Istanbul Ataturk (IST) Airport

Istanbul Ataturk International Airport IST - presently Europe's eighth-busiest airport - is named in honor of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, founder and the first president of the Republic of Turkey. Ataturk International is one of two Istanbul airports - the other is the smaller Sabiha Gokcen Airport located at Istanbul's Anatolian (Asian) side. If you come to the City to see the sites, stay a few days at least. You will find not only the tourist sites breathtaking, but its people fascinating and engaging and the food to be a culinary adventure. Ataturk Airport was selected as 'Best Airport for Busines Travellers [within Europe]'.

The Airport is located in Yesilkoy, on the European side of the city, and is 28 km from downtown Istanbul, the great and historic city on the Bosporus where two continents and East and West meet. You can reach the Airport by coastal road 'Ataturk Havalimani Cd', connecting to the north motorway D-100 and the TEM (Trans-European Motorway). 

With three runways and an estimated 37.5 million passengers in 2011(compared to 2002 with only 11.4 million), Istanbul Ataturk Airport is hub to Turkish Airlines and Onur Air, and is served by many major international airlines offering direct and connecting flights to all parts of the globe.   Note that both Ataturk & Sabia Gokcen together had 60 million passengers in 2012.

The on-Airport 'TAV Hotel' (tel. +90 (212) 465 4030 or visit airporthotelistanbul.com) is situated partly at airside, and partly at land-side with a total of 131 rooms; all rooms show flight information, with internet access & can be used on a daily or hourly basis.  The land-side included fully-equipped meeting rooms, convertible into one single room.

NOTE:  1. The TAV Call Center has been set up for all passenger questions and complaints - simpy dial 444 9 828 (828 stands for TAV).
2. Passenger Pickup /Meeting Point:  Greeters go to the information desk at the International Terminal's Arrivals level, where their names will be put on overhead monitors for the next 40 mns.

The on-Airport 'Instanbul Airport Hotel' (tel. +90 212 465 4030)is right next door, attached to the International Terminal at its left side.

The passenger terminal complex at Istanbul Airport consists a Domestic and a much larger International terminal -connected to each other by the gateways . (For more information, please refer to 'Terminal Map' page.)   NOTE: The Airport is ADA-approved & fully accessible to persons with disabilities.

Parking Options at Ataturk International:  (For more information, please refer to 'Airport Paring' page.)

Rental car counters are available in both Domestic and International Terminals at their respective Arrivals areas. Rental cars can be dropped off on level 3 of the Red Parking Area.

To get from Istanbul Ataturk Airport to your destination, you can rent a car, take a taxi, take the Metro to Esenler Terminal, or a bus: 
1. Metro (tel. +90 212 444 0088), a light rail service taking 30-35 mins runs to Aksaray, passing through major pars of the European side of the city, including its bus terminal. 
2. Havas Shuttle buses run every 30 mins. to Bakirkoy, Yenikapi, Aksaray, Taksim Square; hourly service runs to Kozyatagi (Asian side), and service every hour to Etiler-Akmerkez. 
3. Havas buses run according to departure/arrival schedules of the ferries to the fast ferry terminal in Bakirkoy, which connects to the Bostanci & Kadikoy terminals. 
5. The Metro serves the airport and numerous area stops.
4. The City Bus runs to Taksim, Etiler & Kozytagi, a slower but cheaper alternative.
5. Ferry Service by Seabus,  departs from Bursa- Yenikapi- Kadikoy.
6. New Intercity highways now link Istanbul to the cities of Bursa, Ismir, Antalya & to the Black Sea Speedway.
7. The new  the high-speed train running between Ankara and Istanbul is soon to be completed.

Future Airport developments:  A new airport (Istanbul Yeni Havalimani) is to be built on mostly state-owned land in the Arnavutkkoy district of Istanbul, near Lake Terkos - at intersecting roads of Arnavutkoy, Gokturk & Catalca - abuot airport 35 km from Ataturk Airport.  The May 2013 tender awarded a Turkish jont venture consortium a 25-year operating lease.  The project is to be done in 4 stages, upon completion of which it is to accommodate 150 miion passengers a year (the then world's biggest airport?).  
First stage of construction will start in 2017 (42 months after finalization of tender approval) and will include  the main terminal with a 90 million passenger capacity, secondary terminal (or satellite), 88 passenger bridges, parking garage, 3 runways, large apron, 3 technical blocks, air traffic conrol tower, VIP Lounged, and other related facilities.

• Address:
  Yesilkoy Mh.
  Istanbul, 34149
  Turkey
• Website for Istanbul Ataturk: http://www.ataturkairport.com/en-EN/Pages/Main.aspx
• Email Address: info@tav.aero
• Phone: +90 212 463 3000