Apr 4, 2019, 6:36 pm
Last edit by: Lefly
This thread is created for passengers with long connections in Istanbul Airport for TK.
PLEASE READ THIS WIKI CAREFULLY (especially the hotel fine print) before posting questions.
TRANSIT HOTEL (different from Stopover hotel):
TK will provide a free hotel to international transfer passengers at IST if:
- Economy Class ticket: connecting time is 12 hours or longer
- Business Class ticket: connecting time is 9 hours or longer
AND this connection must be the shortest possible option. If there is a 3-hour layover available, but you choose the 13-hour one, you are not eligible for the free transit hotel. This also applies if the shorter connection is fully booked: you still won't get the free hotel if there is a theoretical, but sold out, shorter connection.
If you need a visa to enter Turkey, you need to secure it at your own expense.
TK have a pool of hotels that they contract with, it is unfortunately not possible to know which hotel you'll end up at until you are sitting on the bus. Business class passengeres generally get five star hotels and Economy Class passengers get four star hotels. See the list on the bottom of this wiki for usual locations.
Hotel Desk E-Mail Adress: [email protected] - it's generally not necessary to email them, you can just show up
click here for Hotel Desk location
Click here for full Transit Hotel terms/conditions
STOPOVER HOTEL (different from Transit Hotel):
If you are on a round-trip ticket to-from certain cities/countries (click here for the list) and choose a connection longer than 20 hours, TK will provide one night at a four star hotel for Economy Class tickets and two nights at a five star hotel for Business Class tickets (three nights if traveling to/from USA).
At least 72 hours before your first flight, you must send an e-mail to the address that corresponds to your departure point on the list on this page (click here) and include your
full name
reservation code (PNR) or ticket number
date range for the anticipated accommodation
preferred room type (single, double or triple)
telephone and e-mail address
Visas and transfer to/from the airport are not covered by TK.
Click here for eligible origins/destinations and FAQ
TOURISTANBUL:
If you are on an international connection through IST and your connection time is 6-24 hours, you can take a free guided city tour. You must arrive at the hotel desk at least 30 minutes before the tours are scheduled to depart. After clearing immigration and leaving the baggage claim hall, turn right and go to the hotel desk (for location click here).
Touristanbul schedule and FAQ can be found here.
SLEEPING ROOMS:
Business Class and Elite Plus passengers on connections between 4 hours and 9 hours can get a private sleeping room at the M&S and Business lounges. One of the flights must be longer than eight hours and both need to be on TK, codeshare flights are excluded.
-----------------
Please list the hotel that you were provided, travel class, the Miles&Smiles or Star Alliance status of the passenger, the date, your username below and the post # that you have shared in the thread ( you could find the number at the top right side of your posts ) to create a database of passenger experiences.
For example: XXXXXXX Hotel, Business Class, M&S Elite, DD/MM/YYYY, ISTFlyer, #1
April 2019:
Renaissance Polat (Atatürk Airport), Business Class, M&S ELPL, reported by dabee69 in post #54
Renaissance Polat (Atatürk Airport), Business Class, TG*G, reported by bmi_Barry in post #79
May 2019:
Green Park Hotel ( Pendik ), IRROPS, reported by zing2istanbul in (post #753 in the TK ops from IST thread)
Crowne Plaza Aqua Florya, Business Class, TG*G, reported by bmi_Barry in post #91
June 2019:
Westside Arjaan by Rotana, Business Class, M&S ELPL, reported by finlandokie in post #169
PLEASE READ THIS WIKI CAREFULLY (especially the hotel fine print) before posting questions.
TRANSIT HOTEL (different from Stopover hotel):
TK will provide a free hotel to international transfer passengers at IST if:
- Economy Class ticket: connecting time is 12 hours or longer
- Business Class ticket: connecting time is 9 hours or longer
AND this connection must be the shortest possible option. If there is a 3-hour layover available, but you choose the 13-hour one, you are not eligible for the free transit hotel. This also applies if the shorter connection is fully booked: you still won't get the free hotel if there is a theoretical, but sold out, shorter connection.
If you need a visa to enter Turkey, you need to secure it at your own expense.
