Taksim Palace İstanbul Hotel

I arrived at 7am after a night bus, hoping to leave my bags and come back later to check in. Instead, the night staff checked me in and said my room was ready. After I'd napped, I went out to get breakfast, but the owner stopped me and said the night staff had made a mistake and I shouldn't have been checked in yet. He then told me I owed another night's payment for using the room before check-in time. I said that was his staff's mistake, not mine. After we went back and forth, he dropped the extra charge but said I had to move to a different, lower grade room. I hadn't paid yet, so I cancelled the reservation, lost the cost of the first night, and went somewhere else. Worst owner I've ever met. No wonder the hotel seemed so empty.

That mini-bar was supposed to be complimentary. It turned out to be two half-eaten bags of chips and a can of soda that looked like it had been sitting around since 2017. The bathroom wasn't much better: cramped enough that getting from the toilet to the sink felt like an obstacle course, and the shower was phone-booth small. The bed felt like some kind of torture device, and I only slept after giving in to despair. The room itself was like a shoebox facing a brick wall, with peeling paint that looked like the evil twin of modern art. The decor was all over the place, one wall a desperate beige and another like accidental graffiti. The lobby tried for palatial, but the floral patterns sent me straight back to 1985. At the front desk, the welcome had all the enthusiasm of a cat being asked to take a bath. The glamorous Instagram ad had completely fooled me. If you want a vacation that turns into a show about guessing what's growing on the ceiling, Istanbul Palace Hotel might be your place. It cost a premium for a stay full of chaos. I can at least tell my friends a dramatic story about it.

I checked in at 9:00 pm and checked out at 10:00 pm, but I couldn't even spend an hour in the room. It smelled awful, and the blankets were old and unclean. The host was also very unpleasant to talk to. I asked whether I could get some money back, and they refused because I'd already checked in. It was a nightmare of a stay on September 10, 2023. If you want somewhere clean and peaceful, don't go here. I can't recommend it to anyone.

The location is hard to beat, right on İstiklal Avenue, and finding this level of quality there at this price is nearly impossible. I stayed at Taksim Palace hotel again recently, and the renovation really impressed me. The room was so comfortable I felt at home. Thanks to Murat Bey for the helpful tips while I was in Istanbul, and to Serkan Bey for being so hospitable.