Ankara Esenboga Airport — Local services in Akyurt

It was just a worse airport among the airports I used in a past few years. You know, Turkey is not a small country. It is a big country in the region and the airport is one of the hubs. So you imagine the airport is nice and comfortable but it was not. First, many of their staff do not speak English. I was requested to wait at the entrance for the transit zone but I did not understand the reason and how long I should wait. Once they allow people to enter the transit zone, they announced in Turkish and if there were no people who understand the language, no one knew we could enter. Second, although I understand that we needed to wait at the entrance of the transit though probably because of controlling the number of the people who wait at the gates, I needed to wait about an hour. When I moved to the floor of the gates, there were only few people. I was thinking maybe they are controlling the crowds which is good. But once the sun rises, more and more people came to the floor and it was really a lot. At that time I did not understand why I needed to wait for an hour. Third, they do not allow people to go entire floor; they blocked at the middle of the floor. The problem of this was, while another area had more cafes, shops and restaurants, the area I stayed had only 1 duty free shop and 1 café. The café was overcrowded and just serving pastries and beverages. I could not have any hot meals and because it was too much people, I hesitated to use the service. Additionally, the internet sucks. Free wifi is only for those people who have active phone number. If you do not have one for some reasons, you are not able to use the internet. If you have it, you can use the internet for 2 hours for free. Once I connected, I used the internet for 10-15 minutes. After that, I wanted to save rest of the hour. But somehow, I could not save the time. So I could use the internet only for one time, 10-15 minutes which was very disappointing. Many people who were waiting for their flight seems bored; no shopping, no eating, and no internet. Literally nothing to do but just sit down and wait. Lastly, although the airport itself was clean, some small things were not clean such as toilets and vending machines. I really want them to clean the washroom frequently. Also, I understand the country is facing a challenge on their currency but they should use their currency in the airport. I did not get that they are using euro (indicating prices in euro) at the airport. Overall, it was just so disappointing. If you do not expect anything from this airport,...

I find the staff at Ankara Esenboga Airport to be generally nice and efficient, but the overall airport is a very poor experience. Having travelled via Turkish Airlines from Dublin airport and Istanbul (both of which were very easy to use and spacious!) arriving into Ankara Esenboga was chaos. Multiple international flights arrived at the same time, which may have made it worse (though our driver said that the airport has been getting worse in the late evenings recently). An important point here is that my partner is Turkish, so he does most of the talking for me - otherwise, English is rarely used here, so it is very hard for international transit passengers. There are English signs, so look out for those, as they can help you find where you need to go. The passengers push in front of each other at the baggage claim area; my partner had to ask twice for people to get out of our way where we were standing waiting. They ignored all signs about where to stand and showed little common courtesy; overall, the people were very rude. When you exit the airport, it just gets worse - people coming to collect their family members park ON THE ROAD and block the whole area, thinking that having their hazard lights flashing is a good enough thing to do. It seems that they can't spend a little money to park up in the appropriate place to collect relatives, or else there is not enough parking. Traffic police were in attendance and had their sirens blaring, but they had very little control over the situation, and only came when the situation was already out of control, instead of having preventative measures in the first place. People stand smoking in the no smoking areas - that's a typical thing in Türkiye anyway - and people keep their car engines running under closed spaces, so it just feels horrible, crowded, warm, dirty, and unhealthy, compared to the places we had just been to. For people who are coming to visit Ankara for the first time, the people give a very bad impression of the city and country. I do not recommend travelling to Ankara, especially via Esenboga airport, as it is just a stressful and frustrating experience most of the time. Especially for people who are neurodiverse, this place is just a total nightmare and it lacks a good efficient system outside the building. I worry for my family members who need to travel via this airport...

I recently had the opportunity to visit Esenboga Airport in Ankara, and I must say that my experience left much to be desired. As the capital city's airport, I expected a higher level of convenience and services, but unfortunately, I was sorely disappointed.

One of the major issues I encountered was the early closure of most facilities within the airport. Despite being an international airport, it was surprising to see that many shops and restaurants closed early, limiting the options available for travelers. This was particularly frustrating for those with late-night or early-morning flights, as there were very few places to grab a meal or find essential amenities.

Furthermore, I was shocked to discover the lack of dining options within the airport. It seemed that the choices were limited, and the quality of the available food was below average. For a capital city airport, I expected a wider variety of culinary options, catering to different tastes and preferences. The limited selection made it challenging to find a satisfying meal, especially during longer layovers.

Another major inconvenience was the absence of exchange offices in the international flights area. Travelers often require foreign currency for various purposes, such as transportation, accommodation, and general expenses. Not having a reliable and easily accessible exchange office created unnecessary complications for international travelers like myself. It would have been immensely helpful to have access to currency exchange services within the airport, especially considering the importance of this facility for a smooth travel experience.

Overall, my experience at Esenboga Airport was marked by disappointment due to the early closure of facilities, limited dining options, and the absence of exchange offices in the international flights area. As a capital city airport, it should strive to provide a higher level of convenience and services to meet the needs of international travelers. I hope that the airport management takes these concerns into account and implements necessary improvements to enhance the overall travel experience for visitors...