Ottoman Hotel Imperial

Location, Location, Location

My friends and I stayed here for our first visit to Turkey. Ottoman Imperial set the tone for our trip. The hotel was perfectly located to all of the cultural hotspots in Istanbul. We practically walked everywhere; to the Hagia Sophia (which was right in front of the hotel), Blue Mosque, Topkapi Palace, the Grand Bazaar, even to the Ferry stattion for our Bosphorus tour. For the nightclubs, we took a cab to Taksim/Boyuglu for a mere 15 Turkish Lira. The staff was extremely friendly. The free buffet breakfast was delicious -- although, it did get kinda old after the 5th day. Overall, our experience was wonderful, and we’d definitely put Ottoman Imperial on the top of our hotel list on our next visit to Istanbul.

Look no further, stay here

I highly recommend this hotel! This hotel is located in a great spot just down the street from the Blue Mosque and literally right next to Hagia Sophia. There are several other sites within walking distance as well. It is also located close to the tram stop. I have absolutely nothing negative to say about this hotel. Do yourself a favor and stay here while enjoying your vacation in Istanbul.

Great Location, Outstanding Service

This elegant boutique hotel is literally next door to the Hagia Sophia, yet on a quite side street with little traffic. Our room’s balcony overlooked the surrounding neighborhood towards the Bosphorus. Virtually all of the major attractions were within walking distance, and when we went downtown we simply walked to the tram stop. The staff were tremendously helpful in giving directions and answering questions about the area, and responded promptly to all our requests. The breakfast was delicious and the rooms were all in great condition. We didn’t have a single complaint during our entire stay. I would recommend Ottoman Hotel Imperial to anyone visiting Istanbul.

A very "Ottoman" hotel

Perfect location with a warm cozy atmosphere.

Perfect Place in Sultanhmet

Fantastic hotel, very helpful staff, great breakfast! My stay was pleasant and I have no complaints. Would recommend this place to all and would stay there again without any reservations.

Excellent!

Excellent hotel, accommodating of my needs (waived the extra guest charge) and helpful staff. Very close to all major Sultanahmet attractions, and literally right next to the Hagia Sophia.

Istumbul best hottel

The best option you have with this amount of money. Hotel location is fabulous with supper friendly staff. Trust me. Just close your eyes and book it !

Istanbul’s best located Hotel

The Ottoman Hotel Imperial is a small boutique hotel with the best localization possible. Is literally beside the Hagia Sophia, Blue Mosque, Graand Bazar and the topkapi Palace. The staff is very attentious, the breakfast is quite complete with a good variety of fresh food. The room was very good except for the shower box, which was very small. I defnately recommend this hotel, if you’re loohing for the best cost-bennefit ratio available.

Great Place

The Ottoman hotel, what a great place the people make it Fantastic....The breakfast buffet every morning was fantastic,great value and fine people that go out of their way to please, Im very happy with the 9 nights that we stayed their the location is great in old town walking distance to many great sites

Worst Coffee in the world

1.Best Location in Istanbul close to the Hagia Sophia, Blue Mosque. 2. Bad Coffee 3 In the US we would call it a 3 star hotel 4 Rooms are too small and bathrooms even smaller

Can’t wait to go back

excelent price, the best location, architecture, breakfast, free internet, great hospitality

The Best Of Sultan Ahmet

Ottoman Hotel Imperial has an excellent staff willing to help with all your needs. The hotel itself is a historic building and is beuatifully restored. Rooms are spacious, clean, and over excellent.

Perfect Location Perfect staff

This is my 2nd visit and I am happy to recommend to all my friends. The location is perfect for walking to all of the "must see" sites. The staff are always helpful and friendly. The breakfasts offer variety and are of typical, fresh ingredients. The rooms are small but this is a heritage building in a wonderful city. If you want a boring vanilla hotel, stick with the big chains!

Charming with great location...

We stayed at this hotel for our honeymoon. The location is fantastic as is very close to Sultanahmet square, local sites and the metro. The staff was very sweet, especially the porter and the guest services. Yes, the bathtub leaked and we had some issues with the AC, but the staff was responsive and, frankly, we didn’t care. The room was charming (albeit small by American standards), clean, comfortable and the breakfast was very good. We loved it and hope to go to Istanbul again and will definitely stay here again.

Traveler's tip on local attractions

Not related to the hotel specifically, but if you can, take a travel steamer or iron with you. Hotels in Turkey don’t provide one and charge very high rates for laundering and pressing.

Location, Location, Location, Very Good, but...

