Istanbul Airport

Customer Reviews

5 star Skytrax Rating
Terminal Seating 12345
Terminal Cleanliness 12345
Terminal Signs 12345
Queuing Times 12345
Food Beverages 12345
Airport Staff 12345
Customer rating from 589 reviews
3/10
5 star Skytrax Rating
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2/10

"staff are not easy to communicate with"

(United States)

Trip Verified | Firstly, this airport is big and has concourses from A to F. To get from one concourse to the other, you are required to get to a central main area. I arrived at concourse F and my next flight was from concourse B. With what might seem as a reasonable connection time, at this airport, you have to have more. There are no buses, monorails, or modes of transport from one concourse to the other. Distances are vast and it is always crowded. If you are anything thing but a fit youngster, you are in for a anxious and stressful trek after a long flight. Remember that gates close 15 minutes before departure. Now, there are these youngsters on Segways with a seat that can transport you from one gate to the other. It blew my mind that they charge US$20 for that service. There are golf carts that can take you around but they are so few given the immense distance to be covered. I wonder how many people miss their connections. One other thing that I noted was that the airport staff including those at the transfer and help desks are poor English speakers and get defensive and rude when they cannot communicate coherently. At the gates, boarding is chaotic. If you are boarding a flight to the US, the additional screening of in cabin luggage and of the person is a sham. 4-5 people are packed to small table and are asked to lay all your in cabin luggage, empty all your pockets, watches, belts, wallet, etc. There is absolutely no room and I saw people trying to sort out their cell phone from their neighbors belongings. All the while the people who are supposed to be screening are literally shouting and herding passengers through. So much for security screening. Everything at this airport is expensive. Consider that the country's inflation stands at above 60%. If you are connecting through this airport, give yourself plenty of time. There are enough distractions to lure you to shop as the airport is one big shopping mall. Stay focused or you will miss your flight. And, the ground staff are not easy to communicate with. Good luck.
Experience At AirportArrival and Departure
Date VisitMarch 2024
Type Of TravellerCouple Leisure
Queuing Times 12345
Terminal Cleanliness 12345
Terminal Seating 12345
Terminal Signs 12345
Food Beverages N/A
Airport Shopping 12345
Airport Staff 12345
no
2/10

"a very poor experience"

(Pakistan)

Trip Verified | Had one of the worst experience with Turkish Airlines at the connecting airport. No one was there to guide us further, they closed the door early. We barely made it ourselves. The airport staff was discourteous and unhospitable and critiqued elderly passengers for not speaking English while they barely could speak 2 words in English. Overall a very poor experience.
Experience At AirportTransit
Date VisitMarch 2024
Type Of TravellerFamily Leisure
Queuing Times 12345
Terminal Cleanliness 12345
Terminal Seating 12345
Terminal Signs 12345
Food Beverages 12345
Airport Shopping 12345
Wifi Connectivity 12345
Airport Staff 12345
no
5/10

“Limited number of seating areas”

(Canada)

Not Verified | Limited number of seating areas. If Istanbul airport wanted to become hub for transitory passengers it has to provide adequate resting place for transitory passengers. So they can have adequate water fountains, sitting areas and mobile charging points for their layovers. After a long flight no passenger likes to sit on the floor so airport staff shouldn't be rude to such passengers instead should rightly direct them to empty seating areas.
Experience At AirportTransit
Date VisitMarch 2024
Type Of TravellerSolo Leisure
Queuing Times 12345
Terminal Cleanliness 12345
Terminal Seating 12345
Terminal Signs 12345
Food Beverages 12345
Airport Shopping 12345
Wifi Connectivity 12345
Airport Staff 12345
no
2/10

"food prices absolutely extortionate"

(United Kingdom)

Trip Verified | A superficially impressive airport with more high end shops then anyone could possibly need. But some serious irritations. Transit was slow and cumbersome; WiFi provision was shocking - both the stingy 1 hour allocation and mechanism to activate it, plus the speed once finally confirmed. The food prices were absolutely extortionate, especially given the state of the Turkish economy. It’s as of they are trying to retrospectively fund the airport by seriously overcharging. Will avoid in future.
Experience At AirportTransit
Date VisitMarch 2024
Type Of TravellerBusiness
Queuing Times 12345
Terminal Cleanliness 12345
Terminal Seating 12345
Terminal Signs 12345
Food Beverages 12345
Airport Shopping 12345
Wifi Connectivity 12345
Airport Staff 12345
no
1/10

“foods are unreasonably expensive”

(Germany)

Trip Verified | The worst airport I’ve ever visited! The foods are unreasonably expensive with so little variation. Only burgers and bread-based dishes. For example a noodle box with drink cost you 750 TL or 21 EURO. The cheapest McD meals is 18 EURO. That’s ridiculous. Also, very stingy airport with only 1 hour free WIFI. And you have to register your passport in the kiosk to have the password for the WiFi. Sometimes, the machine cannot read your passport so you have to do it over and over again. Never ever I experience something ridiculous like this in my entire life. Pay for WiFi in the airport? And you claimed to be a 5-star airport? Learn from Airports in Asia.
Experience At AirportTransit
Date VisitFebruary 2024
Type Of TravellerCouple Leisure
Queuing Times 12345
Terminal Cleanliness 12345
Terminal Seating 12345
Terminal Signs 12345
Food Beverages 12345
Airport Shopping 12345
Wifi Connectivity 12345
Airport Staff 12345
no
2/10

