Cappadocia Cave Hotel & Resort, Cappadocia, Turkey - A Review

Not sure why I didn't post this when I wrote in back in June....

I have to say it, but I was disappointed with the Cappadocia Cave Hotel & Resort. I wanted so much to be really impressed, but I would suggest trying your luck elsewhere. I feel like an ingrate saying it, but that is the case... The view is beautiful, but the same view can be had at other hotels. (Click here to find the review on TripAdvisor... TripAdvisor claims it to be #70 out of 160 hotels in Cappadocia... or #12 of 22 in Uchisar, so right in the middle of the pack... which means others might be better.)

We bought some local sparkling wine at a vineyard just outside of town and for ice and 2 glasses to enjoy the wine, they charged us 10 Euros. And it wasn't an ice bucket for wine, it was a few cubes. I tipped the young lady 7.50 Euros as she seemed to understand the problem, but she never came back with a real ice bucket...

There was no stopper for the sink - which you would not think about normally, but I had a few of my delicates to wash as we have been traveling for 35 days... I asked for a stopper, which didn't quite work. So, rather than a soak, they got a rinse... Also, the first thing we had to have the hotel do was to fix the faucet which I couldn't turn off after washing my hands upon arrival. They came quickly, 'tis true... but I wouldn't say they fixed it... solved the problem, but not a fix.

Also, more small things... like broken hardware... miss-matched furniture.... exposed cut-off wires. It just wasn't there. They claim to be a 7 star - and I don't know what that means - but I'd say it just doesn't quite measure up.

I had to laugh because we were told we had a superior room.... aaaahhhh, superior room is their lowest room. Now, the room is plenty big, no complaint there. But no dresser and no desk - so as I write this I have a very hot laptop singing my thighs.

Service - eh, though they did ask us several times if we were enjoying our stay, just that the follow through wasn't there
Ambiance - very cool concept, but similar at other hotels in and around town....
Cleanliness - no issue
View/Balcony - small balcony, but fabulous view
Room Number - 260

Toiletries - yes, had everything we might need
Coffee & Tea in the room - yes
Robes & slippers - yes
Hairdryer - yes
mini frig - yes
wi fi - free
space - plenty
restaurant - a few options... and `a la carte, which is great
breakfast - was included in the room rate
Pool - yes, though I didn't see it
Fitness Center - not sure
Spa - I think they are well regarded for it, though I haven't seen it; I was here for the landscape

Hallway from the room

Looking towards the balcony and the beds

Very large space - no tub, though

Looking back towards the entrance

Partial View from balcony

Key Hotel, Izmir, Turkey - a Review

Loving this little hotel.

It is a former bank building right on the harbor. The inside is all grays & blacks, hard surfaces and reflective materials. Perhaps you would think it unwelcoming, by the colors, but in fact the atmosphere feels great.

Room 308 is lovely with all the amenities - huge, harbor view, coffee, minibar, desk space, couch, huge bed, motorized black-out blinds, strong wifi.... all the good things.

The service is very attentive and kind. Top notch.

The breakfast was quite an elegant looking spread of both European and Turkish breakfast foods. Dinner was excellent with exceptional service. I had a wonderful conversation with the bartender about the local wines and he even exposed me to some new grape varietals.

The one downside I can see so far is the lack of a driveway and obvious entrance. Very strange - we drove around the hotel several times looking for the entrance. We finally had to ask for directions and cross our fingers.

Room 308

So many windows!

On to the nitty gritty -

Toiletries - everything and displayed beautifully in a box
Coffee & Tea - nescafe and powdered creamer
Robes & slippers - yes
Hairdryer - yes

I would highly recommend the Key Hotel in Izmir.

The Marmara, Antalya, Turkey - A Review

Though a bit crazy looking, we thought The Marmara Antalya was quite nice. You can see from the rooms that it is decorated like nothing you might have seen before....  Green and blue strips on some walls, pink sponge treatment on another wall, beach furniture in the room... hot pink and orange paper thin shower curtain...

Looking from the entrance - no balcony at a seaside hotel....

Two sinks - which was nice, and a crazy door which closed two spaces at once, the toilet and the bathroom

Turquoise day bed.... that was my dresser, as no dresser in the room, though tons of hooks

Service - at night it was attentive in the dining room
Ambiance - crazy, unlike anything I have seen r expected
Cleanliness - no issue
View/Balcony - no balcony, but nice view of the pool and the sea
Room Number - 1907

Toiletries - yes
Coffee & Tea - yes
Robes & slippers - can't recall
Hairdryer - pretty sure there was one....
mini frig - yes
wi fi - yes, free
space - plenty of space
restaurant - just the one, and 'international' buffet for dinner
Pool - large, but without personality
Fitness Center - yes... in those floors between 6 (the dining room) and 1 (sea access)
Spa - yes, though didn't see it

We had a nice conversation with a waiter on our last night and he steered us towards a nice wine and told us a little about his life and his time in the US. Some people might not appreciate hearing about his life, but we welcomed it. We thought it was interesting to hear a young person's perspective on things - and current events.

