Trip to Istanbul

[kevman]

Can anyone advise please on the best way of booking a mini break to Istanbul.We are looking at going in September.
Do we book our own hotel, and then book flights. Is there a good travel agents  in Fethiye who can help.I am not sure about this but friends coming out in Sept would like us to do this trip so any help on the matter would be gratefully received. Thanks.

[sunnyd]

Try contacting jacqui harvey via her profile, she recently went to Istanbul while she was over in calis.

{A Link to an old CBF topic was here - no longer available}29275

[Jacqui Harvey]

We went to Istanbul for 4 days during our 3 week stay in Calis in June.
We booked online with Turkish Airlines which was very simple.  We flew from Dalaman.
Go to http://www.thy.com/en-INT/
 
It cost £136.00 return for two, however, I have been told on some
occasions you can pick up cheaper flights.
Then we looked at Trip Advisor and paged through the Hotels in
Istanbul.  Go to
http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Hotels-g293974-Istanbul-Hotels.html
 
We picked one and emailed them and booked.
The hotel was wonderful and we will go back again as 4 days
is not enough to see everything.   We loved Istanbul, so will you.
It's better to book yourself as you can then find the Hotel that
suits you and not that suits the travel agent.
Jacqui.

[kevman]

Many thanks for your reply and advice.I will have a look at the websites you have given me.We have actually found a hotel we like so maybe we are half way there.

[kevman]

This may sound a daft question but which airport should we use. I din't realise there was 2.

[Jacqui Harvey]

If you have found a Hotel, check it out first on Trip Advisor and see what the general opinion of it is.

[KKOB]

If you're flying from Dalaman, almost all flights use Ataturk Airport (IST), Istanbul.

If you're flying from the UK, you'll more than likely get cheaper flights into Sabiha Gökçen Airport (SAW), Istanbul.

Check out the Hotel Tashkonak at http://www.hoteltashkonak.com/

[Jacqui Harvey]

We flew to Ataturk Airport.      
We stayed at the Sirkeci Konak Hotel in Istanbul which we hope to return to
on our next trip. Throughly recommend it. It won the Hotel of the Year prize with Trip Advisor this year.   We were watching the storks nesting high in the trees opposite our hotel balcony and were really surprised to see parakeets flying around in the lower branches,  After that we used to see them all the time, seems to be a colony of them in the Park next to Topkapi Palace.

[FrankStanley]

Thanks for info Jacqui, did you need your passports for the hotel?
Dave

[Jacqui Harvey]

Yes, they took them when we booked in and then returned them to us later that day.
Jacqui.