ibis Styles Istanbul Merter

Me and my sister stayed here following her surgery. The staff were extremely helpful and friendly. The food was delicious and good portions. The room was clean and had a fridge, a good powerful shower, air con and a large window (on a safety latch) for fresh air. Unfortunately the TV didn't have any English channels except the news and although it could Bluetooth sound connect to our phones as a speaker we were unable to get it to share our screens so had to watch movies on our phones instead. The cleaner was very friendly and polite whenever we saw her. Room service from the restaurant was easy (view menu online, use the phone to place order, pay when it gets to your door). Free breakfast every morning with a large variety which changed daily. Easily acquired more pillows, towels, toilet paper with no issue. It is no smoking but some rooms definitely were as could smell it in corridors. There are signs saying not to bring outside food in but due to being coeliac and the restaurant not having real options for me I had to walk to nearby migros and a101 shops for my food, I was never stopped bringing it back in thankfully. My sister was buying from the restaurant though so they still did get our custom in general. It said gluten free pasta on the menu but when I ordered they said they'd ran out and suggested other types of pasta instead, so I couldn't trust it after that other than the hard boiled eggs and fruit at breakfast. It's not too far from a mosque so you hear the exam loud and clear 5x a day, but with the window shut it's more soundproof if you need to sleep for example. You also dont hear much at all from other rooms, but not sure if we had direct neighbours during our stay. Lots of stray cats in the area but all looked extremely well looked after and the locals clearly take good care of them. They're friendly and will let you stroke them, just recommend to wash your hands afterwards. Lots of clothing shops nearby with beautiful dresses, replica designers and some children's options too. The traffic can get a bit hectic so be careful when crossing the roads. There is a pool, sauna, steam room, Turkish bath and gym all free to use, and you can book and pay for hairdresser and massages. I wouldn't say the hotel is quite 5*, the carpets looked outdated and faded, the beds could have been better (mattress toppers often slipped out of place), the 2-in-1 wash gel in the bathroom could have been a nicer selection, the TV could have had more options, the restaurant could have catered better for coeliacs, I dont know if there even was a nice bar area but i dont think so. But it was overall a very good stay and definitely met our requirements for a week.