DISCUSSION for Hilton Honors Hotels in Istanbul, Turkey {TUR}
I'll second that! I'm just back from Jeddah, and it seems every Jeddawi you meet has just been, or is just about yo go, to Turkey: or they've sent their family there for the summer. And for them, Turkey means Istanbul: I'm told Antalya is something of a Russian stronghold.
DoubleTree by Hilton Istanbul Topkapi
DoubleTree by Hilton Istanbul Topkapi
Ortamahalle, An?t Soka?? No:1 Istanbul, Bayrampa?a TR 34040
DT IST Topkapi: Average, nice upgrade (25 Photos)
DoubleTree by Hilton Istanbul Topkapi
I actually booked the wrong property without realizing it - as I had initially wanted to book the Doubletree Istanbul Esentepe which was closer to stop where the airport bus would stop at Gayrettepe. This was because I was arriving late into the new Istanbul airport and I knew getting into town was not as easy as the previously older airport. Since I was too late to cancelled, realizing this only on the day of travel I just kept my 1 night reservation at this property.
Location
Getting from the airport to this property is very difficult if you do not plan to come by car or taxi/shared ride. The airport bus stops at Esenier metro which is still about a 10 mins ride by taxi. There is another metro station (BayrampaÅa) which is still about 15 mins walk from the property via a rather uninspiring road - along some industrial/office area. Around the hotel, there is really not much of anything interesting - there is a small suburban area, however this area is mainly interesting for those wanting to buy in bulks clothing for export. For touristic activities, this property really has not much for offer. There are a few local eateries close by, but that is it. For those wanting to use public transportation to this property, it is high not recommended if you arrive after the metro services stops - as usual, using a taxi after hours is for sure not recommended with these drivers asking for a arm and leg for the short ride to the property.
Check In
Since I arrived around 1,30am at the property, there was no guests in the lobby area - and I was helped immediately by the sole agent working the front desk. I did not receive any prior notice about any upgrade and did not bother to do an online check-in. It was not the most warm welcome (but this is quite common at other Hilton properties in Istanbul) - and after providing my identity document, I was checked in without any further issues. I was informed that I had been upgraded to a Suite (with no further acknowledgement for my loyalty, etc). I was also provided with an information sheet and sent off to my room.
Room
The room situated on the 10th floor, was located just opposite the elevator. As expected, it was very spacious - although for a suite, it was on the smaller side. At the entrance hallway, there was a guest toilet to the right side and directly at the end of the hallways, was a small kitchenette and dining area.
Next to this area was the living room area with a sofa for 2-2 1/2 space. There was a large TV in this area. Being a proper suite, the bedroom was in a separate room. The bedroom area was well appointed with a working desk (with the 2nd TV secured to the wall). There was a large wardrobe in the bedroom. Both rooms had a view towards the financial district of the European side and beyond.
Sleep quality was good - without any disturbance from the exterior nor interior (especially just being across from the elevator. The bed was just right - and climate control unit worked well keeping to the room temperature constant.
The bathroom area was actually very spacious - with a separate toilet room and walk-in shower. there was also a bathtub/jacuzzi - which was nice (but I did not use). The walk-in shower was maybe a bit too big, so large that maybe 5 persons could be in that shower room with space to spare. The only problem with the design was that the floor was not an afterthought, so after a shower, there were areas were the water will not flow towards the small drain all the way at the other end of the door. Outside of that, water pressure and temperature was good. The bathroom also consisted of a double sink area - with the usual Crabtree and Evelyn toiletries.
Breakfast
The breakfast was served on the 1st floor of the property. This was actually quite a bad experience - although I arrived at what seems to be an empty hotel, the breakfast room was full of hotel guests. Furthermore, the reception of the breakfast host was not the most welcoming - it was basically, getting your room number and you are left to find your own table in what I found to be a chaotic situation. I suspect that the hotel is being used by some tour groups leading to the number of guests eligible for breakfast.
They did open a sort of overflow room - but even with this, it did not seem sufficient to accommodate the number of guests. It would have been possible to have breakfast outside on the patio - but due to the strong wind gusts that day, there was no guests sitting outside.
The breakfast quality - was questionable - although it did have quite a large variety. For those looking for hot dishes with meat, this was certainly not the place to look for them - hot dishes mainly consisted of egg based and some fried vegetable samosas and spring rolls.
They did have an eggs to order station - which I did not bother to use due to the line.
