Review of Turkish Airlines flight Istanbul Seoul in Business

Airline Turkish Airlines
Flight TK90
Class Business
Seat 3K
Aircraft Airbus A340-300
Flight time 10:10
Take-off 11 Nov 13, 00:55
Arrival at 11 Nov 13, 18:05
TK   #13 out of 95 Airlines A minimum of 10 flight-reports within the past two years is required to appear in the rankings. 776 reviews
lagentsecret
By 14042
Published on 12th November 2013
  1. Tunis TUN - Istanbul IST (Turkish Airlines Business, 737-800)
  2. http://flight-report.com/en/report-5504.html
  3. Istanbul IST - Seoul ICN (Turkish Airlines Business, A340-300)
  4. [YOU ARE HERE]
  5. Seoul ICN - Singapore SIN (Singapore Airlines Business, B777-300ER)
  6. http://flight-report.com/en/report-5534.html
  7. Singapore SIN - Newark EWR (Singapore Airlines Business, A340-500)
  8. http://flight-report.com/en/report-5582.html
  9. New York JFK - Frankfurt FRA (Singapore Airlines Business, A380)
  10. http://flight-report.com/en/report-5610.html
  11. Frankfurt FRA - Vienna VIE (Lufthansa Business, A321)
  12. http://flight-report.com/en/report-5613.html
  13. Vienna VIE - Istanbul SAW (Turkish Airlines Business, 737-800)
  14. http://flight-report.com/en/report-5645.html
  15. Istanbul IST - Tunis TUN (Tunis Air Economy, A320)
  16. http://flight-report.com/en/report-5663.html

I arrived at the terminal and had to go through transit check : it was very weird because it was empty !

So few minutes later I was in front of the TK lounge

I usually guest in the lounge someone sitting at this place and trying to use the lounge wifi but that evening nobody was there
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So next stop TK lounge
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It's almost empty with only few people
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The lockers
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Theather room
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One show cooking corner with pide
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Soups
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Pasta
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Salad bar
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Different kinds of nuts
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Waters, soft drinks and beers
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Wines and alcohol
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Another show cooking corner with kebabs, rice and grilled vegetables
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Different kinds of olives
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Tea
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Kids corner


Breast feeding room
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Cakes and homemade juices
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Tea bar
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Computers
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Conference room
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Pides are ready now
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I grabbed a bit of pide, kebabs, olives and nuts
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Sleeping rooms to the right
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Shower rooms to the left


I took a shower and fortunately it was time to proceed to the gate : too much temptations in this lounge !
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My airplane was already at the gate : A340-300 Airbus TC-JII, first flight on 16/03/2000
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The boarding area
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A nice gate agent seeing my white hair was allowing me to sit in the disable area
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So I was the first to board and it was great because I knew that the flight would be full
I was welcomed at the door and directed to the correct aisle.

The business cabin
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My seat : On each seat were a pillow and a blanket
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View from my seat
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Power outlet
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Reading light
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Legroom is decent
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Safety card
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Seat pocket stuff
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Shoes box
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Seat control
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The bar
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Slippers and headphone were already in the seat pocket
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My seat had three windows
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IFE remote control
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Welcome drink : always these great juices
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The chef on board is giving a Godiva chocolate
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Newspapers and magazines were offered
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Pushback was on time
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Taxi to runway : a SU with 4 engines in IST !
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Take off was smooth and A343 was climbing slowly
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Views from Istanbul
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IFE was already switched on for use on the ground
I thought that the music selection was on par with the aircraft's age
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An oshibori was handed out
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My neighbour was already sleeping in upright position : no need to have a Bose headphone or a business class seat ;)
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The bar was stocked
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The traditional loukoum
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Winelist, menu and amenity kit were handed out


Breakfast à la carte card to fill with your choices
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We were about to leave Turkey when the drink service began
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Gosset champagne for me
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Followed by the amuse bouche
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The cabin
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where a lot of people were still sleeping
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Dinner's time with a choice of breads
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Potpourri of Mediterranean Mezze : Humus/Stuffed wine leaf in olive oil/White eggplant salad/Grilled chicken breast/Herbed white cheese


