Review of Turkish Airlines flight Berlin → Istanbul in Economy

Airline Turkish Airlines
Flight TK 1726
Class Economy
Seat 11B
Aircraft Airbus A320
Flight time 02:45
Take-off 22 May 14, 14:50
Arrival at 22 May 14, 18:35
TK   #14 out of 94 Airlines A minimum of 10 flight-reports within the past two years is required to appear in the rankings. 778 reviews
jetsetpanda
By 4436
Published on 2nd June 2014
Hi and welcome to this return portion of my trip from TXL-IST. So far this is how my schedule looks like:

AC SFO-YVR in Y - http://flight-report.com/en/report-7109.html
LH YVR-MUC in J - http://flight-report.com/en/report-7137.html
TK MUC-SAW in J - http://flight-report.com/en/report-7151.html
TK IST-TXL in Y - http://flight-report.com/en/report-7155.html
TK TXL-IST in Y - you are here
TK SAW-FRA in J - http://flight-report.com/en/report-7201.html
LH FRA-ORD in J - http://flight-report.com/en/report-7220.html
UA ORD-SFO in Y - http://flight-report.com/en/report-7263.html

Berlin was an exhilarating city full of surprises and imposing sights. I had a great time exploring museums, walking through famous monuments, shopping at renowned stores and savoring the local cuisine along with Lagentsecret, who was a great travel companion.

Below are a few impressions of my stay.





The Wall





Morning walk at Tiergarten. This reminded me of Wim Wenders' movie Wings of Desire.





Quirky, whimsical or unique.

photo DSC02023 (1024x683)photo DSC02027 (1024x683)photo DSC02030 (1024x683)




Shopping at KaDeWe.




Galeries Lafayette.





Local cuisine.

Berlin Pavillon for white asparagus in hollandaise sauce and currywurst

photo IMG_3941 (1024x768)photo IMG_3942 (1024x768)


Marjellchen.

photo DSC02158 (1024x683)photo DSC02161 (1024x683)


Saddle of lamb with rosemary sauce.

photo DSC02169 (1024x683)


Duck with dumpling and sauerkraut.

photo DSC02173 (1024x683)


Choucroute.

photo DSC02178 (1024x683)



After a few days of fun our trip came to an end and we embarked on our return trip. We took the bus to Tegel airport and after checking in at the TK counter, we headed to the LH Senator lounge and once again I was the recipient of lagentsecret's generosity.

photo LH Senator @ TXL (23) (1280x845)photo LH Senator @ TXL (2) (1024x768)


The lounge is located before security so you have to plan your stay accordingly. It's a bit of a hassle compared to most lounges found airside. I saw a lot of empty seats when we walked inside, especially towards the back of the room. We settled into a corner and took turns exploring the facility.

photo LH Senator @ TXL (3) (1024x735)photo LH Senator @ TXL (4) (1024x790)photo LH Senator @ TXL (5) (1024x768)


The pantry was stocked with an assortment of the usual soft drinks and a few alcoholic beverages. There was a table with different spreads, along with wrapped sandwiches. In the pantry salad was available and hot dishes consisted of a chicken with mushroom stew, asparagus soup and some type of wurst.





Upon returning, lagentsecret had ordered two glasses of champagne (or maybe sekt).




At TXL, the security and passport control are located at the gate and ours had a line that was moving slowly. It turned out that another BA flight was using the same gate so there was a back up. Finally we were able to get through security and by the time we boarded, most passengers were already seated. There were some poachers who took our emergency exit row seats but the FA asked them to return to their seats as soon as she verified our boarding passes.


The jetbridge to our plane.

photo TK 1726 TXL-IST (1) (1024x683)


Seat with headrest

photo TK 1726 TXL-IST (3) (1024x683)


Nice feature to have a tab that allows passengers to check their seat numbers even when seated.

photo TK 1726 TXL-IST (12) (1024x683)


After take off, lokum and menus were distributed.

photo TK 1726 TXL-IST (8) (1024x629)photo TK 1726 TXL-IST (11) (1024x683)


I had the chicken with satay sauce and ratatouille with rice, accompanied by a glass of lemonade.

photo TK 1726 TXL-IST (13) (1280x790)photo TK 1726 TXL-IST (15) (1280x853)photo TK 1726 TXL-IST (16) (1280x853)


The almond cake was delectable.

photo TK 1726 TXL-IST (17) (1280x853)photo TK 1726 TXL-IST (18) (1280x853)


Service was a bit slow due to people constantly going to the WC during the cart service. I also noticed that there was one FA who did most of the job while her co-workers hardly made an appearance. Good thing that the purser had to come out of the J cabin to assist her.

We soon landed at IST and we had to use the staircases to disembark.





See more

Verdict

Turkish Airlines

8.6/10
Cabin8.0
Cabin crew9.0
Entertainment/wifi8.5
Meal/catering9.0

Lufthansa Senator Lounge

7.0/10
Comfort7.0
Meal/catering7.0
Entertainment/wifi7.0
Services7.0

Berlin - TXL

5.4/10
Efficiency4.0
Access6.0
Services5.5
Cleanliness6.0

Istanbul - ISL

8.5/10
Efficiency7.0
Access9.0
Services9.0
Cleanliness9.0

Conclusion

I had a great time in Berlin made even more enjoyable with a great travel partner.

TK delivered a quality product as usual, although some inefficiencies by the crew were noticeable on this flight. There seemed to be a lack of service coordination and it seemed unfair that only one FA dealt with the bulk of the work while her colleagues were hardly seen. I gave a 9 for the FA who despite her situation, still managed to offer good and attentive service.

TXL airport needs to be torn and rebuilt. As the airport of the capital of Germany, it does not give a good first impression for travelers coming into Berlin. I found it inefficient, slow, old and at times dirty.

Related

7 Comments

If you liked this review or if you have any questions, don’t hesitate to post a comment below !
  • Comment 110046 by
    Leadership TEAM BRONZE 5472 Comments
    Thanks Adan for this nice and comprehensive report that complement 007 one nicely.

    I am getting very hungry after seeing this bonus ^^

    Lounge before security are not convenient if there is no fast track.
    • Comment 295402 by
      jetsetpanda AUTHOR 2283 Comments
      Avec plaisir. Personally I think pre-security lounges are a pain in the neck because you don't really get to enjoy them fully and you are constantly vigilant about your time.

      I actually like German food, despite its heaviness according to some. Of course, my all time favorite cuisines are French and Chinese. ;)
  • Comment 110159 by
    lagentsecret 12184 Comments
    Thanks for sharing this FR

    Gorgeous tourist bonus with a lot of great food pictures

    The lounge was disappointing (that was supposed to be real champagne, only on demand)

    Yummy catering on board as usual

    Looking for your next FR
  • Comment 110254 by
    Chibcha SILVER 556 Comments
    I'm glad you had a great time and company in Berlin, looks like an awesome place to go!

    The menu for the flight look interesting, did you see how the burgers looked?

    I look forward to your return to America,
    Saludos!
    • Comment 295552 by
      jetsetpanda AUTHOR 2283 Comments
      Berlin was a nice and easy to navigate city. I didn't feel like a big metropolis and had a more relaxed ambience.

      The burger is a good dish and you can refer to lagentsecret's report to see what it looks like. Not bad at all.

      http://flight-report.com/en/report-7165.html

      Gracias por tu visita.

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