After a comfortable 10 hour stay at the Yotel airside hotel (due to long , checked out around midnight and had 4 hours till take off. Walked back to the central area to find the entrance to the TK J lounge.
After scanning my BP at the automated gate, I was let into the main lobby area
Locker area off to the left of the lobby and sleep rooms / shower further down past the lockers.
The lounge was very busy around midnight when I entered and then cleared out after an hour. It was difficult to find seating initially but as people were leaving, I started to get better seats far away from everyone else.
I went to find food and there were only a couple hot dishes available at this time which was fine. I missed the kebabs which I was told were really good.
Chef was serving veggie stew, rice and beans.
Found the pide station!
Five choices for consumption - all were so good.
There were two dessert and drinks stations.
The UEFA attraction
Other areas of the lounge
Went to check out the shower lounge - lack of ventilation if you are having a hot shower.
Overlooking the terminal
Waiting for my gate number to be posted
Had a good lounge experience overall - very open and airy but be warned of how crowded it can get during peak times which is probably all the time except between 12am - 5am. At T-60, I made the long trek to the gate as it was a good 15 minutes at a leisurely pace. IST is ridiculously large and the only negative thing about it is that there are no movators.
Really getting my steps in :D
Got to the gate and boarding was underway. Despite a J line, everything got bottleneck in the long tunnel leading to the tubes.
The chariot.
Spied the J class tube and ducked in.
My seat for the next 10-ish hours. Same one used by SQ for intra Asia flights on their 787’s and 350’s.
Cabin crew came by offering PDB’s and went with OJ this time - very tasty.
Menu’s were provided shortly after.
Aircraft pushed back on time and we eventually whooshed our way into the night sky
Meal service started an hour after take off. Started with the smoked turkey, cheeses and veggies.
Followed by the poached eggs with shakshuka which was ok
We flew into a nice sunrise and it was good just watching the flight via the tail cam.
3 hours before landing, the next meal service started. Started with a small amuse bouche.
Followed by a cart of appetizers to choose from.
Creamy Avocado soup
Grilled lamb chops - delicious!
Finishing off with the eclair and bread/butter pudding - very good.
Landing in MNL
Parked at our assigned gate
Immigration was quick - was 10th in line and after the formalities, made my way to baggage claim. The bag was already on the belt by there. Was picked up by friends for the 5 minute drive round the bend to the Sheraton. Always loved the decor, vibe and hospitality here versus the Marriott next door. The check in agent asked if I wanted to go to the lounge for the formalities but I declined as I just wanted to get to my room - was “upgraded” to the club floor but I didnt care as I just wanted to get in for a shower and sleep.
Comfy for one night.
After a semi decent sleep, I woke up to a wonderful view - the wow factor for me is the airport views.

The new IST airport looks so impressive every time I see it in reviews. The A350 cabin looks beautiful, too bad to hear it wasn't as comfortable as the old 777 cabins. It will be interesting to see what people think of the new 777 cabins, which look amazing, on paper anyway. Once again food looks very good, and I always appreciate when lamb is on the menu! Thanks for sharing!