New Salt and Pepper
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Candlelight dinner high above the clouds is the new Do&Co concept and it's quite nice
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These little candles were lighting up the cabin
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Traditional Turkish Creamy Wedding Soup / Lamb cubes
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Grilled Beef Tournedos Creamy celeriac and potato purée Eggplant stuffed with red peppers
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Still a lot was to fly
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Dessert time
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Profiteroles hot chocolat sauce / Lemon tarte / Turkish coffee mousse Mascarpone cream / Mango Ice Cream
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After tea and coffee the cabin was dimmed and unusually I was able to sleep few hours

A340 is really a quiet aircraft

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People seemed to sleep very well
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It was certainly because of this large footrest which prevent slipping
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About one hour and half before landing it was breakfast service
An oshobori began this service
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Then an orange juice for me
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Outside it was sunny
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Very appetizing breakfast
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with a smoothie and hot chocolate
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Fresh fruits / Home made yoghurt with apple mousse / Chicken and turkey breasts
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the new TK cup
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We began to avoid the north korea airspace
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Cheese and tomato omelette turkey ham herbed sautéed mushrooms cherry tomato
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the descent began
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Sunset was close


Soft landing and the aircraft is parked beside this Hawaiian
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Train to go to the main terminal
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See more

Verdict

Turkish Airlines

8.8/10
Cabin8.5
Cabin crew9.5
Entertainment/wifi7.5
Meal/catering9.5

Turkish Airlines Lounge

9.6/10
Comfort9.5
Meal/catering9.5
Entertainment/wifi10.0
Services9.5

Istanbul - ISL

9.0/10
Efficiency10.0
Access8.0
Services8.5
Cleanliness9.5

Seoul - ICN

9.1/10
Efficiency8.0
Access9.5
Services9.5
Cleanliness9.5

Conclusion

Another great flight with TK

The TK IST lounge is certainly the best Star Alliance Business lounge

Even with this old aircraft/old seats TK gave a level of comfort enough to sleep and rest

The Flight Attendants did a great job and were always smiling and efficient despite a lot of work

Candlelight is a nice touch and breakfast à la carte is perfect to only select what you like

The dessert, fruits and cheese trolley is to die for and the catering with the new tableware is close to a first class service

Information on the route Istanbul (ISL) Seoul (ICN)

Les contributeurs de Flight-Report ont posté 4 avis concernant 2 compagnies sur la ligne Istanbul (ISL) → Seoul (ICN).


Useful

La compagnie qui obtient la meilleure moyenne est Turkish Airlines avec 8.1/10.

La durée moyenne des vols est de 10 heures et 23 minutes.

  More information

24 Comments

If you liked this review or if you have any questions, don’t hesitate to post a comment below !
  • Comment 92746 by
    PAT62 4953 Comments
    Great lounge, i want to be a kid again :)
    Catering at the top
    TK flight in Business = few more kilos on balance
    Thanks for this report !
  • Comment 92749 by
    AirCanada881 1616 Comments
    A MOUTH WATERING REPORT!!!! Thank you so much for posting this. TK is my new favorite airline because their fares are competitive and service is excellent!!!! You are so lucky to have experienced this amazing flight and so many more flights to come, the seat looks very comfortable, is it similar to the 777 one? Or less roomy?

    Can't wait for Part 3 :D
  • Comment 92752 by
    KévinDC TEAM SILVER 6668 Comments
    Beautiful report! Good thing it's lunch time here because your FR made me very hungry, LOL. Once again we see TK's hard-product inconsistencies, but the catering and service is top notch. The seats seem pretty decent for angled-flat and I like the tones in the cabin, quite visually appealing. Very nice pictures. Looking forward to the next legs of the trip!
  • Comment 92769 by
    lagentsecret AUTHOR 12186 Comments
    Thanks

    No Seoul bonus because I was in transit
  • Comment 92780 by
    Bargi62 SILVER 3586 Comments
    Thanks for this FR:
    Great TK lounge.
    This catering is very top with a large choice of desserts;)
    How was Gosset grande reserve champagne?
  • Comment 92782 by
    Durian 1171 Comments
    Thanks for this report. Although the plane is old, the cabin is still a decent product in 2-3-2. TK has obviously chosen to fight their competitors on the catering front with a very distinctive and innovative product, which works obviously ! The lounge in IST feels very homy, unlike most cold and anonymous business lounges.
  • Comment 92791 by
    jetsetpanda 2283 Comments
    What a fantastic trip report. TK once again shows us why they are one of the top carriers when it comes to catering. I noticed that they stopped serving sour cherry juice and offer mint lemonade instead. What a pity since cherry juice is representative of Turkish culture and makes for a nice prelude (or lasting impression) of a trip.

