Four Points by Sheraton Istanbul Kagithane — Hotel in Kâğıthane

UPDATE. I'm updating my review following a manager’s outreach after I originally posted feedback. They took the initiative to contact Marriott customer service on my behalf to assist with a points refund. While I’m not sure exactly how many points I originally used (and didn’t have time to check), they refunded 23,000 points for a two-night, two-room stay. That effort—though delayed—was appreciated and showed some professionalism in trying to make things right. Because of that follow-up, I’m raising my rating.

That said, my experience during the stay itself was a major letdown. The only reason this review gets more than one star at all is because of Server Yiğit, the gentleman who checked us in. He was genuinely exceptional—efficient, warm, and professional. He made a great first impression and was the only bright spot in an otherwise very poor experience. He alone earned three stars.

The rest of the stay, unfortunately, was uncomfortable and frustrating. Both rooms smelled strongly of smoke—one so badly that it was hard to breathe, especially as I have asthma and some of us have allergies. The air conditioning didn’t work, and the temperature remained stuck around 84°F (29°C). I had booked the hotel expecting a restful base while exploring Istanbul, but we were met with stale air, false assurances, and a lack of real solutions by the night staff.

I was initially told the AC just needed resetting, then that it was being worked on, and later that it was a hotel-wide issue. The only solution offered was to open the window—which, in a noisy part of the city, meant a sleepless night for me and my kids. They woke up with irritated throats and swollen eyes. We were all exhausted, and it threw off the next two days of our trip.

The next day, I followed up again and was promised the issue would be fixed—but returned that evening to find nothing had changed. Another miserable, overheated night in a smoky room.

During the stay, no one offered any form of apology or compensation, which made the situation feel even more frustrating. It was only after my review that someone made the effort to address it.

In contrast, the Four Points by Sheraton in Pendik was clean, reliable, and far more pleasant. Had I been told the AC wouldn’t be fixed, I would’ve gone back there. I won’t return to the Kağıthane location, but I do recognize and appreciate the post-stay effort and the professionalism of Server Yiğit. If they have non smoked in rooms and air condition that works and fix the way they hadle things like that initially, then, it would be worth...

Marriott is quite strong in Istanbul but mostly has full service and luxury hotels – there is not much in the select service segment except for an AC hotel in the city center and a Courtyard where the old airport used to be. That changed now that a Four Points opened in the Kagithane neighborhood which Marriott is betting will grow, after opening Delta Halic a couple years ago nearby. I gave 4P a try and was extremely impressed by the service for such a new hotel and can highly recommend it.

The hotel has 170 rooms and only 3 suites so upgrades will probably not be very easy in the future, in addition the suites are not in service just yet, so I was upgraded to a corner room as Ambassador Elite guest, which was fairly nice with windows on two sides. The room looked good, it was clean and functional and as good as could have been expected for a 4P hotel.

The main feature that stood out was service which was better than many full-service hotels. First off when I arrived they set the tone right with a nice welcome at reception, and gift cards were redeemed without the issues that many other hotels seem to have (so for a new hotel, I was unsure if they could handle it), and the highlight of my stay was when staff helped me with a shipment. Something unforeseen happened and I had to make a shipment to Izmir but because of the proximity to the weekend no courier could promise delivery until the following Monday. Then hotel staff at 4P Istanbul thought of an alternative solution: they found a cargo company which would ship urgently but not deliver to specific addresses. The owner of 4P Istanbul is the same as 4P Izmir so they contacted their colleagues, someone in Izmir went to the cargo office to pick up my document and personally delivered it to where it had to go – this kind of service might not even happen at a St.Regis hotel so I was deeply impressed – what a great way to help a customer who was stressed out! Service in the restaurant during breakfast was equally good and highly polished, worthy of full-service hotels rather than select service.

Overall for the modest price paid, I can say this hotel punches significantly above its weight and does not suffer from growing pains like most new hotels do. The customer service is already much higher level than what we can expect from any 4P elsewhere in the world, and rooms were nice and tidy so I will return despite the...

Extremely Disappointing Stay – Unbearable Heat and Terrible Service Stay Dates: May 16th to May 18th, 2025

This was one of the worst hotel experiences my wife and I have ever had. We stayed from May 16th to May 18th, 2025, expecting a relaxing holiday—but instead, we were left frustrated, sleep-deprived, and even sick due to poor management and unacceptable service.

Everything seemed fine at first, but suddenly, the air conditioning began blowing hot air. As residents of the Middle East, we are very accustomed to using AC regularly, and a cool room is not a luxury—it’s a necessity. We immediately contacted reception, only to receive an unbelievable response: they had turned off the entire hotel’s air conditioning system and switched it to heating.

The room temperature climbed to a stifling 28°C, making it nearly impossible to sleep. The solution offered? Open the window and turn off the AC. This was laughable—only one small awning window could be opened, and it barely let in any air. We tried this anyway, but it made no difference, as it wasn’t even cool outside.

We complained again in person at the front desk, and were told that because 30% of the guests said it was cold, they decided to switch to heating. What about the other 70% of guests? What about us? We paid for our stay expecting basic comfort, and this kind of excuse shows a complete disregard for the rest of their paying customers.

We even requested a fan or some form of cooling device, and that was ignored. Nothing was sent to our room. No apology. No follow-up. Just silence.

The heat in the room became unbearable. We couldn’t sleep properly, started feeling sick, and ultimately had to check out early at 6:00 AM on May 18th. We ended up staying at the airport just to escape the heat.

This hotel does not care about guest comfort. They prioritize a small portion of guests and completely ignore others. Their air conditioning system is unreliable, and their customer service is shockingly poor. We regret booking this stay and would strongly advise others to stay away—especially if you're expecting basic comfort and responsive service. This was a...