Best Airlines to Spain in 2025 (Cash Deals + Points Tips)
If you’re trying to fly to Europe without blowing your budget, Spain is one of the best countries to target. Flights to Spain tend to be cheaper than other European destinations, and the country is well-served by both U.S. carriers and international airlines.
Whether you want to book with cash or points and miles, this guide breaks down the best airlines to fly to Spain, when to book, and how to find the cheapest flight — including the tools and credit card tips I’ve personally used to get roundtrip tickets for under $400.
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How Much is it to Fly to Spain?
Flights to Spain vary depending on the season and your home airport. If you can travel during low season (January-mid-April) you can find some considerable deals for less than $400 roundtrip. Personally, I love traveling to Spain during low season. The weather is still better than where I live (50s in January, anyone?) and there are hardly any crowds. It’s like you have the entire city to yourself.
Average flight prices from major airports:
- Low Season | $300-450
- Shoulder Season | $400-600
- High Season | $550-700
Keep in mind the cheapest flights are often those from major hubs, and usually hubs with a lot of airline competition. The easiest way to get around expensive flights from your home airport to Spain is to take a positioning flight to an airport with a direct flight.
I recommend checking flight prices from your home airport and a few airports that you can easily get to cheaply on a different airline. For example, I could take a Southwest flight to Chicago and then a cheaper flight from Chicago to Spain.
>> Positioning flights are one of the easiest tools to cut you cost on an international flight.
What Airlines Fly Direct to Spain?
With major US carriers and Spain’s own Iberia Airlines flying direct, you have plenty of options into Spain. And if you don’t mind a quick connection in Europe your options are really endless. Even better, Spain tends to be one of the cheapest countries to fly into from major and mid-size US airports when paying cash for your flight.
Almost all nonstop flights from the US will land in either Madrid or Barcelona. But from there you can easily book cheaper flights on a separate reservation to get anywhere in Europe or other Spanish cities, like Seville.
What US Cities Have Direct Flights to Spain?
With the recent interest in Spain, pretty much every major US city now operates a direct flight to either Barcelona and/or Madrid. But keep in mind many of these routes are seasonal, running from around May through September or October.
Travel Tip! Use Flight Connections to find flight routes from your home airport and positioning airports into Spain. You can also see when the route operates to help plan your direct flight, which will likely save you money on your ticket.
You’ll find most US carriers offer direct flights into Barcelona while Iberia Airlines has more direct flights into Madrid.
What is The Best Airline to Fly to Spain?
I’ve flown nearly every airline to Spain from the U.S., and in economy, they’re all pretty much the same. If you’re flying business class, United’s Polaris is a standout option for comfort and service.
Iberia, United, Delta, and American all offer direct flights to Barcelona and Madrid, with seasonal options on AirEuropa as well. Iberia typically has the most Spain-bound flights, and its OneWorld partnership with American expands your connection options from smaller airports.
If you’re open to international connections, carriers like British Airways, Lufthansa, and Air France add even more flexibility. I always use Google Flights to compare routes and prices.
Bottom line? I fly whichever airline has the best deal. For most of us in economy, the experience is similar enough that the price matters more than the name on the ticket.
Finding Cheap Flights to Spain
Spain is one of the most common destinations for cheap flights to Europe. (I’ve purchased a $400 flight from Kansas City to Barcelona!) One of the best hacks to saving money on a flight to Spain is to use a flight alert service. You’ll commonly receive flight deals around $300-400 to Barcelona and Madrid which more than pays for your membership.
The most important thing to remember when getting a good deal to Spain is to be flexible with your travel dates. Peak season means peak prices but visiting between November and April will give you the best deals.
You also could be sitting on travel points that could pay for your flight, too. Travel rewards cards can transfer to various airlines that get you amazing deals to Spain, especially if you need to travel during peak season.
If these tips still aren’t getting you a cheap flight into Spain, consider flying into a different European country and taking a “reverse positioning” flight to Spain. You can find the cheapest airport options to fly into using Google’s Explore tool. From there, add your additional expense for your connecting flight and see what’s your cheapest travel option.
