Sura Hagia Sophia Hotel İstanbul — Hotel in Fatih

Pros:

Strategic Location in Sultanahmet: Sura Hagia Sophia Hotel boasts an unbeatable location in the heart of the Sultanahmet area, putting you within minutes of iconic landmarks such as the Blue Mosque (Sultan Ahmed Mosque), Hagia Sophia, and Topkapi Museum. This makes it an ideal choice for tourists wanting to explore Istanbul’s rich history and culture on foot.

Convenient Metro Access: The hotel is incredibly convenient for public transport users, with the metro station just a minute's walk away. This makes traveling around Istanbul seamless and efficient.

Surrounded by Restaurants: For food enthusiasts, the hotel's surrounding area is a culinary delight. Numerous restaurants offering a variety of cuisines are within easy walking distance, providing ample dining options.

Cleanliness and Professional Housekeeping: The hotel maintains high standards of cleanliness. The housekeeping staff, in particular, were extremely professional and ensured that the rooms were spotless and well-maintained throughout the stay.

Pleasant and Professional Receptionist: One of the standout aspects of the stay was the exceptional service provided by the Pakistani receptionist. Their pleasant demeanor, professionalism, and helpful nature significantly enhanced the overall experience.

Responsive Management: The hotel manager demonstrated excellent customer service by promptly addressing an issue with a bad smell in the room and arranging for a room change without any hassle.

Good Breakfast and Attentive Waiters: While the breakfast selection could be more varied, the quality of food was good. The waiters were particularly noteworthy for their attentiveness and efficiency in catering to guests' requests.

Cons:

Not Truly 5-Star: Despite its amenities, the hotel does not fully meet the expectations of a 5-star rating. There are several areas where the service and facilities fall short of this standard.

Weak Air Conditioning: The air conditioning system was inadequate, making the rooms uncomfortably warm. Multiple complaints about this issue were not satisfactorily resolved.

Taxi Accessibility Challenges: Due to its location in a busy part of the Sultanahmet neighborhood, accessing the hotel by taxi can be challenging. Navigating the narrow, crowded streets can be a hassle, especially with luggage.

Limited Breakfast Choices: Although the quality of the breakfast was good, the variety of options was limited. A more diverse selection would enhance the dining experience.

Inflexible Checkout Policy: A significant disappointment was the refusal to grant a 1-2 hour extension for checkout, requested to accommodate Friday prayers. Despite a seven-day stay, the hotel’s inflexibility in this matter came across as rude and unexpected. This experience has left a negative impression, making it unlikely that I will stay here again or recommend the hotel to others.

Overall Impression:

While Sura Hagia Sophia Hotel excels in several areas, particularly in terms of location, cleanliness, and staff professionalism, it falls short in some crucial aspects that prevent it from being a true 5-star experience. The weak air conditioning, limited breakfast choices, and inflexibility with checkout policies are notable downsides. The challenges with taxi access and the overall service quality also detract from its appeal. However, the excellent service from specific staff members and the hotel’s prime location in Sultanahmet provide some...

So I don't know where to begin, let's say I am a person who values service more than anything. I believe that good service makes the distinction between a good or a bad experience. Let me tell you why I gave this hotel five stars from every point of view.

Firstly, the location. I was searching for a spot in the center, in the old city of Istanbul, where I could easily walk to major attractions and restaurants, immersing myself in the vibe of the old city. From this perspective, the hotel ticks all the boxes. Its location is absolutely brilliant.

Secondly, the reservation process was extremely simple. If you're like me, you appreciate simplicity and speed. I made a reservation on WhatsApp and paid right away. Now, comes the part where we informed them that we would arrive very early in the morning and might require early check-in due to traveling with a child. They said okay, depending on availability, and we would also need to pay for the half-day, which made perfect sense.

