Travel to Istanbul

[Emirates]

Has anyone travelled to Istanbul via Emirates?  I'm thinking of taking a 1-week trip to visit a friend in Oct.  However, there are 2 stops - Colombo and Dubai before getting to Istanbul.  Is the plane transfer smooth and incident-free i.e. not getting lost, luggage not left behind ?

Qatar Airways would be my preferred airline because it has 1 stop at Doha.  The down side is the 8-hour wait overnight for the morning connecting flight to Istanbul at 7.55am.  I don't think they have an airport hotel so it's a hassle checking in to a hotel some distance away and I won't get much sleep anyway.

[Turkish]

Why not fly direct with Turkish.  Have done this twice now and it was trouble free.  Planes are all new and service is good.  Nothing to complain about and the price was good.

Not all Emirates flights to Istanbul go via Colombo.  Before Turkish started flying from Changi we flew direct to Dubai and then on to Turkey.  But i think the flights via Colombo are cheaper.

[smidgege]

SQ direct

[TK OK]

Turkish is quite good, took them myself a few months ago at a fraction of the cost out of SQ..... with probably better service, on new aircraft.

[OK but]

I flew Emirates in the summer and it was OK - not to Turkey though.  We managed to get a flight that didn't stop in Columbo, but a friend who has taken those flights told me that they're a complete pain because sometimes, although they say the plane will be on the ground for only an hour, it can be more like 2.5 hours and everyone just has to sit in their seats waiting (you don't get to leave the plane and have a walk around there).


I think I'd investigate Turkish Airlines as suggested if I were you.

[Emirates]

Thank you all for your comments.  I think I'll fly Turkish Airlines just to avoid the stopovers.  Mind you,  my Brit friend  had a really bad experience flying Turkish many years ago.  There was a Turkish ex-fighter pilot flying the plane and he nose-dived for a thrill.  Everyone on board was terrified.  When the plane touched down, he was arrested.  Needless to say, my friend has been terrified of flying ever since.