What to except from a hotel that by the time of our stay was only open since the month before?!
Well, if that hotel is Hyatt Regency Istanbul Ataköy, you can expect the best!
Another success of the group Hyatt Hotels, in this case, a five star right in front of the Sea of Marmara, which transformed our stay in Istanbul into something memorable.
First impression:
We arrived in Istanbul on a Friday during dawn, when we approached the hotel we were able to see its magnificence, a small skyscraper, all bright, rivaling with the calm of the Sea of Marmara.
The lobby is elegant and contemporary, similar to the rest of the hotel. The receptionist was gifted with a lot of gaiety (not easy at that time of the day), getting us checked in pretty quickly while we talked a bit about Portugal.
While we were accompanied to our room we observed the hotel, it can be perceived that besides the mainly contemporary style, the hotel also reflects the Turkish and Ottoman tradition in small details. Its structure, concerning the distribution of rooms through the floors, and the architecture of the different floors reminds us of the prow of a ship, most likely inspired in the sea that gives it the amazing view we get in the bedrooms.
Bedrooms:
Speaking of rooms, the hotel has the modest sum of 284!
Of five different types, Standard, View, Deluxe, Club and Suites, we stayed in a View one, and like the name suggests it had an amazing view over the sea.
The bedroom was huge, elegant, and with all the comfort you can ask for (amazing mattress and pillows, like only a brand new hotel can have).
Traditional elements mix with contemporary luxury, in which the dark shade marbles of the bathroom contrast with the pastels from the bedroom. A perfect symbiosis that enlightens even more the modern view of sophistication, in combination with the Ottoman soul the room transmits.
Brizo Restaurant
Restaurants/Bars:
For me, one of the highlights of the hotel, like in the vast majority of the Hyatt Hotels.
It is constituted by four different spaces, Brizo, Vue Lounge & Bar, Pool Bar and Regency Club Bar. We had the chance to try the first two.
Brizo is the typical hotel restaurant that also serves as breakfast space, with direct view to the exterior pool and to the Sea of Marmara.
Brizo offers the best of Mediterranean cuisine, in a wide fusion of the Italian and Turkish cultures. At breakfast this place is filled with delights of all kinds, from the traditional continental breakfast to the different Turkish specialties. The space is wide, well illuminated and in “Tiffany” blue shades (if I can call it like that!) and pastels. As it turns out, the locals can’t also resist its Sunday Brunch, so much was the bustle that day.
Brizo Restaurant and Lounge
With a completely different concept we also tried the Vue Lounge & Bar, in our opinion the highlight of the Hotel (by all meanings), which reminded me a lot of the stunning sky bars of the frantic Bangkok.
Here we were able to enjoy an unusual, but great, meal in Istanbul, on an intimate but modern, luxurious and highly vibrant environment; we were awarded with Peruvian cuisine (certainly the only one in town). Delicious snacks, from the ceviche to the empanadas, accompanied with tasty cocktails, a night that proved magic. But João will talk to you about this experience in detail in another article.
Vue Lounge & Bar
As to the Pool Bar, as you can imagine, during February it was not even an option, however, like any other pool bar, it must assure the commodity of its guests in their relaxing moments by the pool.
On its turn, the Regency Club Lounge is destined to the members of the Regency Club, on the 16th floor of the hotel, the members can enjoy the library, a meeting room and also the Lounge were they can have breakfast and different drinks during the day.
Services:
Besides all the usual services of a 5 star hotel, like room service 24/7 and concierge, the Hyatt Regency Istanbul Ataköy has a beautiful Spa, the Levana Spa & Fitness, a fitness center and two pools, an interior one, and an exterior, this last one certainly remains unused, given the temperatures in Istanbul and the hotel being open just since January.
Levana Spa & Fitness
As expected, the hotel is properly prepared to business trips and events like weddings or balls, presenting a total of 14 rooms destined to those programs.
In addition to these internal activities, the hotel prepares us also, if we want so, a combination of activities to do outside, whether to visit different areas of the city or doing some shopping.
Interior Pool
Once the Hotel isn’t located in the center of the city (around 10 km), it offers a shuttle that transports us free of charge, with a specific time schedule, between the hotel and Sultanahmet and Taksim.
Service:
Happily we already had several experiences in hotels of the Hyatt Group and I realize more and more that the art of welcoming and serving of the hotel teams of this group.
We were well received from the moment we entered to the moment we left; we were accompanied during our entire stay, everything was done in order for our stay to be memorable, and for you to understand the type of caring and interest the hotel has with its guest I’ll tell you the surprise they made us: João’s birthday was on the March 1st, on that day we left the hotel quite early and spent all day walking around the city and eating in wonderful restaurants (of course!), we arrived to the hotel late that day and expecting us was a delicious chocolate cake with strawberries and a birthday card, with several birthday messages from different members of the staff, yes, an handwritten card and signed by several people, not a general printed paper written on a computer.
Birthday Surprise (Thank you!!!)
Do you want more kindness and attention than this?! We were delighted and the cake was great, on top of all that!
A recent hotel with a team 100% dedicated, from the receptionist, to the Barman and all the elements, each one with a function that transforms a stay in a unique moment; it has everything, really everything to work out fine. A very special thanks to the Head of Marketing Göksenin Ileri for taking care of all our requests and the special attention when I was sick (Yes, you can also get hill while traveling in amazing places)!
We intend to come back in a few years, for sure!
Hyatt Regency Istanbul Ataköy
Rooms from 132€
Ataköy 2-5-6. Kısım, Rauf Orbay Caddesi Sahil Yolu – Istanbul
+90 212 463 1234
istanbul.regency@hyatt.com
Text: Cíntia Oliveira | Photos: Flavors & Senses and Hyatt Regency Istanbul Ataköy
