IC Ceylan Istanbul Master Thread [merged]
Mar 15, 2014, 4:35 am
Mar 15, 2014, 4:43 am
Mar 28, 2014, 10:02 am
Nov 10, 2014, 4:11 am
Is it worth paying 80€ ? How is quality of Breakfast in Club? I understand from reviews in regular restaurant is excellent. Any evening food selection in club? Any recent experience with the hotel?
Thanks in advance!
Mar 9, 2016, 2:28 am
Aug 7, 2016, 4:17 pm
Jan 2, 2018, 4:45 pm
Location: The hotel is located about two blocks from Taksim Square and its Metro and Funicular stop in an area with the Grand Hyatt Istanbul as well. You can also walk to a number of really good restaurants and bars from the hotel as the Taksim Area has great nightlife and it's right nearby. The airport is 45-60 minutes away depending on traffic and a cab costs about 80 Turkish Lira. The area around the hotel feels very safe and there's also a major bus stop just behind the hotel.
Hotel: It's definitely an older IC property but it's aging well. There's a large lobby that's in incredible condition which has a bar and a restaurant, an indoor pool, massage area and spa and on the top (22nd floor) another restaurant and bar. There's also a lot of meeting space and even an on site rental car facility. Be aware that due to security concerns all vehicles entering the hotel grounds are checked and there's a metal detector inside the doors that guests have to go through every time.
Check In: I had a Club Rate and was invited to go up to the Lounge on the 16th Floor to be checked in. This was a really nice touch and was handled very well by the staff. In fact, I cannot say enough nice things about the staff here. Every single one of them learned my name and used it each time they saw me. I was told I was being upgraded to a Sea View from a City View room and was also granted a 3 PM check out my last day (I have no RA status, just IHG Platinum).
Room: A little on the dated side but not in the bad way. There was a large bed and pleasant sitting area as well as a work desk and a great view of the Bosporus and Taksim Square. The TV however was really tiny but I did like that it came with a DVD player. The bathroom was always quite nice. There were very nice touches from the hotel staff, they cleaned my room my day of check out despite the fact that I was leaving, they carefully arranged anything I had left out while cleaning such as my toiletries and dirty laundry and they offered turn down service each night. They also brought me a welcome amenity of fruit and chocolate.
Lounge: It's on the 16th floor with a view of the sea. Open for breakfast from 6:30 AM to 10:30 AM and then for cocktails and appetizers from 5 to 7 PM. The lounge stays open until 10 PM for coffee, tea and soft drinks and juices. At breakfast they had eggs, sausage, potatoes, a rice dish, and a large selection of cereal, breads, cold cuts, salmon, yogurt and fruit. For appetizers they also had cheese, fruit, crackers, breads and a few hot dishes.
My club rate was 140 Euros per night. While the hotel is a little dated, I cannot say enough nice things about the service. I'd be glad to come back.
Jan 7, 2019, 8:10 am
The room rate being offered is great, just 96 euro, but the additional cost of breakfast for 2 is half the room rate at 48 euro. Is 24 euro the norm for breakfast here? Given the very late arrival I suspect we wont be up for it anyway.
What is available locally?
Thanks
Jan 7, 2019, 8:37 pm
There are lots of places within a few minutes walk of the hotel. If you come out to the street and head left (slightly uphill) you come to a crossroad with Faros opposite you, on the corner. It's pretty mainstream standard, but you should be able to get whatever you fancy for breakfast. If you go into the commercial area behind that restaurant (turn left at the Point hotel, just after Faros) you'll find plenty more options. It's a heavily touristed area, so probably a good idea to watch that you are paying for what you ordered.
Jan 7, 2019, 11:24 pm
There are lots of places within a few minutes walk of the hotel. If you come out to the street and head left (slightly uphill) you come to a crossroad with Faros opposite you, on the corner. It's pretty mainstream standard, but you should be able to get whatever you fancy for breakfast. If you go into the commercial area behind that restaurant (turn left at the Point hotel, just after Faros) you'll find plenty more options. It's a heavily touristed area, so probably a good idea to watch that you are paying for what you ordered.
