I have flown both long haul flights from Newark to Istanbul as well as short haul from Nevsehir to Istanbul.

What I did not expect on this 55 minute flight was to be flying on a 777 that features 49 business class seats in a 2-3-2 layout.

I was departing from Milas-Bodrum Airport (BJV) on a short hop to Istanbul. The airport was pretty small but actually featured a number of different food options and a dedicated entrance as well as lounge for business class passengers.

The flight was on time and we were ready to depart after a little time in the lounge.

It was no surprise we were boarding on a remote gate but the special thing was seeing a 777 up close. In the past I’ve boarded remote gates for small airplanes but this was by far the largest one I got to see up close.

When you compare the 777 on a long haul flight the 2-3-2 configuration is not that competitive but for such a short flight it’s actually a treat to sit in this cabin.

We boarded and given business class is separated into two cabins there was plenty of space for belongings and bags.

I picked the two seats by the window and it was set to be a comfortable short haul flight where I didn’t expect much to be served.

The flight started with a welcome drink where I opted for orange juice. Turkish Airlines welcome tend to have some of the better juices we’ve ever tried on an airline and something I always look forward to.

Here is where the service surprise really came. They passed out menus meaning there was going to be a full meal served on this flight.

It was an early morning flight so there was only one breakfast option of scrambled eggs with cheese, potatoes, mushrooms, cheese, and fruit. Given the short flight this was a pretty extensive offering for a business class breakfast.

As soon as we took off the crew immediately began meal service. The FA presented me with a single tray and shortly followed by bread service.

At first I couldn’t tell if the eggs were going to be good but they surprised me. What I like about Turkeys take on scrambled eggs is they are most definitely never overcooked. These eggs were soft, moist, and had great flavor with the little bit of cheese.

I used my bread as the vehicle for these cheese scrambled eggs and I couldn’t have asked for a better meal to start the day.

Summary & Takeaways

I didn’t expect much for a short haul flight and didn’t get a chance to use much of the IFE but Turkish went above my expectations. In an industry where some airlines only serve snack boxes on flights of 5 hours, Turkish does not cut corners and provides a full hot meal even on the shortest of flights.

Given the rate for this flight is only a minor bit above economy I saw it was well worth it to pay a little extra to get a comfortable seat and a hot meal.

This certainly won’t be the last time I fly Turkish but if they solve their customer service issues it may be rated amongst the best out there.

The post Flight Review: Turkish Airlines 777 Business Class from Bodrum to Istanbul appeared first on Travel Season.

On this trip I was trying to get back to New York from Istanbul and the journey started with a flight on Lufthansa A321 from Istanbul to Frankfurt. That flight included a dreaded European Business Class but was mostly uneventful.

For this trip I was hopping across the pond on a A340-300 that features a reasonably small business class.

Note: I reviewed this flight from FRA to JFK on our review platform and you can review it there as well.

As you can see in the seat map this plane featured 30 business class seats in a 2-2-2 configuration. The business class seat was typical for Lufthansa, which I find outdated and lacked privacy.

The flight was partially delayed by 1 hour so I was able to stop into the Lufthansa Senator Lounge at Frankfurt Airport. Unfortunately the business class section was closed this time but the lounge was mostly empty making it a great place to relax.

Shortly after we were ready to board and on our way. The boarding process started with business class and Star Alliance Gold members followed by a long cue for economy passengers.

What waited for us shortly after scanning the ticket was the dreaded bus to take us to a remote gate. I found this odd for such a premium route from FRA to JFK as well as the issue that the bus waited for many economy passengers too making it overly crowded.

On the plus side its rare to get such a close up look at a large plane. In the past when I boarded remotely the planes are generally smaller and designed for short haul flights. It was fascinating to just get the perspective of just how big some of these planes are.

We boarded the flight to a full booked business class cabin that made it feel a little bit cramped. Lufthansa also includes overhead bins in the center isle, which some airlines forgo to make the cabin feel more open and airy.

The seat layout on Lufthansa is generally just ok and is not ideal if you are flying alone. The thing I found most odd was not all the seats on this plane were designed the same. The seats towards the window had an odd angle to them and had slightly different layout of compartments.

The IFE screen on this flight also looked dated but included an interesting adjustment to account for the fact that your seat would be angled.

