• Home
  • Reviews
    • Flight Reviews
    • Hotel Reviews
    • Lounge Reviews
    • Trip Reports
  • About
    • Press
  • Contact
  • Privacy
  • Award Expert
Live and Let's Fly
  • Home
  • Reviews
    • Flight Reviews
    • Hotel Reviews
    • Lounge Reviews
    • Trip Reports
  • About
    • Press
  • Contact
  • Privacy
  • Award Expert
Home » Airport Lounges » Trading a Free Hotel Room for Turkish Airlines’ Istanbul Lounge
Airport LoungesistanbulStar AllianceTurkish Airlines

Trading a Free Hotel Room for Turkish Airlines’ Istanbul Lounge

Matthew Klint Posted onDecember 15, 2011 11 Comments

While not a widely published benefit, Turkish Airlines offers extended transit passengers in Istanbul the choice of a free hotel room or free tour of Istanbul during their wait. In order to take advantage of this, you must be connecting from a Turkish to a Turkish flight and the layover for business class passengers must be at least seven hours and at least ten hours for economy class passengers. If you qualify, simply go through passport control at Ataturk International Airport in Istanbul, walk out and to the right to the Turkish Airlines hotel counter, and a representative will be happy to arrange your hotel room or a tour for you.

I arrived tonight at 22:20 from FRA and my flight to LAX is not till tomorrow at 11:15. But I did not take advantage of the free offer. Why not?

As Damian shared and I will highlight further in an upcoming post, Turkish Airlines has a spectacular lounge in Istanbul for business class and Star Alliance Gold passengers. This enormous lounge is so good (with sleeping rooms, cook-to-order food, and never a dearth of seating), that I would rather spend my time here than in a hotel room that might lack an internet connection (yes, work keeps me busy…).

Although Turkish indicates online that the lounge is closed from 0100-0500, it is actually open 24 hours–the food just disappears overnight. With fast Wi-Fi internet (which used to be a problem in the lounge but Turkish has now addressed), I’d rather spend the night working and napping in here then taking the time to go through additional security checks, stamp in and out of the country, and have to wait for a hotel shuttle. I am quite comfortable now on my soft-leather beige couch. In fact, if it were not for a couple of drunk guys playing billiards nearby (yes, the lounge has a pool table and an unmanned supply of top-shelf liquor), I’d be ready for a good night’s sleep.

In all seriousness, while TK’s hotel benefit is nice, the lounge is not a bad place to spend a night and less of a hassle, in my mind, than the alternative (and the drunk guys have quieted down now…).

Get Daily Updates

Join our mailing list for a daily summary of posts! We never sell your info.

You have Successfully Subscribed!

Previous Article Mark Schwab New Star Alliance CEO
Next Article Looking Back on a Remarkable Year in Frankfurt

About Author

Matthew Klint

Matthew is an avid traveler who calls Los Angeles home. Each year he travels more than 200,000 miles by air and has visited more than 135 countries. Working both in the aviation industry and as a travel consultant, Matthew has been featured in major media outlets around the world and uses his Live and Let's Fly blog to share the latest news in the airline industry, commentary on frequent flyer programs, and detailed reports of his worldwide travel.

Related Posts

  • Star Alliance Lounge Paris Review

    Review: Star Alliance Lounge Paris (CDG)

    April 25, 2025
  • A plastic shopping bag filled with ribs, chicken, and cookies inside a Delta Sky Club lounge, suggesting food was taken to go in violation of lounge rules.

    Sky Club Or BBQ Joint? Delta Lounge Member Packs Bag With Ribs And Chicken

    April 10, 2025
  • Turkish Airlines New York JFK Lounge Review

    Review: Turkish Airlines Lounge New York (JFK)

    April 9, 2025

11 Comments

  1. D Reply
    December 15, 2011 at 1:43 am

    To clarify, re: the layover and qualifying for any complimentary land side services. It must be on a TK inbound AND outbound flight.

  2. Jerry Reply
    December 15, 2011 at 3:26 am

    Add that some (Canadians) need to pay $60 for visa for entry, even for a hotel nap.

    Doing YYZ-IST (8 hr layover)-ICN in August and will be interesting to find a relaxation room

  3. Matthew Reply
    December 15, 2011 at 5:32 am

    @D: Correct. Thanks.