Mar 13, 2019, 9:45 pm
InterContinental Istanbul
Asker Ocagi Cad No: 1 Taksim Istanbul, TR 34435
Wonderful IC in Istanbul (5 Photos)
InterContinental Istanbul
This was my first stay at the IC Istanbul. We had stayed at a different hotel in Istanbul on other trips. I’m so glad we decided to try the InterContinental for this trip. We booked the arrival package through the hotel concierge’s and I am so glad that we did. After deplaning down a ramp in the rain, once we were inside the building, we were met with a sign with our name and the young man and a cart for transportation that took us through passport control. It was great. Once we were through passport control, we were taken to baggage claim where our bags were picked up very quickly and this young man put us in the car for transportation to the hotel. It was one the best things we’ve ever done in traveling the world. I would do it again.
On arrival at the hotel we were met by the concierge who took us to the club lounge for a check in. We were escorted to the room and I could not believe the upgrade I had received. Even though I am a Royal Ambassador this was a very special upgrade. I don’t even think I could begin to describe it, then view was fabulous the entire suite was unbelievable. I loved the view of the Bosporus and Istanbul. The bathroom may be the best bathroom I’ve seen in any hotel in a very long time. The housekeeping staff was great! I wish I knew the name of the one lady who cleaned my room, she took care of everything,
I was ill for many days while in Istanbul and the staff in the club lounge really took care of me. I am so grateful to all. I must recognize and thank Dren, Aydin, Duygu, Lala, and Erdna, in the Club Lounge. (Hope I spelled everyone’s name correctly). Thanks for making my tea in the afternoons and my sparkling wine in the evening . The soup was aways great. Salads were nice, My only suggestion would be to replace any food items that was taken by other people might be in the club lounge. Food was not replaced.
The management of the hotel should recognize the professionalism of the staff in the club lounge, breakfast restaurant, and the concierge’s.
I exercised every day in the gym and found it met my needs. My only issue was when I booked the Turkish Bath at the IC Hotel. This was not a great experience . The actual bath is great and the young woman was wonderful. It is what happened after that is what was very unpleasant. I have just spent a lot of money on this treatment and was hoping that it would help me sleep Even though signs said things Iiike clam, quiet, no cell phones, this woman came in her very high heel boots in the dressing room, prancing around taking lots of selfie’s, talking loudly on her cell phone. Several people including myself asked her to please be quiet and she didn’t. I did discuss this with the staff in the spa, club lounge and front desk. Once again the actual Turkish bath was very relaxing and the young woman was wonderful however what’s happened ruined the experience .
During my stay I met some really nice people in the club lounge and we are continuing to correspond. I find that in IC club lounges around the world I meet interesting people. I have new friends all over the world now.
Most mornings I woke up very early and would be among the first individuals for breakfast. For every 10 days, I was met by two people that helped me know the foods on the buffet. After the first morning, I would come in to the restaurant and soon as I was seated, my cappuccino and sparking water were on the table. Even though there was a language barrier, after 10 days we were able to communicate. I have to especially recognize and thank Sozdar and Ahmet for taking care me and helping me try more Turkish foods.
I also hired a private guide through the hotel and she was fabulous. She took me to exactly the places I wanted to go, showed me the places and things I wanted to see and helped me accomplish all that in a day. If anyone would like her contact information please send me a private message. I do hope that the management of the IC Istanbul recognize that the individuals that I have named are reasons for the success of your hotel and more importantly make people like me want to return to this IC Hotel. I really loved this IC.
Room
The upgrade that I received was fabulous. The suite was wonderful, the view was great and I loved everyday.
Service
The staff at this hotel are very professional as well as friendly. I’m so glad that the two individuals that helped me every morning at breakfast convinced me to try different foods that I had never tasted before and now I have the recipes to make those foods. I look forward to returning and seeing the individuals that I met on this trip. I do hope the hotel management recognizes the staff that they have working there and the dedication of those individuals.
Sep 3, 2019, 3:39 am
There are lots of places within a few minutes walk of the hotel. If you come out to the street and head left (slightly uphill) you come to a crossroad with Faros opposite you, on the corner. It's pretty mainstream standard, but you should be able to get whatever you fancy for breakfast. If you go into the commercial area behind that restaurant (turn left at the Point hotel, just after Faros) you'll find plenty more options. It's a heavily touristed area, so probably a good idea to watch that you are paying for what you ordered.
Sep 7, 2019, 12:05 pm
Aug 24, 2021, 3:19 pm
I've previously stayed at the Conrad and Hilton Bomonti. Was wondering how this hotel compares to them.
