Ottomans Tugra Hotel

We had booked the hotel for 5 nights using our Avios points from British Airways. The hotel used to be called the Ottomans Tugra and only recently changed its name to Darul Eman. Maybe that was a sign!! It can only be found as the former in Google maps. We were given 2 adjoining queen bedrooms. The rooms were dirty and the wallpaper was peeling from the walls in the corners. We insisted on getting the rooms cleaned properly. The housekeeping staff failed to clean our rooms one day because we did not leave our rooms before 10AM! Needless to say the housekeeping staff were terrible. When we checked in we told the hotel staff that the phone and TV in one room and the bathroom sink in the other room did not work. From the second day out air conditioner would switch off after a couple of hours. It seems that the thermostat was malfunctioning. I had to switch it on when every few hours every night. Despite talking with the staff on several occasions, nothing was done to fix these problems. The front desk staff, Sukr, was either asleep or on the phone. He was utterly useless. When I requested for some ice for my injured knee, I was told that they did not have ice! The manager Murat continued to remind me that he was new rather than doing anything to address these issues. The only useful member of the staff was Erkan, the night staff, who gave us some toilet paper, towels, and shampoo when the housekeeping staff failed to stock these items. The "free breakfast" consisted of stale bread, cucumber, tomatoes, and eggs. We refused to eat it again. Needless to say, we had a terrible time at the hotel and minimized the amount of time we spent in it.

It has a good location close to Blue Mosque on a quiet street. Nice rooms with a good double bed. Bank cards accepted. They have an Intersting design for the rooms and whole hotel. Helpful personal ready to answer all the questions.

We were assigned to this hotel because our Travel Agency had booked us into a hotel 90km from the centre of Istanbul! Imagine our shock when we discovered this! Very glad we networked with friends who had been to Istanbul before us.We wanted to be within walking distance of the main attractions - not 90km away! Darul Eman fitted this bill perfectly. It is in a quiet street in the old part o the City of Istanbul. It took us less than 20 minutes to reach Sultanahmet Square on foot - and we are pensioners! The hotel is small but the staff are friendly and very helpful. A word of caution though - there is no elevator. Meals and sundowners on the rooftop terrace requires navigation of a rather steep and twisted staircase.Once there the view is wonderful.