I arrived at the airport in Dubai about two hours before my flight, but the immigration lines were so long, I barely had time to visit the new Qatar Airways Premium Lounge. I went to the lounge, had some cheese and crackers and a drink and it was time to board. I arrived in Doha, Qatar an hour later and had to quickly catch my connecting flight to Istanbul. About 4 hours later, I arrived at the airport on the Asian side of Istanbul, and had to catch a cab to Ataturk International Airport on the European side of Istanbul. Since it was 4am, the ride took about half an hour-if it were during a weekday rush hour, it would have easily been 2 hours! I arrived at Ataturk Airport in Istsnbul at 5am and with my next flight leaving at 11 am, I had plenty of time to enjoy the Turkish Airlines Flagship CIP Lounge, the “Lounge of all Lounges.” And while I previously visited and wrote about the Qatar Airways Al Safwa First Class Lounge being one of the nicest and most exclusive airport lounges anywhere, the Turkish Airlines Flagship CIP Lounge is much more enjoyable. Why? Because it checks all the boxes. Good and varied food offerings. Check. Quality drinks. Check. Relaxation rooms with beds, showers and televisions. Check. Electronic massage beds. Check. Newspapers, free wifi, computer workstations, a Concierge, a television room. Check. But it has much more. There are masseuses walking around the lounge offering free in chair back and neck massages (definitely needed after many tough flights and by the way, Qatar Airways charges for these at the spa inside their first class lounge.) There is a golf range, a movie room with a popcorn machine, a children’s playroom, a simulated Nascar track, Xbox games, a library, a pool table, a self-playing piano. And the food offerings are ample, varied and delicious. There is an olive bar, a salad bar, a fresh juice bar, a soft drink, water, and bottled juice section, a coffee bar, a section making fresh simit (Turkish bagels), a grilled panini section, a deli sandwich section, a soup section, fresh fruits and a delicious dessert section. I could very easily spend a couple of days here. No wonder Turkish Airlines is consistently voted one of Europe’s (and the World’s) best airlines!
