Galata Pearl Hotel

The only thing going for this place is the location. The building is very old, with cracked walls and broken stairs. Inside, everything was extremely dirty, from the shared areas to my room. There was hair everywhere, no room cleaning, and insects ran around all night. They didn’t give me bed sheets, and the toilet had no seat. I’d paid for breakfast, but nothing was ready when I came down. The receptionist was asleep on the couch, so I had to shout to wake him up.

They offered to move us to a renovated room on the second day, but it was on the fourth floor of a hotel with no elevator and a rickety staircase. It wasn’t any better, so we turned it down. The owner lives at reception. Breakfast was on the rooftop terrace, and after 35 minutes waiting among the seagulls, four of us got one hard-boiled egg, three slices of cold cuts, and four slices of cheese. The room was only 8 m², cramped and badly furnished, with the bathroom raised on a platform. Its door was broken and lying on the sink. The beds were broken, the room was moldy everywhere, and in several spots the floor bulged. Stepping on those areas sent a foul-smelling mold cloud up from underneath. We hadn’t even been given the room we booked, apparently because that one was in worse shape. All of us scraped our shins several times on a piece of metal sticking out from a bed corner. The place was a complete disaster, and renovation hadn’t helped.

The room was clean and comfortable, and the whole place felt warm and welcoming. I really liked its charming, authentic atmosphere, which gave me a sense of Istanbul. Galata was only a two-minute walk away, so it was easy to explore the area. I’d happily stay here again and recommend it to anyone after a comfortable, authentic stay in the heart of the city.

The location was good, but most of the stay was frustrating. We booked one room type and were given another. They said they’d move us the next day, but never did, so we stayed in the same room. Service was poor, and we had to ask for both cleaning and bottled water. Even after asking several times, they didn’t bring any water, so I had to go down two floors for every little thing. There’s no lift either. Breakfast was the worst. The kettle looked like it hadn’t been cleaned in ages, and there was fungus inside.