Istanbul New Airport - A Frequent Travellers First Look
I've had the opportunity to visit and travel from Istanbul's new airport several times over the past couple of weeks and wanted to share some first impressions.
As some will know, Ataturk International (IST) had become very congested from both a passenger and flights perspective, so a much larger airport was very much needed. And as a frequent traveller I was eagerly waiting to see what Istanbul New Airport would bring. I wasn't disappointed.
Istanbul New Airport is not that much farther from the city than the Ataturk was. All things being equal you can be in Taksim Square in 45 minutes by Taxi, or a lot faster depending on the taxi driver you end up with!
The new airport is HUGE, housing both Domestic and International Departures and Arrivals in the same building. From the outside it's not too dissimilar to KLIA in Kuala Lumpur or Suvarnabhumi Airport in Bangkok, with ample space and lanes to drop off and pick up passengers. The 7 storey car park is again HUGE, directly accessible opposite the terminal.
The Domestic Departures are from entrances 1 and 2, while International Departures are from 3 onwards.
Inside, the terminal is very spacious, tastefully (in my opinion also beautifully) designed and decorated, with marble floors and a futuristic looking ceiling. There are various meeting points openly sign posted, it's very child friendly, with various play areas for kids and adults alike. If you're a smoker, there are several terraces where you can smoke.
The waiting areas at the gates are again, very spacious, with coffee shops and lounging areas conveniently located near certain gates. So even if you don't have access to any of the CIP / VIP Lounges, the experience outside is a lot more comfortable than it was at the Ataturk, and certainly better than most airports in the world. The Istanbul New Airport by IGA is as close to beautiful as an airport can get to being called beautiful.
However I do believe IGA missed a trick or two with their marketing of this grand new airport. While the commercials advertising the move were aplenty, the communications and messaging with those that are going to be using the airport most - the frequent travellers - was non existent - at least from a Turkish Airlines frequent flyer program member perspective. Turkish Airlines, AtlasGlobal, TAV, the Turkish banks... all have databases with contact details of frequent travellers, numbering in the millions. One would have expected a collaboration between IGA and these companies at the very least, to provide appropriate messaging emails, informing travellers of the new amenities; a map of the terminal / infographics showing where key locations are, where the best places to park are if you're travelling with certain carriers etc.
In addition, a campaign with ATU - the Duty Free Services provider - could have been provided for international transit passengers, offering heavy discounts on duty free, for travel during the first few weeks after opening.
Regardless, Istanbul New Airport is a wonderful new facility providing a unique, almost "cosy" ambiance not found in many airports around the world.