The flight started off with a welcome drink of champagne, juice, or water. I always like these little branded cups Lufthansa has and I find it comfortable to drink out of.

Shortly after they passed out the food menus, which is usually one of my favorite parts of the boarding process. Unlike United Polaris, Lufthansa actually passes out physical menus and they offering is fairly comprehensive with plenty of options. I also like that they always have a vegetarian option without needing to request a special meal in advance.

The drink list included 1 option for champagne as well as 6 different types of wines.

While still on the ground I always look up the wines to see what I would like to pair with my meal. Most of the wines retailed for less than $15 per bottle so not the most premium you can find on airlines.

At first I didn’t spot an amenity kit but after some digging around I found this Porsche Design pouch at the bottom of a storage bin. It was pretty bare bones but included most of everything you would need, especially given it was a daytime flight.

You can really see how dated this cabin is when you find the IFE remote. The screens were not touch and the only way to control it was this remote, which was not ideal.

I actually find the gaming controller on remotes to be interesting since I’ve never actually used it. Maybe it’s the nod to the past but this remote was set up like a gameboy controller.

I adjusted the IFE screen and was ready to browse the selection. At first I couldn’t figure out how to browse through it with the remote and then I discovered the mouse.

That’s right, the remote was actually a mouse that you can see with that small white square that appeared on my screen. I actually found this a bit easier to use, although old school, but the issue was with my partners mouse that was no where near as responsive as mine.

I don’t always consume content on my IFE and generally rely on Wifi to entertain me through the flight. What I’ll find out shortly is the Wifi was down for the entirety of this 9 hour flight, which I find to be brutal especially for a daytime flight that I want to be connected on and get work done.

Shortly after takeoff the dinner service started and I generally have high expectations for Lufthansa given the good meal I had on the 747 from Frankfurt to Bangalore. It’s hard to anticipate post pandemic food offering on airlines, where companies like United have a pathetic offering on a 9 hour flight from Geneva to New York.

I started off the meal with a Tuna tataki that was served with vegetable salad and a spicy miso mayo. The dish was well presented and I like that Lufthansa still courses your meals vs serving it all at once.

A closer look at the tuna it appeared appetizing although I thought there was a lot of mayo included. What I realized later is it wasn’t overly strong and it went well with the salad that had some vinegar in the dressing as well.

My partner went with the vegetarian appetizer that included sweet potato two ways, corn salad, and feta. While I don’t often get the vegetarian option on airplanes I’m noticing much more creative dishes being offered by airlines. This sweet potato was actually really good and next time I would consider ordering it over the tuna.

It was time for the main course and I decided to go with the prawn curry over rice. I was a little worried since the FA mentioned they may have run out, which is usually the downside to sitting towards the back of business class.

To my surprised she returned during dinner service with the prawn curry I was looking forward to. The small gap on the plate was from the sauce that they actually ended up just putting on top of the dish.

I find a curry on an airplane is one of the most comforting and well executed dishes. There is a lot that can go wrong with a piece of steak or chicken so I was excited to try this dish.

The curry was well seasoned and what I liked the most was the amount of prawns they included. I counted about 8 in my serving with a side of rice, vegetables, and bread.

My partner again went with the vegetarian option that was a pesto pasta served with red peppers and mozzarella. I found this dish to just be ok with the pesto a little dryer than I would have liked but overall a decent dish.

After dinner I went for the cheese plate as dessert that was a bit small but tasted really good. I found this to be enough to polish off the rest of my wine and the star was the fig jam that was served a long with the cheese.

Not every airline serves espresso so when they do I always like to have one after my meal. At this time the FA’s also passed out some chocolate that I didn’t try on board but took it home with me and it was delicious.

After the meal I was pretty tired so decided to get some sleep even though it was mid day. With no wifi on board I listened to some music and just relaxed after a long trip to Istanbul.

It was time for the pre arrival meal and this time I did decided to go for the vegetarian option that was an eggplant lasagna vs a cold salmon. I always opt for a hot dish vs a cold one so this was an easy choice.

The eggplant lasagna was served and the portion was actually pretty big. What I liked about it was it was just eggplant vs pasta that would have made such a big dish feel really heavy.

The flavors on the eggplant lasagna were really good although the texture was a bit off. I can only imagine how hard it is to execute this dish on an airplane but the way they served it actually worked and was plenty of food to eat before arrival.

