Originally Posted by
jmail1
I know it's relatively new, thinking about trying it out next week instead of the Park Hyatt. My corporate rate puts them exactly the same on pricing with breakfast being included at the St. Regis. If there are new hotel growing pains then I might opt for the PH, which seems to be universally touted as one of the best.
I'm just a Gold so there would be no special treatment on that front.
I was at the PH Istanbul this past October but did get to see the new StR, which is just a half block away. We did really love the PH, but the StR looks even more impressive--and with more Bosphorus views from rooms and its restaurant, if that's important to you. I honestly don't think you can go wrong with either, to be honest. But I can say that I'm looking forward to trying out the StR on our next visit.
FWIW, we preferred the PH/StR location because of the proximity to great shopping and restaurants. We also preferred the style of the PH to that of the FS Bosphorus (which had a lot of formal feeling marble, and also only had mostly non-Bosphorus view rooms, while sea facing rooms were at outrageous prices). We preferred the PH/StR location to the FS Sultanahmet largely because we don't like being in the middle of tourists, though the FS Sultanahmet was a beautiful and more boutique feeling property--but lacked the proximity to all the great dining on the PH/StR/FS Bosphorus side of the city. (The Kempinski looked totally dated, almost like a dump, and the Ciragan was even more outrageously priced for its sea facing suites than the FS Bosphorus.)