TK have a pool of hotels that they contract with, it is unfortunately not possible to know which hotel you'll end up at until you are sitting on the bus. Business class passengeres generally get five star hotels and Economy Class passengers get four star hotels. See the list on the bottom of this wiki for usual locations.
Hotel Desk E-Mail Adress: [email protected] - it's generally not necessary to email them, you can just show up
click here for Hotel Desk location
Click here for full Transit Hotel terms/conditions
STOPOVER HOTEL (different from Transit Hotel):
If you are on a round-trip ticket to-from certain cities/countries (click here for the list) and choose a connection longer than 20 hours, TK will provide one night at a four star hotel for Economy Class tickets and two nights at a five star hotel for Business Class tickets (three nights if traveling to/from USA).
At least 72 hours before your first flight, you must send an e-mail to the address that corresponds to your departure point on the list on this page (click here) and include your
full name
reservation code (PNR) or ticket number
date range for the anticipated accommodation
preferred room type (single, double or triple)
telephone and e-mail address
Visas and transfer to/from the airport are not covered by TK.
Click here for eligible origins/destinations and FAQ
TOURISTANBUL:
If you are on an international connection through IST and your connection time is 6-24 hours, you can take a free guided city tour. You must arrive at the hotel desk at least 30 minutes before the tours are scheduled to depart. After clearing immigration and leaving the baggage claim hall, turn right and go to the hotel desk (for location click here).
Touristanbul schedule and FAQ can be found here.
SLEEPING ROOMS:
Business Class and Elite Plus passengers on connections between 4 hours and 9 hours can get a private sleeping room at the M&S and Business lounges. One of the flights must be longer than eight hours and both need to be on TK, codeshare flights are excluded.
-----------------
Please list the hotel that you were provided, travel class, the Miles&Smiles or Star Alliance status of the passenger, the date, your username below and the post # that you have shared in the thread ( you could find the number at the top right side of your posts ) to create a database of passenger experiences.
For example: XXXXXXX Hotel, Business Class, M&S Elite, DD/MM/YYYY, ISTFlyer, #1
April 2019:
Renaissance Polat (Atatürk Airport), Business Class, M&S ELPL, reported by dabee69 in post #54
Renaissance Polat (Atatürk Airport), Business Class, TG*G, reported by bmi_Barry in post #79
May 2019:
Green Park Hotel ( Pendik ), IRROPS, reported by zing2istanbul in (post #753 in the TK ops from IST thread)
Crowne Plaza Aqua Florya, Business Class, TG*G, reported by bmi_Barry in post #91
June 2019:
Westside Arjaan by Rotana, Business Class, M&S ELPL, reported by finlandokie in post #169
August 2019:
Akgun Istanbul, economy class, per post 217
November 2019:
Polat/Renaissance, business-class E+ post 285 (https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/31699696-post285.html)
December 2019:
Polat/Renaissance again, business-class E+ post 285
December 2020:
Polat Renaissance, business class E+
January 2021:
Polat Renaissance, business class (No Status)
November 2021:
Holiday Inn Istanbul Airport, economy class (No Status), #537
May 2022 Stopover hotelPolat/Renaissance again, business-class E+ post 285
December 2020:
Polat Renaissance, business class E+
January 2021:
Polat Renaissance, business class (No Status)
November 2021:
Holiday Inn Istanbul Airport, economy class (No Status), #537
Sheraton Istanbul Ataköy Hotel, business E+
May 2022
Westside Arjaan by Rotana, Business,*G, Sandy Hopper
Centro by Rotona (transit hotel), Business, *G, Nacho
Sheraton Istanbul Ataköy Hotel (stopover hotel), business, *G, Nacho
July 2022
Pullman, Business,*G, Sandy Hopper
July 2023
Polat Renaissance, business class, TK-E, iamaho
Sheraton Otel Esenyurt - with dinner included, business class, TK-E, iamaho
September 2023
Pullman, Business, *G, SEA-Flyer
Pullman, Business, no status, SEA-Flyer
LaQuinta by Wyndham, Y E+, DaveS
Sheraton Esenyurt, Business, E+, Jaenks, assigned by my request
October 2023
Ramada Plaza Tekstilkent, Business, TK E, Lefly
TK in IST: Thread #3 - Transit and Stopover Hotel, Touristanbul, Sleeping Rooms
May 19, 2019, 11:27 am
#121
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Original Poster
Join Date: Nov 2018
Location: Istanbul, Turkey
Programs: TK Elite Plus,BAEC GGL,ITA Executive, AFKL Gold,QR Gold,HH Diamond,Bonvoy Gold,ALL Gold
Posts: 14,186
I have a 7h 20min layover at IST next month. Sadly, the inbound flight arrives at 9:05, so just over half an hour after the Touristanbul tour starts. How realistic would it be to get to Istanbul by public transport, see some main attractions, return to the airport and still have some time for the lounge?
