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St Regis Istanbul Review
The St Regis Istanbul has been on my list for quite some time since the point redemption rate is quite low compared to the cash rate…and I love a good St Regis. I really debated between the Park Hyatt Istanbul and the St Regis seeing as though they are neighbors just off Macka Park in a wealthy, residential, area of Istanbul.
The St Regis is the nicer of the two properties, but the Park Hyatt is 20k World of Hyatt points per night, and across the Macka Park you’ll find the Grand Hyatt which is just 12k points per night and close to Taksim Square.
The biggest downside to the location is you are FAR from the sites. But, if you’re doing a guided tour, it’s not a big deal and taxis are super cheap. If you’re looking for a Marriott property that is closer, I’d suggest the JW Marriott which has Bosphorous views and just a few minutes from the bridge to old town.
Details:
- When: January 2023
- Where: Istanbul, Turkey
- Rate: 174k Marriott Bonvoy
- Drops down into the 30-45k quite often which is a downright steal
- Status: Gold/Titanium
- Upgrade:
- Two twin park view room
Booking
Booking was super simple and done on the Marriott website utilizing my father’s account who is Titanium ( a bit of a Christmas present ). Note that a 5th night is free when booking points, and we were just one night shy of triggering that 5th night…painful to someone who always tries to eek out the best deal.
The view from the outdoor bar at Spago, which wasn’t open because of the winter. Surely a great spot to have a drink and enjoy a sunset during summer.
Getting to the hotel
We ordered an Uber Black Taxi which had a ton of room and was only 750 Lira.
Location:
As I mentioned the St Regis overlooks Macka Park and feels quite residential. There are many restaurants nearby and the streets feel safe to walk at night since they are quite busy, but I would recommend keeping your wits about you in any area of Istanbul. The W is also quite close, maybe a 5 minutes walk toward the Bosphorus. There are a lot of pick-pockets, not unusual for big cities, and scam artists which we fell victim to on a shoe shine scam.
You can go across the park on a cable car – make sure you have a little bit of Lira, small bills, otherwise you will find it difficult, or impossible, to use the ticket machine. Luckily, we there was an attendant there to assist us.
It’s a 10 to 15 minute walk down to the Bosphorus where you’ll find the Ciragan Palace, Four Seasons Bosphourus, and the Shangri-la Bosphorous. You can also visit the National Palaces Painting Museum.
Check-in
As soon as you pull up to the hotel you’ll be greeted by porters who will take your luggage, and/or assist to you the check-in desk off to the left. At check-in we were introduced to our butler, who gave us his WhatsApp information and took us to our room, made dinner reservations, etc.
Sabering
One aspect and feature of St Regis properties worldwide is champagne sabering each evening. The St Regis Istanbul saber a bottle of sparkling wine exclusively for us since there weren’t any other guests in attendance. That was pretty cool, and we followed it up with a meal at the St Regis Brasserie
Room:
The room is large, measuring somewhere between 450sq ft and 500 sq ft, bright with park views, and two twin beds. These are oversized twin beds as well, and each one has a side table with charging etc.
We had some welcome snacks as well. Such a nice touch.
Bathroom:
The bathroom is stunning, features a gorgeous marble floors, dual vanities, and large walk in rain style shower.
Just off the bathroom is a large walk-in closet.
Dining:
The food at the hotel is excellent; however, despite the notoriety of Spago, I preferred dining at the Brasserie purely because of smoke. It’s worth noting breakfast is served at Spago, but we didn’t eat have it ( it’s a benefit of Titanium status, but it’s up to the hotel’s discretion to either extend the status to a guest – which was me booked as a gift from my dad – or not…they chose not ).
St Regis Brasserie – main level off the lobby.
We ate at the St Regis Brasserie a couple of times on our trip. On our first night we enjoyed a very good dinner there.
On the day of our departure we grabbed a light lunch which was delicious as well.
Spago – on the roof top
We had drinks at Spago the first night, and I must say, the smoking was an annoyance. If you’re thinking of grabbing a drink, just note that there is a lot of smoking if you’re on the “outside” area which is really indoor/outdoor with a retractable roof. The biggest problem was the fact that, despite no smoking inside, it wasn’t really adhered to and our clothes wreaked of smoke.
