Flying with low-cost carriers has its clearly defined rules. You pay for a seat that gets you from point A to point B, but everything else is an extra. Water, coffee, a sandwich – for all that, you have to pull out your wallet.
Pegasus Airlines, a Turkish carrier, is no exception. Their basic fare is bare-bones, and you won’t get even a cup of water for free on board. Still, I like them because, for the price of dinner at a better Prague restaurant, I could visit Iran, Iraq, Kyrgyzstan, or deeper into Turkey.
If you register for free in their BolBol loyalty program, you collect points for every crown spent. Approximately once every four years, you have collected enough to treat yourself to something free from their in-flight menu.
I have chosen Turkish köfte several times, grilled meat patties that were always juicy. The most common side dish served with the meat was bulgur with grilled vegetables, which was perfectly seasoned. The meal was complemented by a simple vegetable salad with cheese. There was also a warm bread roll and revani cake for dessert.
And honestly? When I ordered this meal on board Pegasus Airlines for the first time, I was ready for anything. But in the end, I was genuinely pleasantly surprised (and yes, to be safe, I choose their local, Turkish dishes).
On a domestic flight, I had the chance to try something even simpler – their sandwich with aged kaşar cheese. Turkish kaşar is a semi-hard sheep’s milk cheese that might remotely resemble cheddar or Balkan kashkaval in taste and texture, but it has its own specific, creamy, slightly salty flavor.
I expected a standard roll with a slice of cheese, but I was surprised again. The amount of cheese inside the bread was truly enormous.
To be honest – Pegasus is not Turkish Airlines. And Istanbul’s Sabiha Gökçen Airport, their home base, tends to be overcrowded and extremely expensive. It’s a different league, but also for completely different money. However, the BolBol system is an elegant way to treat yourself to something good once in a while for the price of the ticket.
Personally, I prefer to take the saved thousands and spend them where it makes more sense to me – in a tucked-away teahouse in Yazd or at a kebab stall in Erbil, where I can directly support the locals.
But if an airline offers me honest food for loyalty, I take it as a great bonus.
How do you view airline loyalty programs? Do you use them?
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