Summary & Takeaways

Overall the flight was pretty good despite the lack of wifi, old seat, and slight delay out of Frankfurt. What really set this flight apart was how nice the FA’s were and how often they came to check if you need anything.

While Lufthansa is not the first airline I pick when planning a trip I would happily fly them again. Now that United Polaris has cut their offering significantly Lufthansa may be one of my Star Alliance picks along with Turkish Airlines as the best way to get across the pong.

The post Flight Review: Lufthansa A340-300 Business Class from Frankfurt to New York appeared first on Travel Season.

This flight would take about 3 hours from Istanbul to Frankfurt on an A321 aircraft with a “European Business Class” configuration.

For those unfamiliar with “European Business Class” it is effectively the term to describe the underwhelming short haul business class experience made famous by airlines like British Airways, Air France, Lufthansa, and a few others. The experience is effectively economy seats with the middle seat left open and a slightly better food offering.

There wasn’t much to get excited about for this flight but I was interested to see what food they would offer.

As you can see the layout is the exact same as economy without any difference in seating. Another downside to this aircraft is no IFE or power outlets, which I find to be quite frustrating when you use up most of your phone battery trying to stay entertained.

The good news was the flight boarded on time and was relatively uneventful.

When it was time for food service it started with a pack of nuts and drink.

After the flight attendants came by with this service they immediately started distributing the food.

There were two options on this flight: chicken with potatoes or a dumpling as they described.

I was kind of board of the typical chicken dish on airplanes and decided to try the dumpling that was also their vegetarian offering.

The meal was served all in one tray and actually looked pretty decent. I have had good food on Lufthansa flights in the past including from Frankfurt to Bangalore but I wasn’t sure what to expect on a short haul flight of 3 hours.

The appetizer was sausage served with some sort of cheese. This dish was served cold with the combination of the cheese and sausage actually making it pretty good.

I couldn’t really make out what the dessert was and I didn’t really give it much of a shot. I don’t normally eat dessert on airplanes but i had a bit of a taste of this one.

It tasted similar to a panna cotta with some sort of pastry but I couldn’t say for sure. I would say it was a decent dessert if you have a sweet tooth and want something to cleanse your pallet after the meal.

Now onto the main course, the dish described as a dumpling. This one was interesting and not what I expected to receive.

It actually looked better than I expected and I was expecting it to be filled with something.

When I cut it open it was pretty consistent throughout and tasted mildly like potato but overall pretty bland. The sauce did help combined with the mushrooms and spinach to give it some flavor.

I was pretty hungry on this flight and didn’t mind eating the whole thing. I would say it beats the chicken dish, which I saw another passenger get that didn’t look too appetizing.

Overall this was a pretty short and uneventful flight experiencing the so called European Business Class. I would hope airlines had a different marking for these types of flights since the last thing you want is to book a business class ticket only to be met with an economy seat and slightly better food.

The post Flight Review: Lufthansa A321 Business Class from Istanbul to Frankfurt appeared first on Travel Season.

I flew to Turkey in October on Turkish Airlines from Newark to Istanbul in business class and had a pretty good first time experience with the airline. This was now my third flight with Turkish after I flew from Istanbul to Kayseri to get to Cappadocia.

I arrived at the Nevsehir airport only about an hour before my flight but given how small it was that was plenty of time. The airport only had one main area and two gates from what I could tell, with the flagship Turkish Airlines being the only airline flying that day.

I didn’t expect much on this short haul flight but thought it would be comfortable non the less.

I made my way out the gate to the plane and loved the view of walking on the tarmac. This is common at small airports and provides you with an amazing view of the plane that you are about to board.

The flight was configured with just a few European style business class and a 3-3 economy cabin.

The seats were well padded and offered decent legroom on such a small plane.

It was also nice to see seat back entertainment as many flights no longer will have this on such short flights.

I found the selection to actually be pretty good with plenty of English movies and TV shows.

Now came the surprising part, just like my flight here, they served a meal on board. This took me by surprise especially during COVID times where airlines have cut back significantly.

Now this was no gourmet meal or even hot but getting something to eat on such a short flight was a treat. The airport at Nevsehir had only 1 option that I decided to pass on so I welcomed a quick bite while on board.

