Originally Posted by NotJustDreaming

I just checked out of the Orientbank Istanbul Hotel. Five night stay on points. Booked the base room and received a one category upgrade to Grand Deluxe room (Titanium). This is my first visit to Istanbul. I originally booked the new Luxury Collection hotel but opening was delayed to January 1st.

Staff was fabulous. Breakfast was great. We loved the Turkish breakfast spread. The flat white coffee was super hot and nice and strong. The view from the roof top was nice.

One thing to note, the bathroom glass partition is really just a glass partition. It is not a proper wall. You can see a silhouette and you can hear everything. Both the toilet and the shower are little stalls made with glass partitions - kind of like a shower door. I read the reviews and assumed it was one of those new bathroom designs with a glass wall that looks in to the room. I was travelling with my adult daughter. Not really a deal breaker. Just kind of embarrassing. The sitting area is not far enough away and there was quite a gap between the glass panels so you can see everything as well.

I love the location. We walk around a lot during our travels. We went all over the Golden Horn, across Galata Bridge, into the Asian side. Orientbank hotel is close to all transportation hubs, including the ferry.

I purchased one Instanbulkart for the two of us. Super easy to buy and load. Contrary to what I read online, you can buy it with a credit card and load it at the same time. Reloading was also easy.

Directly to the right outside of the hotel, 50 meters up that street, there is a Ziraat ATM machine. You can select other languages after inserting your card and withdraw cash without extra fees (be sure to decline dynamic currency conversion - very apparent).

I would stay at the Orientbank Istanbul hotel on a future visit to Istanbul. Certainly recommend it.