I Spent 8 Hours at Turkish Airlines Business Class Lounge In The New $12 Billion Istanbul Airport!

On a recent layover, I spent 8 hours at Turkish Airlines Business Class Lounge at the brand-new, $12 billion dollar Istanbul Airport.

The new $12 billion dollar Istanbul Airport opened last year, and it will be the largest airport in the world by 2025. I spent an entire day here, including 8 hours in Turkish Airlines new business class lounge, which is the most impressive lounge I’ver ever visited. I’m going to give you a peek into both the airport and the lounge.

After flying 11 hours from NYC JFK in Turkish Airlines business class, I landed at Istanbul Airport in Istanbul Turkey. The airport sprawls a whopping 18,900 acres. Weirdly there’s very little moving sidewalks and no train system, but hey I love a long walk after a long flight. The airport is grand and modern, and there are miles of shopping. In fact, there are over 240 stores and592,000 square feet of duty free. It almost felt like a mall. I love that there was the Old Bazaar, one of the best features of the old airport, selling fun Turkish goods for last minute souvenirs, and the airport has 14 outdoor terraces. Smokers love it! But hey, its’ a great way to get fresh air too. The airport was always busy but never felt crowded, and there was plenty of restaurant s, green spaces ) and great design.

Now, the most over-the-top feature of Istanbul Airport is the 60,000 square foot business class lounge, which sprawls over the entire upper level of the main concourse. You have to scan your boarding ticket to gain access, and what’s you’re in, you’re IN. The lounge has the famous self-playing piano from the former lounge, and the lounge is massive, with high ceilings, virtual no walls and mind-blowing views of the main concourse.

In the center of the lounge is a modern, nature-inspired area with bench seating, stone columns, plotted plants, birdcage lanterns. I mean, I loved the attention to detail and added personality and color. there were a lot of different seating areas, including this live TV area with a self-serve bar and a quiet tea lounge.

Speaking of tea, there is fresh brewed Turkish coffee and tea everywhere, and let’s take a moment to talk about how posh the bathrooms are.

You won’t ever get bored in this lounge. There is a golf simulator, a Carrera car racing model, and tons of stuff for kids, like this airplane simulator, PlayStations, the works.

But let’s talk about what the lounge does extremely well: its food. There are nearly 12 food stations, mostly authentic Turkish food, and most of which are cooked and prepared right before your eyes. The lounge honestly it felt like a fancy food hall. It was some of the best Turkish food I’ve had in the country! I was a huge fan of the Simit, freshly baked Turkish bagel and the countryside butter to go along with it. There was a dessert station serving all your favorite Turkish sweets like baklava and lokma, we’re Turkish delights. The food was insane.

The lounge was incredibly high end and personalized. For instance you got your own personal wifi code rather than sharing a public network. There was an art gallery featuring public art, so obviously plenty of visual stimulation here. Oh, and lets talk about storage area. How amazing are these backlit lockers? Super modern and fun.

There are IMacs if you need to play games or sprint something out. But the best thing is the private suites. There are 14 private suites for people who have layovers between 4 and 9 hours, and they’re basically mini hotel rooms that come with a bed, flat screen TV and windows with a view. They also came with showers and private bathrooms. Hello, amazing.

So there you have it. Istanbul Airport is one of the newest, most modern and most expensively made airports in the world. It’s fun people watching here, and there’s plenty of places to shop. The lounge is the airport’s best attraction, so definitely do what you can to gain access!

***Travelbinger is dedicated to helping you travel better with insider tips, expert advice and travel inspiration from renowned travel expert and writer Jimmy Im, who has visited 113 countries, stayed at over 600 hotels and has flown nearly a million air miles. Im has been featured on shows like Travel Channel, NBC and Bravo, and he has written for top outlets like Conde Nast Traveler, Travel + Leisure, New York Post and American Way.

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