Turkish Airlines

Houston to Mumbai via Istanbul return, flying Turkish Airlines for the first time. The outbound trip to India was smooth. But on the way back it was one of the mot horrific experience I had had. We checked in on time as per the rules from Mumbai. The flight was delayed by more than 3 hours. We inquired with he ground staff will we get the connecting flight to Houston from Istanbul, and they said yes. So we were on the way to Istanbul. The flight arrived late. There was nobody at the gate to let us know what we should be doing as your flight connections are not there. We went through the security again and by the time we reached the gate for Houston, they had closed the gate. When inquired with the person there he said gate closed now you go and look yourself what to do. We had no clue where to go. We went inquiring all over the airport, and the people or the staff there kept us sending up and down and left and right. In the end we saw a counter and we stood in that line at least to get in touch with someone authentic to talk to. The lady did not speak proper English, but somehow we got out boarding pass done for the flight for the next day. Now the problem starts, we asked the lady for or hotel stay as we have not missed the flight due to our negligence, but it was due to the airlines mess up. She said go to the hotel counter, but to get there we had to pass through passport control and we needed visa. So we had to pay for the visa which was not acceptable to us, because by now we had lost faith in the staff and the people around. So me and wife decided to stay put at the airport, not realizing the it was snowing and we will get shivery in the night. If you are traveling by Turkish Airlines be careful in Istanbul, as the staff there is very rude, not knowledgeable, and very unprofessional. To top it all my bags did not come on the fight. We are now receiving bags one by one in instalments.

Istanbul to Kansai with Turkish Airlines. We are Star Alliance Gold passengers but boarded the aircraft last - the boarding by bus was chaos, and what a mess. Onboard the crew looked really sleepy and the aircraft was showing its age. The same Turkish beef mince patty thing was on the menu twice and as my second choice was not available second time round, I had to eat the same thing twice. The toilets were dirty and the crew did the bare minimum. Was a terrible experience and will not be flying them again.

This was the fourth of four legs of a return Turkish Airlines trip from Manchester to Kuala Lumpur via Istanbul, and one I'd like to forget. As a business class customer, priority boarding is promised, but at the gate it was a free-for-all. We eventually boarded but due to a computer problem we were delayed at the stand by almost 2 hours. The business class cabin was atrocious. The front of the cabin near the door was soaked in water, due to rain and a leaking sink. The taps in the sink were out of order so we had to rinse hands using bottled drinking water. Seats were economy style, with the middle seat free. When the passenger in front reclined, there was about 6-8 inches of room between the seat and my head, and the leg room was very cramped, knees touching the back of the seat in front once he reclined. There was no IFE, unless you call a sheet of sudoku puzzles entertainment. There were a few drop down screens which were used for the safety video. The screen was so dark it was impossible to see the images. First drink was served in a plastic cup. I am assuming that many of the passengers in business class were passengers from other cancelled flights, as our seat numbers were changed at the last minute (at the boarding gate). After take off, I waited until the seat belt light had gone off before unbuckling and going to the toilet. Once there the chief steward told me to sit back down as the light was still on - I can only assume he'd turned it off prematurely and then back on again after I'd walked to the toilet. I sat back down and waited for him to turn it off again. One passenger got up while the light was on and used the loo. I complained to the chief steward who said, he was ok to use it as he was about to turn the light off anyway. The same steward told another complaining passenger that if he didn't like the service he was more than welcome to leave the plane. I also complained that the lack of hygiene due to non-functioning washing facilities meant the plane wasn't fit for use. He dismissed my complaint. The leather covering of the raised seat arms were velcro-ed on, but the velcro had worn free leaving exposed dirty undersides. This is in no way business class standard - in fact it was less comfortable than economy (I travelled economy with a group to Kilimanjaro in October - that was a far more pleasant experience, despite a malfunctioning air con system leaving the cabin sweltering). The lounge at Istanbul is impressive, but be warned, the lack of their own lounges at other airports is a negative aspect of the experience. At Manchester, the Aspire lounge was in need of a good clean. At Kuala Lumpur the Premier Plaza lounge was packed to capacity, with lots of children and seats very close together. Wine is not included in the drinks service. Good points for business travellers include dedicated check in section and priority baggage loading and unloading. The lie-flat seats are ok (between Kuala Lumpur and Istanbul) and the food is ok. If you are looking for a true business class experience, I would highly recommend paying a bit more and going with another airline.

