Turkey Trip Overview
Booking Flights To Turkey
British Airways First Class Lounge IAH
British Airways 777 First Class IAH-LHR
Transiting Heathrow and British Airways A320 Business Class LHR-IST
Marriott Courtyard Istanbul Airport
Pegasus Airlines Istanbul to Izmir and Back
Ephesus, Mary’s House and Basilica of St. John
Swissotel Efes
Pamukkale Bus and Preiene
Ritz-Carlton Istanbul
Major Sites to see in Istanbul
Radisson Blu Bosphorus
Turkish Airlines Lounge Istanbul
Turkish Airlines 777 Business Class IST-IAH
We began the boarding process on time and soon enough I was down the jetway and through door 2L.
BA 196 IAH-LHR
Departs: 20:40
Arrives: 11:45 + 1
Boeing 777
Seat: 3K (First Class)
Waiting at my seat was an amenity kit, a blanket and headphones and very soon the flight attendant stopped by to ask about what size pajamas I needed. The seat came with its own small closet and I used it to hang up my windbreaker and store my shoes. I noticed no slippers were included but when I asked, the FA was able to find some for me. I was glad because I’d intended to use those for the rest of my trip! I changed into my pajamas as soon as the FA brought them as I figured I’d rather chance spilling my food on them than on my street clothes.
I found the seat very comfortable and the controls intuitive. I actually had two windows at my seat but the downside of the cabin design meant I couldn’t see out the window during takeoff and landing. Even while flying I had to sit very far forward to be able to see outside. But you know, if that’s the trade-off for flying in first class – I’ll take it!
The menu had what seems to me to be a reasonably expansive wine list. But then, I don’t drink so what do I know?! Here it is:
And here’s the menu:
Since the flight is only nine hours, I wanted to eat dinner as quickly as possible so that I could maximize my sleep time. I had the tomato soup as a starter:
And the braised beef as my entree:
As none of the desserts struck my fancy (no chocolate!) and I’m not much of a cheese eater (I love it on/in things, just not by itself) I skipped both.
Here are the dessert and cheese selections:
After dinner the FA made up my bed which consisted of a nice matress pad and a thicker comforter. The pillow was a bit small but did the job. I got about 4-5 hours of sleep, which is not bad. It was definitely a better quality sleep than I got in business class on the flight from Houston to Amsterdam on my trip in April.
Breakfast menu:
For breakfast I picked a few things from the a la carte menu and then topped it off with the lemon pancake with wild berry compote. Unfortunately my early-morning fuzzy brain forgot to remind me to take photos of what I had. But it was good and it was filling, just what I needed to help me wake up.
All too soon it was time to change back into street clothes for landing at Heathrow. The whole time we were on final approach I kept reminding myself not to forget my windbreaker in my closet. Somehow by the time we landed I managed to do just that. I was off the plane and a couple of minutes down the concourse before I remembered it. Fortunately people were still deplaning and the gate agent was able to retrieve it for me.
I had a lovely flight and a wonderful FA (and I wish I’d caught her name) and would fly this route again in a heartbeat. Would dearly love to do it without the fuel surcharges though!
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