“more a shopping mall than an Airport”

(Germany)

Not Verified | One of the worst organized Airports. Always delays and wouldn't recomment for transit. It's more a shopping mall than an Airport. Food is 3 times more expensive than any other airport.
Experience At AirportTransit
Date VisitFebruary 2024
Type Of TravellerFamily Leisure
Queuing Times 12345
Terminal Cleanliness 12345
Terminal Seating 12345
Terminal Signs 12345
Food Beverages 12345
Airport Shopping 12345
Wifi Connectivity 12345
Airport Staff 12345
no
1/10

"We barely made the flight"

(United States)

Trip Verified | I had a horrible experience at Istanbul Airport on February 25. I was there on a layover from Cairo to Seattle. The connecting flight gate was about 1,700 meters away from the arrival gate and we were short on time. Because my son needed a wheelchair, the wheelchair person said my husband and I could head to the gate and he would bring my son "fast." We ran to the gate to make sure he would not wait long for us. When we arrived, my son wasn't there and the Turkish Airlines representatives had no idea where he was. They said the company that operates the wheelchair is independent. Running around trying to find an information desk or any airport staff who could help, there was nothing. All of that while the airline was announcing "last call" for our flight. I eventually found a random wheelchair person who told me that there is a desk near Gate A2 that could help. Nope. The two people at the desk who barely spoke English had no idea, and arrogantly requested me to go back to the gate. Back at the gate, I asked to speak with airport security, they said there was no airport security except past passport control! After everyone else had boarded, and still the airline staff had no idea where my son was, he eventually showed up TERRIFIED with a group of people in a cart. It turned out they moved him from a wheelchair to a cart and made several stops to pick others. We barely made the flight. I will never fly via Istanbul again.
Experience At AirportTransit
Date VisitFebruary 2024
Type Of TravellerFamily Leisure
Queuing Times 12345
Terminal Cleanliness 12345
Terminal Signs 12345
Food Beverages N/A
Airport Staff 12345
no
1/10

"Not a warm welcome feeling"

(United States)

Not Verified | Horrible WiFi service. Only one hour free. The shops are all oversized items and expensive. Not a warm welcome feeling at all with the ambiance of the overall airport.
Experience At AirportTransit
Date VisitFebruary 2024
Type Of TravellerSolo Leisure
Queuing Times 12345
Terminal Cleanliness 12345
Terminal Seating 12345
Terminal Signs 12345
Food Beverages 12345
Airport Shopping 12345
Wifi Connectivity 12345
Airport Staff 12345
no
2/10

"What chaos and madness"

(Finland)

Trip Verified | I was passing through the baggage checkpoint with my wife and my infant baby girl. We were carrying a lot of bags and I was carrying them alone and my wife was carrying the baby. When I put all the bags on the scanner machine, the security man allowed only my wife and the baby to pass and asked my to “Stop!” I told him that this is my family. How will my wife unload the bags from the scanner machine? He does not answer me and does not allow me to pass! Until my wife had to put the baby girl on the floor to unload the bags while I was watching my baby girl on the floor who could barely sit because she is only 8 months old and she might fall on her head!! All this was in front of my eyes and I was screaming and saying, “My child, let me pass!” There is no response. Then the security man allowed me to pass, but he told me to stop aside and test me for drugs test. What chaos and madness. The worst experiences in my life were at this ridiculous airport. Insults, mismanagement and childish behavior! Very disappointed!!
Experience At AirportDeparture Only
Date VisitFebruary 2024
Type Of TravellerFamily Leisure
Queuing Times 12345
Terminal Cleanliness 12345
Terminal Seating 12345
Terminal Signs 12345
Food Beverages 12345
Airport Shopping 12345
Wifi Connectivity 12345
Airport Staff 12345
no
1/10

"ended up missing the flight"

(Estonia)

Not Verified | I booked a flight for my unaccompanied 58-year-old mother, who is not tech-savvy and doesn't speak Turkish. Despite arriving at the airport over 3 hours early for her flight, the check-in counter opened just 2 hours before the flight. The officer denied her a printed boarding pass even when he was repeatedly asked to provide her with it, he stated that the E-Boarding pass on her phone (obtained through online check-in with no/old gate number) was enough. Despite witnessing her situation, he didn't arrange for or offer any special assistance. When she reached the gate mentioned on her E-Boarding pass that she was directed towards, she found out that the gate number for her flight had changed without any notice. After a lot of struggle and reaching the correct gate, she found that the flight had departed. She was left stranded at the airport for approximately 5 hours with no support. She was alone and kept asking for help inside, but nobody understood or helped her willingly, and any airline or airport staff she approached was not able to assist her or guide her, they kept on saying they had no information. There were no passenger calls made in her name that could reach her. And as a result, she ended up missing the flight. Despite explaining the entire ordeal, the airline has refused to acknowledge their fault or to reschedule the flight. This is utterly unjust.
Experience At AirportDeparture Only
Date VisitFebruary 2024
Type Of TravellerFamily Leisure
Queuing Times 12345
Terminal Cleanliness 12345
Terminal Seating 12345
Terminal Signs 12345
Food Beverages 12345
Airport Shopping 12345
Wifi Connectivity 12345
Airport Staff 12345
no