Forbes Travel Notes – Reviews, features & travel notes

Turkish Airlines celebrating 80 years in the air and best airline for third year running

It’s hard to believe the changes that have taken place at Turkish Airlines over the last 10 years, let alone the last 80 years.  Carrying almost 40 million passengers a year, Turkish Airlines is ambitiously growing and working to create a truly global hub in Istanbul.

This year was the first time I had flown with them, but I can now imagine it won’t be the last, as the airline, through Istanbul is offering so my routes from Spain’s airports, and at prices that make you think twice before using the usual hubs like Heathrow, Schiphol or even Madrid–Barajas.

With services from Santiago de Compostela, Bilbao, Barcelona, Valencia, Madrid and Malaga, Turkish Airlines (THY) is now an established player in the Spanish market, connecting the Iberian peninsula with the rest of the world.

My recent trips to Istanbul and Bodrum in the south of Turkey enabled me to experience both Turkish Airlines international and domestic services and I was impressed.

It reminded me of BA some years ago; the attention to detail, not just in the premium cabins but in economy too. THY take pride in their catering, an area that most airlines are forced to downgrade in order to maintain competitive, yet somehow Turkish Airlines, with their own catering firm, provide food on their services that actually surprisingly tasty. The crew on all our flights were really friendly too- it seems all too often with airlines that the crew are disconnected with the clients flying, instead angry over airline conditions or being manipulated by unions. With THY the staff appeared to genuinely enjoy their job – again reminded me of the ‘good old days’ of airline travel.

I had the good fortune to experience THY’s flagship lounge at Istanbul’s airport – it’s a cavernous retreat with plenty of different areas for the many guests that use it. Again the food was superb, with freshly prepared dishes leaving the kitchen all the time.

The investment by THY is its customer service, fleet and hubs hasn’t gone unnoticed and again this year Turkish Airlines was awarded Best European Airline for the third year.

You can read about my trip to Bodrum here; and my trip to Istanbul here; and my sailing trip in the Aegean here. I also gave an overview of the Ritz Carlton Hotel in Istanbul here.

I was a media guest of Turkish Airlines.