Pros:
Overall the flat is really nice, the location is good, and Mehmet is a polite and responsive host. We stayed at the flat for 16 days. Certain problems I mentioned to him were not fixed, whereas others were quickly resolved. You won’t find a big grocery store in Balat, rather many smaller stores. You can usually get what you need on Vodina street. For meat, go to a Kasap or walk farther up Ayan CD. Then take a right. The TV has Netflix, which we enjoyed. Nice view from the front balcony. Bedroom is facing a courtyard. it’s always nice and quiet, however at night there are two bright security lights. Also, in the bedroom there is a small window above the balcony door which neighbours can see in from, as well, the blinds do not completely cover, so again neighbours can see inside a little (the bed, where you want privacy). In terms of getting to the city centre on the European side, you have several options, including the ferry at Balat and Fener, with a tram or bus connection in Karikoy, or taking a bus. During our stay there was construction by Galata bridge which made traffic more congested than usual, but usually it’s only a few km. To get to Taksim you can take one bus (55) then walk a little. To get to Sultanahmet square you take a bus to Eminonu or a bus or ferry to Karikoy, then take the tram.
Cons:
The one pan in the kitchen is old and has numerous scratches through the protective coating and needs to be replaced as a safety concern. Mehmet’s assistant brought me to the neighbouring flat to replace the pan, but the pan in the that room (which is another airbnb flat he rents) also had many scratches, so it did not help.
The bathroom often reeks because of a leak I told Mehmet about almost immediately after check in. Water leaks from the shower over towards the toilet and even if the window is left open it will not dry. It often smells horrible. This wasn’t fixed during our stay so we often had to light a candle as having the window open wasn’t enough to get rid of the smell. It would have been an easy fix, removing and applying new silicone.
The kitchen is not well equipped. Only one small dish towel provided. One pot, one pan. And as mentioned pan needs to be thrown out and replaced. Only salt and pepper provided. I understand the flat may be marketed to very short term rentals of a few days, where people won’t use the kitchen, but I think for many people this is below the minimum they expect. There’s also a dishwasher but not enough dishes to use it and still have enough to make another meal.
For the bathroom, a few small shampoo bottles and only two rolls of toilet paper was provided. Again, we had a 16 day stay. Over the course of the rental I had to ask two times for more toilet paper, and two times for more laundry detergent. only one the last day of our stay did Mehmet’s assistant decide to bring more than 2 rolls. It felt like a hassle to constantly ask for some basic amenities that are always provided in an Airbnb.
Light over dining table flickers. Also told the host nearly immediately after check in, was not fixed during the stay, so we kept the light off.
Main door lock doesn’t work, so we couldn’t lock the door during the stay.
Sink in the bathroom is loose, the countertop gets all wet. We also had to ask Mehmet to refill the hand soap in the bathroom as it’s a small bottle.
It is located on the third floor. There is a narrow spiraling staircase. I understand it’s an old building and this is likely normal, however, my girlfriend fell down a few stairs one day, and got bruised up a bit. So it’s nevertheless another consideration/con.