Turkish Airlines Business Class Review: JFK to Istanbul on the 777
Key Takeaways
- The Turkish Airlines business class experience from JFK to Istanbul began with lowered expectations due to the older Boeing 777 layout; notably a 2-3-2 configuration.
- The flight offered spacious seating, excellent service, and outstanding food for 65,000 Turkish Airlines Miles&Smiles miles per person plus taxes.
- Passengers faced limited privacy and an underwhelming JFK lounge experience, but the overall value of the flight made it worthwhile.
- Dining included a diverse menu with impressive presentation, featuring dishes like grilled sea bass and a range of desserts and drinks to enjoy during the flight.
- Despite some drawbacks, the trip was enjoyable, with excellent food and service, making Turkish Airlines business class worth the miles spent.
I spent the lead-up to this flight lowering my wife Taryn’s expectations. Turkish Airlines’ older Boeing 777 business class has a 2-3-2 layout, including an actual middle seat. After experiences like Qatar Qsuites and Emirates, I wanted her to know what we were walking into.
She ended up wondering why I had made such a big deal about it.
Our Turkish Airlines business class flight from JFK to Istanbul delivered plenty of space, fantastic service and food we were still talking about afterward. We booked it for 65,000 Turkish Airlines Miles&Smiles miles per person, plus about $219 each in taxes and fees. At that price, we would happily fly it again.
The seat’s lack of privacy is a real tradeoff, and our JFK lounge experience was underwhelming. But for a couple using miles to get to Türkiye, this was a very good start to the trip.
In this review
- Our JFK to Istanbul flight at a glance
- How we booked Turkish Airlines business class for 65,000 miles
- Getting to JFK and using the Turkish Airlines lounge
- Turkish Airlines 777 business-class seats and cabin
- Lie-flat beds, bedding and amenity kits
- Food and drinks were the highlight
- Service, entertainment and Wi-Fi
- Baggage weight is worth checking before JFK
- Arriving in Istanbul and continuing to Cappadocia
- Was Turkish Airlines business class worth the miles?
- Frequently asked questions
Our JFK to Istanbul flight at a glance
| Detail | Our experience |
|---|---|
| Route | New York JFK to Istanbul Airport (IST), nonstop |
| Aircraft | Boeing 777 with the older business-class cabin |
| Seat layout | 2-3-2, with lie-flat seats |
| Loyalty program | Turkish Airlines Miles&Smiles |
| Miles used | 130,000 total for two people; 65,000 each, one way |
| Taxes and fees | Approximately $437 total; $218.50 each |
| Cash fare comparison | Approximately $7,000 total for two one-way tickets |
| Departure lounge | Turkish Airlines Lounge at JFK Terminal 1 |
| Biggest strengths | Food, service and space |
| Biggest drawbacks | Limited privacy, uneven aisle access and the JFK lounge experience |
How we booked Turkish Airlines business class for 65,000 miles
This trip started with a points-and-miles mistake: we had miles stuck in Turkish Airlines.
A couple of years earlier, we had transferred Capital One miles to Turkish for an award that turned out to be phantom availability. The flight appeared bookable, but we couldn’t actually ticket it. The transfer left us with approximately 65,000 miles each in Miles&Smiles and no flight to show for it.
With those balances due to expire in January 2027, finding a good use for them moved up the priority list. Cappadocia was already somewhere we wanted to visit, so flying Turkish to Istanbul made sense.
An award alert finally lined up with exactly what we needed: business class for 65,000 miles per person.
Getting to JFK and using the Turkish Airlines lounge
We positioned from Norfolk to JFK on Delta, booked through Virgin Atlantic Flying Club. We arrived with several hours to spare and spent time with a friend before the long-haul flight. That also meant we had already eaten plenty before reaching the lounge.
Our business-class tickets got us into the Turkish Airlines lounge at Terminal 1. It felt small and fairly underwhelming. We mainly wanted somewhere to sit and have a cocktail, but this lounge doesn’t serve alcohol.
Our Priority Pass lounge hop went nowhere
We tried other lounges in the terminal using Priority Pass, and every one we tried turned us away. Staff explained that access was restricted while they accommodated their own airline passengers. Turkish was also declining Priority Pass entry, even though our business-class tickets allowed us in.
The particularly cruel part was reaching the Korean Air lounge desk, smelling the fried chicken and still having to leave. So keep that in mind if you are positioning to JFK for an evening departure: although there are plenty of lounges, you may not be able to get in, even with Priority Pass.
Turkish Airlines 777 business-class seats and cabin
The older cabin was the reason I had tried to manage expectations. Seven seats across is a lot for business class: two by each window and three in the center.
There are no suite doors, and not every passenger has direct aisle access. A window passenger has a seatmate between them and the aisle, and the passenger in the middle of the center trio faces a similar problem.
Once we settled in, though, we liked the space. The seats felt roomy, and the storage worked well for us. Our photos show substantial ottomans, shelves underneath and a shared console between the window seats. It was easy to see the age of the design, but we weren’t uncomfortable sitting there.
