Historical Vezneciler Bath — Attraction in Fatih

Aussie review, from someone who is highly experienced in massage both receiving and as a practitioner, and also experienced in hammams in different countries. I got the Abi Hayat treatment at €95 or $170AUD. This facility came recommended from a tour guide id personally spent time with the day before.

"Come lady' is their term to get your attention, funny to hear it, but effective.

This hammam is an authentic experience, laying at first on a hot stone slab for 15 minutes before the dry sauna and then being scrubbed and massaged, then the foam massage. You'll need to book in first, preferably the day before as if you show up and it's not ready they'll ask you to come back.

Mutcha was an amazing and nurturing practitioner, who was with me nearly the 2 hours of my hammam experience. There was tea afterwards to relax with as well, just lovely.

It's a mixed hammam and separate wash and massage rooms, at all times in common areas you are appropriately covered.

I chose to keep my knickers on but shouldn't have bothered, took them off in the end anyhow.

Tipping is expected and there is a tip box. I didn't want to give money to the box however the practitioner disappeared upstairs, intently staring at me for 10 minutes and I was not able to give it to her in person.

What I didn't love was that the owner was smoking in the relaxation area and second, during the massage.

Mutcha did cupping on my body and instead of on back muscle she did it on my spine, not amazing and it hurt like a mofo (osteoarthritis in thoracic spine). It was brutal and instant migraine. Thinking it was done, she then thumped (not cupped) my spine again 10 mins later and this time I reacted by moving upwards so it would stop. They don't speak English so it was hard to communicate. While she is untrained she is nurturing.

While last night I felt pretty good, clean, and ready for an early night, this morning couldn't move for the excruciating pain in my spine and will need to take a lot of nurofen in the next couple of days. Defeats the purpose and this kind of thumping is damaging.

When you go up the stairs it looks closed, but open the door and walk on thru.

Mutcha vücuduma kupa uyguladı ve sırt kası yerine omurgama uyguladı, harika değildi ve bir mofo (torasik omurgada osteoartrit) gibi acıdı. Çok acımasız ve anında migren oldu. Bittiğini düşünerek, 10 dakika sonra omurgamı tekrar vurdu (kupa değil) ve bu sefer durması için yukarı doğru hareket ederek tepki verdim. İngilizce konuşmuyorlar, bu yüzden iletişim kurmak zordu.

Dün gece kendimi oldukça iyi, temiz ve erken yatmaya hazır hissederken, bu sabah omurgamdaki dayanılmaz ağrıdan hareket edemedim ve önümüzdeki birkaç gün içinde çok fazla nurofen almam gerekecek. Amacı boşa çıkarıyor ve bu tür...

In sum: a real experience at a fair price, in a very historic building, run by kindly, real people for other real people. It’s not suitable for those with the strongest modesty/ gender separation traditions, or those who want top luxury and amenities. I think most adventure travelers would love it, as I did.

It was exactly what I was looking for and I am glad my guesthouse proprietor recommended it. The services, location and staff are kind and attentive and traditional, excepting that the tightest separation between men and women is not observed. However there is sufficient separation for 90% of us.

So this means that a Western or modern couple who want to rest on the stone together can do so, and then the unclothed treatments are done in curtained and segregated areas. It is possible for women fully covered in towels to walk past a cubicle where a man in a waist towel is resting between treatments, so this is not for everyone.

I loved it and had no problem at all with these changes from tradition. My practitioner, Tooba, was kind and did a very skillful job at the soaking, exfoliating, sudsing and massage. I thought the massage was absolutely adequate and not untrained— not what you’d get from a massage therapist but close enough. They work in bathing suits or modest underwear in the water area. Fine by me, I was naked.

I thought Tooba’s kindness and sincere commitment to her work made our language barrier unimportant, and she knew more than enough English words for our two hours together to be very pleasant and we even laughed together a little bit! I felt completely comfortable, like a baby with mama.

I was alone in the sauna so when it got a little hot for me I just cracked the door open a bit, and another time just stepped out for 2-3 minutes. Probably not great for anyone with an iffy heart or heat tolerance issue as you’re a bit isolated.

Unlike the reviews of the oligarch-level places, they never cut the time short on any phase of the treatment and in fact several went a bit overtime (stone, sauna, and massage).

The price for the European package was fair and I didn’t mind paying cash, the hotel had advised me this would be needed.

I recommend this for travelers with a sense of adventure who don’t get freaked out by a neighborhoody place run by real people for real people. They also are quite honest and there was absolutely no hustling or upselling, which I can’t stand, for which I was grateful.

It was clean everywhere that I saw, but not run like a hospital which I also realize won’t work for some people. I’m not that kind of traveler — I seek more complex experiences and I’m willing to trade luxury and some comfort for broader horizons. It mostly works out, and it...

I went there with my husband. We were very lucky to be the first ones in as the bath were empty. If it is your first time going to a Turkish bath and you are thinking about taking your swimming suit, let me tell you now that you will not need it, this is a place where you go wearing your ‘birthday suit’! But fear not, they are use to it so embrace the tradition and go with it.

We booked our treatment by whatsapp. When we arrived, we were greeted by the receptionist and after choosing our treatment we were asked to removed our clothes and cover ourselves with a linen cloth, a sort of towel.

We then followed them to the hot stones where we both lie for 20 min, ten on our backs and ten on our front. After this we were asked to go to the sauna. This was a super hot 🥵 sauna, I don’t do well with heat by my husband was on his element. It smells of eucalyptus what made it really good. Then, I was asked to go to another room for the bath and my husband went to a different place. My room was private (well divided by some curtains, but good enough for me). Now, this part was interesting… if you are prude be ready to be naked… like fully naked and let her (or him if you are a man) go crazy on you. They scrub one size and then the other, like the whooole body. At first I was a bit uncomfortable as I am not use to be naked and being washed but you soon realised they do this quite often so it is so normal for them. They rubbed you and then the bubbles come. This was the best bit because they massage you. I know some people are saying it wasn’t good but we both looove the massage. Incredible!

Then she washed my hair, what I would have rather omitted but… oh well.

We ended the experience with some tea. It was amazing, thank you so much!

Note: the place inside the Hamam looks a bit run down but I guess it is what you expect in a...