We'll be arriving on Lufthansa at Istanbul airport (IST) at 5 pm on a Wednesday in October and plan to book a driver from Welcome Pickups. We know that they monitor flight arrivals but are wondering how long we should allow to clear immigration (coming from the USA via Frankfurt) as we don't want to keep the driver waiting unnecessarily. We plan to have carryon luggage only. Thanks in advance.
Posted by
Ajijic, Jalisco, Mexico
2145 posts
I typically do a half hour after scheduled arrival. True they monitor flight arrivals. They also build in a one-hour wait period, so half hour after arrival allows 90 minutes.
Only one time did I have an issue with that. It was in Cape Town, where I waited in line for passport control over an hour. The driver messaged me and asked approval for a longer wait, but in the end I was not charged anything extra.
Posted by
Salem, Oregon, USA
3449 posts
I scheduled my pickup about 45 minutes after arrival. My driver communicated via WhatsApp and was watching my flight. I had a long walk (15+ minutes) to immigration, but cleared it very quickly. I also didn't have checked luggage (which the driver assumed I would have) so I was at the meeting point faster than expected. You might mention that you have just carry on luggage so the driver knows ahead of time. Depending on the location of your hotel you may have a 60+ minute drive with traffic, so I recommend you stop and use the facilities on the way from your plane and before you go through immigration. If you need to use an ATM before you meet the driver, there are several in the arrival hall area.
Posted by
280 posts
I booked welcome pickups for an hour after arrival because my flight was notorious for being late. As it turned out it wasn't! but everything worked out fine.
Posted by
Twin Cities of MN
7517 posts
I used welcome pickups at the Istanbul airport. I just provided the flight number, and the driver "did the math" and monitored the flight. I believe I also told him that we checked luggage. Worked great!