I loved having a safe, clean, and spacious “home” in Istanbul. My family and I were a short walk (10-15 mins) away from the Blue Mosque and just a few more from Topkapi Palace. There was also a grocery store within walking distance making me appreciate the amenities of a large fridge, stove, toaster oven and microwave. There is even a pretty great washer and dryer combo unit In the kitchen.
The house was very clean and I liked how the windows (when closed) really muffled any noise outside the apartment. I initially thought climbing the steps up (two flight of stairs) would be hard, but it was not too difficult given the regular walking (sometimes uphill on the cobbled streets) we did during the stay.
There were plenty of extra blankets in the closet and the host even provided three umbrellas for use, if needed. There was plenty of dish ware (mugs, bowls, utensils, and even serving trays) to use and we only had to run the dishwasher (tablets were provided) once, when we filled it! Food was not provided, but I appreciated the salt and sugar containers as well as a few electric water kettles, dish soap and liquid soap provided.
It may have been a bit more comfortable at night if I had asked for a small fan for the bedrooms because it would get a bit stuffy at night when I’d close the windows (not wanting to hear street noise). The AC in the living room worked well too. It was nice watching National Geographic (in English!) along with a few other US stations when we wanted to.
I very much liked the mattress in the master bedroom, very firm! It was a bit tricky using the hand shower to bathe (I could tell that at one point it was mounted, but must have broken at some point), but we managed to get a hang of it. It was still great taking a hot shower after a long day of sightseeing.
The host did a fantastic job communicating both before and during our stay. Having WiFi (pretty strong connection) was very helpful as I did not buy a SIM or a roaming plan. This was a great stay!