Sheraton Grand Istanbul Atasehir

The gym was in very poor shape, with no water or cups and several machines that looked damaged or badly maintained. That fell well short of Sheraton standards. I also had a serious problem with the bar bill on my last evening. I ordered a simple Campari Spritz, but because “the cocktail does not exist in their system,” they charged me separately for multiple Camparis and sparkling wines. Nobody explained this before serving. Three basic cocktails came to nearly 100 USD, a price I wouldn’t have agreed to if I’d known. When I challenged the charge, staff refused both a proper receipt and a refund, despite acknowledging the cocktail wasn’t in their POS system. That didn’t feel transparent or professional for a Marriott property. Breakfast was worse still. I became severely ill for two days with what was clearly food poisoning, and the buffet was the only possible source. Food was left uncovered, temperature control seemed improper, and I saw no visible HACCP-standard procedures. The photos I attached show ingredients being prepared straight from supermarket packaging, including mushrooms cut from a plastic container without washing or cleaning. Food handling like that is extremely concerning in a 5-star hotel. These problems overshadowed the stay: unsafe food handling, poor hygiene, misleading billing, refusal to provide receipts, and neglected facilities. This property didn’t reflect Marriott’s quality or reliability, and I sincerely hope management takes immediate corrective action.

The gym, pool, and spa are world class for a hotel. Staff were quick to help whenever we needed something, and the service level was high. Our room was quiet, very clean, and comfortable, with a great bed. The AC worked, but kept switching off, including overnight, so that could be improved.

The staff were generally pleasant, especially Yagiz at check-in. He explained that gold continental breakfast was included, which was helpful since there isn’t much around the hotel. We stayed at the Sheraton because it was one of the places where we could redeem free nights. It’s about a 30-minute drive to the main sights, and heavy traffic can make it much longer. The breakfast was disappointing. As gold members, we were entitled to it, but items listed on the menu, like cheese and olives, were often missing. The cappuccino was the worst I’ve ever had, and the English breakfast tea wasn’t any better. Pastries and croissants were warm some days and not others. I’m glad we weren’t paying for it. Our room’s AC was noisy and unreliable throughout our six-night stay. We called maintenance several times, but it never worked properly. First it was too hot, then fine for a couple of days, then too cold, and changing the temperature didn’t seem to help. Housekeeping also needed a couple of calls: the room was dusty, the coffee table dirty, and crumbs on the carpet had been left there. We asked for a 5pm checkout because our taxi was booked then, but were given 3pm even after I explained and mentioned our gold status. The hotel seemed quite empty, so I’m not sure why they couldn’t accommodate us.

The free room upgrade through the Golden Member program Marriot Bonvoy was much appreciated. My room at the Engrand Hotel in Istanbul was very nice and comfortable, and everything was clean and well maintained. The staff were kind, helpful, and professional, and the service was excellent. I was very satisfied and would definitely recommend staying here when visiting Istanbul.