With a beer selling for €17.50 (£15), bananas selling at €6 (£5) a pop, Big Macs for €21.50 (£18.50), and the whopper — no, literally, Burger King’s Whopper going at a steep €22 (£19) — this airport has taken the word ‘pricey’ and given it a new meaning
It’s no secret that airports are notoriously expensive. With premium prices for even the most basic of things — travellers, especially frequent jet-setters, tend to try and find ways to cut down on their expenditure while transiting through these aviation hubs.
And while all airports tend to have jacked up prices, there’s one that will leave you gasping. Dubbed the ‘most expensive airport in the world’ by travellers, Istanbul Airport’s price tags will make your eyes water.
With a beer selling for €17.50 (£15), bananas selling at €6 (£5) a pop, Big Macs for €21.50 (£18.50), and the whopper — no, literally, Burger King’s Whopper going at a steep €22 (£19) — Istanbul Airport has taken the word ‘pricey’ and given it a new meaning.
READ MORE: Tiny island loves Brit visitors and rejects anti-tourist wave sweeping EuropeREAD MORE: Tourist’s ‘genius’ hack means you never have to suffer sandy feet at beach again
With an average footfall of 220,000 passengers every day, Turkey’s main airport is known for having prices that travellers widely consider outrageous, especially in the food and beverage category.
An analysis by Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera revealed that Istanbul Airport is the most expensive airport in Europe for food and drinks, far surpassing average inflation rates — a trend that has held true for most airports in the last year.
Leonard Berberi, a writer for Italian news website L’Economia, spoke of his experience at Turkey’s Istanbul Airport and revealed he saw a lasagne that weighed just 90 grams sitting in a refrigerator, being sold for the sky-high price of €24.50 (£21).
He wrote: “It looks more like a piece of brick with a sprinkling of what looks like grated cheese and a pseudo-basil leaf.” Leonard also found Italian chicken salads being sold for a whopping €17.50 (£15), and savoury croissants priced between €14.50 (£12.50) to €17.50 (£15). Beer was being sold at an almost extortion rate, according to the traveller.
Although Leonard had paid just €1.50 (£1.28) for a half-litre bottle of Efes, Turkey’s favourite beer, in Taksim Square the day before, he was now faced with a €17.50 (£15) price tag at the airport — a jaw-dropping 1,067 per cent hike.
He also browsed around the airport’s (many) fast food joints and was left equally aghast at the prices. With four fried chicken wings, French Fries and a Coca-Cola costing €17.50 (£15) at a Popeyes, a Big Mac and Double Quarter Pounder at McDonald’s would set the buyer back by €21.50 (£18.35) and €25.30 (£21.65) respectively.
Leonard isn’t alone in pointing out the sky-high prices at Istanbul Airport. On Reddit, numerous travellers have voiced their frustration over the costs, with one even sharing that they were charged €6 (£5) for a banana.
Unfortunately for Turkey’s Istanbul airport, a recent study by AirAdvisor also placed it on a list of airports most likely to lose baggage, with the airport placing fourth in the survey.
Dalaman International Airport, another airport in the south of Turkey, is also known for its extortionate prices, with a pint of beer costing approximately £10. Holidaymakers have been left reeling after forking out over £20 for a simple lunch of a sandwich, crisps, and a drink at the airport, hitting the wallets of already budget-conscious tourists hard.
Dalaman Airport, one of only three international gateways to southwest Turkey, is an essential hub for the region. Situated in Turkey’s Mugla Province, the airport’s runways lie approximately three miles south of Dalaman Town, conveniently near the popular cities of Marmaris and Fethiye.
Frustrated travellers voiced their outrage on social media about the astronomical prices, with some saying they outright refused to spend their money once they saw the cost.
One peeved holidaymaker, Dennis Robinson, vented online: “Coffee kiosk by departure lounge 36. Bought 3 coffees and a Twix bar costing £26 95. You pay by card only then you realise what you paid. Then he had the cheek to ask for a tip! Be warned!”
Traveller Debbie Moon also shared her dismay at airport prices, commenting: “Just a joke. 1 Starbucks cold coffee 1 bag of crisps and one cheese and tomato roll = 28.5 euros. (£23.55) Please [watch] out if you have children with you it could cost £100 to feed them at this airport. Disgraceful!”.
Another disgruntled visitor recounted: “Cost me £120 for five of us to have McDonald’s.”