    You are fortunate to have encountered an empty lounge in IST. From other reports that I have read people complain that it is too crowded and sometimes difficult to find a seat.

    The candlelight dinner is a creative concept but I am not comfortable with fire in a pressurized cabin, no matter how small or contained it is. Perhaps I am too paranoid but doesn't that increase the risk of a fire hazard, especially on a night flight when passengers tend to doze off and are not as alert?
  • Comment 92797 by
    Papoumada GOLD 7321 Comments
    TK is obviously more a dining than a flying experience ;)

    The lockers in the lounge are a jolly good idea.

    There is too much food in this TK lounge in IST : very hard to choose from all those gorgeous dishes !

    I am not sure TK business hard product is worth it, but once more, the food looks delicious and the presentation with the candle light is great !

    Will have to try TK one day.

    Thanks for sharing.
  • Comment 92802 by
    kelval 122 Comments
    Wow, that's an amazing trip report.

    The lounge in Istanbul is something else!
    One question though: doesn't the food being cooked smell too much?
    That's a dangerous place to stay in; I'd grow a layer of fat in a couple of hours there.

    The flight looks very nice as well. The catering seems on par with the Southeast Asia companies, if not better, even creating a distinctive atmosphere.

    Great pictures as well.
    Thanks you for this FR.
  • Comment 92980 by
    Denzee 1755 Comments
    Thanks for the next episode of your saga.

    As usual, I'm really impressed by the design and food's quality served in the TK lounge in Istanbul. More reserve about the seat in the A340 but the onboard catering is definitively a trademark of TK.
  • Comment 92982 by
    flyingjapans 1349 Comments
    Thank you for this FR James,

    TK has a very good on-ground service with its business class lounge which is the world's best from my point of view.

    Your report confirmed it has also an excellent catering service. The menu is well-presented with your name written on it. However the seat gets old and it would be good to introduce full-flat seats on all long-haul routes.

    Will you go through immigration and get a stamp on your full passport to check-in for the next leg?

    See you
  • Comment 92997 by
    aurel-lil 4202 Comments
    thanks for sharing this FR.
    I'm impressed by the fabulous TK lounge ;)
    always a very good catering on board.
    business seat seems to be comfortable.
    See you soon !
  • Comment 93347 by
    pititom GOLD 11487 Comments
    The photo with the girl playing pool reminds me of Durian's pictures ;) Maybe this is because SQ is coming next :)

    The mezzes come as a pot-pourri but the seat comes as pourri tout court :) I can't believe you rate 8.5 for this slide. Or having everything great, from staff to food, makes one forget about it. But sleeping well isn't an option here.

    The candle is a very nice touch...but I'm amazed they could get this granted by the authorities...doesn't seem safe to me..but still love it !

    I note some golden touches on the crokery....is TK going EK style ^^ ?
    • Comment 284374 by
      lagentsecret AUTHOR 12186 Comments
      BTW her friend/husband seemed to be angry :)
      I disagree : because of the large footrest it's not a slide.
      I barely sleep on board but I was able to sleep at least 3 hours during this flight
      I've never been able to sleep in a LH J seat
      Anyway I understand why you are jealous ;) you were flying on a perfect AY slide not so long ago !
  • Comment 93564 by
    Flysim 517 Comments
    Thanks for sharing this trip report !

    As always, a great example of the very good product offered by TK. That's actually a fine dining experience both on the ground and up in the air. :D
    Beautiful on-board service as well.

    Though the seats look quite old on this A340, they still leave a great impression. As a reminder, A340 series aircraft will be withdrawn by the end of 2016. Is there a chance for them to be refurbished before they exit the fleet ? Don't think so.

    Thanks again. I'll have dinner now, ahah !
  • Comment 133227 by
    mc 16 Comments
    Hi,I'm a university student and I'm performing an analysis about airlines customer forums.

    For my research would be very important to know the nationality of each writer...May I know your nationality??

    Thank you so much!

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