Review: Turkish Airlines A350 Business Class, Cebu to Istanbul via Manila

Turkish Airlines A350 business class, Cebu to Istanbul via Manila


Trip to Dubai, Abu Dhabi & Cebu Flying Qatar Airways & Turkish Airlines Business Class

Flight: TK265
Departure time in Cebu (CEB): 2:30
Arrival time in Istanbul (IST): 12:50 
Aircraft: Airbus A350 (TC-LGE)
Seat: 5A
Configuration: C32, Y297 (the new A350 ex-Aeroflot has C28, Y288)
Duration: 15h 20m including 1h 45m stop over in Manila
Date of flight: April 11, 2022
*This is a revenue economy ticket upgraded using Elite Plus voucher, Business Class flight #226

Video on YouTube



A Week in Mactan

We only had 6 nights in Cebu so it was a very short stay. We spent most of it visiting Cebu, the nearby Olango Island and our very own Mactan Newtown Beach. 

The aftermath of the Odette typhoon was still evident especially with these trees.

Mactan Newtown Beach

Olango Island Wildlife Sanctuary

Mactan-Cebu International Airport, Terminal 2

I arrived at the airport around 11:05pm for my 2:30am flight.

Mactan-Cebu Airport, Terminal 2

Mactan-Cebu Airport

Check-in, Desks B1-B2

There was already a long queue when I arrived although it went pretty smoothly. I was helped by a friendly agent and after checking my documents, I was issued my boarding passes. As for the lounge, I was informed that there was no lounge available, due to Covid πŸ‘Ž I remember flying Emirates business class in September and got a generous meal voucher since the lounge was closed.

Security Check & Passport Control

There was no fast track for security although it wasn´t really needed as there were not so many passengers yet when I cleared security.

Mactan-Cebu Airport Terminal 2

With no lounge nor restaurants opened, it was a relief to see a vending machine for water πŸ‘

Mactan-Cebu Airport Terminal 2 washroom

Passport control opened at 12:10am and since I had my Swedish passport, I didn´t have to fill up the departure card.

Boarding, Gate 14A

Boarding began at 1:45am beginning with those flying in business class and those with elite status.

Aircraft, Airbus A350

Our ride to Istanbul

Just outside the door before boarding was a trolley with protective kits for passengers to take with them.

Business Class Cabin

The business class cabin and seats on the A350 is very much like the ones they (Turkish Airlines) have on their B787 which I have flown in 2019 from Istanbul to Bali. The seats in 1-2-1 configuration alternate: the window seats alternate from being closer to the window or closer to the aisle. 

The middle seats alternate from being side by side which is perfect for couples, or being apart from each other perfect if you want to have more privacy.

The cabin has a total of 32 seats from rows 1 to 8, in a 1-2-1 configuration.

Seat 5A

Welcome to my seat 5A. One noticeable thing is the shoulder strap seat belt. It looks nice but I personally find it uncomfortable.

Pillow and blanket

Personal screen

From the movie selection, I ended up watching "Ron´s Gone Wrong" which I thought was a nice movie.

Foldable tray table

Footwell and storage where the slippers were placed.

Business class slippers

Coat hook

Literature rack

Safety card and air-sickness bag

Personal storage where you can store your valuables and lock it using a PIN πŸ‘ There is also a headphone hook.

Personal storage, power ports

Mirror

Headphones socket, light and seat controls, IFE controller

Reading lamps

I opened the protective kit and realized this has got to be the most generous business class protective kit from an airline. It included 2 standard face masks and 1 like the N95, 2 sanitizing wet wipes and a small bottle of hand sanitizer πŸ‘

Minutes after settling in, the crew distributed the DENON headphones.

DENON headphones

The crew also offered the business class amenity kit consisting of a pouch bag from Versace which contained an eye mask, ear plugs, socks and Versace facial mist, lotion and lip balm πŸ‘

Complimentary Wifi

As a modern aircraft, the A350 offers wifi connection.

Unlike the last time I flew with them where business class passengers get unlimited wifi access, this time we only got 1GB while those with Elite Plus and Elite status get 400MB.

Push back & Safety Video

We began our push back at 2:13am, at the same time the safety video was played on the screen. Seven minutes later, we were airborne.

Meal, Cebu to Manila

For this 1 hour 15 minute flight to Manila, we were offered a bread and a some sort of sponge cake.

For drinks, I settled for a glass of apple juice.

Airshow

Airshow enroute to Manila

Around 2:47am, the captain came on the PA to give us some flight update including the current weather in Manila which was partly cloudy and that we would start our descent in 2 minutes.

