When you visit an airport, you expect to pay high prices at concessions, including for food and drinks. However, not all airports are created equal when it comes to pricing, and there’s a surprising airport where I most consistently see complaints on this topic. I thought it would be interesting to talk about that for a second.
In this post:
Istanbul Airport might be world’s most expensive
If you asked a random person what airport has the most expensive food and drinks, you’d likely assume it would be one in a very expensive city, like London or New York. However, there’s one airport that seems to “beat” all others in this regard — Istanbul Airport (IST).
What’s wild is that the Turkish Lira (TRY) has devalued massively over the years, and most concessions charge in Euro (EUR). Despite that, the prices will give someone used to the overpriced concessions at Newark (EWR) pause.
In 2024, there was a study by Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera comparing food and drink prices across European airports. This looked at the average cost of purchasing five items (a coffee, a bottle of water, a cappuccino, a croissant, and a sandwich). As you can see below, it wasn’t even close, and Istanbul is almost twice as expensive as number two on the list.
Just to look at a few examples on social media, check out these €22.50 turkey sandwiches, or €15.50 pistachio croissants (I’m sure now branded as “Dubai croissants”).
Or who doesn’t like a €32 meat doner with rice?
Or four chicken wings at Popeyes for €17?
Or a Double Whopper with fries and a drink at Burger King for €26.50?
At Starbucks, a venti cold brew will cost you €10, while a venti iced strawberry matcha latte will cost you €13 (see this Instagram post — the below embed is from Istanbul’s other airport, where prices are also high, but not quite as high).
What’s the justification for this pricing, though?
It takes a lot for airport concession pricing to raise eyebrows, given that we’re conditioned to expect high pricing. But this is all next level, no? And what makes it all the worse is that the prices are this high in foreign currencies, while the local currency has devalued at a massive rate.
It raises the question, why does Istanbul Airport have such expensive prices for concessions? What’s the justification? A few thoughts:
- It’s not like “oh, they have a captive audience” is much of a justification, since most airports have that
- There’s probably a lack of third-party regulation given the extent to which the government controls so much in the country, but that applies at all kinds of airport hubs, especially in the Middle East
- Is there some reason that these concessions are significantly more expensive to operate at the airport? Is rent that high (compared to other airports), does the country just struggle to import certain things, or what?
One would think that this would negatively impact the impression travelers have of Turkish Airlines, given that this is the carrier’s global hub. Then again, if you nee to fly from Ashgabat (ASB) to Benghazi (BEN), who else are you going to fly?
Bottom line
Istanbul Airport eclipses virtually every other airport when it comes to concession pricing. Given that Istanbul is otherwise a relatively affordable city (if you’re visiting with “foreign” spending power), the airport is the exception. I’m not sure what the justification is for this, but I’m curious what theories you guys have.
What do you make of Istanbul Airport’s pricing for food and drinks?
It was thus at IST some 20 years ago and I have no idea why. Not much competition for transfers in the region, perhaps. EU airports & even American routing offers more options.
Wait 15 years and see what prices are then. A meal at Burger King will be 45 euro.
Anyone who eats at Burger King or Popeye in Turkey deserves to pay those prices and more
US airports are extraordinarily expensive. A sandwich at Pret A Manger LAX was $14, in Hudson’s $8 for a bottle of water and $12 for a small bag of m&m.
I don’t find London airports that expensive and perhaps 10% more than outside the the airport.
Meanwhile Seoul Incheon and Tokyo Haneda are very reasonable.
The TrueDispatch list conveniently omits Zurich Airport, where buying breakfast is usually a credit score-altering event :P
I hate flying Turkish so it's generally not a problem.
I remember that during the per opening Tour of the Airport we were told that the consortium of conpanies who build the Airport have 25 or 30 years to bring back the costa through revenue. The ownership of the Airport will then change to the government. That’s why you see quite Creative ways to charge for premium Internet, pay for golfcart Transfers. The Shops and Restaurants were always overpriced but Inflation us responsible for the latest high.
I have traveled through IST several times and visited Istanbul, I think prices at airport are much higher that makes you hold purchases at the airport. I am not sure if it helps the vendors. Fair price will encourage travelers to use IST again. Turkish Airlines must look into it to win its passengers
Wonder if part of this has to do with a brand spanking new airport/terminal leading to high operating costs and need to generate revenue to service the bonds or make some ROIs resulting in higher rent or leases for concessions?
Some projects the taxpayers pick up a bigger share of the tab so those renovations costs do not get rolled down to the businesses that operate at the airport (airlines, concessions, rental companies, etc.) however...
Wonder if part of this has to do with a brand spanking new airport/terminal leading to high operating costs and need to generate revenue to service the bonds or make some ROIs resulting in higher rent or leases for concessions?
