatisfaction when dealing with a company. It amazes me that they are still in business.

At the last possible second before closing the doors - after I was hysterical that we needed to know something about how to connect at our destination as they were threatening to cancel my ticket if I wouldn't get on board without any knowledge of what they were doing with his ticket - they mysteriously let him on the flight. More recently, I had two bags lost for a total of five days on the way back to Spain from a trip to Bali via Hong Kong.

I had important work meetings and was without all of my clothing bought specifically - and not cheaply, as I work in fashion - for the meetings. When I tried to call Iberia to get information about my bags, the first "customer service" operator hung up on me. Following this – for the next few days – I called the luggage phone number AND the Iberia plus number (I am a platinum member, which apparently means nothing) multiple times a day. I was told that my bags "had arrived, and been handed off to the luggage delivery service," but not a single person I spoke to was able to contact the delivery service to ask why it had taken so long to deliver the bags; nor were they able to let the delivery service know that I work all day and cannot simply wait around my house with no notice as to what day/time my bags were arriving.

My friend, who was flying with me and whose bags were lost as well, finally reached an Iberia representative 100 phone calls later who was able to give her not one but three different possible delivery phone numbers. We tried calling and texting all of them and had several wrong numbers before finally someone picked up with knowledge of the matter. I got on the phone after her to arrange my bag drop off time as I knew they would not proactively reach out to me, and the man said that no, he could not come drop the bags to us after 6 pm because he would, "be asleep by then."

I was forced to have him drop the bags at the café below my friend´s apartment (10 min away from my apartment), go to the café, and then pay to take a taxi myself with my bags to my own apartment. I fly with Iberia all the time - as the company I work for sends me on flights that, when coupled with my vacation flights, probably amount to 20,000 - 30,000 Euros per year, and it´s no joke that they have lost my bags about 10-15 times to and from long-haul destinations. That alone is intolerable. Not to mention waiting 5 days to receive luggage and being told that it cannot be delivered after normal office hours (which has never usually been a problem).

When I made a phone call to inquire about the discourse for claiming lost luggage compensation, I was told that I had to submit receipts for "basic items" and would be compensated 50 Euros per bag per day the luggage is lost. NOT SO for any other airline in the world, which compensates with a 100 Euro or Pound gift card upon arrival at the luggage claim desk, no questions asked.

I dug for my receipts, submitted them and of course, true to form, when Iberia called me back (one month later!) I was told that they were not sufficient and that I needed to contact the stores to request INVOICES with tax IDs for all purchases made that would then have to be submitted to a review process before possible compensation. When I asked to speak with a manager, I was told, "they are in a meeting." Riiight.

This airline continues to surprise me with new lows in customer service, as well as flight quality. As a baseline, for any product or service I purchase with money, I expect to be treated as a customer. With Iberia, there's no guarantee that I will even be treated like a human. More than happy to file a class action and pursue legal discourse, please write back to this post if you have had similar treatment.

When I used the travel cancellation insurance, I was told that we would only be reimbursed for the person who was injured or sick; they stated that their insurance would not cover the balance of the 3 tickets on the reservation because theoretically they could travel. This was unbelievable to us. My father & I were not going to leave my mother alone with her diseased eye for 2 weeks, and our family friend had no interest in traveling alone out of the country. We believe it was unreasonable for the insurance to deny our claim.

I reached out to Iberia Airlines customer service chief director with two separate emails on the situation and he did not even reply to my email. My concern is that you would think that an airline the size of Iberia would have a good travel cancellation insurance policy, but that is not the case. We are very disappointed with Iberia customer service, their lack of reply to our situation and their lack of assistance with the insurance carrier that they represent. Buyer Beware!

