Russian travel blogger Sasha Konovalova has outlined the main mistakes travelers make when booking hotels in Istanbul that can ruin a holiday. Writing on her personal blog on the Dzen platform, she warned that navigating accommodation in the Turkish city requires careful planning.
Konovalova explained that Istanbul is a unique destination where three-star hotels can sometimes turn out to be cleaner and cozier than five-star establishments. Official star ratings in the city often fail to guarantee quality, serving instead as an indicator of available infrastructure.
According to the blogger, features such as small room sizes and the absence of an elevator automatically lower a hotel rating. For this reason, luxury five-star properties are particularly difficult to find within the historic center of Istanbul.
Room size and storage limitations
She urged tourists to check the exact floor area of a room prior to making a reservation. Rooms across Istanbul are frequently tiny because many hotels occupy historic buildings that cannot be demolished or structurally altered.
Konovalova recommended that guests who need space to unpack and hang their clothes verify whether the room includes wardrobes and shelves. In some Istanbul properties, basic storage fixtures may be missing entirely.
The blogger added that several hotels in the city do not feature elevators due to space limitations in older structures. She warned that travelers with leg problems or mobility issues would find it difficult if their only available room was located on the fourth floor.
Terrain and vehicle access
Another key characteristic of Istanbul is its steep topography, where pedestrians are almost constantly walking uphill or downhill. In the historic center, taxis are unable to drive directly to hotel entrances, requiring guests to walk five to seven minutes through a pedestrian zone.
Carrying a heavy suitcase along pedestrian streets can be challenging, but Konovalova noted that arriving unprepared for outdoor stairs poses an even greater difficulty. She advised holidaymakers to check reviews and examine property locations on Google Maps to identify potential staircases before booking.
The warnings follow previous advice from the blogger, who earlier identified five common tourist mistakes in the city. At the time, she stated that the worst error a traveler could make was booking accommodation far away from the historic center.