    @Jerry: Indeed.

  4. William Reply
    December 15, 2011 at 5:48 am

    I would have loved to have visited that lounge. I had an 11-hour layover last May but the lounge was closed for renovations. Do you have any pictures?

  5. Matthew Reply
    December 15, 2011 at 7:21 am

    @William: I have some amazing pictures that I will post in the coming days–I’ve been here four times in the last couple months and absolutely love this lounge. For now, though, check out Damian’s pictures:

    http://upgrd.com/blogs/damian/the-new-turkish-airlines-lounge-in-istanbul.html

  6. RDimperio Reply
    December 15, 2011 at 2:09 pm

    I took advantage of the local tour earlier in the year and upon returning to the airport was offered a room at the secure side of the airport. Grabbed 4 hours there before heading to the oursourced First Class lounge.

    Glad to hear it is open 24H as I have a 5 am departure on LH in January. This will work well for me. Now if only I can figure a cost effective way to get from Rome to FCO for a 6:00 am departure the morning before.

  7. Carl Reply
    December 18, 2011 at 9:51 pm

    I agree with Matthew, the TK lounge in IST is one of the best in the world. Tons of seating of different types, lots and lots of food choices, including made to order omelettes in the mornings and various dishes in the lunch and dinner hours, always lentil soups, baklava, olives, lots and lots of choices, showers, sleeping rooms, billiards, a player piano. It seems like the bathroom attendant cleans the stalls after each use.

    I don’t know if I’d pass up bed if I were connecting overnight, but otherwise I think it’s one of the best lounges in the world, and certainly exceeds the lounges I can access as *G in places like FRA or BKK.

  8. Marc A Reply
    April 30, 2013 at 1:39 pm

    If I am only at a Silver Level on the Star Alliance, instead of Gold, will they let me trade my free hotel night for entrance to the lounge?

  9. Oliver Kellman Reply
    June 30, 2014 at 5:30 pm

    Hi – Do you know if the Business lounge option is available if you are flying Economy?

  10. Matthew Reply
    July 2, 2014 at 9:48 am

    @Oliver: It is not and I don’t believe they sell day passes. Even with the recent expansion, the lounge is still very crowded.

  11. zoya Reply
    November 3, 2014 at 11:17 pm

    dear i would like to know that if the room and city tour options are avaliable free of cost and to economy class as well.
    are need to pay and book earlier?

Leave a Reply

Cancel reply

Search

Hot Deals for May

Note: Please see my Advertiser Disclosure

Capital One Venture X Business Card
Earn 150,000 Miles Sign Up Bonus
Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card
Earn 100,000 Points
Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card
Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card
Earn 75,000 Miles!
Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card
Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card
Earn 75,000 Miles
Chase Ink Business Unlimited® Credit Card
Earn $750 Cash Back
The Business Platinum Card® from American Express
The Business Platinum Card® from American Express
Earn 120,000 Membership Reward® Points

Recent Posts

  • a inside of a plane with lights
    Review: Korean Air 747-8 First Class May 27, 2025
  • a screen on a plane
    My Highly Productive Daytime Flight To London On JetBlue May 27, 2025
  • Southwest Airlines Checked Bags
    Suicide: Southwest Airlines Eliminates Free Checked Baggage May 27, 2025
  • Spring Break JetBlue SAS
    Booked! A Transatlantic Getaway On JetBlue + SAS May 26, 2025

Categories

Popular Posts

  • United Airlines Polaris Lounge Chicago Review
    Review: United Polaris Lounge Chicago (ORD) May 1, 2025
  • United Airlines Refresh Polaris Lounge Chicago
    First Look: United Airlines Reopens Renovated Polaris Lounge In Chicago (ORD) April 29, 2025
  • a hand holding a blue card
    Chase Sapphire Preferred 100K Bonus Offer Ending Soon May 2, 2025
  • Aegean Airlines Feast
    A Feast Fit For A King On Aegean Airlines May 23, 2025

Archives

May 2025
M T W T F S S
 1234
567891011
12131415161718
19202122232425
262728293031  
« Apr    

As seen on:

facebook twitter instagram rss
Privacy Policy © Live and Let's Fly All Rights Reserved. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this site’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Live and Let's Fly with appropriate and specific directions to the original content.