A friend and I stayed at Emre’s place for a week in summer and we honestly couldn’t have had a better experience.
Firstly, Emre himself was one of the most helpful, friendly people I’ve ever met. He was easy to communicate with (both in person and through WhatsApp) and responded pretty much immediately when contacted not in person. Nothing was too much hassle for him, he was open to answering any and every question we had. As an example, I had undergone an unexpected surgery prior to our booking and still required daily bandage changes, I explained this before our trip and Emre was able to find me a place nearby to get this done - without his help it would’ve been an absolute nightmare. He also helped with various taxi bookings, amongst other things. Additionally, his knowledge of the neighbourhood and surrounding areas was clearly extensive - overall the perfect host.
Moving on to the actual accommodation - the first thing to talk about is the location... WOW. 5-10 mins walk from Hagia Sophia, the Blue Mosque, Topkapi Palace, Basilica Cistern etc. So many major historical landmarks in one place. Couldn’t have asked for a better, more convenient location. Food choices in the area are plentiful (check out a restaurant called Turgut about 3 mins from Emre’s place - amazing food, great service, cheap prices). Lots of small corner shop types within a couple mins of walking. And if you walk about 10 mins you’ll make it to a main road which houses a huge choice of restaurants, cafe’s and dessert lounges. You’d be hard pushed to find a place to stay in such a great location.
Location out of the way, moving on to the accommodation itself. Emre’s place was clean and the pictures accurately reflect the room itself. There was a reasonable amount of space for suitcases, clothes, purchases etc. Air conditioning in the room worked perfectly and was much needed in the Istanbul summer heat. Only thing to note is no fridge in the room but really this didn’t matter. There was a shop next door where we bought our drinks and these stayed cold in the room when the AC was on. (Water cost less than 50p from here so not an issue to keep buying if it did go a bit warm).
Overall, I’d go back and stay at Emre’s place in a heartbeat (I’m actually planning another trip in a few months so will definitely be staying here again as my first choice if it’s available). Can’t recommend Emre highly enough, a totally deserved 5 stars, I look forward to staying here again.