Great desk space to share - a nice feature, so that I don't have to wrestle for space with my honey

No drawers in those bedside tables....

View of the pool and the sea... the round building was supposed to rotate, but I wasn't aware of that happening

Dining room, game room, reading room, bar

Two story dining room

Bar area

Access to the sea

Spa Hotel Colossae Thermal Pumakkale, Turkey - A Review

Our friend indicated that this was the best hotel in Pumakkale.... Perhaps one could go to Pumakkale and then head to another site and stay near there...

The reason why we found ourselves at this hotel

It was fine.... It is huge. There was no real choice for where to go for dinner other than at the 'International Buffet', which, of course is a cattle call. We all know that tourists from other countries are inherently like ourselves - curious and have money to spend on this kind of adventure, but we still do not necessarily understand their ways and their manners, so it can make us a little cross.... Dinning in such a manner is not really conducive to good digestion....

After the tour buses had left in the morning - but look at the size of the place, it goes on forever 

The room - #260 - was a haul away, up several flights and no elevators... the poor bell men! It was certainly large, though no balcony. Thank goodness, though, our windows did not look out to an interior courtyard. We had had a long day, so we really just went to bed, but had we wanted to open the curtains, it would have been fine.

The internet did not work - though the hotel claimed to give it to us for free - but imagine our surprise when the buses of tourists pulled out early in the morning the internet worked.

The Colassae Hotel does have a spa, though we did not use it. We tried to make reservations ahead of time via email, but they were never very responsive. Our friend also indicated that we might be happier at the spa at some other hotels... We were glad to have dodged that bullet.

I did have an opportunity to soak in some mineral pools behind the main pool. I was by myself and the tiny pools looked like they could have used some attention, so it didn't feel really luxurious.... Which is a shame given what they have. One would think the hotel ownership could really profit from the location and the mineral springs.

I guess I was not impressed by their pool, as I did not take any photographs of it.

They did offer a belly-dancing show at the pool bar... The idea of belly dancing is always fun, if you can manage to see around your fellow guests who are angling to get a photo and don't mind elbowing you in the process.... It's kinda weird when you focus all your attention on someone's body between their boobs and their crotch... But, man, those artists can move their bodies in ways one can't even contemplate - as illustrated by the volunteers who try to do it with the dancers.

Looking towards the bed

Coffee stand - though please call management at extension 124  if you want any coffee or tea....

Toiletries - yes
Coffee & Tea - not quite
Robes & slippers - don't remember seeing them
Hairdryer - probably
mini frig - don't recall
wi fi - ahh, mentioned above
space - it was a very reasonable sized room
restaurant - international cattle call
Pool - pretty big
Fitness Center - I believe they do
Spa - yes

Eresin Crown Hotel, Istanbul, Turkey - a Review

One couldn't beat the location of the Eresin Crown Hotel for the major Ottoman sites in Istanbul - just a short walk away.

And the view from the roof top restaurant/bar is fabulous. Unfortunately while we stayed there, they claimed it was too cold to be open - in late May - so we took a beer up there and enjoyed the sun-set on our own.

The Blue Mosque - right behind our hotel

We were still getting our bearings in the city after flying so many hours, but the service was attentive. It seems I did not take any photos of the room, which is a shame. We had a suite on an upper floor. Though jet-lagged, we slept well and I was not aware of any street noise.

I thought the room and restaurant were clean and I did not see any required maintenance issues.

No balcony at our room.

We also got a nice fruit basket in our room.

Toiletries - yes
Coffee & Tea - yes
Robes & slippers - yes
Hairdryer - yes
mini frig - yes
wi fi - yes
space - it wasa suite we were in, though I don't recall our room number
restaurant - not fabulous, but fine and very nice
Pool - nope
Fitness Center - if there was, I didn't look for it
Spa - again, didn't look for it

I would stay there again if I wanted to see the major sites... though the next time I stayed in Istanbul I stayed on the Taksim Square side of the city.

Korumar Hotel, Kusadasi, Turkey - A Review

What does All-Inclusive say to you?

Budget conscious, perhaps? Families? Past its prime? I'm trying to figure it out.

The concept here is wonderful. The location is fabulous. The infrastructure is spectacular. The hotel is built on the steep side of a cliff down to the ocean. The water is blue and clear. The pool huge and a fun shape with a lovely protection from the evil eye mosaic.



