Would you fly Turkish Airlines? Would you fly Lot Airlines?

[mobob]

We're in the home stretch - heading over to bring the family back from Ukraine. Trying to make travel plans is a total    Short version: One way tickets work out to be the least expensive. However, the routing and airlines give me pause. To Ukraine is Turkish Airlines from Chicago to Istanbul to Donetsk. The trip back is Lot Airlines from Kyiv to Warsaw to Chicago. I'm looking for general information/experiences with the airlines and any special things I'd need to know going through Istanbul or Warsaw. Travel is travel, I know, but I've no experience with these airlines or ports. Thanks.

[ML]

I have flown Turkish Airlines Chicago and New York to Istanbul to Simferopol.

I have flown LOT Chicago to Warsaw to Kyiv and to Odessa.

Pretty standard service just like on most other airlines.

Food and service probably a little better on Turkish.

I was a little ticked at the Warsaw to Chicago leg for LOT.  Left 2 hours late and never made up a single minute during the flight . . . which I know can be done.  So missed connection in Chicago and they paid for night in hotel.  I think they must have done the financial calculation which showed paying hotel for a few passengers was cheaper than the fuel used to make up the time.

[Wayne]

My wife and I have flown all those airlines and combinations. Istanbul is a modern airport with good service. Turkish Airlines is OK, but noting special. LOT can be cheaper, but less service. Warsaw is a small, outdated airport when I was there, but I think there were recent improvements because of the soccer games this summer.

Did you look at Delta? They sometimes have direct flights to Kyiv. Connections could be through Amsterdam. From Chicago, you have many options. Domestic flights in Ukraine can be a problem.

Aerosvit has direct flights NYC to Kyiv and connecting flights to larger cities in Ukraine.The connecting flights are on smaller airlines, but you can purchase the tickets from Aerosvit as part of a package. You could try American or any airlines Chicago to New York round trip, then Aerosvit for the major trip. Try both round and one way combinations.

One way tickets are only cheaper on airlines not based in USA.

Remember, if your luggage is lost on an INTERNATIONAL FLIGHT, the airlines will only pay you a small amount which is only about 25% of the USA domestic amount. You can purchase additional insurance coverage if your luggage has any value.

You need to be careful about the time between flights, if your checked bags will be automatically moved from one plane to another, etc. Do you have pets? Over size or over weight bags?

There are other options for a direct flight from Chicago to Istanbul. The problem can be that the flight back from Istanbul to Chicago leaves too early and you would need to stay over night in Istanbul. But, there are many interesting things to see that are all close together in Istanbul and it breaks the trip up so you might get some sleep.

[Jumper]

LOT is  fine, so is Turkish airlines

One thing to note flying thru warsaw (or any EU city) is if there is a significant layover
a Ukrainian would need a shengen visa..or stay in the transfer section of the airport which can be a hassle for that long of time.

My wife ran into this one time , as the connecting flight to Chicago , the plan had issues and was grounded until the next morning.

They did issue a temp visa.. but by the time they got everyone needing one processed most only got two or three hours at the hotel before time to return anyway.

Good luck !
and the types of things i mentioned often cant be reasonably planned for, its just part of the adventure of travel..(and i'm glad my wife views it this way as well ,and with a smile)

 

[Hammer2722]

I had one experience flying lot from Dulles to Warsaw to Kiev. When we arrived at Warsaw we had to exit the terminal and reroute back into the same terminal through security to get to my Kiev connection. WTF???? There must have been over a thousand people trying to go though one security line. They even made me empty the entire contents of my backpack. EVERYTHING!!!!


We departed to Kiev over 2 hours late because apparently in Poland, the airplane cannot depart until all ticketed people are on board the craft!!!!!! I will never fly through Warsaw again if I can help it!!!!

[Jumper]

Thats odd hammer..
and sounds frustrating..


I've flown thru warsaw countless times (not always to the FSU) and never had any problems.
My wife had the plane issue,but thats it.

Out of Chicago (with half a million polish) LOT is a very popular airline into Europe ,or Eastern Europe and beyond.

part of the attraction here is the direct flights from chicago to warsaw ,
Lot 1 and Lot 2 run every day.

