Alex, Jess, and I recently returned from our annual squad trip. After our stay in Budapest, we went to Istanbul. Jess and I had been there separately before, but it was Alex’s first trip. We were there on a holiday weekend, so sadly, it meant a lot of time in taxis getting around. 

Flights from Budapest

We all flew Turkish Airlines from Budapest to Istanbul in economy class. It was less than two hours long, and I paid for it with a Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card credit. We were in the bulkhead seats, and that made it very comfortable. 

Park Hyatt Istanbul Review

We all love Hyatt’s Park Hyatt brand. We booked our room for 25K Hyatt points per night and used a Suite Upgrade Award. The Spa Suite we had for our stay had a king bed, and we had them bring in a rollaway bed for the snorer. 🙋🏻‍♀️

 

 

This room also had a sauna, which we never actually used, and a small self-service hammam. The bathroom was large with a separate toilet area and wash area, and there was also another room with a sauna, shower, and bathtub. 

 

 

The décor was nice, but the room was too dark for my tastes and, sadly, I don’t rate it high on my Park Hyatt favorites list. Kind of shocking for me, right? I had stayed at the Ritz-Carlton on my earlier visit to Istanbul and preferred that hotel over the Park Hyatt.

Food at the Park Hyatt Istanbul

The Globalist breakfast was great—there was a huge buffet with the option to order items of a menu too. I particularly enjoyed the waffles. There was also a woman making Gözleme, a thin treat that’s kind of like a crêpe or quesadilla. I enjoyed the cheese and potato ones, and a Nutella one (of course). 

 

 

 

 

It was held at the hotel’s Greek restaurant, Kalimera. The décor almost made me forget I was in Istanbul because it looked so much like Greece. We had dinner there the first night, and it was delicious—fresh fish and delicious crispy shrimp.

Activities in Istanbul

On our first day, we went on a tour of the city with a guide Jess had worked with before, and he was great. We visited the Hagia Sophia, the Blue Mosque, the Grand Bazaar, and the Cistern. They were all interesting, but at the end of the tour, he took us to the top of a shop with superb city views that were really amazing.

 

 

 

 

 

On our second day, we had a two-hour hammam and massage at Cukurcuma Hamami 1831, a place I had been to before, and it was just as wonderful as I remembered (minus the blue paper bikini).😳 We paid about $200 for this treat. We then walked around the Karaköy area, which seemed much busier than I remembered it. We ate at Faros and finished the night with gelato at Mua. It was a great day!

 

 

Bottom Line

While we enjoyed our stay in Istanbul, Budapest was the standout this time. Both cities were beautiful and if you haven’t been to both of them yet, they’re absolutely worth visiting.

 

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