Our hostess communicated very well and was very helpful. Unfortunately we were not able to meet her, but her sweet housekeeper helped us get into the apartment. Our hostess even called the cab for us for the morning we left for the airport. This was a huge help since we would not have known how to describe our location or address if we had called the cab ourselves.

This charming apartment is located in a historic district just north of the Galata Tower near the Historic/Lovely Pera Palace Hotel (Google this hotel and it's history). There are lots of old narrow cobblestone streets with restaurants, bars, etc. You are very close to Istiklal Caddesi promenade which is a huge gathering spot for everyone. We hired a guide while we were there and she reinforced what our travel agent said that this area is not safe to walk at night, so we stayed in the apartment for dinners. However, during the day, we had no problems and were able to explore safely.

If you have any problems with steep steps this will probably not work since we were on the 5th story of a steep spiral staircase climb of steps. The view from the windows in the apartment is spectacular at all times of the day. We saw a big storm blow through and it was amazing from that view point.