Pre-Cruise - Turkish Airlines to Izmir, Turkey
Our 153rd cruise begins with an 12-hour long flight from DFW to Istanbul, Turkey, aboard Turkish Airlines. This is our first time flying on Turkish Airlines. Our original flight was scheduled to depart at 2:30pm from DFW airport, but that flight got cancelled and we were re-booked on a 9:30pm departure. Normally on such a long flight, we would try to fly in Premium Economy or Business Class, but Turkish Airlines does not offer Premium Economy service and Business Class on this 787-900 was completely sold out.
Turkish Airlines 787-900 at DFW airport
We were able to pre-select seats (for a fee) at a bulkhead, center section. We reserved the two aisle seats leaving a center seat open between us.
After we arrived at DFW airport, we had about two hours before our boarding time, so we headed to the Capital One Lounge in Terminal D. The lounge was quite empty tonight making for a peaceful way to enjoy our time before heading to the gate.
Capital One Lounge DFW Terminal D
TURKISH AIRLINES
Our online research revealed that this particular Turkish Airlines flight was notoriously behind schedule. Our flight was no different. Our flight was more than one hour late departing DFW. We were concerned that we would not be able to make our tight connection in Istanbul for our flight to Izmir.
Boarding by row numbers on Turkish Airlines
We landed in Istanbul about 45 minutes late and the walk to passport control was loooooong. Our only hope was that Turkish Airlines would be holding the flight and waiting for us. However, that was not to be the case. The immigration officer checking our passports even called the gate to see if the flight was being held, and confirmed that we would miss the flight.
Finding the correct passport control desk was a challenge
We walked back to a Turkish Airlines transfer desk, and stood in line for another 30 minutes before we could talk to an agent. The agent quickly rebooked us on a later flight to Izmir. Then we walked back to passport control, then a terminal change (to a domestic transfer terminal), then back through security…again!
The Istanbul airport has good signage in English and Turkish
We did arrive at our departure gate in time to catch the 9:00pm flight to Izmir on a very cramped Airbus A321. This flight went off without a hitch and we landed in Izmir at about 10pm. At the Izmir airport, there was a little confusion as to which baggage claim area we were supposed to go to. We thought, since we arrived on a domestic flight from Istanbul, we should go to the domestic baggage claim. However, we were informed that since our originating flight was international, we had to go to the international baggage claim. Another loooooong walk. Fortunately, when we arrived at the international baggage claim, our luggage was already on the carousel.
Very little legroom on Turkish A321 flight to Izmir
Our first impression of Turkish Airlines was not a great one, at least not as far as being on time. The onboard service staff were very nice. We were too tired to try the dinner service which was not served until after midnight. The breakfast served the next morning was very good. Turkish has a reputation for good in-flight dining. The in-flight entertainment system worked well and had a good selection of movies, TV shows and even live news broadcasts.
Nothing more satisfying than finding your luggage at baggage claim
Our opinion is that this is probably a good airline if you are able to fly in their Business Class cabin or, as long as you don’t need to make a tight connection. If we were just flying from DFW to Istanbul with no connecting flight, we might consider it again.
TRANSFER
Emerald Cruises had arranged for a private transfer from the Izmir airport to our hotel, the Park Inn by Radisson. A driver from the transfer company called me while we were at baggage claim and told me he would be waiting for us after we exited baggage claim. When we exited, we found a driver standing there waiting with our names on a sign. He grabbed our luggage and escorted us to the nicest Mercedes transfer van we have ever seen. This thing was decked out like a party van!
Our driver takes our luggage and escorts us to our transfer van
On our drive to the hotel, I received a phone call from another transfer driver asking where we were. I told him we were on our way to the hotel. He said he was waiting for us outside baggage claim. Very strange. I am still not sure how that happened.
We arrived at the hotel at around 10:45 pm and were exhausted from the long day and a half of flying. By the time we got to bed, we had been up for more than 32 hours. Neither of us can sleep on a flight, at least not in an Economy seat.
Tomorrow, we will see what we can of Izmir and most likely be shedding off the remaining jet lag. We will be meeting our Emerald Cruises host and a few other journalists for dinner tomorrow night.
