Efendi=High Quality on Short Notice. Two big thumbs up Yusuf…read moreKaraca of Efendi created a luxury package to Cappadocia in the span of three short hours, for a reasonable price. I was in Istanbul and though I could spend a month in the city without getting bored, I started wondering if I should see something more. It is a 12+ hour flight from Miami, so when would I be back? I decided Cappadocia would be perfect. Because Tom Brosnahan's Turkey Travel Planner is my bible for travel in Istanbul and beyond, I took his advice to contact Efendi. I sent a simple email to info@efendi Within minutes, Yusuf was emailing. There were no sales come ons, attempts to upsell or to pressure me to close the deal. There was, a pending deadline, because I was aiming to leave about 48 hours after contacting Efendi. Let me state up front, I'm a very independent traveler. I have seen vast parts of Europe, Latin America and far beyond -- with or without any local language skills -- on my own. I have booked daring travel way back before we had the internet, trip advisor and all the online ways of doing research. So to like a package tour, it had to be near perfect. Right off the bat, Yusuf found a 3-day, 2-night visit for about 500 USD. That was the price I would pay just for round trip flights, had I booked on short notice on my own. We ultimately settled on a package costing roughly 600 USD (we could have gone as remarkable low as nearly 400 USD) to ensure a great time. I was staying in an area on the tramway in Sirkechi. All of my previous taxis, ubers and drivers dropped me off blocks from my hotel. Pickups were more strung out delayed and confusing. Yusuf assured me that my driver would be at the door of my hotel, plus he would call ahead to let the front desk know if he was arriving late at all. This gave me such comfort and assurance. Through a smart phone, while tidying up my room, doing some light sink laundry, organizing my receipts and recharging my camera batteries on the middle day of a 14-day trip, Efendi completed the itinerary. Even though I could easily call up word docs and PDFs on my phone, Yusuf personally delivered a print out to my hotel and insisted the front desk place it in my room. The 600 USD included transfer to and from Ataturk airport, coach seats on a larger than I imagined jet to Nevsehir Airport, transfer from that Cappadocia area airport to my hotel and back, plus two full days of touring itinerary with an English speaking guide. Best of all, the extra 100 or so I spent got me a prime room at Yunak Evelri Cave Hotel. Now there are hundreds of cave hotels in Cappadocia, but few are a 4 to 5 star that Yunak is. The service was superb, the finishes amazing, the common areas upscale, etc. I feared the restaurant would be mediocre and expensive, since it was a bit of a hike into the ancient village of Urgup for a dining alternative. But it was the opposite a multilevel lounge deck -- with spectacular views of the canyon around us and the hotel's cliff facade -- welcomed with a fireplace, hip music (volume not too loud) and an array of items. Eating late and on the road, I opted for a simple margarita pizza and a gourmet, ultra thin crust creation arrived with a price tag far less than you'd pay in the states. Breakfast -- 95% of Turkish small hotels, be they rural or urban, have a buffet spread in the morning -- had all the traditional Turkish white cheeses, breads, olives, pickles and dips -- along with enough warm food, jams and other items to appeal to the more western palate. The room at Yunak was spectacular, though it involved climbing very many outdoor, smooth marble stair cases. It had a very modern and luxurious bath. There was a heater, but I never needed it. Plenty of comfy sheets and blankets made me at ease with the constant 67 degree interior. The room was large as a suite, stocked with free bottled water and amazing to sleep in, what with it's carved niches from being an ancient cave home. Each day, I was picked up around 9:30 a.m. and taken around to all the key sites and museums. I must say, the buffet lunch was fairly mediocre, but no lacking for items. There must have been 100 things to choose from, which is good for the picky eaters. Efendi and Yusuf even helped trouble shooting a problem of my own creation. The number one thing I wanted to see was the Goreme Open Air Museum. We were supposed to see it on the first day, but the on-site tour operator switched my itinerary. Day 1 was a long hike and my knee was acting up. The weather for the next day called for storms. I pictured my only visit to Cappadocia being marred by a sore knee and rain sweeping away photos I wanted to take in Goreme. I offered to leave the tour halfway into Day 1 and pay a taxi to Goreme. The tour guide was polite, but balked at it. I dialed Yusuf (he gave me his cell and told me to call 24/7) and quickly, the tour driver was depositing me in Goreme with the understanding that I would not have travel protection