The location of this hotel makes it a must for a traveler who wants to be at walking distance to all the major sites in Istanbul. The hotel is beautiful and everything was sparkling clean. The problem: the A/C.When we turned the AC on I thought from the beginning that it was not working properly and told the front desk about it. She came in and said it would start to cool after a while, that it was normal and sent for the "technician" who said the same thing without even opening the unit. I was skeptical but we left to do some sightseeing,leaving the card key inserted so that the AC would not turn off. We came back a couple of hours later and the room was still hot. I complained again and she said she would call back the "technician". We told her that we wanted another room, That we had given her the benefit of the doubt the first time, but that we were not staying in that room any longer. She kept ignoring our request for another room. My husband asked for the supervisor, when nothing was done we just started taking all our luggage out of the room into the front lobby. At that point the supervisor we had been asking for finally appeared, (there were new guests coming in and I guess the commotion did not sit well), and we were given a new room.The rest of our stay was fine, apart from the fact that the elevator broke and was not fixed while we were there.The breakfast buffet was very good, the porters were very nice and helpful too.

Traveler's tip on getting the most out of your stay

If location is important to you as it is to us I would highly recommend this hotel, I did not see any other hotel like this nearby and it is very nice. Be very sure to test the AC the moment the room is given to you. Ask for a first floor room if you cannot use stairs in case the elevator breaks, since I believe repairs are not done right away.

A Little Gem

The Ottoman Hotel Imperial was a gem in so many ways. It’s a small boutique hotel, that was just recently renovated with quality furnishings and a fine eye to details - e.g. good lighting and even good position of the double sided mirror (one side magnified - much appreciated by women)in the bathroom. Situated right in the heart of many of the major sites in Istanbul, it is even close to the tram line. Yet, because it’s tucked into a private street a little away from the main street, it is quiet. The staff was very friendly and helpful and the free breakfast that came with the room included a varied selection of some local foods as well - my favorite - raw honey right off the honeycomb.

Excellent hotel

The Ottoman Hotel Imperial was an excellent place to stay for a relaxed holiday in Istanbul. The rooms are a little small but the location is fantastic. It was great to wake up to the Hagia Sofia. The staff were responsive and always very helpful.

Great hotel, just don’t stay in the basement

The location and staff are just great. Unfortunately, I booked the least expensive room in the hotel which was in the basement with a broken thermostat, and so was pretty uncomfortable much of the time. I’d go again, but insist on a room up one or more floors with natural light and a working thermostat.

Next door to all the historic sites

Could not have been closer to all the sites in Istanbul

What a travler EXPECTS

Couldn’t ask for a better hotel.. any traveler would be happy to stay here. I went off season so the prices were more reasonable but regular season could be little pricey.. but if you want good service and a clean room with good utilities and don’t want to be disappointed the Ottoman is the place to go..

Traveler's tip

now the world economic situation has put countries like Turkey in financial distress so expect alot of vendors pestering you to death to buy something.. nothing to do with the hotel.. Grand Bazzar was a dreadful experience because you would be constantly interrupted with offers to ’buy’

Excellent location for sightseeing.

Newly remodled,pleasant staff and English not a problem.Does not stock caffine free/sugar free beverages{including coffee}.Located right on the tram line.

Traveler's tip

Some taxis have difficulty finding the address. Tell them it is directly behind the HAgia Sopihia next to the tram line.

Outstanding location

Adjacent to the Hagia Sophia. Lovely outdoor seating area behind front desk. Extremely helpful concierge. Price is really good for such a great location. Never could get the TV to work but didn’t bother to ask for help. They did forget my wake-up call which could have been disastrous having an early AM flight to catch, but I wouldn’t hold that against them. I would DEFINITELY stay here again!!

Traveler's tip on local attractions

The Cistern The Blue Mosque and Hippodrome The Hagia Sophia Topkapi Palace (especially The Harem)

Great location

Small hotel in the center of the main attractions in Istanbul. Staff very helpful and friendly.

Outstanding hotel, great location, friendly and reliable staff

This was my second stay at the Ottoman Hotel Imperial. The hotel is perfectly located next to the Aja Sophia museum (former main cathedral of Byzantine Orthodox Chrisianity and later a mosque under Islam after the conquest) and an easy walk to the Blue Mosque, Topkapi, the underground Roman cistern, and the Grand Bazaar. The staff is warm and reliable - I have trusted them with early wake-up calls and late-night airport pickups and they have performed without fail. It is a very clean and comfortable hotel. Good price, good service, no complaints!

Traveler's tip on getting the most out of your stay

Two tips: First, don’t miss the archaeological museum on your way to Topkapi. It has some of the best preserved Hellenistic work (Alexander Sarcophagus) that has come down to us. Second, read up a bit on the history of the late Roman empire and Byzantium up through the Ottomans. What has survived in Istanbul is amazing and you will enjoy it more for knowing the history behind it.

Don’t tell anyone

This is the kind of hotel one would want to keep a secret......so that it would be available the next time you travelled. In the hustle of Istanbul this hotel is on a quiet street behind the Hagia Sophia. It is very comfortable and clean and quiet. The breakfast area and patio are just beautiful and it serves a full breakfast. You can walk to all the sights in a couple of minutes..the Blue Mosque, the Grand Bazaar, and the Hagia Sopia was right outside our window. We stayed only one night after a cruise and I am hoping to someday go back.