All in all - the whole breakfast experience was far from comfortable and especially befitting a Doubletree property - it was even worst than an Hampton inn standard. I would say it was more of a 1-star experience compared to a 3/4-star hotel.
Overall
All in all, ouside of the unexpected upgrade as an Hilton Elite member - which was appreciated, I felt that the value for the price paid was quite poor - with so many items not meeting the expectation especially the service and breakfast situation, I will not really recommend this property especially for those without a need to be in the area.
- Conrad - better lounge, better restaurant breakfast, smaller room, nicer service
- Hilton Bomonti - better bed, more updated room, lounge still nice, poor restaurant breakfast, service less dramatically good than Conrad but not bad
I've made a reservation with the Hilton Honors app for two rooms. It was a one night stay. I did not put a second guest name in the system. Ofcourse, on my account.
the reservation was at the Hampton by Hilton Istanbul Arnavutkoy.
At check in, the staff asked for all the passports. No problems with the stay. At the taxi, on my way to the airport I see that the hotel decided to change the name to the second guest. Nobody did asked for this. Also, nobody give them permission to do so. We did not sign the folio.
As a result, I did not get any points for my stay. I appreciate that mistakes happen, so I asked Hilton Honors to correct this.
To my surprise: Hilton Honors responded that they can not do anything and that we breach the terms and conditions. I mean, ...?
Asked many takes again to resolve it, as it obviously is a mistake by the hotel. But nope, they keep refusing it. So now the only thing I can do is start a creditcard dispute and demand a new folio.
Like I said before, I can understand mistakes happen. But I am really surprised that Hilton Honors simply refuse to do anything.
I've made a reservation with the Hilton Honors app for two rooms. It was a one night stay. I did not put a second guest name in the system. Ofcourse, on my account.
the reservation was at the Hampton by Hilton Istanbul Arnavutkoy.
At check in, the staff asked for all the passports. No problems with the stay. At the taxi, on my way to the airport I see that the hotel decided to change the name to the second guest. Nobody did asked for this. Also, nobody give them permission to do so. We did not sign the folio.
As a result, I did not get any points for my stay. I appreciate that mistakes happen, so I asked Hilton Honors to correct this.
To my surprise: Hilton Honors responded that they can not do anything and that we breach the terms and conditions. I mean, ...?
Asked many takes again to resolve it, as it obviously is a mistake by the hotel. But nope, they keep refusing it. So now the only thing I can do is start a creditcard dispute and demand a new folio.
Like I said before, I can understand mistakes happen. But I am really surprised that Hilton Honors simply refuse to do anything.
About 5 minutes ago I finally got an answer from them that they contacted the hotel and the problem was solved.
I would much prefer not to check out and leave our bags at the front lobby (if they allow that), and was trying to figure out how I can stay in the room until 6pm-ish on Tuesday. Are you generally able to pay for 1/2 day additional up front, or is that typically only when available and you have to wait until Tuesday morning to find out?
Another alternative is just booking 3 days, but just leaving at 6pm (second more expensive option). But it seems like there is a penalty on that. I'm not sure if they just would just charge me the night, or charge me the night plus a penalty on top?
The two locations I'm looking at are Doubletree Sirkeci, or the brand new Hampton Inn Sirkeci which just opened. I'd rather stay at the Doubletree since while not a brand new hotel (Hampton just opened up this month), but its also fully non-smoking while Hampton allows smoking in the front + certain floors.
I am (like many others) a Diamond via the Aspire Card, but I know that doesn't always get you much.
Thanks!
I would much prefer not to check out and leave our bags at the front lobby (if they allow that), and was trying to figure out how I can stay in the room until 6pm-ish on Tuesday. Are you generally able to pay for 1/2 day additional up front, or is that typically only when available and you have to wait until Tuesday morning to find out?
Another alternative is just booking 3 days, but just leaving at 6pm (second more expensive option). But it seems like there is a penalty on that. I'm not sure if they just would just charge me the night, or charge me the night plus a penalty on top?
The two locations I'm looking at are Doubletree Sirkeci, or the brand new Hampton Inn Sirkeci which just opened. I'd rather stay at the Doubletree since while not a brand new hotel (Hampton just opened up this month), but its also fully non-smoking while Hampton allows smoking in the front + certain floors.
I am (like many others) a Diamond via the Aspire Card, but I know that doesn't always get you much.
Thanks!
I book extra nights all the time to get an extra super late check out guaranteed. Either let the hotel check you out automatically or check out remotely the next day. Never had an issue doing this