This was one of the best airport pickups ever. The booknig process was fast, easy and accurate,…read morethe price was the cheapest out there and the staff were very helpful. The driver was waiting at the airport as promised in a nice vehicle and managed to get us to our apartment in spite of having an incomplete address. The pickup was on time and again very smooth. Drivers spoke good English and were courteous. Recommend these folk highly.

Stayed at this hotel for 2 nights. The location is great. It's literally across the street of the…read moreHagia Sophia Museum. The Blue mosque and the Basilica Cistern are only a few minutes walk. The room was clean and the staff was attentive. Our room faced the street with some noise from the street car though it wasn't too loud. The included breakfast buffet offered a good selection of different choices. One drawback is that taxis can't drive all the way to the hotel and you'll have to carry your luggage for roughly 2 blocks. The hotel also doesn't have an elevator.

If you're looking for a reasonably priced hotel with clean rooms and a great staff look no further…read more This grand old hotel is right in the center of all the historic things you will want to see. You can just walk to all the sites. Their restaurant and breakfast spaces have stunning views of Istanbul history. There is great pride taken by the staff to make sure that you feel welcomed. Recommend without reservation, Mike and Dionne Wilson

I'll start with WOW and go from there. I've done a few of the free walking tours with the…read moreSandeman's folks and they did a great job in Edinburgh and Prague but they're not in Istanbul so I turned to Yelp and found these folks. Meeting by the Cistern, we walked a solid 20,000 steps (according to my Fitbit) through a half dozen of Istanbul's best known sites including the Topkapı Sarayı, the Blue Mosque, the Hippodrome and Hagia Sophia. Along the way, we made several stops and there were a good number of spots where our super tour guide gave us time to explore on our own. When she led us around, she had constant knowledge of the sites and the city of Istanbul and of Turkey. A vast and deep knowledge. I was impressed. Our tour was well organized and well run. The lunch spot was excellent. A couple of tips. - Bring a backpack and a bottle or two of water. - An umbrella is a good idea as the tour runs even if it's raining. - Sunscreen! - Comfortable walking shoes that have a good tread. Istanbul's streets are smooth stone and you don't want to slip and fall. - For the Blue Mosque, you'll be expected to dress appropriately. There are free head coverings. - Extra batteries for your phone/camera. You will take a lot of pictures in six hours! - Pay attention to the meet up spots after the self-exploration. A certain Yelper *cough* Bruce K. *cough* got himself separated from the tour and was nearly stuck on his own until he spotted the green umbrella!

