Istanbul Airport

Flew into Istanbul on a very busy Friday afternoon (01 August) and it was total chaos trying to get through immigration. No problems with the visa payments but it took nearly 45 minutes to get through passport control. I had to really search all of the luggage carrousels for my baggage as there appeared to be no signs anywhere? Quite a long walk through the airport to the Metro but what a joy to have to only pay 2.80 New Turkish Lira in total to get from the airport to the tourist part of the city. Coming back- Very slow moving lines at the Turkish Airlines check in desks and even slower ones going through the final security checks at the gates. I believe some people were close to missing their flights because of this. Agree with other comments about the prices of food and drinks in the airport - extortionate!

Arrived on an international flight at Istanbul Ataturk Airport around 1215pm today. Queues for Passport Control so long they went out into the passageway beyond the zig-zag lines of railings. 45 minutes later arrived in front of an Immigration officer and was processed promptly and courteously. The queue seems to be divided into three chunks; one for Turkish nationals and two for others. My section fed eight inspection desks. Only two were manned although the section for Turks had many more officers and small queues. I have found this to be a frequent experience and not a pleasant one. Avoid Istanbul Ataturk airport unless you are prepared for long waits in an area which can be hot; has low ceilings and no evidence of air-conditioning operating. It is a shame.

Tip for passport control - if you go to gate H the passport desks there are less used than those closer to the gates A etc. so if you are in a hurry walk a further 100m on and you should be through passport control very quickly. As security control is at the gates not straight after passport control do not leave shopping until the last minute or you will get caught up in a queue for boarding which might cause some delays.

I was pleasantly surprised by Ataturk airport. It was well organised with quick immigration processing by friendly immigration officers in an adequately staffed immigration area (American airports could learn a thing or two here from the Turks). The separate visa queue also went quickly and efficiently (though travellers from the UK should remember that they only take USD or Euros). I dashed off to use the (clean and modern) toilet facilities at baggage retrieval and my wife already had our suitcase by the time I made it back. Leaving was equally simple with the slight quirk that security is before check-in so you go straight from check-in to passport control without having to go through security again (though there is a second security area once you reach your specific gate). Airside is neatly and sensibly laid out with plenty of shopping without the sense of being in a busy glorified shopping mall you get from most UK airports - though as noted in several other comments food and drink are pricey. There was some slight chaos at boarding but this seems to have been the airline's fault rather than a flaw with the airport

International terminal. Large queues to purchase tourist visa on arrival but processed quickly. Likewise passport control. Bag waiting on carousel once through. Taxi ranks outside well controlled. Upon departure quick clearance through first security point; BA check-in very quick. Agree with cost of goods airside though English language books in the main bookstore very reasonably priced. I liked the café bars at various departure gates. Good experience all round.

I agree about the cost of foods in Istanbul Airport! Even the worst food Burger King combo meal worked out to be around $12US. It is a nice clean airport and lots of shops and places to hang out in - as long as you aren't hungry!!

Flew into and out of Istanbul over Easter. Was no trouble at all - very large and spacious. Turkish Airlines check-in was appalling and had an extremely slow queue but the rest of the airport was good with a fair choise of shops. The only gripe is that the drinks and food were horrifically expensive - considerably more than at British airports.

Inbound to IST very quick to purchase visa clear immigration customs and exit airport. Using the Hafif Metro to Zeytaburnum then the tram to the city's Sultanahmet district took less than one hour and cost just 2.6 YTL (£1.30). Departing the airport is very spacious in most areas quick and polite check in staff for Swiss again security and passport control very quick and all efficiently organised. A large range of shops but food outlets are very expensive!! (two soft drinks and a toasted sandwich YTL 23 - (around £11 GBP)

Flew into this airport in mid October. No more than 5 minute wait at (separate) visa and immigration queues and only a short wait for bags. I was on the train within 30 minutes of getting off the plane. Airport looked clean and spacious.

Late evening arrival from STN. Visa queue 10 mins. Passport control quick though and no other delays but long walk to domestic terminal if you are connecting inside Turkey - some moving walkways but otherwise up ramps and round quite a maze of passages to get to gates. All signed and not difficult though. Return journey passport control quite efficient and no untoward delays. Shopping choice good but duty free prices are high. Couldn't notice any extremes of smoking though around the terminal or at gates so as a non-smoker quite happy with that and new facilities being added to improve shopping. Used CIP lounge as short time to wait for connections - good service nice choice of refreshments and varied seating areas including some very plush rooms and good business desks too but intrusive noise from adjoining areas plus 4 tvs on different channels were competing as well. Security not an issue - prompt no extra delays or problems. Whole airport appeared nice and clean and was a good experience.