Getting from Ankara Esenboga Airport to the city

Three services, three sets of columns

• Esenboga is served by two coach operators and one city bus, and the airport identifies each pick-up point by a numbered column in the arrivals hall. That is the local convention and it works well once you know to look up.
• Havas is the long-established airport coach: columns 22 and 23 on the International Arrivals level, columns 3, 4 and 5 on the Domestic Arrivals level.
• AnkaraAir is the other coach operator: columns 20 and 21 on International Arrivals, columns 1 and 2 on Domestic Arrivals.
• EGO route 442 is the municipal bus, and it leaves from the arrivals level of both the domestic and international lines.

The city bus

• Route 442 runs regularly between the airport and Ankara's main transport hubs: ASTI, the intercity coach terminal; Ankara Train Station; Kizilay, the central square; and Ulus, the old city.
• Cash and credit card are both accepted on board. In most Turkish cities you need a local travel card before you can board anything, so this is worth knowing.
• EGO publishes live departure times on its own site and in the EGO CEP'TE app.

The coaches

• Havas towards the airport leaves the ASTI passenger arrivals hall every half hour between 03:00 and 21:00, and the Havas terminal at the 19 Mayis Stadium B entrance in Ulus between 03:00 and 21:30.
• Between 21:00 and 03:00 Havas runs to the flight schedule rather than a fixed timetable, which means late arrivals are covered but you should check.
• AnkaraAir runs scheduled shuttles to Kizilay, ASTI and Ankara Train Station and publishes its own timetable and fares.

Which to take

• Cheapest: the 442. It is the ordinary city bus and priced accordingly.
• Most direct to a hotel: Havas or AnkaraAir, which run coaches with luggage holds to a handful of central points.
• The airport is about 28 km north-east of the centre, so this is a real journey, not a hop.

Ankara itself

• Ankara is the capital, and Istanbul is not. It is a government city, and the rhythms of the airport follow the parliamentary week.
• Ankara Train Station connects to the high speed line to Istanbul and Konya, which is why route 442 calling there matters more than it looks.
• The metro network in Ankara is good but does not reach the airport, and there is no rail link planned that has opened.