Some projects the taxpayers pick up a bigger share of the tab so those renovations costs do not get rolled down to the businesses that operate at the airport (airlines, concessions, rental companies, etc.) however some projects they justify the investment via revenue generation.
Then again, if you need to fly from Ashgabat (ASB) to Benghazi (BEN), who else are you going to fly?.......
In two weeks I will departing ASB on Flydubai ASB-DXB !
Was in Turkey a year ago. A lot of businesses that deal with tourists don't want lira, they want euros. Their inflation at the time was supposed to be running around 90%. The inflation rate could be why the airport's euro prices are so high.
I visited Turkey last year for the first time since 2019 and was shocked with how much more expensive everything had become.
I will.not be returning anytime soon
The same goes for souvenirs. I bought some pestemels (Turkish bath towels) for around 180 TL (3.25 Euros) in Carrefour in a shopping centre. 100% cotton. The same ones were being sold at IST for 29 Euros!
A minimum of research (think, Google?), retrieves plenty of articles from reasonably reliable sources outlining long lists of reasons and arguments behind the prices. Some of which are up for debate, naturally, but most of which add up. Coupled with the notorious Turkish business opportunism, it all makes perfect sense.
@ Jakob OG -- If we're looking at the same reputable stories on Google, they don't really answer my question of why, though. I see explanations like having to pay customs duties on imports and the cost of infrastructure investments at the airport, though it's not clear how that differs from other global hubs. Furthermore, when items are priced in foreign currencies, it's not clear to me why the Lira's devaluation would cause prices to...
@ Jakob OG -- If we're looking at the same reputable stories on Google, they don't really answer my question of why, though. I see explanations like having to pay customs duties on imports and the cost of infrastructure investments at the airport, though it's not clear how that differs from other global hubs. Furthermore, when items are priced in foreign currencies, it's not clear to me why the Lira's devaluation would cause prices to be inflated so much.
So is the answer simply "notorious Turkish business opportunism," or what am I missing?
I can tell you this, its cheaper than Antalya airport. Feeding a family there will cost more than the plane ticket.
Allegedly the rent for these shops in the airport is ridiculously high and the price reflects this. In general Istanbul has gotten absurdly expensive.
I think part of it is driven by the Russian money, Istanbul prices are gradually converging with Dubai as the nearest place that is happy to except any and every sanctioned Russian whilst they remain locked out of most of Europe.
I agree it’s become one of those odd cities where there’s lots of poverty but you can find yourself paying the same price as Paris / London / New York for food and drink in certain areas (not just in tourist trap places).
IST is great as long as you have a lounge access and absolutely terrible if you don't.
USD40 to access IGA Lounge for 3 hours (if one doesn’t have lounge access through other means) doesn’t sound too bad then.
No it’s not great. Not with the amount you have to walk to connect
My mum missed a connection there last year after having been sent to the exit instead of the connection security checkpoint by an idiotic member of staff. She had 105 minutes between flights and the inbound had arrived on time. It's sheer madness!
Incidentally, I am pretty certain that TK refused to rebook her in the circumstances (although she wasn't in the mood for leaving the airport so I redeemed an award for her...
My mum missed a connection there last year after having been sent to the exit instead of the connection security checkpoint by an idiotic member of staff. She had 105 minutes between flights and the inbound had arrived on time. It's sheer madness!
Incidentally, I am pretty certain that TK refused to rebook her in the circumstances (although she wasn't in the mood for leaving the airport so I redeemed an award for her to fly LX with a further connection first thing in the morning instead of waiting for 24 hours until the next flight to her destination).
I connect there several times a year, I never experienced too much of walking. All gates are within 15-20 mins from the central pier. If you have mobility issues, book an assistance. For everyone else it's well within the normal walking distance.
Shops know that you will come parched and famished after that 45+ min taxiing and 30min walk from arrival gate to transit customs in that mess of an airport.
Also, randomly, you cannot get a Coke (or Pepsi) in the Turkish Airlines lounge (which is otherwise excellent)
There's definitely some weird commercial arrangements going on behind the scenes here.
Coca Cola products were removed in some sort of a weird boycott because Coca Cola does business in countries Turkey doesn't like (while they're very cool with Russia of course). It's quite pathetic to inconvenience your customers because of your dubious political orientation, especially when you're trying to be a truly global airline.
Someone tell the Turks that Burger King has branches all over Israel
Nor can you get sparkling water (just some weird Turkish soda water brand), champagne or any spirits. Other than some of the food it’s a poor lounge these days trading on previous reputation, it’s also so busy at peak times that perhaps that’s why cafes in IST charge so much as I’d probably rather sit in one…