KIANA KALEİÇİ — Hotel in Muratpaşa

** The response from the hotel to this review is full of lies and mistruths. Google won't allow me to respond to it. Read the response from the hotel. Sound unprofessional to you? DO NOT STAY HERE.

First and foremost, I am always reluctant to write poor reviews. I do it only when I must warn fellow travelers. My fiancé and I have visited 58 countries collectively and with no hyperbole, this is the worst experience we have ever had with a hotel. DO NOT STAY HERE!!!

As I typically do in other reviews, I will begin with what we appreciated about the place.

The location is phenomenal if you are interested in Kaleici and the surrounding areas. We initially planned to use Kiana as a central place to explore historical sites west and east of Antalya, after exploring Antalya. Plenty of wonderful food around the area. Kiana offers a delightful cafe. No shortage of shopping, if that’s your thing. In the room was a cool kit with a face mask and hand sanitizer. The day we arrived was the day of the owner’s birthday. Her mother treated us to a delicious piece of cake. It was a very kind gesture. Unfortunately, this is where the list of positives end.

We booked a “superior room with a partial ocean view. There was no view. The room was tiny. Barely any room for two people and their luggage, especially on an extended stay. At night the bathroom smelled of sewage. I have grown accustomed to this over my years of travel and would normally not complain unless it was overwhelming. It was. No safe in the room. The walls are very thin. You can hear everything happening next door and in the cafe below.

We dropped our laundry off the day we arrived. The following day we asked for the laundry and it was returned to us wet. It wasn’t slightly damp, it was wet, so much so that we had to hang our clothes to dry. The hotel asked us to still pay for the wet laundry.

Despite the sanitation kit in the room and social distance signs, Russians and Americans walked all over the hotel without masks. A note on this* the Turkish people wear masks everywhere, even on rural country roads. It is extremely disrespectful not to do so and the hotel management said nothing about this. Additionally, we came home to a birthday party that could only be labeled as a super spreader event. People were jammed together at tables in the lobby with no masks on.

Curfew is currently 10pm at public venues and 12:00pm at private venues. We returned a little before 10 and were surprised to see the super spreader event mentioned above. The noise was insanely loud. We called reception to ask what was going on. Come to find out, it was the birthday of the owner and she chose to celebrate it at her place of business. Again, it is 10:30 at a hotel and people are having a party right below the rooms. After two phone calls and our inability to sleep, my frustrated Turkish wife went down stairs. What happened next was astonishing. The owner was drunk and when my wife tried to come back to the room, the owner pulled her aside and began screaming at her in front of other guests and all the people at the party, embarrassing my wife for simply asking for a decent nights sleep at a hotel. She told her she should just go stay at a Hilton if she didn’t like it. My wife remained calm and the owner continued to be belligerent. The mother had to get involved because the daughter/owner was so drunk. The noise continued well after 12:00pm. After getting the wet laundry the next day, we couldn’t deal with anymore nonsense so we cut our two day trial stay short and left in a cab. The following morning the owner was sitting down stairs and wouldn’t even look at us or talk to us.

UPDATE: We woke to a nasty e-mail from this place of business this morning, suggesting they would "open a case" against us for simply trying to warn future potential guests about our horrible experience. Insanely unprofessional. E-mail...

My husband and I sold everything to travel the world. Yes, we didn’t let the pandemic stop us. We chose Kiana based on reviews and we’re glad that we did! The location is great for Old Town. The boutique hotel is super cute.... all decorated very well. The breakfasts are our favorite part and we loved the cozy sitting areas. We are loving our stay so much that we decided to extend a few more days. We have been here for almost two weeks already. You get a clean, cute hotel with delicious breakfast for a really good price. It costs about 70 Turkish lira for a taxi from airport to the hotel. Super easy as well. Just exit the airport and wait in the taxi line. It’s not like Istanbul where they don’t use their meter and try to rip you off.

We got laundry done here and we didn’t have the same experience as the other guest who mentioned they received their clothes wet. The owner actually asked us if we want the clothes dry and told us that the clothes needed extra time to dry due to the weather. Just give it an extra day or two for the laundry. There was a strong sewage smell from the bathroom in the first room we stayed. We just mentioned it to them and they were quick to move us. It’s an old building that is refurbished and they cannot change the structure of the place because they are in old town so I believe that’s why. The water room, that we are staying in now doesn’t have the smell (the windows in the bathroom help). We have a lot of luggage because we traveling full time so we tend to overwhelm any room we go into hahah. It’s comparable to any European hotel room in the this price range. They have the room size stated on their website so check it out to make sure it meets your needs. The space is good for 1-2 people.

Our favorite part of our time here are the people. The kind family that owns this place have made us feel like family, we looked forward to coming “home” after exploring. The cook also makes yummy food that’s not drenched in oil and grease which we really appreciated because we felt better about eating healthier food. The owner even makes us green smoothies after I asked her if she could because I was dying for more healthy options haha. I used to drink smoothies all the time in the states. It’s not even on the menu and she obliged. We are truly grateful for our time here.

I read the one negative review on here and it inspired me to write this one because I don’t want people to have the wrong impression of Kiana. I’ve personally traveled to 51 countries and this is one of the best hotel experiences I’ve had. I’m not a family member or family friend who is writing this either haha. Feel free to check out our Instagram and ask us any questions if you would like. @isaac_Shilpa We are open books and will answer any questions or concerns you might have.

We highly recommend Kiana for all the reasons...

Kiana Kaleiçi is a small 2-star hotel located in the heart of Antalya Old Town. It's a three-story, rickety building with open galleries, peculiar floor plans, and no elevator. The rooms are small but bright and airy (I had a corner room with plenty of windows); the amenities are minimal, but should be sufficient for the unfussy single traveler. If you're looking for a funky and relaxed vibe, this place will do, but don't expect quick and skilled service should you need one. The TV in my room didn't work, and the technicians couldn't fix it (they were two on different occasions). Finally, I got another room that had a working TV and a cleaner bathroom, but some lighting switches were messed up. Having had experience with the local experts, I didn't bother. The electrical sockets were predictably loose, if not inoperable, but that malady is common to most hotels in the world and is hardly unique to Turkey. I was pressed for time and never sampled the hotel kitchen, though it looked and smelled appealing.

To sum it up, the pros are:

• Great location near many landmarks • Good value for the price (I stayed off-season; not sure about the summer months) • Helpful and friendly staff • Good vibe • Spacious bathroom with a reasonably sized shower stall • Strong water pressure, even on the top floor • Overall, the area feels safe, though "touristy"

The cons: • Even in the off-season, the area is VERY noisy at night. There are many clubs, bars, and cafes around, some with live music, some with terrible (but loud) sound systems that pump ethno-pop until 4:00 in the morning. The revelry then continues on the streets. It's hardly the hotel's fault, but if you're planning on restful nights, stay elsewhere • No views to speak of • Non-working TV, some broken fixtures • There are plenty of "working girls" (and some boys) walking the streets at all hours, so be aware. Again, the hotel cannot be held responsible for that, but nevertheless, it may affect your choice. • The streets are VERY narrow, and the parking is sparse and expensive. Car access to the old city is limited; there is a checkpoint at the entry • The prices in the shops vary widely. Walking a few blocks may save you...