Look no further! Just read this!
So, we booked this place from the US (Chicago) back in fall 2021 for December 2021.
The host (and her mom) were super helpful and accommodating! From start to end!
Tiba answered to all of my questions before my trip started and was so helpful.
So we arrived at the IST airport in Istanbul and made a mistake by taking the bus. It took us 1 hour and 30 minutes by bus to taksim square. With luggage and a moderate walk it took us about 25 minutes to get to Tiba’s place (it’s really not that close as the streets have LOTS of ups and downs—very steep alleys) Though I must say that for younger people the walk to and from the airbnb is easier—still longer than 10 minutes. But with my older parents we had to get taxis all the time as the walk was just too much…so keep that in mind if you are traveling with older people!
The airbnb itself has d EVERYTHING and I mean everything you could think of! Clean sheets, additional blankets, pillows, hair spray, shampoos, scissors, cookware, everything!! Don’t bring anything because Tiba has you covered!!
Her mom greeted us with warm fresh simit (turkish bread) and showed us the apartment. She was such a joy to talk to!
When we first got there something was going on with the electricity in the building and we did not have electricity for couple of hours (which sucked as the temperatures were in the 30s/Fahrenheit and it was pretty cold). Tiba apologized a billion times and it was not really her fault…her mom even brought us fresh bread the next day…so sweet of her!
Every time I had a question Tiba was there to respond!! Seriously within less than 15 minutes I would get a response from her and god knows how many questions I had. ;)
The market in front of the house was so convenient and they had everything! There was also a delicious persian mini-restaurant called “sandwich amoo mohammad” close by which was just wonderful!
The apartment was located in a very safe neighborhood! However it does not have any bells so if we had guests or delivery they had to knock on the window.
It was also difficult for taxis to find the place so I would always put in the address of the hotel that was nearby (Fox Hotel) which helped!
One more thing I like to mention are the thin walls. Every night between 12.30 am-2 am you would hear the neighbors make animal sounds (I know it sounds strange). They would yell and scream and you could hear that from the second bedroom and the living room. But if sound doesn’t bother you then you should be fine! I slept in the main bedroom where those sounds could not be heard!
Water pressure in the bathroom was also great!
Would I stay there again? Yes, absolutely! It was super convenient for three people! And as mentioned earlier the hosts made our stay just wonderful! Thanks Tiba!!