In the past year I've had some pretty fun adventures all over the USA, in China, Korea, Australia,…read moreNew Zealand, Canada, Germany, the UK, Spain, the UAE, and now Istanbul. While I've had a lot of fun in all those places, I can say unequivocally that my Istanbul Classics small group tour with Metin has been the best $90 USD I have ever spent on any activity in any of those places. If you are considering a tour of Istanbul and questioning whether you should do it with Daily Istanbul Tours, with some other tour organizer, or on your own, I can assure you that the best decision will be to book with DIT and be sure to request Metin as your guide. I won't bore you with details of the sites we saw, since you can get all of that information from their website. What I'll do instead is share a little about why this tour ended up being the highlight of our holiday: * It's easy enough to find and get into the sites, but there is so much information out there about them that it's really hard to distill it all into useful material. Metin is an expert on each site and knows exactly what the most interesting and relevant details are; he'll definitely help you make the most of your time at each place you go. Going on our own would be been stupid; we would have wasted hours wandering around, not really knowing what the more significant parts were or what we were looking at, etc. With so little time and so much to see, it was important to use our time efficiently, which we definitely did. * There can be something intimidating about being in a foreign country, especially if you are easily recognizable as a foreigner, don't speak the language, and aren't traveling with a group. Spending a day with Metin lets you truly relax and focus on the amazing sites without having to constantly watch your back or worry about getting screwed (which is a concern in any major city). With Metin, there's no pressure to buy any random crap, no worries about cultural faux-pas, and nobody bothering you at all when they see you are with him. If someone does approach you, he will dispatch them quickly. * Whatever random questions you have, I guarantee Metin will be able to answer them. Want to know what material a wall was built from? Metin knows its chemical composition. Want to know what year a building was constructed? He can tell you when each part of it was created, how long it took, how it was made, who made it, how many times it has been destroyed, where the materials came from, etc. Curious about some Turkish or Islamic history? Metin knows the years, the people, the hows, and the whys. And don't worry about being able to understand him and communicate easily; his English is fantastic, with a slight British accent on some words, which is an extra bonus for us Americans who don't get to hear real English very often * Metin is very personable and took a sincere interest in making sure we had the best possible time in Istanbul. When I mentioned that I really wanted to smoke some narguile, he made sure we were able to get some after our lunch. While we were hanging out at the café, several of his friends happened to be passing by or were around, so he introduced us to all of them and we ended up having some very interesting conversations. We had such a great time on the tour but didn't have any plans later for our last night in Istanbul, so Metin invited us to meet up with them later since they would be hanging out along Istiklal near our hotel. We ended up spending another few hours together that evening and into the early morning hours talking about all sorts of interesting topics, exploring some really fascinating areas that we would otherwise have missed, and meeting more people. This was advertised as a 4 to 6-person small group tour, but due to the season and perhaps people's irrational fears about coming to Turkey, it ended up just being me, my dad, and Metin. This definitely helped contribute to the awesomeness of the experience, but I have no doubt that a group of any size would get great value out of a tour with him as well. We owe a tremendous debt of gratitude to Daily Istanbul Tours and Metin for making our trip to Turkey so memorable.

I was surprised how nice this hotel was and how well it met all my needs during my stay in…read moreIstanbul. Location: Top marks here. It is so close to everything that we needed to get to. A few mins. walking distance to the Mosques and Bazaars and the Sultanamet train station. The only thing is I wouldn't recommend eating in this area as things are quite expensive since it is the touristy area. It does quiet down a lot at night time since the mosques close. Service: everyone here was nice and courteous. They spoke English and was able to give us tips and recommendations. They even mailed out my postcard for me on my last day here because I couldn't make a trip to the post office! I Just paid them in cash! Oh yeah, free water bottles! Just ask. Food: I didn't know just how good I had it until I went to another hotel later but the breakfast buffet here is top notch!! SUCH variety and everything tasted so good! They not only had a spread of the cold deli meats and breads, but they had hot foods every morning too! It wasn't all vegetarian either! I was very impressed and was able to eat my fill. Having a hearty breakfast really set us up for the rest of the day because we were able to skip lunch and just have a good dinner. Fully recommend taking advantage of the delicious breakfast. Rooftop - the sights here was beautiful. I was able to wake up really early one morning and take in the quietness of the streets and see all bridge and Blue Mosque in the light of dawn. Gorgeous. Room: Since we didn't spend much time in the room, it was perfect for what we needed. It was small, just enough for a bed and a place for our suitcase but again, it's what we needed. Bathrooms were clean and shower pressure was good. Price: I booked it on Expedia and it really was a great price. This place is a prime example where value and quality can be had altogether.