When we arrived at the hotel, exactly at the time we specified, they were waiting for us outside. The moment we entered the lobby, they knew who we were. I don't know how, they just requested our passports, said our room was ready, and immediately asked what they could offer. They brought us coffee, water, and whatever else we needed, making us feel welcome from the moment we arrived. The staff is absolutely brilliant, all of them speaking English very well, and they are so friendly and helpful, I can't even begin to praise them enough.

The room was very spacious, and to our surprise, they upgraded us to an even bigger room for free, and didn't charge for the early check-in. The room was modern, beds were extremely comfortable, and the air conditioner worked perfectly well. Not like in the previous hotel where I stayed, where I couldn't sleep at all due to the heat. That was top-notch.

I don't know what else to mention, maybe the fact that whenever you call them for room service, day or night, they are at your door in a matter of minutes, bringing everything you need. They're fast, efficient, and friendly. They even gave my daughter a coloring book and pencils, and when we left in the evening and she started crying in the reception, they came after her and gave her juice. It's the small things that make the experience nice. Not only that, but they also checked on us the next day to make sure we arrived well, were safe, and everything was to our liking.

I can say loudly and clearly, we loved staying there. I recommend this hotel to all my friends. If we ever go back to Istanbul, I'm definitely staying at the same hotel. And believe me, I'm a very demanding person, and if I speak highly of this hotel, it means it's much better than I can even describe. One thing is very clear, the management is exceptional because what you see in the hotel is a reflection of the management. The management is exceptional, the staff is exceptional, and everything is very well put together. So, I can only recommend this from the bottom of my heart. Thank you so much for our wonderful experience, your kindness, and everything...

On booking a 3 nights to Istanbul via lastminute.com which covered my flight with airline provider WiZ Air and Hotel booking with Sura Hagia Sophia 5* Hotel. On arrival at the hotel the reception staff/ manager confirmed there had not been a reservation confirmed under my name/booking details despite providing a confirmation code (received by last minute.com) via email confirming the holiday booking. The 3 nights was booked as a surprise for my mothers 78th Birthday who always wanted to visit the Blue Mosque in Istanbul. On arrival at the hotel by 3pm on the first day, I was informed that there was no reservation and after debating and trying to convince staff (embarrassingly) that I had paid for and received a confirmation for the booking. I was advised by hotel management that they have no contact with lastminute.com as they use a middle agent to sell their rooms to other travel providers. It was clear the middle agency had failed to confirm the booking with the hotel therefore leading to the mess up!!. At no point did the hotel take accountability for the mishaps nor did they offer any solutions other than having to pay again to reserve the room for 3 nights again! I had to use my mothers credit card(embarrassingly again) to pay for the room I had already paid for and was confirmed.

I was advised to resolve the issue on my return directly with Lastminute.com. I continued to try to communicate with Lastmiute but was only able to speak to a live chat robot who advised they would take 24 hours to look into my request/problem amd get back to me. When I did receive a reply with a new confir.ation code ...the hotel management still did not accept the code or reservation. I continued to try to resolve the booking issue every day with various staff members getting involved therefore making it even more stressful. In the end I had to wait approx 2 weeks after my return on 16th Feb till now 28th Feb before I received a response from a customer service rep at Lastminute.com confirming that she was going to process the refund fpr the additional payment as she had no reply from the hotel in that time whilst she was investigating. I had already provided a letter from the hotel management and a copy of the additional invoice I paid for the hotel on my first day back so this should have been processed immediately. Instead Lastminute accepted responsibility for the botch up with the hotel reservation and offered a mere €65 for our inconvenience. (They originally offered €55 in voucher format for compensation which I advised was ludicrous given the inconvenience, upset and embarrassment we had to go through , let alone letting my nearly 80 year old mother sit on a chair for 3 hours after being in transit fron London since 3am the day before. I felt the customer service was appalling for a 5star hotel and also Lastminute.com. Very disappointed ..would never book with them again. Best to book direct and separately. Lesson learned!

Date of experience: 13...