Day 1. A short break in Istanbul, Turkey

In readiness for our morning flight from London Gatwick Airport we had stayed overnight at a Travelodge in Crawley. This proved convenient as buses depart from near the hotel (Bus 10) to the south terminal taking only 20 minutes with tickets from the driver costing just £2.50.

No queues at the Turkish Airlines check-in desks

We arrived at the airport at 7.25 a.m. and were pleasantly surprised to find no queues whatsoever at the Turkish Airlines check-in desk. As our flight wasn’t scheduled to depart for a further three hours we were able to make use of our ‘My Gatwick‘ membership and popped into the Regus Express Business Lounge for a complimentary cup of coffee. If you plan to call in there, just download a voucher in advance and include your flight details. Complimentary access is available for up to one hour but as the lounge is before…