This spring I wrote about how Turkish Airlines would be opening yet another lounge in the United States. I’m happy to see that it has finally opened as of November 2022.
In this post:
Turkish Airlines Lounge JFK now open
Turkish Airlines has opened a lounge in Terminal 1 of New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK). This lounge seems to have opened without much fanfare, though it’s confirmed that the lounge is open.
The Turkish Airlines Lounge is taking the space of the former Alitalia Lounge JFK, which frankly must have been one of the worst lounges at JFK, and that’s saying something. Of course in the meantime Alitalia no longer exists in its previous form, but rather it has been replaced by ITA Airways. I suspect ITA Airways realizes the economics of having a lounge at JFK simply don’t make sense.
The Alitalia Lounge had been closed for a long time, and ITA Airways has been sending its premium passengers to the Air France Lounge JFK.
Why the Turkish Airlines Lounge JFK is exciting
There are a few reasons we should be happy about the opening of the Turkish Airlines Lounge JFK:
- This means that the former space of the Alitalia Lounge has been renovated, and just about anything is an improvement over the old lounge (and based on the pics of the new lounge, I’m pretty impressed)
- The economics of Turkish Airlines having a lounge at JFK make a lot more sense, as the airline operates three daily flights from JFK, which means there are a lot of Turkish Airlines passengers eligible for lounge access
- All of Turkish Airlines’ lounges outside of Turkey belong to Priority Pass; so while the lounge hasn’t yet joined Priority Pass, I think this will happen shortly, which would be great for those with a premium credit card
- This should help with alleviating crowding in other lounges at JFK Terminal 1, as the overall lounge footprint in the terminal is increasing
My only concern is that this isn’t a very big lounge. Turkish Airlines has a few lounges in the United States (including in Miami and Washington), and I’d say they’re above average for Priority Pass lounges.
Bottom line
Turkish Airlines has opened a lounge at New York JFK Terminal 1, taking the place of the former Alitalia Lounge. I’d say this is a great development, as it adds some much needed lounge capacity to the terminal. While the lounge isn’t part of Priority Pass yet, I wouldn’t be surprised to see it join.
What do you make of the new Turkish Airlines Lounge JFK?
Looks very similar to their MIA lounge in Concourse E. If you only showed me the headline picture, I wouldn't have been able to tell them apart (and I have been to both lounges).
What a lousy lounge. Small, hot, cramped, no alcohol. Stayed 30 seconds and went to the LH lounge.
Was there on Friday and while airy and nicely renovated it’s nothing to write home about. The LH lounges at T1 are still the way to go for Star Alliance flights from JFK
The Korean lounge in T1 was (pre-COVID) much, much worse than the Alitalia one: it resembles some kind of over-crowded detention centre. But the security queues are so long that you're highly unlikely to get to use a lounge anyway
"which would be great for those with a premium credit card"
And then we complain about lounges being overcrowded and whine about the lack of solutions to the overcrowding...
I feel like the TK lounge aesthetics is quite outdated, they essentially use the same style as the old lounge on the previous airport in Istanbul. Also the current lounge in Istanbul just feels dated in my opinion, nothing luxurious about it anymore.
It's Nov 18th and the Business Class Lounge is open. We heard it opened Nov 11th. I'm not sure, but I don't think JFK is a major hub for Turkish and the lounge kind of reflects that. It's right next to Gate 2, which is convenient since that's the gate we're leaving from. It's on the smaller side, nice yet basic when it comes to amenities, and gets pretty loud.
All-in-all, great to have, but nothing special.
What is the date of the opening or the expected opening date?
I am but a small minnow in the points world, but the ability to use the Starbucks app and Stars at U.S. airports now has me rethinking meh PP lounges generally. 50 stars for all the caffeine I can handle and maybe just pay for a sandwich. The app bypasses waiting in line and the promos make stars easy to obtain. Then, working at an unused gate is usually better than the PP lounges. Who's...
I am but a small minnow in the points world, but the ability to use the Starbucks app and Stars at U.S. airports now has me rethinking meh PP lounges generally. 50 stars for all the caffeine I can handle and maybe just pay for a sandwich. The app bypasses waiting in line and the promos make stars easy to obtain. Then, working at an unused gate is usually better than the PP lounges. Who's with me?
I don't know if I'd walk over 10 minutes to this lounge given some of my PP experiences recently.
OMG, that old Alitalia lounge was atrocious. Glad to see someone will be ripping it up
The question is if this lounge remains when T1 starts being rebuilt.
There is a good chance that Air France moves to T4 with Delta and KLM once Delta gains more gates in T4. T1 will lose capacity during the construction process
Of course it happens after I shift most of my flying to EWR... oh well, still excited for this, wouldn't anticipate a big renovation considering a new T1 is coming.
I say good riddance. What even was the point of this lounge existing, when Alitalia could have just sent its passengers to the Air France lounge (though before it was built maybe they could have contracted with the Korean Air lounge?). Just another example of unnecessary expenses the airline incurred.
The issue with the AF lounge is that several airlines use it + priority pass and it's pretty small. It can get really crowded. That's pretty good motivation to maintain a separate lounge. Here's to hoping TK gut-renovated it.
The Alitalia lounge is basic at best, and the newly reincarnated AZ probably can outsource its JFK lounge requirements temporarily to another carrier from within SkyTeam, or co-locate at T4 with Delta, though all that depends on whether ITA remains in SkyTeam or decamps. If it becomes part of Star Alliance, then it will presumably just use the LH lounge until the new T1 complex is built out.
If ITA is serious about being a...
The Alitalia lounge is basic at best, and the newly reincarnated AZ probably can outsource its JFK lounge requirements temporarily to another carrier from within SkyTeam, or co-locate at T4 with Delta, though all that depends on whether ITA remains in SkyTeam or decamps. If it becomes part of Star Alliance, then it will presumably just use the LH lounge until the new T1 complex is built out.
If ITA is serious about being a full service airline catering to business clientele, it needs a lounge at JFK, it's largest station outside of Italy. I'd argue the Korean Air lounge is the worst at T1, and not AZs.