Sep 14, 2021, 5:55 am
InterContinental Istanbul
Asker Ocagi Cad No: 1 Taksim Istanbul, TR 34435
InterContinental Istanbul = Above Expectations (21 Photos)
InterContinental Istanbul
I did not stay at InterContinental Istanbul in the past because there are lots of other hotels from chains with more generous benefits than IHG and I never found a reason to try IC at risk of not having a suite upgrade, no breakfast, and no lounge access. However with the expiration date of my free night certificates coming up (including the Ambassador free weekend night), I finally gave IC a try. I did not have very high expectations but I was positively surprised and I would not be against returning in the future.
Location
IC is located in a premium location near Taksim Square, however it does not have a monopoly on good location; in this area I have stayed at Gezi Hotel (Design), Grand Hyatt, and Ritz Carlton before, all of which are within walking distance of IC, in fact GH is just across the street from IC.
Room
I booked the entry level room and I did not expect a generous suite upgrade like I get at Grand Hyatt or Conrad. In fact, according to IHG rules they did not have to upgrade me at all as Spire Ambassador guest, since part of my stay was a free night, but nonetheless they upgraded me to a room type slightly larger than entry level, it was on the very top floor (18), and they gave me a room with sea view rather than city view so I believe this must have been one of the nicest non-suites they have in the entire hotel.
The room was a bit aging but not unreasonably so, and I think it can be considered on par with the quality of the room at Grand Hyatt next door which is not new and shiny either. While suite upgrades are plentiful at GH, the advantage of IC is that it has much nicer views since IC is a taller building while GH is lower rise. The large floor to ceiling windows on the entire length of the outer wall plus the views was probably the strength of that room. I would also mention that views at IC were also better than at Gezi Hotel which is on lower grounds. Ritz Carlton can be better than IC but unlike IC-GH-Gezi it’s also in a much higher price range.
Since my room at IC was not modern, it was lacking convenient power outlets on either side of the bed, however there were some technological features such as the electronically-controlled curtains; they needed a nudge before moving however, as the system seemed a bit defective.
There were Agraria bathroom toiletries as per IC brand standard, and other amenities were in line with luxury hotels including bathrobes, slippers, mouthwash, covid care kits, etc.
Dining
Food at IC was very overpriced relative to local standards, from memory comparable dishes are about double the price at IC than they are at Conrad for example. In addition, in the welcome letter they mention that food and drinks are not allowed to be brought from outside so they clearly want to maximize F&B income by having guests spend in-house rather than get takeaway from a local restaurant and bring food to their room.
At check-in when I asked if Spire Ambassador guests get lounge access, they said not if booked on a free night, but in the future if I want to come back I could book a Deluxe room to get lounge access. Since the Deluxe room type is only marginally more expensive than the basic rooms, I think it’s a no brainer to get lounge access at a modest extra cost. Anyway as a nice gesture for my first stay at IC and to give me the opportunity to compare with the lounge benefits at GH and Conrad, they give me complimentary lounge access which was another sign that they aim to please and they were trying to win a repeat guest for the future.
The lounge on the 16th floor was closed but instead they provided club benefits on the roof top bar “City Lights” which I thought was a great venue with even nicer views than from my own room.
Afternoon tea was alright with standard snacks and desserts.
Happy hour 5-7pm was quite nice with an a la carte menu where guests could choose up to three items. The portions were a bit small but were excellent quality. The drinks menu also included some cocktails so overall I felt the lounge offerings were superior to what they are at GH and Conrad. I still prefer the lounges at Ritz Carlton and Fairmont but those two do not provide it for free for elites so it’s not a fair comparison either.
Breakfast was offered in the restaurant since the lounge was closed. If going to breakfast early morning it was quiet but later was very crowded, loud, and not particularly pleasant with many guests walking around without a mask. While I liked the bigger spread available, having a lounge might have been better for a more peaceful environment. For guests who have to pay, this breakfast is not cheap by any means, but on the flip side I thought it was one of the better breakfasts buffets I have seen in Istanbul, superior to all the hotels I named above.
Wifi
Wifi worked well with speed of 25 Mbps.
Overall
Overall while IC might never be as generous as other hotels due to the lack of suite upgrades which I get at other properties, for stays where I do not need the extra space, ICs has some strong points: excellent views, a fairly spacious and bright non-suite, above average lounge benefits and a good breakfast. Service was not bad either considering how they treated me as a first-time guest and some staff remembering and addressing me by name. So in conclusion the hotel surpassed my expectations and I will consider returning in the future.