Originally Posted by
Karen2
What about Durusu hotel? A friend who is traveling more or less with my husband and me has signed up with that hotel, believing that it is an ISL hotel. But there is not indication of that plus their website is only in Turkish. My friend thinks we should join up with him but none of speak Turkish. If we don't spring for the Yotel, what do you suggest? Our flight is at 4 pm. I cannot figure out exactly where everything is even though we have been in Istanbul quite a bit but usually stay at the Conrad and take a cab to IST. Last time, since my nerves were shot on the cab ride to the airport from there, we decided to stay at the Courtyard. If we did that again, would we be closer to the new airport than we would be from the Doubletree Old Town? Is IST on the way from Old Town to ISL? And, will any old shuttles, like the one for Courtyard, still take a person from IST to Courtyard? Will there be airport buses from IST to ISL?
Thanks....
Would you have a long transfer or you are starting your journey from Istanbul? That really depends on the advise I would give you. I won't suggest that you stay at the Old Town or the Taksim area if you want a smoother ride to ISL. If you are OK riding a cab to ISL from the city I would suggest that you stay in the Maslak area, there is a newly refurbished Hilton over there where prices are reasonable. I've suggested this hotel because you have HH Gold. A taxi would dure 35-40 minutes ( maybe less ) if you leave at 13:30 for a 16:00 flight. If you don't want to pay taxis I would suggest the Movenpick Hotel in 4.Levent where Havaist shuttles to ISL depart from the opposite side of the road. The bus journey takes around 35-40 minutes but the bus could arrive 5-10 minutes late because of the congestion in the previous stops at its route. Btw, I don't find any of the Bonvoy hotels reasonable for traveling to ISL efficiently as they are all situated in an area that congestion could occur at any time. To travel from Courtyard at the old airport to the new airport, you need to pass the Basın Ekpres way which could be congested anytime during the day and if you decide to stay in Conrad in Beşiktaş, you need to pass the traffic jam for both of the bridges. I'm not talking about Maçka area hotels ( W, St. Regis ) where you could be stuck for 10 minutes only for a valet parking queue at the area.
Durusu area is middle of nowhere and you might have difficulties finding a taxi from there to the airport. Mostly, that area is used for camping, nature activities, etc... The hotels over there are not ISL hotels but they are a 10 minute drive from the airport. However, I won't suggest staying there unless you are a transfer passenger.
Edit: For now none of the hotels announced shuttle services to the new airport.