This is not an imaginary seven star hotel, but the new Turkish Airlines International CIP Lounge in Istanbul that I’m talking about. And I lived every moment described above during my first visit there, as you can see from the photos shared below. You’ll also realize that these are amateur photos, taken by my point-and-shoot digital camera.

A complete transformation

I’ve been to Istanbul twice before, and both the times used the Turkish Airlines lounge, which is also open to Star Alliance Gold and Business Class travelers of other airlines in the alliance. It seemed large, yet congested and it was yet another “waiting hall” – just with nicer sofas and better food than what was available outside the lounge. Pretty much the same as most other Business lounges at airports around the world. Basically, nothing much to talk about.

This new lounge, which opened in mid-2011 has replaced to old one and comes complete with a theatre, a kid-zone (Curio City), PlayStation consoles, Study areas, library, pool table, Live flight tracking, showers and lots of food zones. The food is freshly cooked by Do&Co, the famous Austrian gourmet company that we have featured before, showcasing their in-flight catering skills.

All this, in the same space as the old lounge! And that’s the beauty of it all.

“It’s like a walk in the Apple store”

Imagine if Apple designed an airport lounge. That’s how being in the new Turkish Airlines lounge feels. The design is contemporary-chic with lots of white and glass everywhere. The curves of the walls hide very well any corners or right-angles and you feel very relaxed. Even the luggage-deposit area seems like a Gucci store! In the words of the gentleman I played pool for an hour with, “It’s like a walk in the Apple store.”

Just one thing that could have been improved – as an aviation geek, I couldn’t just sit in the lounge and watch planes. In fact, the lounge overlooks the carpark on one side and the entrance to the airport on the other – so the plane spotter in you might be a little disappointed.

But then, there are enough distractions to keep you busy – from a game of pool, to reading Ottoman empire’s history! All while you wait for the boarding announcement

All said and done, the new Turkish Airlines CIP lounge in Istanbul is by far the best Star Alliance lounge I’ve been in, ahead of the Singapore Airlines Silverkris lounge in Singapore, and the Continental Airlines lounge in Houston. In fact, I might even pay a premium to fly Turkish Airlines in order to visit the lounge again. Who wouldn’t?

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I love Fall weddings! The bustle of summer is gone and the holidays are still a distant thought. You can relax and enjoy the ceremony letting your thoughts turn to the blissful life ahead for the new couple. Even bridesmaid dresses look good against mesh of Fall colors in the background.

So why am I so disappointed about Continental taking their vows and joining the Star Alliance family on October 27th? It is the one time in my life I want to be the guy who stands up on a pew and shouts.. “Stop the Wedding”.

Star Alliance is clearly marrying up as Continental has the best product and service of all the major US carriers. Customers flying in on carriers such as Singapore and Air New Zealand can finally connect on a domestic Star Alliance Member (Continental) who knows that product, service, and accountability are the cornerstones of delivering on brand promise.

My chief concern about the pending union is the domestic company Continental will be keeping with United and USAir. I can’t imagine a greater disparity in service. I relayed my concerns to a Continental representative at a recent industry trade show to which they responded, “Well, we are hoping that our joining Star Alliance will help bring the level of service up on the other US partners.” Speaking from personal experience, if I had a dollar for every person I know that hoped their partner habits and quirks would change after the vows. I’d be a rich man. As a frequent traveler moving to a United hub, I pray this partnership will be the exception to the rule.

The good news for United customers is they will be able to use their status when flying on Continental. Premier members will find out all the things they are missing like automatic upgrades, the newest fleet of planes, and having your luggage be first off the plane. The commitment to excellence extends beyond the first class cabin to once extinct amenities like free meals at meal time, pillows, blankets, and direct TV. The brand promise begins at check-in, continues to the back of the plane, and onto the luggage carousel before you leave. Like the Virgin brands, they don’t forget their job is to create an exceptional experience.

Great brands create an emotional response and nothing creates emotions better than a wedding. With that in mind, a wise person once shared the following advice with me. “The most important thing to remember about a planning a wedding is that the Big Day isn’t about you. It’s about the people who are experiencing it with you. Focus on making the people comfortable and happy, yes even that embarrassing uncle.. and the day will be perfect.”

Darren Dunn is currently Director of Sales at WorldMate Inc. The World’s leading travel management application for smart phones. He has spent 13 years in the online marketing space working with destinations and travel suppliers around the globe. He flies about 150,000 + miles a year and appreciate airlines that are passionate about service and culture.

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Right in the lobby of the Four Seasons Hotel in Sydney, Turkish Airlines had this flagrant display of teenagers in red, visible not just to all the conference attendees but also to those passing by the hotel (see pic below). And they had totally stolen the thunder from Malaysia Airlines, which had paid thousands of dollars for being the official sponsor of the conference.