There seems to be plenty of chairs - though one always finds people saving chairs at both the pool and the seaside. I believe the hotel has tried to manage that process by handing out towel cards at check-in. The cards are taken from you when you get a towel - one each - and then returned to you when you return the towel. That way one can not leave a towel on many chairs. BUT, I noticed that there are many additional towels drying on balconies and thrown over chairs without any other beach detritus to indicate current occupancy.

Though not mentioned to us during booking, our dinner was also included. We expected breakfast, but not a dinner buffet. And they offered an incredible variety of foods - which makes for a lot of choice, but not a very wonderful combination of flavors on the plate. The first night I piled my plate with sushi, shrimp chips, tzatziki, salad, Peking/roast duck, Böreği and feta cheese. I think I would have preferred choosing from a menu to have had a regional uniformity of flavors on my plate. I have read that Turkish food ranks up with French and Chinese as a leading developed and varied cuisine within its own borders. I believe it, but I assume that the guests at this establishment would prefer their own cuisine and this is satisfied by the linear footage of chafing dishes.

So far, my experience has been a delight on my Turkish travels - this is the first hotel where I have experienced snarky staff. Within less than 24 hours and only a few interactions, I have had two snarky staff members. Not everyone, of course. Our beverage waiter last night was very cute and eager to please, but incredibly inexperienced. The poor guy was baffled by a bottle of sparkling wine and the supervisor who was educating him also managed to send wine shooting out when opening the bottle and overflowing both glasses when he poured it for us. I guess they don't sell many bottles of sparkling wine.... What does that say about the clientele?

The Korumar Hotel is rated as 5 stars.... I'd say it is definitely showing it's age, - splattered paint, mold, chips in the stone and porcelain - though, it does have:

robes
slippers
coffee & tea in the room
toiletries - in this case it is gym soap on the wall, so, soap which can be used for both hair and body
safe
mini frig, with one bottle of free water

Sunset over the pool

Looking up at the hotel from the pool area

Swimming Pier

Protected swimming area with snack bar in the background

Protected swimming area

Beach area with scuba shop 

Kempinski Hotel, Bodrum, Turkey - a Review

I thought the hotel/resort was great, but I am writing this review after I have left and spent several weeks on a 42' sailboat.

We were in room 3608, I believe. We had a lovely large balcony, though it did overlook some roofs before one could see the sea, so perhaps ask for something on a lower floor... we were on the 6th floor. I was able to look beyond the roofs of lower floors....

'Green roof' looking left

Intentionally looking down to illustrate the roofs in front of the balcony

'Green roof' looking right

We dined both nights in their Asian-themed restaurant and were pleased both nights. Our service was excellent and we had a lovely local wine.

I'm afraid I didn't take photographs of the room and I don't recall if we had the toiletries, hairdryer, coffee & tea, etc. I believe they gave us a large bottle of water, though. And I remember it being clean.

Too many elevators - no straight shot from the sea to the rooms... it was labyrinthine; we needed to be escorted to find the restaurant - both nights. The restaurant by the beach was wonderful and the waiters there very good, though one needs to take a shuttle or walk to the beach.

I wish I had a picture of their spa, because that was wonderful. They have a gym, personal trainer, indoor pool and wonderful Hammam facilities.

Pool

Stretched out aspect of the hotel

Decked area at the sea

Part of the pool

I would recommend the Kempinski Barbaros Bay in Bodrum.

NYC Archives and the Cosmopolitan Hotel

I was headed North by car and decided to make a 5 hour pop in to the Municipal Archives at 31 chambers Street in Manhattan. The building is so great - and so peculiar how quiet it is for a city government building. The vital records department is a hive of busy bees, but the rest of the building is without activity. It's odd, really.

I made a hotel reservation yesterday morning and got a pretty good rate - $289 - at the Cosmopolitan Hotel on the corner of Chambers and West Broadway. $45 to park the car over night, though, and dinner, so it adds up. It has occurred to me, however, that I might want to pay to have copies made of the certificates as I sit at home, because even getting them myself, the city must certify them and that's another $11 per copy. Why NYC thinks I need a certified copy of a death certificate for someone who died over 100 years ago, I can't fathom. I bought 10 certificates this afternoon, so another $110 to the cost of my trip.

The hotel is very conveniently located and there are lots of casual - I am only here to get death, birth and marriage certificates, after all - restaurants nearby. The room has a safe, an ironing board, and seems clean. Only one, small elevator, however. If I were on a lower floor that wouldn't hinder me, but the 6th is just high enough to be a pain. But, we have another lovely view from the room, much like at the Wellington Hotel I reviewed earlier. I didn't complain this time.... I got a cheap rate and I was going to be out of the room any way.

I wanted to acknowledge that today is the 70th anniversary of D-Day. Herb's son was the beneficiary of the GI bill, though he was not part of D-Day. He served in the US Navy, though I have done very little research on this subject.