I had stayed at the Adamar Hotel back in 2009, and had an awesome experience then. So when I was…read moreplanning my return trip to Istanbul for 10 days at the end of October, I knew where I would stay. And I am so pleased to report that the Adamar Hotel is still as amazing. I made online reservations directly through the hotel, and found they have online offers, such as shuttle pickup from airport with a certain length of stay, and discount for cash. Making a reservation was easy, and they responded quickly to any questions. There are now 3 wonderful men at the front Reception desk: Halil (whom I met from my first stay), Ilhan, and Gokhan. All three men were incredibly helpful, respectful, and friendly. They were endlessly patient with my questions, need for directions, and forgetting/mispronouncing their names! They handled payment quickly and efficiently, and provided good ideas for sightseeing and dining. In addition, Evrim, Burak and Emre also work in the reception area and were kind, friendly, and always eager to help with anything needed. The rooms had been updated, and I found them to still be spotlessly clean. The housekeepers Sengul and Turkan did a fabulous job of keeping my room clean, and always gave me welcoming smiles. The rooms are a bit small, but no smaller than any of the European rooms I have stayed in. My room (204) had large windows, and was very bright and cheery. Windows opened, and when closed really blocked the outside noise well. The bed was a bit hard, but comfortable. The best part was a power heating/AC unit that kept the room comfortable at all times. The upstairs breakfast area is truly the star here (well, in addition to the wonderful staff!!). The breakfast is still bountiful and delicious. Selda who works here is also friendly and will take your order for one of their fabulous omelets. All food is fresh and well prepared. The view is unequaled, and there is a beautiful serenity to starting your day gazing out onto the Hagia Sophia and Blue Mosque. There is free Wi Fi throughout the hotel which was strong and worked well. There is also a computer in the lobby to use for printing needed documents. Overall, in my 10 day stay here I felt like I was staying with my family. I feel incredibly close to the staff, as if they were all my friends, brothers and sisters. I felt safe and protected, and there is just some kind of magic at this hotel. Each and every staff member here clearly takes pride in their work and doing a great job. I plan on returning again to Istanbul in a few years and look forward to staying here again. I miss them already!

The food and service were exceptional. The view was an added bonus, had a wonderful stay and dine…read morethere.

This review is for the spa on the lower level, not the hotel. I found this spa while dining at the…read morerestaurant attached to the hotel. I spoke with the manager at the front desk whom was such a great guy and very helpful. We booked our Turkish baths for later that day and came back and had an AMAZING experience. We had time in the sauna, then the turkish bath followed by a massage. My girls and I wanted to come back everyday during our trip but we couldn't because we were too busy being tourist. Definitely will return!

Extremely touristic but great location and the rooftop is one of the best I've ever seen for a…read morescenic panorama of gorgeous Istanbul. Hotel has a really great gift shop and also a very nicely done ultra high quality luxury bag (all fakes of course) boutique located in the lobby! Some of the best designer (like Hermès) copies I've ever seen... If you're only in Istanbul for a day or two, this is a great place to stay because the hotel is luxurious and in an ideal location for sight seeing + panoramic dining + a designer copy shopping extravaganza all in one place in Sultanahmet.

My husband went to this hotel this past summer. Our good family friend Mahmut Celik was also there…read moreto meet my husband and his friend. My husband was really happy with the hotel and said the Best food he had there was the hotels top Food dinner! Thank you again for your hospitality and service!

Staff is friendly and helpful. Breakfast is included and the highlight is the fresh cherry and…read moreapple juice with a wonderful lady making to order gozleme. A store is right across the street for provisions. You can walk to Blue Mosque and many shops/restaurants.

Hotel Amira was the second hotel that I stayed in to get a different point of view. It is located…read moreon Sultanahmet's side which is within walking distance of Hagia Sofia, Blue Mosque, and the Grand Bazaar. All of these sites are quite famous and usually take a long time to get in. But during November it is their low season so it was less busy than I have seen it before. Hotel Amira was also my first time staying at this boutique hotel which cost was quite reasonable. The only negative thing is maybe the stairs if you have heavy luggage you will need some assistance depending on which floor you get. We got the 7th room number which doesn't have an elevator to connect to that level. But besides that it was fine. The staff here is quite friendly and nice. If you have any questions just ask them and they will be able to help you out. The rooftop is closed though since it is cold but you can still go on top of it and take some photos of the view. It is fantastic to see the ocean on one side and also the mosque on the other. For a boutique hotel, the location, area, and being able to walk around at all the most famous places in Istanbul is quite nice!