Also, what would be the quickest public transport option in this case?
Also, what would be the quickest public transport option in this case?
May 20, 2019, 1:48 pm
#122
Join Date: Mar 2015
Location: LAX
Programs: TK*G elite plus
Posts: 31
TK free hotel at new airport
hello all
anyone has info about how the free hotel works when transiting through the new airport in Istanbul? i'm used to always go to the Polat Renaissance (flying business) and hoping TK would still send their biz passengers there.
also where is the hotel desk at the new airport?
thanks!
anyone has info about how the free hotel works when transiting through the new airport in Istanbul? i'm used to always go to the Polat Renaissance (flying business) and hoping TK would still send their biz passengers there.
also where is the hotel desk at the new airport?
thanks!
May 20, 2019, 2:37 pm
#123
Join Date: Jun 2018
Programs: TK Elite
Posts: 246
the hotel desk is on the arrival floor. After clearing customs turn right and walk all the terminal down until it comes up on your right hand side (between door 13 and 14).
https://inmapper.com/istanbul-airport/
https://inmapper.com/istanbul-airport/
May 20, 2019, 4:24 pm
#125
Join Date: May 2016
Location: SFO, DUS
Programs: BA Gold (OW Emer), TK ELPL (*G), Hilton Gold, Marriott Gold, IHG Gold
Posts: 528
Also, have a look at the Wiki of the related thread (here). You will see that TK still seems to use the Renaissance Polat at the old airport for transit passengers (I agree with you, it is a nice hotel!).
May 22, 2019, 12:40 pm
#127
Join Date: Aug 2017
Programs: Air Canada A35K, Bonvoy Platinum
Posts: 169
Hi everyone, I wanted to pop in and share my experience with a layover at the new Istanbul airport that included the Touristanbul tour and two visits to the business lounge (both before and after the tour). Hopefully some of this information might help others wondering about the logistics (we were a bit confused about where we should be going at first).
Firstly, thank you to the folks who posted pictures of where to go in this thread! That was very helpful in figuring out where we should be going and made it super easy!
We flew BKK - IST - MUC in J on flights TK 65 (4:00am arrival) and TK 1637 (7:35pm departure) which gave us a ~14 hour layover and access to the TK business class lounge. I planned this layover with the intention of taking the 8:30am - 3:00pm Touristanbul tour of the city.
Upon arrival, we were in an arrivals hall with two options: security (which would take us to the departures hall for connecting flights) or passport control (which would take us landside). Since we had four hours before the tour started, we wanted to wait in the business class lounge, but we were unsure whether this would be possible. Multiple employees incorrectly told us that we would not be able to do this and that we should proceed directly to passport control instead. We disregarded this advice (YOLO) and followed the signs to pass through security for connecting flights, then proceeded to the business lounge.
Note that the employees at the desk of the lounge were much more informed than the other airport staff about the logistics of what we were doing and gave us instructions and advice for where to go (and when). I suspect they probably have lots of people doing this same thing every day so they get lots of questions about it.
At around 7:00am, we left the lounge. We were pleasantly surprised to find that there were many free self-service lockers for storing luggage directly in the lounge. Before heading out, we dropped our carry-on suitcases in the lockers. There were no issues with this and our bags were still there when we got back. This was a great help for us since we weren't actually sure what we were going to do with our bags during the tour.