Turkish Airlines had announced its presence, and in quite some style. After spending some time with Dr Temel Kotil, the airlines’ humble CEO, I feel other competitors should be vary of the rising star from Turkey.

Why’s Turkish the atypical Middle Eastern airline?

Dr Kotil mentions a number of points in the video interview below which prove that Turkish Airlines in not yet another Middle Eastern airline with global ambitions. Rather, it’s doing things differently, connecting with customers differently and is not just going after explosive growth. Here’s why I believe they pack a punch.

• Turkish Airlines was one of the Top 4 most profitable airlines in the world in 2008 (according to AviationWeek TPC)
• The current cash reserves of $1.5 billion are certainly adequate for surviving the recession and measured growth
• It leverages its membership of the Star Alliance when entering new markets – something most other carriers in Middle East lack
• Turkish hires locals when it enters new markets – key to reaching out to the local customers and cater to local tastes
• Turkish is working hard on delivering a consistently great product, with special focus on the in-flight cuisine – certainly a brand differentiator

In Dr Kotil’s words, “Potential is high, and ambition is big for Turkish Airlines…and quality doesn’t need a passport.” Hope you enjoy his interview in which he talks about what makes Turkish hard to ignore.

Isn‘t it a good feeling to hear some positivity in these gloomy times in the industry? What do you think about Turkish Airlines’ prospects viz-a-viz other Middle Eastern carriers? Let’s discuss in the comments or over on Twitter (@simpliflying)

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Among its members are some of the world’s largest and most admired airlines, including Singapore, ANA, Lufthansa, and Thai. But of late, a number of airlines with varying (and questionable) reputations have joined the alliance, including Air India, Egyptair and a couple of Chinese carriers. In the future, Star Alliance looks to get more member airlines from Latin America and Africa – further widening the quality spectrum among its carriers. And this may be detrimental for not just the Star Alliance as a whole, but for individual carriers’ reputation as well.

Bigger isn’t always better

The bigger it becomes, the more diluted the brand becomes. Gone will be the days when to fly from Sydney to Stuttgart, you could fly the pampering Singapore Airlines to Frankfurt, and connect to a super-efficient Lufthansa for the last leg of the flight. Just imagine the disparity in the quality of your experience if you have to fly Singapore Airlines for one leg and connect to Air-India for the other leg of your journey. It’ll almost feel like a downgrade from Business Class to Economy, even if you’re flying the same class throughout.

Though a larger number of carriers will increase Star Alliance’s reach, it will be an uphill battle trying to manage expectations and ensuring a satisfactory experience. It is one thing to achieve operational efficiency – which tends to be the mantra for airline alliances – and totally a different ball-game to maintain service and quality standards across carriers.

What about the tightly-knit OneWorld?

As Star Alliance expands its wings, Oneworld seems to have a differing vision for the future. It is aiming to provide a seamless experience to its customers, not only in terms of operations. With British Airways and American Airlines trying to form a close alliance, and British Airways trying to acquire Iberia and merge with Qantas, a very-very tightly knit alliance is getting even closer.

Hence, even though Star Alliance may offer more destinations, Oneworld will be able to offer a more cohesive and coherent experience to its customers – something thhat might just be a game changer. Moreover, as you can see from the figure below, Oneworld is close on the heels of Star Alliance in terms of capacity in most areas, if not ahead. Hence, a seamless brand experience might turn out to be a true differentiator in the future.

Focus on one thing, and do it well

So now that I’ve pointed out some of the branding challenges Star Alliance might face with its upcoming expansion, what are some of the ways to overcome them? Here are a couple of ideas.

1. All airline alliances have a pre-joining period for airlines where all systems are brought to the alliance’s standards. To ensure brand consistency, Star Alliance should introduce not just operational pre-requisites but also minimum quality and brand standards to be met for new members.

Yes, the above measure would help bring some measure of coherence, but it’s difficult to imagine a consistent brand experience across 50 airlines! I can’t forsee a day when Air-India can match Lufthansa in efficiency or having service in Spanair matching Singapore Airlines’ standards. So what else can be done?

2. Be honest. Since Star Alliance is aiming for the biggest network, then they should just brand themselves as being the largest. They shouldn’t emphasize quality. Instead, just focus on quantity. That’s the safest bet. When people are promised less, they expect less too. When expectations are exceeded, that’s only upside.

What do you think? Will size be a problem for Star Alliance? Will it affect the individual airlines negatively? What would Oneworld and SkyTeam do? Let’s hear your thoughts in the comments. section.

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