DECISION TIME

After my research of Istanbul, I knew that our stay would have to be on the River Bosphorus (Boğazı), the strait that connects the Black Sea with the Sea of Marmara. My recent experiences in Buenos Aires had confirmed my belief that in a congested city you need the relief of water to give you breathing space. I need a retreat from the crowds and that feeling of being landlocked by walls for my headspace, so in this huge, busy city of 12 million people, it was a no-brainer for me to take advantage of Istanbul’s position on a legendary river. 

This eliminated one of the new hotels that everyone is excited about, the W - the boutique, high design hotel brand that you find in urban, design savvy environments like New York. Even though I feel the W is not the kind of  urban bubble I feel like staying in when traveling to the land of the sultans, their photographs really impressed me. They had got it right and captured a Turkish flavour, while keeping their soothing, polished sensibility. It looked fabulous, and I’m sure that the local young elite will want to share in that very NYC lifestyle that it embodies, but without a pool it stayed off my shortlist.

On principle I wasn’t going to even consider the generic name brands that build dull modern towers in these ancient places to bring in the tourist dollar. The Sheratons and Hiltons are fine in Hawaii, L.A and big New World cities but I rebel against their blah modernity (as opposed to the cutting edge new design of the boutique hotels). I don’t care how spectacular the views are on the 25th floor! 

There were pretty much three hotels to choose from on the Bosphorus, THE FOUR SEASONS, CIRGAN KEMPINSKI HOTEL & PALACE SUITES , and  LES OTTOMAN.


LES OTTOMAN WAS OUR PICK...IT TICKED ALL OUR BOXES...IT'S ON THE BOSPHORUS,... HAS AN OUTDOOR SWIMMING POOL, AND...  IS A 10 SUITE LUXURY BOUTIQUE HOTEL.

I eliminated the FOUR SEASONS, a brand that I respect a lot for their impeccable service policy. They have converted a beautiful waterfront palace but have done it quite blandly that there is simply not enough local texture considering their waterfront location in a famously fascinating imperial city.They have imposed modern, Western neutrals in a land where your eye is craving the brocades and rich decorative arts of one of the world’s most lavish, ancient design cultures. On paper it fits the bill but on further investigation of the rooms it wasn’t for us. I was happy to take a tour when on the spot though. 

Next to eliminate was the CIRAGAN PALACE KEMPINSKI HOTEL & PALACE SUITES which looks magnificent, with the imperial 19th century grandeur of carved stone, marble and old-fashioned glass lamps. This part of the hotel fits beautifully, taking its rightful place on the riverfront. But when you delve deeper on the website you find that the hotel section (not the PALACE SUITES) has been newly built and is a massive, soulless modern wing.  Staying in one of the hundreds of cookie cutter rooms didn’t appeal, as Sheira and I crave the intimacy of small hotels. (The cost to stay in the palace suites, with the amazing over the top architecture, started at a very imperial 5000 Euros a night). That’s a little too authentic! 

Then I came across the perfect 10-suite hotel for Istanbul - LES OTTOMANS, right on the Bosphorus. It was also quite expensive, starting at 1,000 Euros, but I realised that this was actually reasonable value considering what other suites were offering in the same blue ribbon location. The Cirigan Palace, The Four Seasons suites were in fact more expensive than the all suite LES OTTOMANS.

The hotel looked quirky, with the love and attention of a single owner creating her own Turkish fantasy. I called and spoke to a lovely lady, Müjgan Ünalan, explaining that I need two suites and have to factor in the weak Australian dollar - could we do something? We negotiated a rate of 850 Euros nightly per suite. Once again I hoped that once on site I could upgrade and re-negotiate for one of the nicest spots with a great river view if they weren’t at full capacity. I was prepared to take the chance that I would be upgraded to something great once I got there, however all the suites looked beautiful! 

Sheira and I know plenty of people who shake their head at anything around 1,000 Euros a night on principle, even if they can totally afford it. 

Our hotel concierge from Les Ottomans, Maher arranged for the Director of Sales & Marketing - Can Goktas, to meet  us and show us through the newer, more affordable Hotel wing. 

He was very gracious and a very warm host, but the tour confirmed everything I thought was wrong about the addition to the original Palace building. The newer hotel section is very "concrete and overdeveloped in scale", without the light and shade of the older, surrounding architecture. The modern, relentless repetition would look more at home in Florida than side by side with the marble magnificence of the Palace. 