I took some quick video clips showing the route from the business class lounge to the door where you can exit the departure terminal to get landside, including some shots of how long it took (15 minutes from the lounge to the tour desk):
Also shown at the start is the luggage lockers we used in the lounge to store our bags. The door is a bit hidden away in a corner but you'll see it if you know where to look. There were big "do not enter" signs on the door but we just told the employees manning the door that we were heading to passport control and they let us through without any questions. Once we went through the door, we were back in the arrivals hall where we originally were when we landed. This time we went through passport control (already had e-visas printed and ready to go), walked to the TK hotel desk (way at the end after walking past a bunch of other tour agency desks), and got our spots on the tour. I do recommend arriving at the desk an hour before the tour to confirm your spot because it was popular and you could risk having it fill up.
The tour was well-coordinated and on-time. After it finished, we proceeded through the business class entrance in the airport, back to the lounge, picked up our bags, spend a few hours lounging and eating/drinking (the food in the lounge was phenomenal, much better than what they fed us on the tour!) and then caught our departing flight without any issues.
Sorry for the long write-up, but some of these logistics were points of confusion for us when we arrived, so I just wanted to pass on what I learned from experience.
Firstly, thank you to the folks who posted pictures of where to go in this thread! That was very helpful in figuring out where we should be going and made it super easy!
We flew BKK - IST - MUC in J on flights TK 65 (4:00am arrival) and TK 1637 (7:35pm departure) which gave us a ~14 hour layover and access to the TK business class lounge. I planned this layover with the intention of taking the 8:30am - 3:00pm Touristanbul tour of the city.
Upon arrival, we were in an arrivals hall with two options: security (which would take us to the departures hall for connecting flights) or passport control (which would take us landside). Since we had four hours before the tour started, we wanted to wait in the business class lounge, but we were unsure whether this would be possible. Multiple employees incorrectly told us that we would not be able to do this and that we should proceed directly to passport control instead. We disregarded this advice (YOLO) and followed the signs to pass through security for connecting flights, then proceeded to the business lounge.
Note that the employees at the desk of the lounge were much more informed than the other airport staff about the logistics of what we were doing and gave us instructions and advice for where to go (and when). I suspect they probably have lots of people doing this same thing every day so they get lots of questions about it.
At around 7:00am, we left the lounge. We were pleasantly surprised to find that there were many free self-service lockers for storing luggage directly in the lounge. Before heading out, we dropped our carry-on suitcases in the lockers. There were no issues with this and our bags were still there when we got back. This was a great help for us since we weren't actually sure what we were going to do with our bags during the tour.
I took some quick video clips showing the route from the business class lounge to the door where you can exit the departure terminal to get landside, including some shots of how long it took (15 minutes from the lounge to the tour desk):
Also shown at the start is the luggage lockers we used in the lounge to store our bags. The door is a bit hidden away in a corner but you'll see it if you know where to look. There were big "do not enter" signs on the door but we just told the employees manning the door that we were heading to passport control and they let us through without any questions. Once we went through the door, we were back in the arrivals hall where we originally were when we landed. This time we went through passport control (already had e-visas printed and ready to go), walked to the TK hotel desk (way at the end after walking past a bunch of other tour agency desks), and got our spots on the tour. I do recommend arriving at the desk an hour before the tour to confirm your spot because it was popular and you could risk having it fill up.
The tour was well-coordinated and on-time. After it finished, we proceeded through the business class entrance in the airport, back to the lounge, picked up our bags, spend a few hours lounging and eating/drinking (the food in the lounge was phenomenal, much better than what they fed us on the tour!) and then caught our departing flight without any issues.
Sorry for the long write-up, but some of these logistics were points of confusion for us when we arrived, so I just wanted to pass on what I learned from experience.
Last edited by etgohomeok; May 22, 2019 at 12:42 pm Reason: formatting youtube link
May 22, 2019, 12:46 pm
#128
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Original Poster
Join Date: Nov 2018
Location: Istanbul, Turkey
Programs: TK Elite Plus,BAEC GGL,ITA Executive, AFKL Gold,QR Gold,HH Diamond,Bonvoy Gold,ALL Gold
Posts: 14,186
Hi everyone, I wanted to pop in and share my experience with a layover at the new Istanbul airport that included the Touristanbul tour and two visits to the business lounge (both before and after the tour). Hopefully some of this information might help others wondering about the logistics (we were a bit confused about where we should be going at first).
