Hotel Carino

I booked this hotel through booking.com. Before submitted, the web-site should check the hotel's real situation. I never saw any smile from the all staffs in this hotel. The facilities are terrible and not clean! Laundry machine, coffee pot is awful and dirty. My purpose to stay this hotel is using this kind of facilities for cooking, laundry etc. But, it's really terrible and I really wanted to check-out immediately when I just saw the room.

Perfect location, very close to Agia Sophia, Blue mosque, Basilica Cisterna, restaurants, tram station. All the above within a max 5 min walk. Hotel staff is friendly and helpful although they give an impression of amateurs. The food served at the restaurant is good and cheaper than the rest of the area. The rooms were spacious, with tv, wifi available but not fast, enough for email and some browsing. Bathroom was decent and clean with hot water all day. We stayed at the hotel for 4 nights for 55€/night which is a very reasonable price for the area and the quality of service. From my personal view, 65-70€/night depending on the season is a limit for this hotel if you just want a nights sleep after an exhausting day of sightseeing . Breakfast is poor (bread, boiled eggs, tomato, cucumber, olives, cheese, tea (coffee is extra cost)) but healthy and enough for a days start. Our room was never made and had to ask for clean towels and toilet paper. Room was not clean (dust on furniture and hand stains on cabinets). Small balcony on the 2nd floor with no view.

If you are not worried much about a stuffed up toilet plus shower and don't mind absence of star-rated room, then hotel Queen (old name Tarino hotel) is ideal for you. Its easy on budget cost (as compared to other hotel in the area) and located in the middle of where most tourists' attractions are in SultanAhmet, Fatih, Istanbul. Basilica cistern (underground water storage) Topkapi palace, Hagia Sophia (AyaSofya), Gulhane park, Blue mosque, Hippodrome, Grand Bazaar are all in few minutes (max 10, min 3 minutes) walking distance. Similarly easily accessible to tram/bus station, ATM, money exchange and grocery stores. Location couldn't have been more ideal with €85 per night for a triple room. Its a mixed bag. Staff is hospitable but their resources are very limited. Breakfast is added to the room rate but calling it a breakfast will be a joke. However, we requested for an omelet and they tried their best, still couldn't call it an omelette but was something better than nothing. At least one person who could speak reasonable English was always available, so it was a big relief. The lift cannot carry more than 3 persons, and that too only if all 3 stand tightly close to each other, what to talk about carrying luggage with you. Likewise stairs are narrow, very narrow indeed, and the thought of a fire breakout in the hotel scares the daylight out of you. Am not joking. They charged us €85 for a triple room per night while Istanbul hotel across the street was charging €225 for the same room, so you get the idea. Still, I will think twice before going back to this hotel again. Lone traveler or a person with low budget can take a chance though.