On our last night in town we had dinner at Spago. Needless to say, it was wonderfully delectable, but…the smoke was noticeable again. Perhaps this doesn’t bother many people, but it bothered both myself and my buddy Dave. Regardless of the food being amazing, I don’t think I would go again just because of the smoke.
Istanbul has so many incredible places, many with wonderful views, that paying the premium to dine at Spago, which could be done in the States, isn’t worth the premium if you have to battle 2nd hand smoke.
The Spa
Located in the basement is the spa and gym. The spa is quite small, and I’d recommend booking ahead if you want to use the full facilities which include a water treatment room. I was under the impression it was a bit larger than it is, and would be shared with other guests. I was wrong.
When you make a reservation, which is complimentary to guests, you get a private swimming/plunge pool, while you’re there. Pretty awesome!
Overall
I would highly recommend the St Regis Istanbul not only for the beautiful rooms and wonderful service, but I preferred having a hotel that was in a more residential area vs the chaos of the tourist areas.
With that said, is it worth the premium over the Park Hyatt? Not if you’re transferring points from Chase ( Hyatt and Marriott ), Bilt ( Hyatt ), or Amex ( Marriott ), and it’s certainly not worth $600+ a night…when there are so many great hotels at a fraction of the price. If you have Amex points and are looking for hotels…there is a Hilton Curio property that is next to the Blue Mosque and across the street from Four Seasons Sultanhamet
It is worth 30k to 50k Marriott points. For sure. Much more than that, and I’d opt for another option, most likely the JW Marriott Istanbul which looks very nice. We paid in the mid-50k range and the rate dropped right before we checked in. Unfortunately, because it was within the cancellation window we idn’t get any points back, but this is something to keep an eye on if you’re
Opinions, reviews, analyses & recommendations are the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, endorsed or approved by any of these entities.
Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card
Welcome Offer
60k Points after $4k spend in 3 months
Annual Fee
$95
Points Earned
Transferrable Chase Ultimate Rewards
- 60k points after $4k spend in 3 months
- Worth $750 in Chase Travel℠ and way more if you maximize transfer partners
- 5x on all travel purchased through Chase Travel℠
- 3x on dining, including eligible delivery services for takeout & dining out
- 3x on select streaming services
- 3x on online grocery purchases
- (excluding Target, Walmart and wholesale clubs)
- $50 Annual Chase Travel Hotel Credit via Chase Travel℠
- The begins immediately for new cardmembers and after your account anniversary for existing cardmembers
- 2x on all other travel
- 10% Anniversary Bonus
- Every year you keep the card, your total spend will yield a 10% points bonus. If you spend $10k in a year, you’ll get 1k bonus points
- Chase Sapphire Preferred continues to redeem at 1.25c in the Chase Travel℠ and the slew of other benefits remain in tact including Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver ( primary ), purchase protections, etc.
- Points are transferrable to 14 Ultimate Rewards partners
- Redeem in Chase Travel℠ for 1.25 cents per point
- No foreign transaction fees
- Suite of Travel and Purchase Coverage
- Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver is my favorite
- Get complimentary access to DashPass which unlocks $0 delivery fees and lower service fees for a minimum of one year when you activate by December 31, 2024
- $95 Annual Fee
We keep an up to date spreadsheet that lists the best ever offers: You can find that spreadsheet here.
Historically 80k is a very, very good offer and hit in both 2022 and 2023. In 2021, we saw the offer hit an all time high of 100k. Who knows if that will ever come back.
Main Cast:
Cards that earn flexible points and should be used on the bulk of your purchases.
Supporting Cast:
Cards that earn fixed points in the currency of the airline/hotel and can not be transferred at attractive rates. These cards yield benefits that make it worth keeping, but not necessarily worth putting a lot of your everyday spend on.
The Chase Sapphire Preferred® is exceptional starter card and offers transferrable Ultimate Rewards, and pairs well with other Chase cards.
If you carry this card alongside Chase’s cashback cards like the Chase Freedom Flex℠and Chase Freedom Unlimited® or the business versions: Ink Business Cash® , Ink Business Unlimited® you can combine the points into Preferred account and transfer into hotel and airline partners
Annual fee is quite low at $95 a year + you get a 10% anniversary bonus on points + $50 hotel credit in Chase travel.
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