As you may know, I’m currently spending the week in Madrid. I flew American and British Airways Business class on the outbound which was an overall pleasant experience. For the return, I booked a rather undesirable routing home via Amsterdam with an overnight layover on Iberia and American Airlines. I had planned to return home this Saturday but the overnight layover didn’t put me back in Dallas until Sunday.

Thanks to my Executive Platinum status with American Airlines, I can cancel my award booking for no charge. This is one of my favorite perks of Executive Platinum status. It gives me quite a bit of flexibility. I had booked this less-than-ideal itinerary to give me an option get home but hoping something more convenient would open up.

After just having a terrible experience at Chicago O’Hare, I’m now booking myself on a last minute itinerary on Iberia via Chicago. While I’ve never had a notably terrible experience on Iberia, they aren’t the most pleasant airline. I’ve had plenty of frustration with their strange baggage policies, slow agents at Madrid, and dingy aircraft.

However, to get home a day early and for only 20,000 Avios, I suppose it ‘s worth a little extra effort. I’ll be sure to document the experience in a full trip report. But to start already, I’ve been unable to add my AAdvantage number to my booking so that I can use my oneworld Emerald benefits on my journey. Let’s hope I can add it once I check in at Madrid airport.

Here’s to hoping that my Iberia flight is unexpectedly pleasant and the Chicago connection goes smoothly!