10 Days Turkey Trip Report - Istanbul, Antalya, Turkish 'Truths', Airlines, Transfers, Meet & Greet, Immigration, Lounges, Evisa, Where to Credit etc

SM24 · Monday at 3:57 PM

Hi All

Just wanted to share my points and miles journey to Turkey and the mostly delightful turkish experience.

Bengaluru - Mumbai - Istanbul - Mumbai - Bengaluru
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Istanbul - Antalya - Istanbul
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Turkey Dos, Donts, Preferences

I chose Air India for BLR - MUM - BLR for comfort, convenience, lounge access, priority check in, additional baggage allowance and priority baggage handling.
I like to travel and stay well so don’t consider airport hopping too much of a hassle, especially for the J rates I managed to snag on Oman Air from a different city 🙂

Bengaluru Transfers - Ola

Had used up both my Olympus transfers for 2024.
I had just paid my annual fees for 2024-2025.
Was hoping I could use one each, either way.
But apparently Olympus transfers are based on calendar year.
So cudn’t use the option.

Bengaluru Meet & Greet - Axis Olympus

Used 2 of my remaining 4 Olympus M&Gs for 2024.
Was a smooth online booking experience on the extraordinary weekends portal.
Small hitch: I received an email saying I’ll be charged for the second M&G as I had only one M&G remaining.
This, when I had 4 remaining on Olympus !
They even quoted a price.
I corrected them and they apologised.
Second time this has happened to me. The first time it was for an airport transfer in August.
Looks like the Axis partner is out to make a quick buck.

Bengaluru T2 Air India Lounge - Maharaja Gold

Was invited to the Air India Lounge as Maharaja Gold (Transition from Vistara Gold)
Complimentary access for Gold + 1
Ala carte menu.
Decent fare. Though they botched up our paneer ghee roast big time. The chef at that. Lol.
Attendants appeared short on training.
Look up Maharaja TnC closely for some of their additional benefits. (Some are available only when booked through official channels)

Flights

BLR - MUM - Air India - Infinia Points x 2 - Economy

10K+ fare for 2 pax
Paid 4.3K+ INR using Infinia for 5x returns.

Mumbai Lounge - Adani East Lounge

Not bad for breakfast
Couldn’t get the massage slots we wanted
Service not too great

2. MUM - IST - MUM Pax 1 - Business - 72K INR - Axis Travel Edge - 30% Return (gross)
MUM - IST - MUM - Pax 2 - Business - 68K INR- Oman Air website - > 10% Return (as my deployment on Turkish Airlines Istanbul to Antalya shows)

Had planned to use 70% Infinia points for my wife’s ticket. (Smartbuy was 5K cheaper too than travel edge)
I delayed booking by a day. The price and flight combo disappeared from smartbuy and travel edge.
I kept looking and suddenly my desired flight combo reappeared, but only on Oman Air website for 68K.
I grabbed it.

90 minute layover in Muscat. Just enough to get to the gates. So no time for lounge.

3. IST - ATY - 10K TK Miles per pax - Promo - Business - 1900 INR taxes
ATY - IST - 4.5K TK Miles per pax - Promo - Economy - 1900 INR taxes

TK economy rates on this sector ~ 25K per pax, per direction
TK business rates on this sector - 35-40K per pax, per direction

Low cost airlines were available for 1/6th of TK economy rates.

I wanted to try TK metal, its business class, benefit from premium class and Star Gold benefits, so didn’t choose low cost airlines.
Plus TK timings were more convenient for me.

4. MUM - BLR - Pax 1 - Business - Vistara > AI Complimentary Ticket - 427 INR taxes
MUM - BLR - Pax 2 - Premium Economy - 21K INR - 70% Infinia Points - 6400+ INR taxes

For my dates, Business was going at 45K per pax.