Terrible customer service experience. My Turkish Airlines flight from Istanbul to Madrid was cancelled, and the next flight delayed 4 hours. Turkish Airlines staff employees in Istanbul are arrogant, treat customers badly, speak bad english, scream at customers, don't give concise answers, and are difficult to locate during delays. The call center puts you on hold for hours. The cabin staff is much better. Planes are usually okay, although some are old planes without AVOD. The risks of things going wrong with Turkish Airlines are high. Don't risk your time and vacations.

I flew Turkish Airlines from Baghdad to London via Istanbul on the 1st Jan 2016. Firstly there was a 7 hour delay in Baghdad and no hotel was offered. Once we arrived in Istanbul our connected flight had been delayed so we had a few hours to board our scheduled flight - however we were issued standby tickets and our seats were given to other passengers. This should never had happened, and even though there were 9 available seats, no priority was given to our party which had wheelchair passengers, diabetic and two young children. We had to queue up to get new boarding passes and the incompetent tickets clerk issued 8 boarding passes instead of 9 - and issued the same seat for 2 passengers! We were also given a later flight, so we had to wait for 17 hours in the airport with 1 meal ticket and no hotel accommodation provided. In the end we arrived at London Heathrow 25 hours after our scheduled expected arrival time. The ground service is awful, very rude, aggressive and just laugh at passenger distress - lost for words!

Bucharest to Abuja via Istanbul, and the nightmare started when I arrived to Abuja Airport from Istanbul on 11th December on a Turkish Airlines flight. Both of my luggage never came with the flight. Apparently, after some days they sent one of the bags to Kano (another airport in Nigeria) and from there to Abuja. So I got that one. I've never seen the second one. I made complaints and called them and it's been almost one month since I came to the country and I still didn't get it. All my clothes and belongings are inside that bag since it's the big one. I was supposed to travel the same day of the arrival to Calabar, however because I didn't have my bags I had to spend more than one week in the hotel. After that time I got tired so I decided to travel to my destination. They said when the bag is found they'll send it to my address - that's what they say. This is the worst experience I've had. The worst thing is that I have a return ticket.

Dubai to Toronto via Istanbul with Turkish Airlines. One of the worst experiences of my life. Delayed flight from Dubai for 7 hours, then a flight delay for two days in Istanbul, and in the end didn't get any checked baggage. Will never fly this incompetent airline.

My Turkish Airlines flight from Stuttgart to Istanbul was delayed 1 hr and 8 minutes, in Stuttgart the lady on the counter said since they know we have a problem and it's delayed and you have checked in and have a boarding pass, they will wait for you for sure. The plane landed 1 hr before the other one and they didn't let us out of the plane for 50 mins and we missed our next flight. The employees in Istanbul airport were rude and aggressive, they don't help or answer any questions. The man on the disk didn't want to offer hotel or even a meal. They speak in a very rude way. About 17 passengers missed their flight to Cairo - no apologies, no explanations and no facilities offered.

I flew with Turkish Airline from Heathrow to Abuja via Istanbul. Upon arriving Abuja my 2 luggage never arrived on my flight. It took me 3 trips to the airport and 4 days before I finally received my luggage. I thought my nightmare was over, then my return flight back to London Gatwick via Istanbul was delayed for 6 hours. Upon arriving Istanbul I missed my connecting flight to the UK. I had to wait 19 hours at the airport. No one gave me directions on what to do or where to sleep or get food. I was basically at the mercy of Turkish Airlines to get home. I arrived London Gatwick on 2nd January having spent my new year stranded at Istanbul Airport. The most ridiculous thing is that my luggage never arrived London too. This is not acceptable. I can't believe this has happened to me twice in one holiday. It's the 4th day now and I haven't got my luggage yet. I have called Turkish Airlines customer service only for staff to hang up on me. Turkish Airlines has proven to be the worst experience so far.

Tehran to London via Istanbul and awful service! Our Turkish Airlines connecting flight was cancelled, no information, no support, nothing. We had to sort ourselves out, the staff were rude, aggressive and did nothing for mothers with children from what I could see. They were utterly incompetent.