Valdivia Hotel

The location is great, close to all the attractions, and the hotel is very beautiful. The staff were friendly too. I’d definitely recommend it.

The cleanliness and service were shockingly poor. The place felt filthy and badly maintained, and the stairs seemed dangerously unsafe. My sheets were stained and clearly hadn’t been washed; the bathroom was just as disgusting. The receptionist was rude and disrespectful from the moment I arrived. When I asked to speak with the owner, he mocked me, saying the owner was “even ruder” than he was. I’d booked and paid for three nights but could only stand a few hours there. It was a nightmare and a complete disappointment. I strongly advise people to avoid this place. Total disaster.

There were some good points: the room was big, the beds were semi comfortable, and the location and view were good. But I had a very disrespectful experience with the owner. The front desk let me check in early at around 9 am. After I’d unpacked and was about to shower, they told me to leave with my bags and wait for the owner and my proper check-in time, without explaining what was going on. When the owner arrived, he said they normally don’t check people in early and that I should have paid. Nobody had offered me the chance to pay, and I was planning to stay almost a week. He started yelling and raised his hands when I said it wasn’t good customer service. This was my first visit to Istambul, and the interaction felt very unwelcoming. He apologized when I came back at 4 pm, but it was still the strangest interaction I’ve had in Turkey. The balcony had a good view, but was dusty and dirty, with old, randomly stained chairs. The third bed was beside a wall with rocks, so it would be easy to hit your head or scratch your arm on it. Be careful there. The bathroom was rundown, with small things falling apart and mold on part of the bathtub.

My wife and I stayed for five nights. The service was good and the location was very good. The room could use brighter lighting. They also kept our bags after checkout since our flight was at night, which helped us visit more places. We’d come back.