Turkish Evisa

Turkish Evisa is a breeze if you have US/UK/Schengen/Irish stamped visas.
Evisas of other countries/regions dont qualify.
Turkish evisas are single entry.
Paid around 8.5K INR for two visas. Paid using Olympus.
You get an evisa on email almost immediately.

Turkish Truths

Turkey is not in the best of economic health. So bargaining for something that’s 40TL is looked down upon (our experience)
Inflation is pretty high.
We faced, oh Pakistani/Indian/Bangladeshi in some places. Not to mention Salman Khan ! Shahrukh Khan ! Kareena Kapoor ! Lulz.
The erstwhile Roman and Greek grandeur was a pleasant surprise and quite a sight to behold for me.
Istanbul is undulating in many parts. Be prepared for uphill climbs.
Ensure right footwear
Do not take help from anyone anywhere. Not even at the IstanbulKart vending machines.
Use the public transport map and to go around on day 1 to get a sense of the citys’ layout.
Hop on Hop off if it’s your style.
Istanbul traffic can get really crazy.
Look to reach your airport at least 4 hours ahead of departure.
Antalya is a great city to explore some historical sights from.
Avoid bargaining if you don’t plan to buy many items or a single slightly costly item.
Tipping not mandatory, though expected when there’s no service charge

Istanbul
December 11-16
Novotel Istanbul Bosphorous

Shoulder season
Rates were little better.
Got lucky with the weather.
3 days of sun.
1 day of slight drizzle which didn’t affect the equipped us.
1 day of torrential rains - We stayed inside museums and palaces.

Accomodation

Stay in Karakoy or anywhere around there
(You can walk to the bustling Sultanamet area, also to Taksim, the fashionable part).
We averaged around 30K steps per day.
(We toyed with staying in Taksim area and moving to Mercure in Sultanamet after 3 days in Novotel)
But decided against it given the weather conditions.

We absolutely loved Novotel Istanbul Bosphorous.

My first time in an Accor property.
First time burning points as well.
Used 40K ALL Accor Points. Paid 345 TL in cash. Status nights and Status Points credited.
Didn’t have very high expectations after all the largely non premiumness talk about most Accor properties.

(Being a Marriott Titanium and a Hyatt fan, affected my perception too hugely).

To be honest I found it way better in terms of layout, aesthetic, functionality, quality etc than all Select and many Premium Marriott Brands.
Size too wasn’t too bad for a property in the city hub.
Supervisory staff are good. Juniors need training.

The lanes around the hotel are to die for if you like good art and resto-bars.
Dime a dozen.
Most, very appealing.

Hotel is just 300-400 metres from the Karakoy Tram stop and Karakoy Pier.
Galata Tower - a to do tourist spot is less than a hilly kilometre away.
A JW Marriott is almost next door.

Food

We ate hotel breakfast only on Day 2.
Options are limited for vegetarians as always.
Too much bread based doesn’t work for us.
We carried ready to eat Upma, Rava Pongal, Bisi Bele Bath…(Adukule is the brand !)
When we wanted to eat out, Lokantasis/Lokantis worked well (tradesmen canteens).
You can pick any 5 veg items for ~ 300 TL (plain and mushroom rice kinds - okra/aubergine etc curries - salads - chickpea/legume dish/usli/sundal)
Non veg items too are available.
A plate with 5 such items can be shared.
Apparently one can even ask for half a plate. Meaning 5 items for 50% price.
Cafes/Resto Bars/Fine dining places are all over the place. We dove right in when we found something up our visual and consumption palate.

Currency Exchange

Carry Euros/USD
Exchange locally in Istanbul.
Look for any Doviz (meaning currency exchange stores), anywhere, for money exchange
Euro exchange is better - I hear Turkey deals more with Europe than with USA.
Don’t break sweat about minor exchange differences and waste time ( I did. Despite being forewarned !)
As always stay away from airports and hotels for money exchange. Rates are terrible.

