Home Of Istanbul

We had a good stay overall. The accommodation was clean, near the main square, and as we expected. But getting in was a problem: when we arrived, reception was dark and empty, and we waited about 30 minutes for the access details. The water wasn’t very hot, and for two nights we slept on a mattress that had been put upside down, which made it uncomfortable. More concerning, on two separate nights we saw guests whose bookings had been cancelled at the last minute because of power outages in their accommodations. It seems to happen regularly, so future guests should be cautious. There are issues that need attention, even though our own stay was pleasant.

We told the hotel several times that we’d arrive after 11 pm, but nobody replied to our messages. When we got there, reception was closed and no one was around. There was a note with a WhatsApp number. Luckily, we had a phone and internet. After trying to reach them for 20 minutes, we finally spoke with someone who knew nothing about our reservation. He spoke no English, and we don’t speak Turkish. Fortunately, we could both speak Russian, and he said he’d arrive in 5-10 minutes. What would have happened if we didn’t speak Russian? Another guest had the same problem and had even called the police. We waited almost an hour with our 1.5-year-old child in our arms, desperate to sleep, before the man finally showed up. After more time arguing about the policy in Turkish, he said there was no room and offered an apartment a five-minute drive away. He claimed he didn’t know about the booking and nobody had told him, but how is that the guest’s problem? It was late and we had no other choice, so we agreed. The apartment was completely different from what we booked. We’d specifically reserved two bedrooms for three adults and a child, but the place he took us to had only one. Our baby was extremely stressed by all of this and still can’t sleep properly. After that welcome, we booked another hotel and moved there as soon as we woke up. A horrible experience and a very negative attitude.

We booked through Booking and had confirmed with the property over WhatsApp that everything was fine and we’d have an apartment. The reservation offered no card payment option, only cash at the destination. When we arrived, they said there were no apartments left at that location and offered somewhere else, but it wouldn’t be ready for a few hours. It was already 2:30 PM, so we couldn’t check in until after 5 PM. We accepted that and said we’d leave our luggage there and go to the other apartment once it was ready. When we tried to pay, they wouldn’t take a card and refused to give us a fiscal receipt as proof of payment. Extremely poor communication. It felt like a complete scam and cost us half a day of our Istanbul trip. Zero hospitality or decency.

We’d booked in advance through Expedia, but when we arrived, the man said our booking didn’t exist and that they don’t work with Expedia. The business number listed was wrong. I called Expedia, and they tried calling him. His phone rang, but he wouldn’t answer. When I told him Expedia was calling, he denied it and said they hadn’t called. He then told us to get a refund from Expedia and said he’d help us out. He’s a scammer and a conman. The business card he gave me had completely different information. Thank God Expedia found us somewhere to stay, though it wasn’t central. We appreciate Expedia’s efforts. Please confirm directly if you booked this company through a booking platform. You don’t want to go through what we did.