Landing in Manila

We landed in Manila at 3:18am and as we taxied to our gate, I caught sight of this British Airways A380 in the hangar 😊

After about 6 minutes, we reached our gate in Terminal 3.

Pre-departure Beverage

At 3:48am, the crew started offering pre-departure drinks.

I settled for a glass of water. 

At 4:40am, the crew offered the menu card and wine list and 15 minutes later, the inflight chef took the order for lunch. At 5am, the captain came on the PA to welcome us onboard, giving us some flight info like our flight time of 12 hours and 10 minutes and that we would be pushing back in 10 minutes.

Safety Video & Push back

Safety video was played on the screen at 5:06am.

Moments later we began our push back although it was not until after 20 minutes till we got to take off.

Dining 

Menu card and wine list

Menu

Menu

Wines and champagne

Port wine

Red wines

White wines

Beverages

Breakfast

At 5:40am, the crew started offering hot towels and bottles of water. Then, turn down service was offered as usual. Turkish Airlines is known for offering turn down service to everyone after take off and before beginning with the meal service on long haul flights. They would come with a sleeping mattress and a quilt where you can easily sit on while dining.

Breakfast

Bread

Pancake, apricot compote, vannila sauce πŸ˜‹

The meal was very good and after watching a film for half an hour, I went to sleep πŸ˜‰

Lavatory

There are 3 lavatories in the business class cabin, one in front on the left side and two behind the business class cabin on each side.

One of three lavatories with the usual Molton Brown amenities.

One of three lavatories

The lavatory on the right side behind the business class cabin was special as it features the famous washlet πŸ‘

Economy Class Cabin

A quick look at the economy class cabin with a total of 297 seats.

Anytime Snacks

I was able to sleep for a few hours. On the way to the lavatory, I saw that in the galley between the business and economy class, there were sandwiches, muffins and drinks.

There was no crew there so I grabbed a sandwich and poured a cup of apple juice for myself. The bottle of water had been previously distributed by the crew. The business class snacks included chocolates and chips as well.

Airshow

Airshow enroute to Istanbul

Dental Kit

While a dental kit would normally be included in the amenity kit, this time there were none so I had to ask the flight attendant for one. Not sure if it is some sort of cost-cutting. This is in great contrast to my inbound flight to Manila with Qatar Airways a week ago where there were lots of dental and shaving kits offered in the lavatory.

Lunch

About 2 hours before landing, lunch was served.

The service began with some warm nuts and a glass of apple juice.

Table setting

Table setting

Moments later, the flight attendants together with the inflight-chef came with the appetizer and soup trolley.

Soup and appetizer trolley

I chose the Caesar beef salad and the creamy corn soup, both of which were very good.

For my main course, I had the Barramundi fish with Escabeche sauce which was okay.

Dessert and coffee/tea trolley

For dessert, I had the chocolate and coffee lava cake which was perfect πŸ˜‹

The meal was overall very good although the main course was just okay.

Landing in Istanbul Airport

Around 12pm, the captain was back on the PA to give us some flight update. He informed us that we would be landing in 40 minutes. Moments later, the crew came to collect the headphones. This is one of two things (the other one being the turn down service being offered after take off) which I dislike about Turkish Airlines. I do not see any reason why we can´t use the headphones until landing. 

We landed in Istanbul at around 12:41pm and had a long taxi to the gate.

Iran Airtour

Uzbekistan Airways

Motor Sich Airlines Antonov AN-12B

We reached our gate A9 around 1pm, ten minutes behind schedule.

Istanbul Airport

As a business class passenger, I had access to fast track πŸ‘

CONCLUSION

It was really nice to have flown again with Turkish Airlines as it was one of the airlines I have flown most before the pandemic, as a Turkish Airlines Elite Plus member. The fact that the flight was operated by an Airbus A350 which is one of their newest aircraft is really great since it offers direct aisle access to all, unlike on their B777. The seats were comfortable albeit a bit on the smaller side. I personally do not like the turn down service being offered before the meal service although it is not a big deal for me. Also, I really wish the crew would stop collecting the headphones 30-40 minutes before landing since it is always nice to watch a film or something. The last time I flew with them, they would replace the Denon headphones with the normal headphones just so you can continue watching but none was offered on this flight. The meal overall was very good although the fish was just okay. The dental kit no longer being offered in the amenity kit bag was a bit disappointing. Still, it was a nice flight as the crew were friendly and I am looking forward to flying with them again in fall. To all the crew on this flight, TeşekkΓΌr Ederim!

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