Local Transportation
Public transport is the way to go.
I found it very well organised and as efficient if not better than many European cities.
I stayed away from yellow taxis after reading about their scummy/scammy ways.
Even Ubers are known to be a rip off.

Buy IstanbulKart (Red Card).

You can buy them at the airport or tram/metro station/pier point/bus station.
One card can be used by upto 5 people
You scan, enter and hand it to the next person to scan and enter
Each journey in any mode is max 20 TL. Do your math accordingly.
There’s a refund angle if you use the underground Marmary train. (Look it up).
Card can used on cable cars as well.
Current charges 130 Turkish Lira (for card ONLY).
Current Monthly Recharge limit 500 TL.
Current Maximum Recharge per day 300 TL
Machine doesn’t give back change, if using TL to recharge, ( if my research memory serves me well), so plan well before inserting a TL note.

If you are feeling rich and have time, buy the Istanbul City Card/Unlimited Istanbul Public Transportation Card (Blue Card).

You can use it unlimited times for a fixed number of days on all modes of transport.
Available for 1/3/5/7/15 days.
One card per person only. Cant be shared.
Card can be ordered online.
Ideally 2 days before you reach Istanbul.
Physical card will be delivered to your hotel.
Unlimited transportation for few days. So no recharge angle.

Istanbul Epass

Gives you ‘free’ access &/ skip the line to some museums, palaces, historical places, sunset cruise with food + non alcoholic drinks + hotel pick up (if you are centrally located).
One way airport transportation available.
Discounted rates are available for hop on hop off if you buy this pass.
Free sim too is available if I remember correctly
2/3/5/7/10 day passes are available.
Can be purchased online.
You get an email immediately.
Then create an account using your account id and name.
You can browse, select and plan your attractions
Some attractions (including sunset cruise) need advance booking - can be managed from your account.
You need to define when you want the Epass to be activated.
Despite this requirement, I think it gets activated only when you use it the first time.

We bought a 2 day pass for 135 Euros per head (after 7% discount).
Made sense given that we went on a weekend. So skip the line saved us 30-45 minutes Q time on a Saturday at the Bascillica Cistern.

Airport Transfers

Was tempted to use public transport. But given the amount of luggage, distance from metro/tram to hotel, cobbled streets, local taxi issues, decided against it.
We went with istanbulshuttleport.com for return airport transfers in IST & ATY.
I came away impressed.
Their booking experience and WhatsApp communication is top draw stuff.
Can recommend them in a thrice.
IST Return Transfers - Eco Vans Private, 2 Pax, 5 Pieces of Luggage - 41 Euros each way, after 4 Euros discount. I paid 45 Euros along with tip.
Upgraded to Mercedes Van on Return. Paid cash after journey. May have received return journey discount if I had booked both ways together.
Since I wanted to be sure of the service, I booked each way separately.
The confidence from the service made me book ATY Return Transfers together. Received 10% discount.
ATY Return Transfers - Eco Vans Private, 2 Pax, 5 Pieces of Luggage, 35 Euros each way.
Upgraded to Mercedes Van.

Shopping
Taksim | Grand Bazaar | Spice Bazaar

Found clothes to be of high quality, especially the warm ones.
Prices pre bargaining too are quite ok.
Try their teas (Pomegranate tea is good !)
Baklavas/Turkish delight/Dry fruits are in every nook and cranny.
Hafiz Mustafa & Gullogglu are the premium Baklava chains. HM lived up to its branding for us.
Ceramic items are quite arty and worth a dekho.
Coffee and tea tasting is offered in many places.
Shawls and stuff…touch and feel to find the difference between synthetic Chinese stuff vs good quality Turkish material.