The grounds are beautiful with a pond, fantastic pool, stately looking palms and wide river views. Women in red dresses await to welcome you into the old lobby, covered in splashily colourful flower arrangements. You get that magic hit of unbelievable old world grandeur; the old palace detailing is really worth seeing. At first look it seems very French monarchy, but when closer you take in the beautiful star shapes on the plaster detailing instead of the European curlicue shapes. 


HAVING SAID ALL THAT, THE CIRGAN PALACE KEMPINSKI HOTEL IS AN ICONIC LANDMARK IN ISTANBUL. IF YOU DON'T HAVE THE BUDGET FOR LES OTTOMAN, A STAY SO CLOSE TO THE GRANDEUR OF THE CIRGAN PALACE SUITES, WILL MAKE YOU FEEL LIKE A SULTAN. AFTER ALL YOU DO SHARE THE SAME GROUNDS AND POOL AREA.

We flew TURKISH AIRLINES from Athens and already noticed a cultural change from the more casual Greeks: the staff on Turkish Airlines were really polite and check in was well organized. The food was fresh too - rolls with cream cheese and coffee. I like to generally fly into a country via their home airline where possible to get into the spirit of the place, pick up tips from staff or returning locals I may meet and start hearing the language and accents… The airline is a flagship for any country and we had a really good experience with Turkish Airlines.

We were met at Istanbul’s international Ataturk airport, by Maher Barrage, the hotel concierge who is also officially the managing director of a VIP tourism company called DIWAN. He made sure we were comfortable in a Mercedes Benz-people-mover with air conditioning and cool drinks. Maher explained that with only 10 rooms in the hotel and 3 resident concierges the staff are able to dedicate themselves to each guest; he was assigned to us until we left. Wow, this sounded good.

Maher was very helpful in many ways, including his fantastic suggestion of an overnight trip (see BODRUM story).

Arriving at the Hotel les Ottomans we could see that not only was its amazing position on the European side of the Bosphorus every bit as uplifting as we had hoped but the décor in real life was a knockout - even the glossy brochures don’t do it justice.

I tend to love a space that has been built from scratch by a single person with a strong vision (as opposed to bland décor clearly designed by committee). The owner, Ahu Aysal Kerimoglu is quite a character. She is a glammed up, formidable business woman who has succeeded in her mission to create a small luxury hotel of “tranquil magnificence.” All the public space has the embellishment and extra quality that you just don’t see in modern hotels. The look is ‘Ottoman Empire gentleman’s club’ with a rich, plummy colour palette, hand painted Moorish archways and columns, oriental brocades, artful wrought iron screens and elaborate plasterwork. The carpets are just that bit plusher, the paintwork and wallpaper of such high quality, that you know this is an owner who goes the extra mile. The interiors are totally over the top, but not like a bad-80s-wedding dress - in a good way, where no expense has been spared. It’s a very special hotel that casts a spell on you from the moment you enter. When we met Ahu, who is as dressed up as her hotel, she gave us a warm welcome and seemed delighted that we really responded to all her hard work.

And the wide restaurant terrace, where you can hear the waters of the Bosphorus go rushing by, added to the sense of relief from the intense city traffic, construction noise, tooting horns, smells and crowds we had just driven past.

The original 18th century wooden building with summery, upstairs bay windows used to be a holiday residence used by the resident pasha, Muhsinzade on hot days, and it still has that breezy, summery feel. But once you start peeling away the layers, you realise how big the hotel is. The CAUDALIE VINOTHERAPIE SPA alone is absolutely enormous - the biggest I have seen. It connects with a fully equipped gym with every conceivable kind of equipment and lots of anterooms rooms for before or after your steams and facials at the spa. The scale is incredibly lavish for a 10-suite hotel. And they are so smart to have set up two tables for a private, post-workout breakfast. What a great touch!

It all matches the sultan’s way of doing things which, as anyone who has read the 1001 Arabian Nights with Aladdin and Ali Baba knows, is ‘always go bigger and better!’ I also liked the very chic, old world touch of printing hotel business cards with your name and “in residence” added; the hotel even did one for Zoe! They present it in a serious leather pocket, the sort of retro formality that reminds me a more graceful era like the 40s or 50s.