CuriosityRover

Thank you for your suggestion. Booked ORD-AMS-IST-AMS-ORD with credits.

CuriosityRover

Any info about Hilton Garden Inn Istanbul Golden Horn Turkey? I saw DoubleTree recommended but no mention of this hotel. Price is reasonable (<$100/night) compared to DoubleTree(~$220/night).

Return flight is at 5:55am so is it a good choice to checkout the previous day and spend the night at the Millennium Lounge?

BumpedAgain

I went to IST 5 years ago and stayed at the Amagrandi hotel - downtown IST for $55 and was blown away by location and price. This year - brought my wife and stayed at the Charm hotel $65 night -- great value and location, but would have paid the additional $20 to stay at Amagrandi hotel next time. Both are a great location. I'm a Hilton and Marriott guy, but I would stay at one of these before a Hilton in IST for value -- using points was too high.

Overall great trip - my RT air was $545.

mechteach

We are just back, and had another fabulous time. I love Turkey so much!

For your hotel, I would definitely not stay at the Hilton Garden Inn. It is not close to anything that you would want to see as a tourist. The Doubletree (old town) is in a better location, but, frankly, I wouldn't stay in a chain hotel at all. As BumpedAgain noted, there are lots of standalone properties that offer great value for money. I would recommend staying in Sultanahmet or Sirkeci if you want to be close to the sights of old Istanbul, and Taksim or Galata if you want to be close to nightlife and more modern dining.

(Sultanahmet is a total tourist area, but it does have lots of cool old Ottoman-style houses that are now hotels. Most recently, we stayed in the Best Point Hotel in a 2 br apartment for just under $100/night, and really enjoyed it. Tripadvisor and Booking.com are useful for hotel reviews for finding a place.)

bsb21

In regards to hotels, take a look at the Hotel Deals forumn and the Carlson Friends and Family thread.

The radisson bosphorus can be had for 80 EUR, including breakfast.

Turcq

IST Veterans - what are the Visa requirements in IST? I just received an e-mail from Delta promoting the VisaCentral service. It said "Securing a visa is not optional – Delta will check for a valid visa before allowing passengers to board a flight. Immigration officers will refuse entry to travelers who do not have a valid travel visa."

I thought I read it was easy to get a $20 Visa sticker in IST? Please advise.

RobOnLI

If you travel on an American passport you get your visa on arrival. There is no visa check to get on the plane when you depart the US or any other foreign country on your last departure point to IST. Once you arrive in IST you can pay the $20 visa fee and enter Turkey with no problem.

-RM

mechteach

Yes, just make sure that you have the visa fee with you in cash.

Mrp Alert

The exterior doors lock around 1am. They pull the food and beverage at that time also. The lounge is HUGE so you will not feel locked in. I went to my room at 130 and slept like a baby until around 6am.

PDXPremier

So let me get this straight...they let you sleep overnight in the lounge? I saw they had "relaxation rooms"--do you have to reserve or sign up for these?

CuriosityRover

Are you talking about Millennium Lounge? So if we get there around midnight we should be able to spend the night there?

Do you need to checkin and clear security to enter the lounge area? I am asking this because in Prague they didn't open the counter until 2 or 3 hours before departure and could not get to the lounge until after checkin and security check.

My return flight is at 5:55am. Plan is to check out of the hotel the previous day and get to the airport by around midnight.

MichaelKade

You will need to check-in, clear security and customs/passport control before being able to access the lounge. I'm not sure if check-in will be closed at this time but it wouldn't surprise me. I landed shortly after midnight on the outbound and the airport was a ghost town.

Please also note that there are NO restrooms in the lounge. One has to exit the lounge to find a toilet.

I took the 5:55 flight yesterday, arriving to the airport around 4:30. This was PLENTY of time. If you can spend the night in your hotel and get up a little early I would do that.

rankourabu

^

There are so many really nice small boutique hotels in Istanbul around the main core of tourist sites in Sultanahmet between $50 and $80. There is ZERO reason to stay in a western chain in Istanbul.

GenYTraveler

I am looking to get creative with the ORD-IST deal. I am 18,644 short of DL PM (crazy I know). I will hit PM next year on flights alone, but not until late in the year. I want PM now!

I fly out of MSP, but I can take a separate, cheap DL MSP-ORD-MSP.

Dec 6 (1:30 PM on) until Dec 9 2:30 PM (must be back in MSP for a 3:20 PM flight) is my window.

I have found MSP-ORD-CDG-IST-CDG-AMS-ORD-MSP for 12,558 miles. Any advice how to push this out to 18,644? Any MRs out of IST during my short stay there? I want to keep this around $1,000.

Note: I have exhausted all non-flying miles (Amex, etc.)

Thanks!

durberville

Noooooooooooooooooot gonna happen. You'd be FAR exceeding fare mileage.