Antalya
December 16 - 20
Hotel Lykia Old Town

Accomodation

Hotel Lykia Old Town - Charming boutique property bang in the middle of Kaleci (Old town) peppered with pubs and bars
Ask for the fig cake. It's yummy.
Great service by Mustafa and team.
Must visit - Franco’s Holzofen Pizza - Great vibe, great folks, very nice food !
36K INR. Infinia Booking . 10x via Smartbuy

Day to Day - Brief Summary

Day 1 to Day 2 (First 24 hours)
Slept ! The Istanbul walks were showing !

Day 2

Strolled the lanes and streets to get a sense of the picturesque beach side city
Checked out Franco’s Holzofen Pizza !
Bought some nibbles in the supermarket adjacent.

Day 3

8 hour day tour with lunch included - Antalya City, Old Town, Upper and Lower Duden Waterfalls, Silver Factory (Factory was a bore)
Booked via Viator - Found a highly rated local tour
59 Euros for 2 pax
Booked using Olympus
The tour guide was nice until he got on my wife’s nerves with his complaints about Turkey, pessimism and repeated hints about tipping
I found him to be fine, in the end analysis.

Day 4

12 hour tour to Pamukalle and Hierapolis - Big bus, breakfast, lunch and dinner inclusive
Booked via MegaPass. Look them up.
118 Euros for 2 pax
Booked using Olympus
Good veg options for lunch and dinner
Bus audio wasn’t great
Lady guide didn’t make us go gaga, but was fine mostly.
The travertine terraces and temple of apollo are a must see.
The museum too is quite a sight.
Stops at Onyx Stone Factory and Local Wine Cellar. The wine tasting experience was worth it.
Didn’t realise there is a hot air balloon tour of Pamukalle. Needs to be booked as a separate tour from Antalya, a day before or even prior.
Food and drinks at these venues are quite dear. 115 TL for a can of coke !

Oman Air Experience

Had heard very good things.
Didn’t turn out fully as such.
Onward - Not too many complaints.
Mumbai - Fast track Security and Fast track immigration were handy.
No lie flat seats on any of the 4 legs (2 onward, 2 return)
Istanbul - Absence of fast track for immigration for business class was a big let down. Poor communication by airport staff meant lots of time lost.
Only Turkish Airlines Premium Flyers and Star Alliance Elites are eligible for fast track.

Return - The entire process from check in, passport control, security, lounge, boarding area seating, announcements and departure left a lot to be desired from the word go.

Check in - Displays just wouldn’t show our Check in counter number. (Had to check with info desk to know our counter number)
Check in started less than 3 hours before departure, when the norm is 4 hours I guess.
We had already waited for 2 hours for the counters to open, so the additional waiting was quite a pain.
Fast track Immigration was cancelled by Oman Air a month back. So more whammy !
Without Fast track Security, security clearance went at a snail’s pace.
IGA lounge Q was bad. Business had a separate Q. So we entered the lounge in 10 minutes tops. Small consolation.
The lounge itself was literally overflowing. Found a place to sit immediately. The food fare for veggies was limited but useful.
The boarding area was packed to the rafters. No separate section for Business was a bummer.
I stood throughout, while the Mrs found a quick seat.
The pre-boarding announcements were a mess.
The Q system was ill managed with not a care for business class passengers. lol.
The flight delay didn’t help.
The indifference of the Oman Air staff, possibly Turkish locals, led to a snarky me enroute boarding.

Thankfully the food, service and wine on air somewhat salvaged the experience for us.
Return - MCT - Briefly checked out the Oman Air Business/First Class lounge (2 hours layover).
Blingy, empty, nice local coffee, nice folks.
Return - Mumbai - Had a tight 2 hour domestic connection time for the BLR flight. I was gambling with this.
40 minutes is all it took for us after deplaning to enter the domestic gates area in T2, Mumbai !

