Istanbul Airport transfer advice

Posted by Lucy (Arlington, TX, USA) on 08/18/23 01:57 AM

Planning my first ever visit to Turkey next month. I would love to see recommendations about getting from the airport to the Sultanahmet area and back. I was planning just to grab a taxi, but I don't mind an efficient tram or train line.

My return flight leaves at 8 am. Do I need to leave for the airport at 4 am? (This flight was my only option to return home on the designated day.) Would it be better to get a basic hotel by the airport instead of staying in the historic area of town that last evening?

Thanks!

Posted by raymonelee

Connecticut

08/18/23 03:24 AM

612 posts

Headed to Istanbul next month. My research indicates that there are four or five changes if I were to use the metro and tram connections to Sultanahmet. Taxis are convenient but with heavy traffic being a distinct possibility the fare is uncertain. I arranged a private transfer for both my September and October trips to Istanbul. The fare is specific. The service is meet and greet. The transfer is door to door. In 2009 grabbing a taxi was easy and economical. With the new airport location it has been stated that traffic issues abound.

With regard to airport arrival recommendations for departing flights I’m following my airline minimum requirements. For Delta I need to be checked in no later than one hour for an international departure and at the gate forty five minutes before departure. Since I’ll be flying in and out of the airport five times over sixty days I’ve arranged to remain in Sultanahmet for one departure at around 7:30 AM. For my 6 AM departure I’m staying about three minutes from the airport. (If I were you I would remain in Sultanahmet and leave for the airport not later than 4:30 AM).

It has been stated that the airport is huge and that there is a lot of walking. Once I’ve experienced it I’ll readjust my airport arrival time - currently I’m planning to arrive three hours before flight time. I’m hoping to adjust to only two hours before departure.

Posted by raymonelee

Connecticut

08/18/23 03:34 AM

612 posts

For clarification, I’m only using private transfers upon arrival. For departures I’m having the hotel contact a taxi or use their transfer service. Your hotel may offer a fixed cost airport pickup and drop off service. Several of the hotels I looked at including one that I booked offers such a service. I am not using that however because one of my transfers involves a group size that may require multiple vehicles.

Posted by Marie

Atlanta, GA

08/18/23 12:36 PM

700 posts

I generally use private transfers arranged through my hotel. It's not cheap, but it's efficient. I haven't been to Istanbul since the transit line opened from the airport to Kagithane (I was there several weeks before it opened), but my impression is that you will have to transfer from the Kagithane stop to another metro line and then to a streetcar to get to Sultanahmet. Don't take that as gospel, though, because I am not 100% sure.

If you are taking a taxi or private transfer you will need at least an hour to get to the airport, maybe more depending on the time of day. The airport is a good distance from the city center.

There is a hotel, the Yotel, in the Istanbul airport. Actually, there are two Yotels, one airside and one land-side. When I was stayed there in April of this year, the price had doubled since my 2020 visit. So, it's not the cheapest, but it's clean, comfortable, and very convenient.