After another tight transfer in Madrid requiring running I arrive in JFK but my bag doesn't. I check my email and have an email from Iberia saying my bag didn't fly with me and will be transferred to JFK asap. After this the following fiasco occurs: I arrive at the baggage office in JFK and see 15-20 other people from my flight also missing bags. (This says a lot - someone screwed up big time.) After a long wait inform the agent that I am driving back to Ohio the next day. She says that is fine and asks for the nearest airport to me and informs me that they will get it to JFK then transfer it on another flight to Cleveland and it will be delivered to me likely within 24 hours. She also stated I will be able to track it online.

2:30 hours later I have no bag and I check the link provided with my case to check my bag and find no updates. I make approximately 10-12 phone calls to Iberia and nobody is able to tell me where the bag is. They say they have to send "internal communications" to the airports involved in the transfer and wait 24 hours for a response. During this entire process I was treated rudely, uncaring, and hung up on 4 times. They also refused to transfer me to a supervisor - first saying they didn't have one then saying it was their policy to not give customers direct access to their supervisor.

During this process all I get is the information of the flights the bag was scheduled to be on but nobody can tell me that an airline. Agent confirmed that the bag made it on the plane and again "you just have to wait until the airports involved get back to us with confirmation." After being fed up with this I decide to drive to the Cleveland airport and speak with the American Airlines baggage desk who is supposed to be receiving the bag. After speaking with the very friendly agent there who at first says he can't find the bag tracked in the system and that I have to keep trying with Iberia. However after hearing my tale of woe continues very professionally to try to help me.

After determining they added an expedite tag number to the bag that was being used to track it all along in their "world tracer" system (why Iberia didn't know this all along is beyond me) he was able to tell me that JFK was late in getting the bag out (not surprising for an airport that big) and that it was boarded on a flight this morning that just landed in Cleveland and would be unloaded onto the baggage claim right outside the baggage office door in about 30 minutes. So 45 minutes later (after profusely thanking the competent, friendly and professional staff the at the AA baggage office) I head home with my suitcase with all the olive oil and vinegar etc intact and ok.

Bottom line this spoiled my experience with Iberia and it will be my first and only flight with them. However it redeemed American Airlines as well after they broke a wheel off of my suitcase a few years back and didn't replace it because they "don't cover wheels and handles." I am ok with that as long as you can keep track of my bag and treat me like a human being. Which they proved they can do both.

Is this some kind of joke. Then why would he ask me to call back. Out of frustration when I said why the hell he asked me to call back, he was giving me etiquette lessons by saying, "see now you are saying what the hell". It's very disappointing how Aniruddh, showed least empathy towards passenger's situation and is simply asking to refund the ticket and offer refund before departure, when pax has actually booked tickets to go to a wedding. First rule of customer service is empathy. Try to put yourself in passenger's shoes and try and understand the situation they are in, because of the airline schedule change. Based on the service received from Iberia agent Anirrudh, I have doubts offering Iberia to our customers in future. Very disappointed.

Well I booked my flight. 121 Euros. Mallorca. Brussels with the usual stop in Barcelona or Madrid. Guess what? The confirmation email came. I was supposed to be in Madrid instead of Mallorca. Because Iberia decided so. Because They have schemed a Crap website where you can enter the data. But oh Sesame the data is miraculously converted in Iberia Currency. So I entered Palma like a thousand times for many years but Iberia website manages to glitch data. I tried to change the flight. No way. The site is a trip to Dante's Inferno. You end up exactly case 0. As I need to be in Brussels in March and best rates are gone, I had to book with the impeccable Norwegian Airlines. With a stop in Danemark. Never was there ever. I took the risk to lose a ticket should I wake up completely depressed. It happens more and more. Europe is turning into a Albanian Macedonian trap.

In total, I will survive. I just know I lost 121 euros because the dishonesty is such you can't cancel the flight but in eDreams. I never booked with eDreams or TripAdvisor. I do go directly to the right place. Iberia is Iberia. Do not fly with these modern Thieves. Do not fly with Vueling. Fly with serious companies. So far, Norwegian and Easyjet never failed me. Air Europa can be ok but do not rely on their crap website. Call them. Buy at airport. I will contact Iberia. If they do not refund me, I will write the most impertinent review ever written. I had enough of the Spanish Pains in the **. Spaniards are the new European Chinese. Same flag. Same frame.