The sandwich was the same as my previous flight, a Kasar Cheese sandwich with lettuce and tomato. The side dish was olives and veggies as well as an overall sweet juice.

Now the sandwich was nothing to brag about but I actually kind of liked it. Maybe its the salty cheese, or the sesame bread, or that I was just hungry but it seemed to hit the spot. The veggie side and juice I could pass on but the sandwich I finished completely.

There is not much to say about such a short flight but its starting to make me like Turkish Airlines more and more. Food on an airline is a defining feature and Turkish knows that so next time you are on a short or long haul expect to get some sort of meal that will quickly satisfy you.

The post Flight Review: Turkish Airlines A321 Economy from Nevsehir to Istanbul appeared first on Travel Season.

When flying United Polaris you need to make sure your plane is one of the retrofitted ones. United still flies older planes dubbed Polaris, like we flew on a 787-9 from Newark to Rome, that is no where near as nice as the new planes. In fact, unlike most Polaris routes, we don’t recommend this as the best airline to fly to Rome.

I was originally booked on this route in Economy but decided to pay for an upgrade to Polaris a day before. The upgrade cost me 30,000 United Miles and $400, which was well worth it for an 8 hour red eye flight.

There was no immediate space available so I decided to be put on the waitlist.

A few hours from being on the waitlist I got confirmation of my upgrade. Unfortunately as soon as I saw the seat map there was no much availability this last minute.

On this plane Polaris is configured into a 1-1-1 layout, giving each seat direct aisle access. Not all seats are created the same with the odd rows positioned nicely against the window for more privacy.

Although not ideal for couples traveling, these new Polaris seats have a pod like structure and provide well above average privacy.

I arrived at Chicago O’Hare a few hours early for my flight excited to check out the Polaris Lounge. I visiting the United Polaris Lounge in Newark a few months back and it was one of the nicest I’ve ever been in.

I quickly made my way through security and made my way through the International terminal.

Unfortunately, at this time the United Polaris lounge was still closed. I was greeted by a disappointing sign as soon as I got there.

I decided to make my way to the United Club that was located close by. It was very crowded at this time and was no where near the experience of a United Polaris lounge.

All United clubs tend to be similar in my experience with the Chicago one mirroring the United Club in Newark. If you are there early make sure to scout a seat because they can be hard to come by but keep your expectations low as there isn’t much to offer but a space to try to realx.

I ended up leaving a bit early and eager to get to my gate.

There was a decent line at the gate but there is nothing like boarding in business class group 1. I made my way onto my plane and eager to see my seat.

The cabin was entirely full on this flight but the layout was as nice as I imagined it would be.

Lucky for me I was able to snag a tucked in window seat 7L. This is exactly the seat I wanted but was not open when I was first upgraded.

I kept checking each hour leading up to my fight and on my way to the airport I was excited to see one open. I quickly grabbed it and was set.

This is a reminder that even if you don’t get the seat you want definitely keep checking as things can often move around especially on the day of departure.

The seat was comfortably next to the window and had plenty of space. If you compare it to the seat in front of me facing the aisle you can see just how much more private mine is next to the window.

The seat features a large screen and I had no neighbors in sight when seated.

The seat also has a convenient set of controls right along the side making it easy to adjust into any position. This is best seat layout, unlike one I flew on Singapore Airlines from Singapore to Newark, that forces you want to flip down when you want to go into bed mode.

I got my amenity kit and was situated ready for the flight.

The seat has decent storage with a headphone compartment featuring a water bottle. However, once I closed it I had some trouble opening it but it eventually gave.

The flight was projected at 7 hours and 20 minutes of flying time with a total time of 8 hours. Not bad from Chicago to London.

The wifi on this flight was also pretty good with almost 20 mbps download speed making it easy to get some work done.

Now came the part I’m always most excited for, the food. I don’t usually get seafood when flying but I decided to try the salmon served with veggies and grains on this route.

United did not have a menu on this route and instead the crew mentioned each dish. Also notable is plastic drink ware, which has been common throughout the pandemic.

All meals are still served on a single tray and the salmon dish was accompanied with a side salad, nuts, a pretzel role, and mango sorbet.

The salmon was actually better than I expected and not overly dry. It accompanied well with the sauce, which I couldn’t put my finger on.

