Romance Istanbul Hotel — Hotel in Fatih

I spent four nights in Romance Istanbul Hotel with my wife in May of 2019. We thoroughly enjoyed our stay, and were very satisfied with everything, I would wholeheartedly recommend this hotel to others without any reservations.

The hotel is situated about 480 meters (0.3 miles) from Hagia Sophia, it is about a 6-7 minutes walk. There is a tram stop 60 meters (200 feet) from the hotel entrance. Most of the historic sights of Istanbul are within walking distance from the hotel, and those that aren’t, can be easily reached by public transport. The new Istanbul airport can be reached by buses (coaches) that stop right by Hagia Sophia, the stop is called Sultanahmet, so the hotel can be reached easily on the cheap. The ride takes about 100 minutes according to the timetable, although it took us less time both ways. Buses leave in 20 minutes intervals in both directions. A one way ticket between the airport and Sultanahmet cost 18 Turkish liras in 2019, the fee can only be paid by Istanbulkart.

The hotel is either newly constructed recently remodeled, both the interior and exterior are really nice. The interior is nicely executed with charming ottoman design, which may be a little too much for those who like modern minimalist designs.

The room we booked was called Luxury room with terrace. It had a tiny ante, a small balcony and a glass walled bathroom. Even though the walls had curtains on them, I still found it to be a little awkward that the toilet was behind a glass wall. The bathroom had a hairdryer, and there was a minibar in the room. It also had an electric kettle and pod coffee maker.

The bed was large and comfortable with a selection of pillows. The balcony was rather small but had a table and two chairs suitable for a nice talk over drinks. The views are nothing special the houses across the street are really close. The hotel is located in a busy area, but the noise was never distracting we were able to get plenty of sleep. The room was very clean, it was cleaned regularly sheets and towels changed as well. The only negatives I can come up with is that one of the two showerheads was leaking and the bathrobes, although very clean looked quite worn. We did not need to use the air-conditioning, but I tried it and it worked OK. You have to pay for the minibar and the snacks but tea, coffee and mineral water are complimentary. There were welcoming bites of Turkish delight on the bed and a waiter brought us welcome drinks, which was a nice touch.

There is a small wellness area in the basement. Although it is very nice and spotlessly clean, it really is very small. There is a small gym and a pool. Unfortunately I found the pool to be a little bit too cold for my taste. The sauna works as it should. There is a hamam and they offer massages as well but we have not tried either of those. Breakfast was included in the price of the room. It was a buffet style breakfast, and it was excellent. There were a lot of good quality choices every day, very varied, and tasty with lots of options to choose from. You could order scrambled eggs pancakes and the like if it was not on offer that day. There was ready made coffee and tea but the waiters always asked if you liked a proper, freshly brewed espresso or cappuccino. Breakfast was really good and much-much better than what is offered in most hotels.

Even more important than all of the above were the staff. All of them were really, really nice, extremely hospitable and professional. They were very helpful, always had a nice word and a smile, and were readily available without ever being bothersome.

To sum it up, we very-very satisfied with our stay at Romance Istanbul, it offers...

We really recommend the Romance Istanbul Hotel for anyone wishing to visit Istanbul. We'd give them higher than 5 stars if we could. We were there for two weeks, and want to highlight the amazing service and details of our stay, in particular we want to thank Ramazan, Shirin, Nazmiye, Gonul, Furkan, Mehmet, Arhun, and many others for their hospitality and kindness. Sorry for any names we don't recall.

Safe, secure, hospitable - in a great, safe location, right next to Gulhane Park, walking distance to Egyptian Spice Bazaar, Grand Bazaar, Basilica Cistern, Tram stop, ferry terminals, Hagia Sophia Mosque, Sultanamet Square, Blue Mosque, Hafez Mustafa bakery and Topkapi Palace!! Street it is on has many places to eat, shop, money exchanges, bank terminals, pharmacies (to the west a block). VERY hospitable and helpful staff, from our dining servers to the front desk staff, to the maid service, we were made to feel welcome and looked after in so many ways, including advice for sites to see, help with taxi/transport, etc. Really, the best customer service in a hotel we've had in our entire travel lives. Sincerely meant. Another example, we got there super early at 7 AM from the airport, and Ramazan kindly found us a early check in by 8 AM...because we were so tired. Great breakfast! Some staples and some new items each day, we never got bored of breakfast for the entire trip. All great quality, from the fresh bread/simit to the egg dishes to the cheeses. Appealing and comfy hotel, we had two rooms, one of which was the grand suite, all nicely appointed, well kept, comfortable bed, quiet streets at night, restful sleep, great room service on two nights we needed it, and any time we needed extra towels, water bottles, soap (thanks Nazmiye and Gonul! - and one additional lady, our apologies we cannot recall the name), extra chairs (thanks Mehmet!), tea bags (thanks Shirin!), espresso, wheelchair for our mom, really anything we had it brought promptly and with smiles. If there is anyone we left our, please be included in our tremendous thanks for your warm welcome during our stay.

I wish the Romance Hotel and their staff were closer to our home, but we'll be there again for our next Istanbul trip, they really made our stay memorable!!! Thank...

Truely lovely hotel ... all u need in a boutique hotel for a relaxing family or couples vacation They have thought of everything there is to make your stay and vacation comfortable and enjoyable Complements to all the staff and chefs for their great efforts A recommendation indeed Thanks so much :)

I did an extensive search before picking a hotel. I have recently booked another hotel before Romance but then the reviews made me change my mind I can happily say that you can get great value for every dime you spend here Location is truly great.. if you like to walk you can reach all monuments within 10-40 min walk that’s including sightseeing, shopping and verity of food and drinks The area is cleaner than others in Istanbul. It’s lively enough for excitement and cosy enough for relaxation. Same applies for the hotel atmosphere

Every day at breakfast we were warmly welcomed and greatly served by Emre and Busra. The Chefs do a great job to please all tastes and nothing u ask for is not available While you are enjoying your meal ,,Zumre from guest relations will grab a chair and ask you where u plan to go and spend the day. She would tell u exact steps of how to reach there using public transport and even give you tips on what to eat and what shopping options you have in each area. She would write Turkish words on your map or a little note paper so you know what they mean and where to follow. This a unique service i saw for the first time...and i am very well traveled

Our house keeper Gonul was the best. Not only she kept our room clean and tidy but she would also make flower shapes out of my scarfs and refresh our slippers

We were hesitant to come to Turkey and were worried about the level of hospitality but we had no reason to worry about . In the hotel and out , during our 6day stay,, we were not bothered or ripped off not once

Thank you so much for everyone at Romance that made our stay the perfect Home away...