By Kinyas Hotel: about 300 m from Hagia Sophia

The hotel is in the Cankurtaran district of Istanbul, on Kutlugün Sokak. Its position is the main thing it offers: in a straight line, Hagia Sophia, the Sultan Ahmed Mosque and the Basilica Cistern are each about 0.3 km away, Hagia Irene about 0.4 km, and Topkapı Palace about 0.8 km. Süleymaniye Mosque is about 1.8 km away and Sirkeci railway station about 1 km, both in a straight line.

Istanbul Sabiha Gökçen International Airport (SAW) is about 30.1 km from the hotel, in a straight line. The hotel runs an airport shuttle for a fee, which covers both pick-up and drop-off.

Three of the four room types are compact doubles between 16 and 21 m², and each sleeps up to 3. The Standard Double or Twin Room, at 16 m², is the smallest: it has two twin beds, so it works for friends sharing as well as a couple. The Standard Double Room, at 17 m², has one double bed, and the Deluxe Double Room, at 21 m², also has one double bed and is the room to take if you want the most space among the doubles. All three have a city view.

The Apartment is the outlier: 80 m² with a sofa bed as its bed. With children allowed at the hotel, its size makes it the natural choice for a family, though its bedding is a single sofa bed rather than separate beds. If you want a conventional double bed and a view, the two Standard rooms and the Deluxe all provide that; only the Apartment trades it for space.

The hotel has a restaurant and a bar, and room service if you would rather eat in your room; food can be delivered to the guest room. A lift serves the building, which matters if you have luggage or are travelling with children.

For the airport, the paid shuttle service is the hotel's own arrangement, and the front desk operates around the clock, so late arrivals are not a problem.

Check-in is from 14:00 and check-out until 11:00. Children are allowed. Pets are not allowed, so leave the dog at home. Rooms are non-smoking and air conditioned, with heating for the colder months.

The hotel suits a traveller whose trip is built around the sights at the centre of old Istanbul: Hagia Sophia, the Sultan Ahmed Mosque and the Basilica Cistern are each about 0.3 km away in a straight line, and Topkapı Palace about 0.8 km. It also suits a family that wants one large space rather than two rooms, since the 80 m² Apartment and the children-allowed policy make that possible, and a group of three, since every double room type sleeps up to 3.

It does not suit a traveller bringing a pet, as pets are not allowed. If you want separate beds in one room, only the Standard Double or Twin Room provides them, and if you want more than a sofa bed in the Apartment, that room is not it.