I found the meal to be pretty good but nothing over the top. It sure beats other food I’ve had flying so I had nothing to complain about.

A few hours before landing we were served breakfast. This time I went with the eggs, potatoes, and sausage.

Breakfast is one of the hardest meals for airlines to execute well and is usually a sore subject. This meal was served with fresh fruit, a not so good croissant, and a yogurt.

While the breakfast didn’t look the best I still found it pretty decently done. These eggs were similar to the egg bites you get at starbucks and I certainly finished it all before landing.

All in all the flight was one of the most comfortable ways to fly to London. I got plenty of sleep and arrived early at Heathrow to get on with my day.

United Polaris is one of the best ways to fly to Europe and this cabin especially is one of the most comfortable. If you are deciding between United and other airlines make sure to confirm the aircraft to snag on the new Polaris seats and hopefully you’ll be able to check out the lounge too now that they are reopening.

The post Flight Review: United Airlines 767 Business Class from Chicago to London appeared first on Travel Season.

Turkey has been on my bucket list for a number of years but a trip there just never seemed to work out for me. I’ve heard lots of stories about Istanbul, Cappadocia, Bodrum, and countless other cities that seem to have so much to offer.

That all changed in October 2021 when I finally pulled the trigger and booked a trip to Istanbul. Like any trip, now came the fun part. How do I fly there and where should I stay?

Naturally, I looked at the best airlines to fly to Istanbul and there only seemed to be one choice. Turkish Airlines.

The only carrier that flies non stop from the US to Turkey, Turkish Airlines tends to have a pretty good reputation in the aviation world. The airline offers great service, world class food, and actually flies to more foreign countries than any other airline. I had a great food experience on a Turkish Airlines economy flight so naturally couldn’t wait to see what business class was like.

My mind was made up, Turkish Airlines seemed to make the most sense and now I needed to figure out how to book. I did have a few hiccups throughout the booking process I must mention but this didn’t have any effect on my on board experience.

Flying from the New York area, Turkish Airlines flies to both JFK and EWR. I was in New Jersey at the time so EWR made the most sense and with Turkish only offering 1 flight a day at 11:55pm this was an easy choice.

I was sitting on a number of Capital One miles and was looking for a way to burn them. Here is where I saw my window to book roundtrip business class for 90,000 miles per person. Since Capital One transfers to Turkish at 2:1.5 I ended up using 240,000 miles to book for 2.

Note: Capital One updated to transfer at 1:1 to Turkish Airlines after my booking. This means you will only need 90,000 miles each for a roundtrip ticket.

The cash price of this ticket would be about $4,200 round trip meaning I got a whopping 4.6 cents per point in value. Given how points and miles work this is an incredible deal.

If you are looking to top up your points and miles balance see our latest and best credit card offers for travelers.

We would be flying to Istanbul from EWR in an Airbus A330 and return home to JFK on a Boeing 777.

This trip had been a long time coming so to say I was excited was an understatement.

Note: I reviewed this flight from EWR to IST on our review platform and you can review it there as well.

I arrived at Newark Airport in the evening and it was pretty quiet, which is always nice.

The check in counters were also fairly empty making he process pretty easy.

I shared my passport as well as a Turkish health form that is not only needed to fly but entering almost every hotel or store when you are in Istanbul.

The only damper on my trip was that I was told there is no lounge at EWR currently open. Turkish Airlines business customers would usually have access to the United Polaris Lounge and the Lufthansa Business Lounge, both of which are still not operating.

Bummed about this I went towards my gate and waited for boarding. It didn’t help that I passed the Lufthansa Lounge just to remind me I wouldn’t be able to go in.

The boarding process was pretty uneventful, with business class passengers going first throughout the same lane as economy.

The A330 cabin we arrived into is a 2-2-2 layout, and luckily this was the updated version with new entertainment screens and privacy dividers added between each seat.

This configuration is not the best Turkish Airlines flies, which would be the 1-2-1 to Atlanta, Chicago, and others but I found it to be comfortable enough.

Before I settled in too much into my seat I took a quick peak at economy. Turkish Airlines tends to have some interesting colors as well as a very animated safety video that tries to add a light tough to their experience.

Economy didn’t look too bad, especially providing a 2-4-2 configuration that makes it not a bad way to fly overseas.

