I stayed overnight in Istanbul at the Radisson hotel, the stay was completely free with breakfast included using some SAS Eurobonus points.
The primary reason for staying overnight was that it simply did not work out with just a quick transit in Istanbul with the timetable/flight availability and the plans and wishes I had. But at the end I really had no objections to a free overnight stay at a good hotel and a full day in downtown Istanbul, which is a really great city.
Radisson SAS Conference and Airport Hotel, Istanbul
The Radisson hotel is located just 2 km from the airport and offers a free shuttle bus from the airport terminal to the hotel, unfortunately it only leaves once an hour from the airport and with TK’s excellent priority baggage handling it meant I had to wait nearly half an hour for the bus.
The hotel had received some mixed reviews on the Tripadvisor webpage, one person claiming the carpets were dirty. I don’t know if that has been true in the past, but during my visit I saw nothing of that.
Surely it’s an airport hotel and not a city hotel, but the Radisson hotel was in very good condition with a rather nice looking atrium lobby and well-appointed rooms. The hotel also had several bars and restaurants, a shop, a large fitness center in the basement and free wi-fi internet. The staff were very friendly and accommodation and spoke perfect English. Nothing whatsoever to comment about.
The only complaint from my side was that the lobby bar was ridiculously expensive, I will not even mention what I paid for a cup of coffee, I can only blame myself for being such a coffee addict.
Pics
The lobby of the Radisson hotel
Another photo of the lobby
My superior class room with a large comfortable king-sized bed
Another photo of the room, nice lighting!
A room with a view
Upon arrival I presented my SAS gold card and asked if it was possible to get a better room because of my gold card. It turned out it indeed was and they upgraded me to a larger superior room with a few extra perks like bathrobe and slippers.
But the best part of the room was the view, full unobstructed view of the airport!
My room was on the fifth floor just opposite the threshold of runway 18L/18R with just a highway in-between (which you heard nothing of) and I could easily watch all planes using that runway.
From my experience of Istanbul airport with normal wind conditions runway 36 is used for departures of all aircrafts (taking off facing the hotel) and also arrivals of heavy/widebody aircrafts, while narrowbody aircrafts use the east-west runway for arrivals located south of the terminal just by the sea, quite far from the hotel.
So that explains a bit what was to be seen through the window. Anyway for an aviation enthusiast the view was a delight!
Pics
View of the airport from my room at night…
…and in daylight
Anyone knows what airlines/countries these aircrafts belong to?
An Airbus A340 from Turkish Airlines has just landed and is vacating the runway
Lots of MNG Cargo widebodies on the north apron
An aircraft (A320?) taking off from runway 36R
The highway outside the hotel and the skyline of western Istanbul
A visit to downtown Istanbul
After a lazy morning with some spotting from the room and a long and relaxed breakfast I checked out of the hotel just before noon to spend the afternoon in downtown Istanbul.
I left my luggage at the hotel as I would return to the airport in the evening again.
Most people who have been to Istanbul know taxis are both cheap and easy to find and a taxi ride from the airport to downtown Istanbul should be quite affordable.
However there is a second option to get from Istanbul Atatürk airport to the city centre: the underground (or “metro” as they call it).
On all my previous visits I have either arrived at inhuman hours or been short of time, so taxi has always been the only option, but that was not the case this time.
The metro was really cheap, a one way ticket from the airport to the city centre costs only 1.30 Lira (about 1 USD). About 80% of the tracks are outdoors meaning you get some very nice views of Greater Istanbul on the way from the airport.
The metro terminates at Aksaray station which is located slightly outside of tourist Istanbul, so you either need to walk 15-20 minutes or take a tram to get to the major attractions. Still, beside the cost it’s a nice option if you want to get some good and different views of city.
I spent most of the day in downtown Istanbul looking around and visiting the huge Grand Bazaar.
The weather was superb, very warm without a single cloud to be seen. Unfortunately with a rather rainy spring at home and a skin that has been used to the sunshine you get in an office, things were rather red in the evening, and my sun lotion was safely stored in my suitcase at the hotel the whole day. Oh well…
I am not going to spend too much time on city visits in this report, there are other forums and sites on the internet more suitable for those type of reports and discussions.
But with the nice weather I managed to snap some rather nice photos of Istanbul which I have included below.
Pics
Inside the Grand Bazaar with nearly 4000 shops
Very nice interiors in the Bazaar
Sultanahmet mosque
Hagia Sofia
The Galata bridge
Overlooking the Bosphorus