Cengelkoy, Asian shore of the Bosphorus

Sumahan on the Water

★★★★★

Sumahan on the Water is the most memorable way to stay on the Bosphorus without a palace-hotel price, and it shows you a side of Istanbul most visitors never see. The building dates to the 1820s, in the reign of Mahmud II, when it was built as a waterside factory producing suma, the distilled spirit used to make raki, which gives the hotel its name. It has been a hotel since 2005, the result of a restoration project that began decades earlier with the architectural thesis of Nedret Butler, who runs the hotel with her husband Mark, also an architect, and their daughters, both designers. The family's care shows everywhere: new sections follow the original construction system and materials, and the interiors are calm, natural and modern, with stone, wood and Turkish textiles. The design has one guiding idea. Every room looks down the Bosphorus towards the Sea of Marmara, with the silhouettes of Hagia Sophia and the Blue Mosque on the horizon, and every bed and sofa faces a double window; binoculars are provided for watching the ships. The hotel stands on the Asian side, in the old village of Cengelkoy, with a waterfront garden and a small lighthouse at its southern corner. A sea taxi takes guests across the Bosphorus to the European shore, turning the daily commute into a boat ride, and the hotel has its own restaurant serving contemporary cooking by the water.

Who it suits: couples above all, as it is one of the most romantic hotels in the city, and repeat visitors who have seen the old city and want to experience the Bosphorus villages. Families who enjoy boats and calm will like it too. It is not the choice for first-timers who want to walk out of the door into Sultanahmet, since every trip to the main sights involves a boat, a ferry or a taxi.

Location math: Cengelkoy is a quiet village on the Asian shore, north of Uskudar and Beylerbeyi, with tea gardens, fish restaurants and wooden houses along the water. The hotel's sea taxi crosses to the European side, and public ferries and buses link Cengelkoy and nearby Uskudar with Kabatas, Besiktas and Eminonu. From Uskudar, the Marmaray rail line runs under the Bosphorus to Sirkeci, a few minutes from Sultanahmet. Beylerbeyi Palace, Kuzguncuk and the Maiden's Tower are all within easy reach on the Asian side.

Practical notes: ask the hotel about the sea-taxi schedule and costs when you book, and plan your days around the water, perhaps one day in the old city and the next on the Asian shore. Breakfast on the terrace with the morning light on the Bosphorus is the highlight of a stay, so do not rush it. Turkey's two percent accommodation tax is added to the room rate. Rooms differ in size and layout, so ask about the options for your dates. In winter the setting is moody and quiet, in summer the garden by the water is a real retreat from the city heat.