Back in business class, I settled into my seat and noticed a pretty packed cabin on our way to Istanbul. This was unexpected since the seat map was pretty open the day before the flight but I didn’t think much of it.

No pre-departure beverages are served but I was ready for take off when the flight attendants came around with an amenity kit. A nice tough with Turkish Airlines is they provide a different one for men and women, provided by Versace.

I found both amenity kits to be stylish and well stocked with essentials. This is actually one of the few kits I’ll end up keeping to future use.

Next up was one of my favorite things about flying, pass through of the food and drink menus. Turkish Airlines is well known for their food and we also ranked them as an airline with some of the best food in the skies.

Turkish Airlines provides each passenger with two menus, one for food and the other for wine. The menus also were very on brand and stylish.

I started by going through the food menu. I was happy to see them serving their traditional mezzo on today’s flight as well as seeing a vegetarian option – not what I expected from seeing past menus with no option.

I moved over to the wine list and it was nice to see some local Turkish wines. I would definitely be ordering a glass as well as some Tattinger Brut Reserver champagne that I could not resist.

A pro tip I received from a friend was to also get the homemade lemonade with mint. There is something about it that tastes like you are in a spa so I was absolutely going to try a glass.

Meal service started not long after take off and I got the chance to finally try the Turkish Airline food so many have raved about.

First up was a tomato and mozzarella salad served with bread and two mezzes of babaganoush and muhammara, both of which are some of my favorite dips.

Babaganoush is a smokey eggplant based dip while muhammara is made of red peppers and walnuts. I found both of these to be excellent, they were well spiced and had great flavor.

The tomato and mozzarella salad was good but to be honest nothing to be overly excited about.

As they came through the cabin with mains I had the options of chicken, fish, or pasta. While I initially was considering the fish I decided to go with the chicken since the saffron risotto it was served with tempted me.

The chicken actually tasted better than it looked and was paired with a nice sauce that I couldn’t quite tell what it was made of. However, the risotto was a bit disappointing, not bad or good just so so.

My partner had the asian vegetarian meal, which if I’m to be honest had better flavor than my chicken. If I had known in advance I would’ve been happy eating this dish on any flight.

I didn’t really eat much of my dessert that seemed to be a chocolate pudding and had already moved my mindset to coffee. Yes it was already 1am and I should get to be but I always love an espresso post meal.

The espresso was actually surprisingly very good and came in a very stylish cup. I sat there drinking this until my mind finally convinced me it was time to get some sleep.

The seats on Turkish Airlines do go into a lie flat however there is a slight slant to them. It didn’t tend to bother me but for those wondering there is a very minor tilt to the seat in bed mode.

One thing I had to call out was how hot the cabin was. It was a first for me on an airplane that the temperature was a bit unbearable that I had to tell the flight attendant if we can cool the cabin a bit. Luckily this was no problem and after 10 minutes the cabin was comfortable enough to fall asleep in.

After getting a decent amount of sleep I woke up as we were about 2 hours away from arriving. This flight was set to land around 4:45pm Istanbul time but oddly they were planning to serve breakfast before landing.

I didn’t complain and I eagerly awaited another meal.

Breakfast started with a serving of fruit, a pasty, slices of turkey and chicken, cheese, and a yogurt. I found all the dishes to be pretty refreshing although the fruit was served very cold so I let it sit for a few minutes.

Next up was a choice between an omelette or what they described as a crepe. Even though I’m usually a fan of savory breakfast I decided to go with a crepe since omelettes are pretty standard on airplanes.

The crepe was actually delicious and served piping hot being paired with a bit of raspberry jam. I liked that while this dish looks very sweet it actually wasn’t over the top. It made for a great way to start my morning (but really afternoon) into Istanbul.

We landed in Istanbul not too long after and I would say the overall flight experience on Turkish Airlines was positive. While it wasn’t the best business class I’ve been on and I don’t think the food rivals what I had on Singapore Airlines on either an A380 to Singapore or A350 to Newark, but it turned out to be the best choice from the US to Turkey.

So would I fly it again? Absolutely.

It feels like more and more people are traveling to Turkey and with that will continue to come improvements to their airline offering.

The post Flight Review: Turkish Airlines A330 Business Class From Newark To Istanbul appeared first on Travel Season.