Deniz Konak Hotel, Istanbul, Turkey

Blue Mosque from
the rooftop terrace
of the Deniz Konak
Hotel, Istanbul.

The Deniz Konak Hotel (‘Sea Mansion’) is an inviting small Istanbul hotel hidden down a side street away from the main hustle of Sultanahmet but just a pleasant ten-minute stroll from the main sights –Aya Sofya, the Blue Mosque and the Topkapi Palace.

Opened in 2005, the hotel boasts 15 comfortable, stone-faced rooms on four floors reached by stairs (no elevator/lift). All are decorated with Turkish carpets and kilims adorning wooden floors, flat-screen plasma television sets (most channels in Turkish, three in English, one in French, one in German), individually-controllable air-conditioning units and peepholes in the doors, a plus for safety-conscious female travelers. The rooms' decent size is another precious asset in this crowded city.

The Deniz Konak offers that priceless Istanbul asset—views of the Sea of Marmara directly from your room, but the price of the view is some traffic noise from Kennedy Caddesi, the shore road that passes between the hotel and the water. There are also regular trains on the Halkali suburban line passing below.

If you are very sensitive to noise, you can eschew the view and choose a room on the side facing the quiet street, which has only an occasional car passing very slowly.

If you do choose a sea-view room, y ou'll certainly hear the traffic and trains if your window is open, but with individually-controlled air conditioning and double-glazed windows, I did not find the noise a problem when I stayed in Room 8 in April 2008. At night the trains stop and the traffic is reduced to the occasional car, so I had no trouble sleeping.

A bonus: the nearest loudspeaker is more distant than from many other Sultanahmet hotels, so the pre-dawn call to prayer is a pleasant bit of music rather than a shattering electronic blast.

The Deniz Konak's cosy rooftop breakfast room looks out towards the Sea of Marmara. Its small open-air terrace has views of the Blue Mosque and the Küçük Ayasofya Mosque which is just down the street from the hotel.

The hotel was opened by the same family partnership – Fatih Sapci, and Lütfiye and Temel Turgut – that owns the nearby Sultan’s Inn and Naz Wooden House Inn and Backpackers Travel Agency. (which operates a good value-for-money airport transfer service.) They bring more than 20 years experience in the tourism business to their latest enterprise which is managed with enthusiasm and attention to detail.

For dinner you need only stroll up Küçük Ayasofya Caddesi to find yourself amid the cheap lokantas and more upmarket restaurants of Sultanahmet.

When you contact the Deniz Konak Hotel, please mention TTP. Here’s why. If you mention TTP, you'll receive a free fruit basket in your room when you arrive.

Deniz Konak Hotel
Küçük Ayasofya Caddesi
Cayiroglu Sokak No. 14
Sultanahmet, Istanbul, Turkey
www.denizkonakhotel.com
info@denizkonakhotel.com
Tel: +90 (212) 518 9595
Fax: +90 (212) 638 3922