The Best Boutique Hotels to Book in Istanbul, Turkey

Imagine melting into a massage table while two hands unwind every knot between your shoulders. Now, envision your experience at Hotel Amira only getting better after your full-body pampering. This boutique hotel in Istanbul will wow you in its massage room, but the Amiralto Roof Bar and Restaurant will leave you speechless. When your mouth isn’t full of corba (red lentil soup) and manti (Turkish dumplings), the views of the Marmara Sea and Sultanahmet will take your breath away.

Velvet chairs, brocade bedspreads and marble bathrooms with mosaic-walled showers are standard-level opulence in the fancy rooms at the Romance Istanbul Hotel, a leafy stroll away from Topkapı Palace. Luxury rooms come with private terraces, and the Romance suite has a hot tub that’s perfect after a day of sightseeing. You won’t go hungry – a big breakfast buffet and three restaurants make sure of that. At the Sultania Restaurant across the street, glowing tones are inspired by the Hoca Paşa Mosque nearby; sit out on warm evenings, dining on grilled sea bass.

Stylish minimalism characterises the snug, wood-floored rooms at the Bankerhan, found on a boutique-lined, cobbled lane in Galata. There are glimpses of brick vaulting in the ceilings and other original details retained in the 18th-century building. Some rooms have views of the broad blue Bosporus, and the ferries that ply it are a short stroll away. There’s a cosy cafe on the ground floor and a modern art gallery nearby. Next door, take a photo at the highly Instagrammable art nouveau Kamondo Stairs, then follow a series of winding alleyways up to the Medieval Galata Tower, a five-minute walk away.

From the wicker chairs on the tiled roof terrace, you get views over the spired Blue Mosque, a few steps from the door, to the maritime expanses beyond. Below, contemporary elegance with a historical frisson permeates these two knocked-through, early-20th-century Ottoman mansions. Next door to the Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts, this Istanbul hotel is named after Suleiman the Magnificent’s friend Ibrahim Pasha, who built the 16th-century palace that now houses the museum. The lobby, with leather sofas, log fires and a library of guide books, is as appealing as the magnificent terrace. The spacious, tasteful bedrooms are full of thoughtful details, from the fruit bowls to the unique decor.

With industrial good looks and a popular cafe bar, this boutique hotel is a great find in the hip waterfront Karaköy quarter, near the Galata Bridge. Expect to find brushed-concrete walls and bolted metal bedsteads, luxury bedding, wooden floors and rain showers (very stylish). The colourful, glass-walled SuB Lounge is the place for traditional breakfasts, including menemen (scrambled eggs, peppers and tomatoes, served in a copper pan, that you dip bread into); also, try the samosa-like fried börek pastries stuffed with feta. To drink, you’ll find decent wine and the national aniseed tipple, raki.

Between the mosque-circled walkways of the Sultanahmet parks and the wide, seagull-flecked waters of the Bosporus is this quirky little idyll of colourful rooms all named after international writers, actors, characters and composers with an Istanbul connection. Paintings over the beds depict the eponymous figures in situ; for example, Pushkin leans on a waterside chair. The Charlie Chaplin room comes with a patio; the French exotic-story writer Pierre Loti gets a leafy, sea-view terrace.

The daytime view from the flowering roof terrace at this luxury hotel in Istanbul is full of mosques, palaces and sparkling blue water; after dark, you’ll see domes and minarets floodlit sodium-orange. You can have breakfast up here or bring your own food for lunch (there’s a fish and kebab shop next door). The stately hotel entrance, flanked by gilded, acanthus-topped columns, overlooks a cheerful street near the Hagia Sophia. Lavish bedrooms, with French windows and balconies, favour peach, cream and gold with plenty of Ottoman-style carvings and ogees – all in all, it’s a high-end relaxation spot after a hard day of sightseeing.

The 12 bespoke rooms at this Istanbul hotel present a splendid example of neo-Ottoman architecture, showing off lofty ceilings, handcrafted Italian furniture and gold-leaf detailing. North of the 15 July Martyrs Bridge (the one that looks like a grey Golden Gate) on the Anatolian banks of the Bosporus, this four-star boutique hotel might be smaller than the Beylerbeyi Palace down the road, but it’s hardly any less glamorous. Its precursor, the Debreli Ismail Pasha Mansion, burned down in 1983 and was reconstructed in the 1990s, complete with a waterfront restaurant and a leafy garden that used to be the palace’s harem.

Named after the grand port on the Golden Horn when Istanbul was Constantinople, the Neorion Hotel greets travellers as they would have been welcomed in days gone by. The facade is intricately decorated with tiles and brickwork, while the lobby brims with Anatolian relics. Meanwhile, the cafe serves traditional Turkish meze, and the in-house spa offers a glimpse into the hammam experience. Between the Topkapı Palace and the Galata Bridge, the 30 rooms are old-fashioned – prepare to be greeted with a piece of folk art above your pillow – but represent good value.

Originally a 19th-century convent that housed Franciscan nuns, the Soeurs Garde-Malades Apartment was revamped in 1901 before falling into disrepair two decades later. But much like the rest of the multicultural Galata district, the building was rejuvenated in the 2000s by Tomtom Suites, which faithfully restored the structure to become one of the top all-suite hotels in Istanbul. Hidden on a quiet street between İstiklal Avenue and the Karaköy waterfront, the 20 suites have huge bedrooms, hammam-style bathrooms decked out with whirlpool baths, and access to a rooftop lounge with views as far as the Princes’ Islands.

Local designers transformed this 1882 structure into a trendy boutique hotel in 2011, blending vintage elements, such as decorative plasterwork and sunny French windows, with contemporary touches, such as exposed brick and patterned hardwood floors. The highlight is the rooftop Restaurant 24, both for the cutting-edge contemporary Turkish cuisine and the vistas across the Golden Horn towards the peninsula. A Parisian flavour streaks through the 20 rooms, while the personalised butler service is pure luxury.

The Kanlıca neighbourhood is renowned for its especially creamy yoghurt, and the A’jia is equally decadent. This huge white Ottoman mansion stands on the Asian shore of the Bosporus and offers a tour of the strait on a luxury yacht. You can also book an in-room massage. Most of the 16 rooms enjoy views over the water, and the seaside restaurant is first-class.

There’s no mistaking this larger-than-life hotel in Istanbul – its Ottoman-era facade is plastered in bright turquoise paint. Its interior is no more subtle, with the lobby full of traditional Turkish lamps, vintage cameras, retro radios, collectable clocks and record players, not to mention the charming (and no less colourful) garden cafe. Sharing the same block as the ancient Basilica Cistern, this super-central hotel also has the best budget beds on the peninsula, with 16 homely rooms available at reasonable prices.

This four-star hotel counts the Hagia Sophia as a next-door neighbour, and the facilities live up to the peerless Sultanahmet location. This Ottoman mansion was converted into Boutique Saint Sophia in 1999 and then given another head-to-toe makeover in 2013, adding Bianco Carrara marble, Bulgari cosmetics and moody pictures of Istanbul to the 26 rooms and suites. The below-ground courtyard is a highlight, especially come 5pm when high tea is served.