Best Ways to Use Points and Miles to Spain
If you can’t find a cash deal, don’t have flexible travel dates, want to fly business class, or have to travel during the peak season, using points and miles to Spain is a great option. Points and miles might seem confusing at firs. However, you actually probably already have points you can use for a flight if you have any bank travel credit card.
The easiest tool to find award availability for flights to Spain is using Point.Me. Point.Me aggregates all your flight options with points and miles, including your bank and airline award programs.
Some of My Favorite points and Miles Options to Spain
- American Airlines from 45,000 miles roundtrip in economy
- Iberia Airlines from 68,000 miles roundtrip in business
- Avianca from 60,000 miles roundtrip in economy
- Flying Blue from 50,000 miles roundtrip in economy
Some of these deals will require you to take a positioning flight but others you can get from your home airport. It’s a good idea to check Point.me just as you would a cash flight on Google Flights to find the best deal. The good news if once you know a travel date and airport Point.me will do all the work for you finding the best deals with the points you have.
As a reminder, you don’t have to have these programs’ points sitting in your account. Oftentimes you can use transfer partners from cards to book award travel. This means you probably have travel points you’re sitting on you could use for your flight!
When to Book Your Flight
There’s no magic day of the week to book the cheapest flight — despite what TikTok might tell you. The truth is that flexibility and timing matter way more than trying to snag a deal at 3 p.m. on a Tuesday.
For cash fares, I recommend looking 5–8 months before your trip. If you’re traveling during off-season (mid-January to mid-April or mid-September to early December), you’ll usually find the lowest prices — sometimes under $400 roundtrip.
If you’re using points and miles, earlier is better. Start searching 8–11 months ahead, especially if you’re aiming for business class or need specific travel dates.
Travel Tip! Book a non-basic economy fare directly with the airline. If the price drops, you can cancel and rebook at the lower fare — and pocket the difference in travel credit.
And don’t forget to set up price alerts using Google Flights to track drops over time. It’s one of the easiest tools for scoring a deal, especially when paired with a little flexibility.
Tips for Flying to Spain
Book your flight directly with the airline and don’t use an ITA. This will save you the headache when something goes wrong, like a flight delay or cancellation, so you can speak directly with the airline instead of calling someone at Expedia or another ITA.
Use a card with travel insurance. Cards, like the Chase Sapphire, offer great travel insurance that will cover trip delays and sometimes cancellations, too. (It’s also a great way to get around a foreign country without the hassle of transaction fees.)
Consider flying to a different airport. Iberia offers cheap, direct flights to many Spain destinations, like Seville and Valencia. Book a night (on points!) after arriving from your long haul flight and then a separate flight to your final destination.
Register to earn points on your airfare. If you haven’t yet, be sure to sign up for the airline’s awards program and start earning points and miles on your flight. As a reminder, you can credit your miles to a partner airline. So if you fly Iberia, you can add your American Airlines account number instead and earn miles!
If you can… Be flexible. The more flexible you are with your dates, it’s much more likely you’ll find a flight for less than $500. Even better if you can take a cheap positioning flight to a major airport.
FAQs
Iberia has the most airports and flights into Spain from the United States.
Barcelona and Madrid are both easy cities to fly to from the United States. Consider which city you’d like to spend your trip in. If it’s your first time in Spain, start with Barcelona.
You can consistently find deals to Spain from mid-September to mid-April if you have some flexibility and wait for a deal. If not, the winter months see the lowest prices to Spain from mid-January to mid-March.
More Spain Travel Tips + Inspiration
I hope you enjoyed finding the best airlines to fly to Spain! Here is some more Spain inspiration to help in your trip planning:
- Get the most our of your trip to Barcelona with this food guide
- Visiting Sagarada Familia? Learn the best time to visit and how to get the most out of your experience
- And here are tips for visiting Barcelona on a budget
- Check out my guide to visiting Montserrat for all the details you need to know to plan your visit