Where to Credit Oman Air Flights
You can credit Oman Air flights

To Oman Air, Etihad (as per wheretocredit.com)
To OA, E, Qatar*, Flying Blue (as per Oman Air Add Frequent Flyer option) - I wasn’t able to, though. The check in guys in MUM and IST said only Oman Air credit possible. Lol
To any of the above + Aeroplan as per Oman Air arrangements
1. I anyways cudn't add Aeroplan frequent flyer numbers to our bookings.
2. Aeroplan says I need to wait for 14 days after flight date before submitting a request for missing miles.
3. Will wait !

Side Note:

Crediting the flights to Oman Air may not mean much, because the miles earned may not be enough for even a one way trip.
Crediting to Etihad maybe be useful. But not again not enough miles may be earned + Etihad piles on taxes.
Flying Blue is a decent option. But not my preferred choice.
*Qatar - Apparently possible to use only on MCT DOH, DOH MCT routes.
Aeroplan is useful to collect for international flights and for AI domestic legs starting at 7.5K Points for Economy & 15K for Business (even if family pooling currently doesn’t work).

Turkish Award Ticket Booking

Harrowing experience
Almost 90 minutes on call with agent.
Poor signal and inaudible voice further aggravated the situation.
For some reason my Amex Plat and Atlas didn’t work to pay the taxes
Olympus did.

In hindsight should have booked Business on the way back to IST too.
Because unsure if Turkish had piece or weight concept for domestic flights, we ended up juggling with baggage weights.
Check if Turkish does piece or weight concept for internal flights. (I forgot to check !)

Thanks to folks in the forum who helped with the Turkish customer care number and who suggested calling for the booking.

Turkish Airlines Experience

Onward - On ground - IST

Domestic Turkish Airlines Lounge
Was quite basic in terms of food options, for both veg and non veg
The lounge itself was quite fine.
Very convenient to access the gates
Due to my brain fade, we almost missed our flight despite reaching the airport a good 4 hours before departure !
The Business class booking saved us from missing the flight I imagine.
Option: IGA Lounge - Works with Priority Pass.

Onward - On air

Didn’t select special meal (veg) 24 hours in advance.
So ended up only with dessert and coffee
Very spacious J cabins.
The most leg room I’ve experienced in Business class anywhere in my travels across India, Asia, Europe or USA.
Service was good.

Return - On ground - ATY

Separate check in area in Antalya airport for Star Alliance Elites is a brilliant idea.
Check in was a breeze.
Security is alongside. (Use this security for scanning baggage if you have status with Star Alliance. No need to scan baggage at the entrance.)
Lounge lift right after security.
All in all great layout, adding to great efficiency.
The IGA lounge contracted to Star Alliance on the first floor was better than the Turkish Lounge in Istanbul in terms of food offerings and seating. But not by much.
There is another IGA lounge at Gate 7. Access available through Priority Pass, Lounge Key, Diners etc

Return - On air

Great service
I tried to add a special meal (veg) this time 24 hours before departure as the rule requires. But failed.
So had decided not to eat on air.
So the air hostess conjuring a veg sandwich was a nice touch.

Return Immigration - Mumbai

Thankfully we arrived 30 minutes early into MUM from MCT. So the 2 hour connection to BLR became 2.30 hours.
Used buggy to reach business class immigration counters, where we got to decently fast, priority baggage arrived super fast, security screening was quick enough, international to domestic transfer is quite sorted in Mumbai T2.
Indigo had a really long Q.
Air India, especially premium class, was super quick.
Security after check in is fast, if you already have a boarding pass for the domestic connection. We had ours from the transfer desk.

Used Amex Plat to get into the centurion lounge to gorge on sufficiently tasty dosas, vadas, poha and sambar after 12 days on the road !

Bonus for flying from Mumbai?
Was able to use my Amex Taj Voucher for dinner at Taj Santa Cruz, a day before expiry 🙂

I hope you all find this useful.
I’m pretty sure I’ve saved you all lots of reddit research, atleast.
Thanks for reading this excruciatingly long report !

Please feel free to correct me and chime in 🙂

Will do my best to answer any questions anyone may have.

Cheers !