London to Istanbul – Epic Rail Journey : Day 13

And so we’d reached the final day of the trip. Just a few hours to kill before the flight home. We went for a wander and considered buying some presents to take home, but we decided to wait until we got to the airport and get some things there. Instead we found an Irish bar, Slàinte Irish Pub, opposite the hotel that was cool, comfortable and had a number of bottled beers from Turk Tuborg brewery. We worked through the weizen, märzen, brown ale and IPA, and whilst none of them would set the world on fire they were all solid examples of the respective styles. And a tick is a tick!

Slàinte Irish Pub, Hoca Paşa, Ebussuud Cd. No:37, 34110 Sirkeci/İstanbul, Türkiye

All that remained was the taxi to the airport and the flight. On arrival at the brand new airport, miles from the city, we returned to the gift buying only to discover that the prices here were 10-15 times what they were in the city. It was clear that they were doing everything possible to recoup their costs as quickly as possible. The prices are eye watering throughout, with the below pictured food setting us back just shy of £50! It was no surprise to learn that this airport is ranked the most expensive in the world.

Thus ended a fantastic trip. We weren’t sure what to expect but doing it by train was a, mostly, relaxing experience and I can’t say enough how good Tailor Made Rail were from the initial planning to the checking how it went when we returned. We were so impressed with them that we have booked this coming August’s holiday with them too. Where to? You’ll have to wait and see…