Ten days ago, my partner, Marc, and I were on our way to Dubai with a long layover in Istanbul. Seven hours to be exact. We didn't really intend to spend so much time in Istanbul but given the mixed reviews we read from TripAdvisor about Turkish airlines as well as the supposedly very confusing and user unfriendly Ataturk airport we decided to give ourselves more time than risk taking a connecting flight and missing it with just two hours in between travels. Many travelers before us who flew with the airline and who passed through this airport did mention departure and arrival delays as well as a very chaotic layover scene in Ataturk.

After taking a total of four flights on Turkish Airlines to Dubai from San Francisco with two seven hour layovers in Istanbul roundtrip, I can honestly say that we had a more than satisfactory travel experience with Turkish Airlines as well as Ataturk Airport.

I do need to say that prior to the trip we had planned on just staying four days in Dubai and two full days in Istanbul. With the current rift between the US and Turkey and with each country suspending visas to each other's citizens, we ended up canceling the Istanbul leg of our trip and extending our stay in Dubai to six days. As of this writing, Turkey had not yet resumed visa issuance on a full scale nor can American citizens apply for e visas online. If there is one thing I disliked about Turkish airline it is their customer service. Calling them or visiting with website was so challenging and so frustrating, we felt bad booking and buying our tickets with them. We had to go to the airport and visit their ticket sales desk in SFO to make the changes in our itinerary. Luckily, their staff there was very helpful and they managed to straighten out the mess we were in after the visa fiasco.

I can honestly say that Turkish Airlines has become one of my favorite airlines in the whole world. The service on board was very good. Not excellent, but it sure comes close. We traveled on coach and we were very pleased with the service, the food, and all the amenities given us.

Our flight took off several minutes late but we still managed to arrive on time in Istanbul. Shortly after take off, the flight attendants passed out the menu as well as the amenity kits with eye mask, socks, slippers, and some toiletries in them. This was definitely a nice gesture. I've only received amenity kits in First and Business class.

The food served on board was super tasty. In fact, every meal I had on board Turkish Airlines was very delicious. I can only recall Asiana Air serving equally good food.

It must have been a fluke, but our seats on board our flight to Istanbul reclined so much I was very comfy all throughout the 12 hour flight. Sadly, not all seats reclined at such a generous angle in our other three flights. Each seat had a Personal TV monitor with which to watch movies, tv programs and listen to music.

What was true and I noticed it in all our flights was the absence of the flight attendants after all the meals were served and the trays collected. Unlike other airlines, the TA flight attendants did not walk up and down the aisles regularly to offer tea, coffee, or water as the flight progressed. They did give us all bottled water right before they all retired for the rest of the flight.

If one wanted a modern and luxurious airport, then Ataturk would be a disappointment. It reminded me more of a 70's mall, very outdated, and rather small for the sheer number of passengers that go through it year after year. There were a number of duty free shops and upscale brand stores like Ferragamo and Ray Ban. I did enjoy going to one stall that sold everything Turkish from key chains to local delicacies to handicrafts.