Which seats would we choose?
For a couple, a window pair makes sense if you want to sit together and are comfortable with the window passenger crossing the aisle passenger’s space. We liked being next to each other.
For a solo traveler, I would prioritize an aisle seat on this layout and of course avoid the very middle seat in the center section. An aisle seat gives you direct access, although a neighbor may still need to pass you.
Lie-flat beds, bedding and amenity kits
Our seats converted into fully flat beds, and the bedding included padded seat covers, pillows and blankets. The photo below shows the seats prepared for rest, while the open sides make the limited privacy obvious.
The amenity kits were Lanvin-branded, and the essentials included socks, eye masks and skincare items. We also had slippers. These were the small comforts Taryn specifically appreciated when we talked about the flight afterward.
The bed is a major part of the value on an overnight flight. Just understand the setting: you are reclining in an open cabin beside other passengers, with much less separation than a private suite.
Food and drinks were the highlight
The food was where Turkish really won us over. Taryn called it incredible on the podcast, and I agreed. There was a substantial choice of dishes, and the presentation made dinner feel like part of the trip.
Our printed menu offered dine-on-demand service. We can show what was offered and what was served, although we did not document how a request to eat much later would have worked in practice.
Dinner in Turkish Airlines business class
The appetizer choices on our menu included seafood or grilled goat cheese salad, with coriander and carrot soup also available. The mains were grilled wild sea bass, fillet of beef, or gnocchi with porcini mushrooms.
Our meal photos include the grilled goat cheese salad, soup and gnocchi. The gnocchi came with vegetables, Parmesan and roasted red pepper sauce. Having a vegetarian option that looked like a complete main course was good to see.
The individual dishes, bread service, proper tableware and little glowing table light gave the meal a sense of occasion. Combined with the crew’s service, dinner was one of the clearest reasons we came away happy with this flight.
Dessert and the drinks list
The dessert menu included a selection of Turkish sweets, apricot and white chocolate cake, chocolate fondant, strawberry ice cream, cheese and fruit. Our photos show Turkish pastries with ice cream and the apricot and white chocolate cake with berries.
The drinks menu listed Taittinger Brut Réserve Champagne, Turkish and international wines, spirits, beer, Turkish coffee and a range of teas. One of the white wines was from Cappadocia, a fitting detail given where we were headed next.
These were the selections on our flight, not a guaranteed menu for future departures.
Breakfast before landing
The pre-arrival menu offered a tomato and avocado omelette with rösti potatoes and cherry tomatoes, or pancakes with vanilla sauce and maple syrup. Fruit, yogurt, cheeses, cold meats and breads rounded out the choices.
Service, entertainment and Wi-Fi
Overall the service was fantastic. The crew and the meals did a lot to make an older cabin feel like a worthwhile business-class experience.
Each seat had an entertainment screen, and we were provided Denon headphones. The screens and surrounding fittings looked dated compared with newer cabins, but overall everything worked ok.
Online Wi-Fi was ok, certainly not great. It wasn’t very reliable for most of the flight, so I couldn’t get a lot of work done.
Right now you get 1 GB plus unlimited messaging for business-class passengers, with unlimited internet for business-class passengers who hold Miles&Smiles Elite or Elite Plus status.
Turkish Airlines is strict with carry on baggage weight
I tried to travel carry-on only. Turkish had other plans.
My bag was overweight, largely because of camera equipment, and I had to check it. Taryn’s bag was allowed through despite being a little over the limit.
Arriving in Istanbul and continuing to Cappadocia
We arrived in Istanbul at around 5 p.m. local time and continued to Cappadocia the next morning. With that overnight gap, we booked the landside Yotel inside the airport instead of heading into the city.
Was Turkish Airlines business class worth the miles?
For us, yes. We used 65,000 miles each that were already in Miles&Smiles, got to a destination we wanted to visit and enjoyed excellent food and service along the way.
The older 777 cabin worked particularly well for us as a couple. We had room to stretch out and sit together, and the seats converted into beds. The dated design never stopped us from enjoying the flight.
Frequently asked questions
How many miles did JFK to Istanbul business class cost?
We paid 65,000 Turkish Airlines Miles&Smiles miles per person, one way, plus approximately $218.50 each in taxes and fees. Current pricing and availability may differ.
Does Turkish Airlines 777 business class have lie-flat seats?
The older 777 cabin we flew had fully flat seats in a 2-3-2 layout. Window passengers and the middle passenger in the center section did not have direct aisle access.
Is the older Turkish Airlines 777 good for couples?
We liked the paired window seats and the amount of space. The main compromise is that the window passenger has to cross the aisle passenger’s space to get out.
Was lounge access included at JFK?
Our business-class tickets gave us access to the Turkish Airlines lounge at JFK Terminal 1. On our visit, it had no alcohol available, and the lounges we tried were not accepting our Priority Pass entry.
Did business class include free Wi-Fi?
Our account included 1 GB of data and unlimited messaging. That was a capped data allowance, not unlimited general internet access.
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