Layover in Istanbul: what to do?

Q: My friend and I are travelling to Greece in September via Istanbul. We have a ten hour lay-over and would like to know of budget accommodation close to the airport to freshen up as we land there very early in the morning. Can you recommend any half day tour packages? - Ebner Bock

A: The best option for you is the TAV Airport Hotel, which is at the international terminal and has airside and landside rooms. It is available for R1,387 on the www.hotels.com website. This may sound expensive for a stopover, but is fairly competitive when you discover that hostels in the city centre 14kms away can cost about half as much. Other hotels near the airport that I checked cost over R1000 per room - and some much more! If you are going to have to travel to your hotel, you may as well travel the extra distance to the city centre and book into a guesthouse or hostel. They could also advise you of transfer options and half-day tours. The www.hostelworld.com website has an excellent selection of options in the city centre. Contact the ones you fancy and ask them if they can accommodate your arrival and departure times. A hostel that looked interesting to me was the Big Apple Hostel, which had a wide variety of options ranging from R130 to R320 per person. You can also check out the Bauhaus Hostel, which was voted the top hostel in the world a few years back. As you will not be staying overnight, perhaps you could negotiate a special deal at one of the hostels, especially if you book airport transfers and a city tour through them. If you want to book a city tour in advance, then you could try the www.toursistanbul.com website. (17/7/11)