A Luxury Hotel Review: Six Senses Kaplankaya in Turkey

I had first discovered Six Senses Kaplankaya in Turkey in an article by Condé Nast Traveller, who are excellent at writing in such a way that entices me drop everything and book whatever it is they are talking about immediately.

Fast forward a year or so and the name popped up again, this time with a deal attached to it from one of my favourite luxury boutique hotel booking websites, Mr & Mrs Smith.
No further encouragement needed, a couple of hours later and we were all booked to visit Six Senses in Turkey!

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Five Rooftop Bars & Restaurants with the Best Views of Istanbul

I am a sucker for a great view and make it my mission to seek out rooftop restaurants and bars with the best views pretty much wherever I go. There is something about seeing a new city from above that I really love and if I can combine it with great food and wine, it makes for a perfect day. Istanbul was no different and our two day itinerary in the city featured lots of rooftop bars and restaurants known for their fantastic views (and one surprise one!).

We visited over a weekend in early November and it was still reasonably busy. I would recommend that for dinner especially, make a reservation. This is even more important if you want to secure a table with the best view. If you haven’t managed to, don’t worry, turn up for when their dinner service begins and you may get lucky.

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Witt Istanbul Suites: A Luxury Hotel in Beyoğlu

One of my favourite parts of planning my holidays is the hotel selection! Witt Istanbul Suites ticked all of my boxes; a luxury boutique hotel in Beyoğlu, the newer part of Istanbul city.

The Istanbul local that opened this Beyoğlu hotel in 2008 commissioned an award winning Turkish design and architecture firm, Autoban, to create the interiors. The result is a very well thought out understated, monochrome and modern-retro vibe that is undeniably stylish.

I’m definitely not the only one that thinks so, as well as numerous awards, Witt Istanbul Suites is also a member of Design Hotels a brand that I have used a few times and I have yet to experience an anything but excellent stay in one of their hotels.

With just eighteen suites and three penthouses, there is a very intimate feel to the Witt, which is one of the things I love in a hotel.

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Two Days in Istanbul, Turkey: A Relaxed Itinerary

On rainy Sunday afternoons, you will more than likely find me sitting on my sofa with a glass of red wine, some vaguely interesting film playing in the background and doing some major travel research. I have had to confine myself to this period only to indulge in this activity, as I can find my weeks can become somewhat unproductive otherwise! A big chunk of this time is spent looking at travel deals and matching them up against “The List”, which is basically my spreadsheet of notes and links to hotels, tours, places etc. of travel experiences I would one day like to have. There is no better feeling than when I find a banging deal that incorporates somewhere on my list and more often than not, it’s booked rather promptly!

It was one of these afternoons on a bleak day in March that I spotted a brilliant deal for Six Senses Kaplankaya hotel near Bodrum, somewhere that had intrigued me for a while. The only reservation I had was the somewhat remote location, so I decided to reduce our stay to five days and spend the rest of the week balancing the quietness and serenity of Kaplankaya with the opposite and tag on two days in Istanbul.

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