For the next 15 days, I would be making daily phone calls to their helpline. By the way, they only allow you to call the "call centre" but the people here cannot really help you - they don't know what's happening on the ground, neither can they make any decisions regarding your request. I asked them to send my baggage to Cusco where I was - call centre people said "yes, we will leave a message for the airline to do so". But every day I called up the luggage would still be in Lima and the call centre people kept saying "yes we will leave the message...". This went on until my final day when I was in Lima to fly out of Peru and there, I picked up the luggage myself (after a very convoluted process at the airport in itself).

Needless to say, I made a claim to Iberia for delayed baggage compensation. They issued only half the amount of what their policy says I should be entitled to, and despite my question as to why, they informed me that the case was closed without giving any reasons. Now in order for me to make a claim through my travel insurer for the additional expenses I incurred, I would need a letter from Iberia stating simply the date they returned the luggage to me and the final amount they compensated me. But despite me sending several emails to the helpline email address requesting this, they refuse to give me that letter. This effectively prevents me from making a claim to my insurer to cover the costs incurred by me as a result of this airline's **. The worst airline ever who does not give a ** about their customers.

No good for me as I then left Rome to meet my sister in Tuscany - in the clothes I stood up in. On my return to Rome my bag was there. Then on the return flight I was horrified to see that three teenage girls (friends of crew?) had been allowed in the cockpit during the flight. This was reported to the CEO with no action. Again in Madrid the connecting gate was a mile away and again I only just made the flight. NEVER AGAIN - A HORRIBLE EXPERIENCE which soured my reunion with my dear sister.

Of course, the attendant couldn't accompany her into the jetway from the gate to the plane, which was quite a long one. My mother told the Iberia people at the gate she wouldn't be able to walk all the way in holding her walking stick and bag. She had already walked the entire distance (not short even for a non-octogenarian). Once again, one of the attendants volunteered the same as before and (I stress) not an Iberia employee to help her walk into the plane. But at that point, the shift manager I mentioned before went ballistic. She stopped the poor kid, grabbed my mother’s bag, tossed it halfway back up the jetway and screamed that she would prevent mother (who must be all of 5 3, thin, retiring and prone to shaking like a leaf when attacked) from boarding since she endangers the flight.

By now, my mother was in tears and the flight attendant drawn by the noise looked out and took refuge in the cockpit. My mother decided to take a stand and continue on her way. At that point the flight attendant came back out and informed the shift manager that the pilot demands that my mother be allowed onto the plane. Once aboard, both the pilot and the flight attendant swore they would report the matter to management. But things didn't end there. Upon arriving in Madrid, my mother and 5 other wheel-chair bound passengers were simply left to fend for themselves, sitting around, waiting for help. One of them actually missed her connection.

My mother's connection, thank god, was with American Airlines. However, one of her suitcases came late. It had been delayed for security reasons. We have since received apologies from American Airlines, through whom the flight had been booked, and British Airways, which handles Iberia in Israel. A month or more has gone by and not a word from Iberia.

When we arrived MADRID at the customer service of IBERIA was a long line of passenger. Although we were very tired we joined the line, we were waiting there for 2 1/2 hours and when we arrived the clerk he took the voucher and check at the computer and said that it's written that they paid us already at GRANADA. We couldn't believe that lie. It was crazy. After my husband was furious the clerk call the manager and she said someone at GRANADA possibly did a mistake and she tried call GRANADA but they didn't answer at 21:00. We explain that we are flying the next morning out of the country So she took our email and promise to try found out what happen. IBERIA didn't call us the next morning. It was exhausting experience and we lost the few hours that we have planned at MADRID it felt Kafkaesque.