TK Connecting flight and PCR
 

If I book a TK flight from DAR-IST-ZAG with a 6-7 hour layover, will TK check me in DAR-IST so I can do the PCR in IST? It seems Croatia is requiring PCR within 48 hours of arriving and it seems like PCR at DAR takes 48-72 hours which will not cut it. Worst case scenario, will TK staff check me in to IST? Thanks in advance.

As far as I understand, it is not possible to do the PCR airside at IST. And without the PCR, you will not be allowed to go landside.

Thank you. Let me just book DAR-IST and that way the PCR can be 72 hours before first taking first flight so that hopefully it’ll be enough time. And I’ll just book IST-ZAG separately so I can clear immigration at IST and do PCR if needed at that point. Rules are changing so frequently it’s hard to plan anything.

No, it's not possible to do a PCR test airside at IST. The testing site is located landside at the arrivals level.

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For the OP, you would need a COVID test to enter Turkey thus to board your DAR-IST flight, you would either need to meet the entry requirements for Croatia ( PCR test 48 hours before arrival ) or for Turkey ( PCR test 72 hours before departure ), if you fail to present one of them in the check-in desk at DAR, you would be denied boarding. So either way, you would need a PCR COVID-19 test issued in Tanzania to board that flight if your intention is to transfer to Zagreb.

Semi-related question. There is a rapid antigen testing option right before transfer security at IST. It costs 175 TLY. Will they issue a certificate on paper?

I will be flying DAR-IST-HEL next month, and while Finland allows you to take the test on arrival (so no flu certificate required for boarding), it would speed up my arrival a lot if I can take the antigen test at IST, as my layover is close to five hours.

The rapid antigen test center before immigration is not open to the public. As another poster reported, testing over there needs a report from the police and not being 100% sure, that is for those people without a test to enter Turkey and had IRROPS.

Thank you. I booked DAR-IST so that the PCR requirements are those to enter Turkey at 72 hours before boarding flight and not the ones to enter Croatia which are 48 hours before arrival. I’m assuming if I arrive early enough in the day at IST, that I can book an evening flight (>8 hours connection) separately IST-ZAG, clear immigration and take the PCR at IST.

ISTFlyer, if the ET flight arrives at IST at 4:35AM and I book a TK flight IST-CAI that departs at 6:35AM, will I be able to take the flight connection wise? Let’s assume no checkin bags and that I’d need to check in at IST. I can’t remember if there’s a transfer desk where I could check in at IST. And I doubt the ET staff will check me in for the TK flight since it’s not on their itinerary. This is all hypothetical, but I might be able to spend a few days in Cairo if I pull the trigger. And hopefully the PCR taken 72 hours before is good for Egypt.

Right now, all flights ex-IST require a visit to the desk, no OLCI possible. So you would need to see someone at IST.

But yes, there's a transfer desk right before transit security, so you could check in there. I'm no IST expert, but the times I've flown via IST, I've always been at the transfer desk / security at the latest 30 min after arrival. You should have plenty of time, even if you have a stand arrival (bus) or a lengthy walk, assuming ET arrives on time.

It’s funny that even though I’ve flown many times to IST, I’ve never paid attention to the transfer desks before security/immigration. So provided my flight on ET arrives on time and I don’t have checked luggage, I should find the transfer desk before immigration and check in there? I’m wondering if the cutoff time is 60/75/90 minutes before IST-CAI since it’s international. It’ll be a bet but I’m gauging how big of a risk. Thank you!

According to their webpage, check in for international flights closes 75 minutes before departure.

When you arrive, just follow the signs to international transfers. Right before you enter the gates to transfer security, turn around 180° and you will see the transfer desk right in front of you. Of course, the area is fairly long. If you don’t see the transfer desk from where you are, try to locate fast track international transit security. Once you find that lane, you will find the transfer desk opposite the fast track.

I am in Cairo right now. If you want to stay at a good hotel, don’t choose the Intercontinental! :)

:D thank you for letting me know! And thanks for the directions. We’ll see if I can pull it off. Thanks again and enjoy your stay.

It's a bit off-topic, but I was surprised at your hotel comment: which of the ICs let you down?

I am at the Semiramis. While the combination of Ramadan and Covid19 might be a disadvantage to begin with (very few food options available), they seem to get all the small things wrong here. On arrival, my door wouldn't open because the battery had run out, and it took quite a while to have it fixed. I asked for a printed copy of the room service menu to be brought to my room when I went out, and several hours later, when I got back, it wasn't there. Today, they replenished my bath gel with a half-empty bottle. Yesterday, I waited 40 minutes for my meal at the restaurant. Things like that – the hotel is quite okay (apart from the bathroom, which is a cramped and old three-star bathroom), especially considering the price I paid (69 EUR excluding breakfast) but the service is nowhere near IC standards.

I stay at the Semiramis mainly for its location though as a grande dame of Cairo's hotel scene it also has a comforting buzz. I've never been seriously upset by any of its services, but you are spot on about the antiquated bathrooms. And service can be glacial if they don't smell a tip.

Ramadan is an awkward time, and lot of what daytime effort is available to Semiramis management seems to go into preparing and coordinating the iftar excesses.

The IC CityStars is slicker, more modern in every sense of the word, and the bathrooms are sleek. it's way out of the centre in Nasr City, but close to the airport, and it forms part of the city's most glitzy mall complex. It's usually significantly more expensive than he Semiramis.