Firstly, thank you to the folks who posted pictures of where to go in this thread! That was very helpful in figuring out where we should be going and made it super easy!
We flew BKK - IST - MUC in J on flights TK 65 (4:00am arrival) and TK 1637 (7:35pm departure) which gave us a ~14 hour layover and access to the TK business class lounge. I planned this layover with the intention of taking the 8:30am - 3:00pm Touristanbul tour of the city.
Upon arrival, we were in an arrivals hall with two options: security (which would take us to the departures hall for connecting flights) or passport control (which would take us landside). Since we had four hours before the tour started, we wanted to wait in the business class lounge, but we were unsure whether this would be possible. Multiple employees incorrectly told us that we would not be able to do this and that we should proceed directly to passport control instead. We disregarded this advice (YOLO) and followed the signs to pass through security for connecting flights, then proceeded to the business lounge.
Note that the employees at the desk of the lounge were much more informed than the other airport staff about the logistics of what we were doing and gave us instructions and advice for where to go (and when). I suspect they probably have lots of people doing this same thing every day so they get lots of questions about it.
At around 7:00am, we left the lounge. We were pleasantly surprised to find that there were many free self-service lockers for storing luggage directly in the lounge. Before heading out, we dropped our carry-on suitcases in the lockers. There were no issues with this and our bags were still there when we got back. This was a great help for us since we weren't actually sure what we were going to do with our bags during the tour.
I took some quick video clips showing the route from the business class lounge to the door where you can exit the departure terminal to get landside, including some shots of how long it took (15 minutes from the lounge to the tour desk):
YOUTUBE LINK
Also shown at the start is the luggage lockers we used in the lounge to store our bags. The door is a bit hidden away in a corner but you'll see it if you know where to look. There were big "do not enter" signs on the door but we just told the employees manning the door that we were heading to passport control and they let us through without any questions. Once we went through the door, we were back in the arrivals hall where we originally were when we landed. This time we went through passport control (already had e-visas printed and ready to go), walked to the TK hotel desk (way at the end after walking past a bunch of other tour agency desks), and got our spots on the tour. I do recommend arriving at the desk an hour before the tour to confirm your spot because it was popular and you could risk having it fill up.
The tour was well-coordinated and on-time. After it finished, we proceeded through the business class entrance in the airport, back to the lounge, picked up our bags, spend a few hours lounging and eating/drinking (the food in the lounge was phenomenal, much better than what they fed us on the tour!) and then caught our departing flight without any issues.
Sorry for the long write-up, but some of these logistics were points of confusion for us when we arrived, so I just wanted to pass on what I learned from experience.
Firstly, thank you to the folks who posted pictures of where to go in this thread! That was very helpful in figuring out where we should be going and made it super easy!
We flew BKK - IST - MUC in J on flights TK 65 (4:00am arrival) and TK 1637 (7:35pm departure) which gave us a ~14 hour layover and access to the TK business class lounge. I planned this layover with the intention of taking the 8:30am - 3:00pm Touristanbul tour of the city.
Upon arrival, we were in an arrivals hall with two options: security (which would take us to the departures hall for connecting flights) or passport control (which would take us landside). Since we had four hours before the tour started, we wanted to wait in the business class lounge, but we were unsure whether this would be possible. Multiple employees incorrectly told us that we would not be able to do this and that we should proceed directly to passport control instead. We disregarded this advice (YOLO) and followed the signs to pass through security for connecting flights, then proceeded to the business lounge.
Note that the employees at the desk of the lounge were much more informed than the other airport staff about the logistics of what we were doing and gave us instructions and advice for where to go (and when). I suspect they probably have lots of people doing this same thing every day so they get lots of questions about it.
At around 7:00am, we left the lounge. We were pleasantly surprised to find that there were many free self-service lockers for storing luggage directly in the lounge. Before heading out, we dropped our carry-on suitcases in the lockers. There were no issues with this and our bags were still there when we got back. This was a great help for us since we weren't actually sure what we were going to do with our bags during the tour.
