Amy Adejokun
Section editor
The Sultanahmet Palace is a charming hotel just behind the Blue Mosque. The elegant decor and large spaces create a haven of tranquillity on a human scale.
The Sultanahmet Palace is just behind the Blue Mosque, on the slopes of the working class, historical area of Sultanahmet. So it is just a 3 minute walk from the main historical sites of the town. The airport is 11 miles from the hotel. Allow about 25 minutes for transfers.
The 36 standard rooms of the hotel are set over two floors (with no elevator). They are spacious, immaculately clean, and elegantly decorated. They have air-conditioning and satellite television, a mini bar and telephone with direct international line. The really original part of this hotel are the bathrooms which are like a miniature hammam in greyish-blue marble. But that is just decoration: instead of a steam bath, there is a shower. The Bathrooms have a toilet and a hair dryer.
Built in 1999, the hotel was built in the Ottoman style. The interiors are elegant and decorated in the Byzantine style: a large marble staircase, columns, friezes... The spaces are airy and painted in warm colours. The building is located just below a small floral courtyard surrounded by pergolas. In the middle is a marble fountain whose burbling noise is refreshing. You can have Turkish tea on one of the little tables outside.
You can have breakfast as a buffet in the panoramic restaurant, with a view over the Marmara sea and the Princes' Islands. You can also have lunch and dinner there. The menu has a variety of local specialities with a choice of 10 starters, 6 main courses and 4 desserts. In summer, breakfast can be taken in the hotel's garden.
The rooms offer different view. Avoid the rooms with a view of the parking lot, and go for one with a sea view or a view of the gardens and the Saint-Sophie Mosque.
Turkish bath
sports
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