[Hammer2722]

Thats odd hammer..
and sounds frustrating..


I've flown thru warsaw countless times (not always to the FSU) and never had any problems.
My wife had the plane issue,but thats it.

Out of Chicago (with half a million polish) LOT is a very popular airline into Europe ,or Eastern Europe and beyond.

part of the attraction here is the direct flights from chicago to warsaw ,
Lot 1 and Lot 2 run every day.

Correction to my last post. The flight was from Chicago to Warsaw. I was my first and only experience flying LOT. By the time the plane took off, there were a helluva lot of pissed off people on that plane!!!

[camachinist]

I have limited experience but have done a couple of mileage runs on Turkish, but only their long-haul product on the relatively new 777-300ER with economy comfort, which I bought up to. Compared to the domestic majors I normally fly, and occasionally fly to Asia (United is the primary) I found TK to be a pleasant surprise.

I haven't flown LOT since their 767's were relatively new so can't really offer much comment. WAW was a confusing zoo back then, especially transiting from LWO-WAW to WAW-ORD, but I imagine that has changed. The hard and soft product (service) was fine. As both airlines are IATA members, as well as members of Star Alliance, they meet or exceed the same standards for safety that any domestic US airline meets/exceeds.

My only advice would be to allow plenty of time for international connections. Stuff happens. This is especially true if sitting in economy on a big long-haul aircraft. If I'm in economy, I like two hours just to be safe. Sometimes transiting takes 15 minutes. Sometimes the line in transit security moves ten people in 15 minutes. It's variable. Also, put as much flexibility into the itinerary as possible, preferably booking early flights so, if stuff happens, there may be later flights/routings which can be protected. Don't forget transit visas, if needed.

Good luck.

[ML]

They even made me empty the entire contents of my backpack. EVERYTHING!!!!

On one trip, I went through several airports with my glasses tightening tiny screwdriver inadvertently packed in my carry-on.

The Polish boys found it.  So, big points scored for their security which I appreciated . . . really.

[BC]

Turkish Air Lines?  No problem.

LOT, no direct experience with them.

[Anotherkiwi]

Turkish Airlines I know nothing about.  LOT was used by a friend from Poland who visited me last year (Gdansk to Frankfurt and return) and she couldn't have been happier - her best airline experience ever.
 
If you want the lowdown on any airport or airline there is only one place to go - Skytrax.
 
http://www.airlinequality.com/main/forum.htm
 
Millions of reviews, and enough to make me sure already that I will never fly with Aerosvit!  LOT and Turkish a mixed bag, with a slight majority in favour.

[mobob]

I'm still researching daily. I'm trying really hard NOT to break the rule of NOT buying tickets before visas are in hand. I want to get tickets before prices jump because of holidays or whatever current global crisis pushes the price of oil up. The route through Istanbul still seems to be the best price to get there. Coming back is narrowed down to LOT or Aerosvit. Thanks Anotherkiwi for the review site; I'd never heard of it. I've flown Aerosvit a few times in Ukraine. They seemed ok, but they were short trips. I saw a bunch of complaints about Aerosvit for the long haul. I can live without airline entertainment or food. We can bring our own quite easily. As for the seating quality, you get what you pay for. That I can deal with as easily - I'll just pack an extra travel pillow and some benadryl. I can report from advice given, late Tuesday night/early Wednesday morning is a really good time to get tickets on Orbitz. Apparently that's the time they/the airlines update the next weeks' fares.

Thanks everybody! for the advice and experiences. Lost luggage and transfer time advice are well considered. Ukraine here I come!

[BC]

Read the airfare stipulations.  Some airlines reimburse fares if a visa is refused.

10 or so years ago I used to love riding in the old TU-134's.. the big round windows were great and the seats usually folded down forwards, so on a flight that was not fully booked you could fold down the seat in front of you and have a great footrest.. all the legroom you need.

http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/world/ukraine/images/tu-134-1.jpg

I really should have asked back then if I could take a peek out the nose....



around the 1:20 mark.