I took some quick video clips showing the route from the business class lounge to the door where you can exit the departure terminal to get landside, including some shots of how long it took (15 minutes from the lounge to the tour desk):
YOUTUBE LINK
Also shown at the start is the luggage lockers we used in the lounge to store our bags. The door is a bit hidden away in a corner but you'll see it if you know where to look. There were big "do not enter" signs on the door but we just told the employees manning the door that we were heading to passport control and they let us through without any questions. Once we went through the door, we were back in the arrivals hall where we originally were when we landed. This time we went through passport control (already had e-visas printed and ready to go), walked to the TK hotel desk (way at the end after walking past a bunch of other tour agency desks), and got our spots on the tour. I do recommend arriving at the desk an hour before the tour to confirm your spot because it was popular and you could risk having it fill up.
The tour was well-coordinated and on-time. After it finished, we proceeded through the business class entrance in the airport, back to the lounge, picked up our bags, spend a few hours lounging and eating/drinking (the food in the lounge was phenomenal, much better than what they fed us on the tour!) and then caught our departing flight without any issues.
Sorry for the long write-up, but some of these logistics were points of confusion for us when we arrived, so I just wanted to pass on what I learned from experience.
I hope you did enjoy Istanbul.
May 22, 2019, 8:35 pm
#129
Join Date: Oct 2018
Posts: 1,656
The tour was well-coordinated and on-time. After it finished, we proceeded through the business class entrance in the airport, back to the lounge, picked up our bags, spend a few hours lounging and eating/drinking (the food in the lounge was phenomenal, much better than what they fed us on the tour!) and then caught our departing flight without any issues.
Sorry for the long write-up, but some of these logistics were points of confusion for us when we arrived, so I just wanted to pass on what I learned from experience.
Sorry for the long write-up, but some of these logistics were points of confusion for us when we arrived, so I just wanted to pass on what I learned from experience.
We have a similar stopover in a few months and plan to take the same tour. However, our outbound flight is at 6pm, so a couple of hours less than you had.
Did the tour drop you off at the airport at 3pm exactly? How long did it take to go back in through immigration/security and to the lounge? Is there any type of fast track immigration?
May 23, 2019, 4:56 am
#130
Join Date: Oct 2008
Location: Kent, UK
Programs: BA Exec Club Gold, TK Elite, Dragonpass, HH Silver
Posts: 61
Hi, I'm just curious if there was something the front desk person did to get you the room in the end. I have a layover coming up and set to arrive at midnight. I would like to book the Yotel but I'm a little worried I might run into the same problem as you and davehammer about them not recognizing/allowing the reservation.
May 23, 2019, 5:45 am
#131
Join Date: Nov 2014
Location: Springfield, MA
Programs: HH Diamond, IHG Diamond, Marriott Platinum, Hyatt Discoverist
Posts: 434
How comfortable are the sleeping rooms? My original flight let me take the tour, but I had to change dates and one connection is 8 hours although mine is 14 since I decided I would rather land at 8:30 than 3 am in Cairo. Am I better off booking a cheap hotel? I am flying on an award business class flight.
May 23, 2019, 10:29 am
#133
Join Date: Oct 2016
Location: LAX
Programs: TK M&S, LH MM, Global Entry, Hertz Gold, Sixt Platinum
Posts: 1,087
How comfortable are the sleeping rooms? My original flight let me take the tour, but I had to change dates and one connection is 8 hours although mine is 14 since I decided I would rather land at 8:30 than 3 am in Cairo. Am I better off booking a cheap hotel? I am flying on an award business class flight.
pictures of the sleeping rooms can be found towards the bottom here: https://onemileatatime.com/turkish-a...irport-review/
access rules are in the wiki on top of this thread
May 23, 2019, 10:33 am
#134
Join Date: Oct 2016
Location: LAX
Programs: TK M&S, LH MM, Global Entry, Hertz Gold, Sixt Platinum
Posts: 1,087
I don’t have personal experience but heard that it’s possible: they make you sign a waiver that you acknowledge that getting back to the airport in time is your own responsibility.