ARARAT HOTEL (Sultanahmet)
Warm and low-key, this 12-room hotel flanks the Blue Mosque. Offering A/C throughout, a roof-top terrace where guests can be serenaded five times a day by the call of the muezzin over a glass of wine or espresso. Warm pastels pocked by showy Byzantine murals--painted by Athenian artist Nikos Papadakis--dominate the sparely decorated yet at times confined rooms. The comfort of others may just be ticket; request to check them out prior to letting. Two top-floor rooms join a pleasant lounge, with one overlooking the Blue Mosque's collection of domes, while the other boasts views of the Sea of Marmara and its Princes Islands.
Managed and owned by the debonair Haydar Sarigul, the Ararat benefits from his attention to detail.
ESSENTIALS
Address: Torun Sok. 3, Sultanahmet 34400 Istanbul
Phone: +90.212.516.0411
Email: info@ararathotel.com
Rates: Doubles 75-110 €
Capacity: 12 rooms, 30 PAX
STRICTLY SPEAKING
Air-conditioning – Klima (pron. kleema)