I have a lot to say on our experience with the stay and I will start with the positives of course:
1. Central location in Beyoglu. Istiklal street, Galata tower, Galata port, Taksim square all at a walking distance from the hotel. A lot of restaurants and food options to try out. Sea view at a walking distance and market nearby catering all one needs during their vacations.
2. Room was nice, not very spacious but very close to the pictures. I would say the cleanliness could have been better as the bathroom had stains on the floor.
3. As a goodwill gesture, the receptionist gave us an Istanbul card free of cost so that we can commute hassle free.
4. Our room had a galata tower view which was a nice experience
There were a lot of drawbacks/cons that we experienced which I might say could be one off and other people might not experience it if the communication goes straight.
1. We initially chose this place because our flight timings were very early in the morning (2am) and we spoke to the host about this, and it was communicated that it is not an issue and the check in could be done at any time. However, this was not the case. When we arrived at the location, we were told that all the rooms are booked and the check in would be at 2pm in the afternoon. We stayed out the whole night exhausted from 11 hours flight and nowhere to go. We tried finding another suitable place to stay for that night but couldn't fetch any good place. This ended up in a frustrated exhaustion and we couldn't enjoy the first 2 days of our stay in Istanbul. We were literally so tired from the experience.
2. We stayed at the reception area that whole night which was itself a very congested place. My husband lied on the stairs on the apartment and i was offered one uncomfortable chair to stay on until afternoon ( for 10 hours).
3. This became even more frustrating because of two things a) firstly, we also requested air shuttle transfer from the host, and he knew that will be arriving when it will be dark outside and there would be nowhere to go at 3am in the morning. He confirmed the air shuttle transfer but still didn't tell us that the room is not yet available b) secondly, when confronted about this, he said that it is our mistake that we didn't communicate it clearly, although, I showed him the Airbnb messages where we clearly mentioned the time and other details.
4. The only thing that held us there was one receptionist (Eren) who was very friendly and tried his best to help us out. He was calling his other hotel friends etc to help us find a place for that night and because of all this we thought to still give this place a go.