A diplomatic mission: bottom to top at the Ambassador Hotel

When I came as a tourist to İstanbul, I not only fell in love with this ancient city, but I also found a home away from home at the then-recently opened Ambassador Hotel. During the six years my husband and I lived in Saudi Arabia, we came often to İstanbul either for a short vacation or as a chilling-out spot on our more long-distance travels. On our early stopovers, we experimented with stays in other Sultanahmet hotels, but in the end, the Ambassador became our resting place of choice. While there have been changes in the amenities and the staff over the past nine years, three things remain constant: the incredible view from the terrace, the quality of service and the friends I made there.

Forever friends

Every now and then, a car horn will honk at me near the Hippodrome -- it’s Cem, the daredevil driver who picked up my husband and me from the airport on our initial visit to Turkey. Ayşe, a lovely and helpful receptionist, in the early years became my first real Turkish girlfriend; she taught me how to take the bus and together we would poke around small shops looking for bargains. We still call each other now that she has moved to Sweden. Nuri, specializing in public relations, once extended his services beyond the call of duty by taking my visiting nephew to a BBQ party at his home. He also hosted a special dinner for the then American consul section chief and his aides a few years ago and later helped me through the red tape of getting a telephone and cable TV service when first I moved into my Sultanahmet apartment. The last I saw Nuri he was talking to everyone who would listen about his trip to Switzerland to watch the football matches.

Not just your ordinary room service

On one vacation, I arrived sniffling and sneezing. That night, one of the waiters came to our room with a hot cup of his mother’s “healthy medicine” recipe for me and a “special beer” for my husband. I must admit I have now forgotten his Turkish name, but its meaning was “always happy.” His nature was so cheerful to the degree of being upbeat on having to work on his birthday rather than spending the day in his mother’s village. Luckily, my husband and I had gotten into the habit of bringing presents from Riyadh for our Turkish friends. In addition to our usual coins in the tip box, we were able to rustle up a small gift of prayer beads to celebrate the occasion.

When I experienced my own first birthday alone shortly after I was widowed, the staff at the Ambassador threw me a party -- complete with cake, candles and complimentary wine and get this -- presents! Melanie and Nuri and several of the waiters then led me out on to the terrace where I received, in true ambassadorial-style, a string of Turkish friends who had been alerted of the occasion.

Special features

The lobby is spacious, with elegant carpets and a small but nicely appointed bar -- if only there were a piano! Three distinct seating arrangements provide comfortable resting places for both arriving and departing guests.

Just downstairs from the lounge, what 10 years ago was a cluttered combination of employees’ retreat and general storage room has been transformed into a veritable spa which offers the facilities of a mini-gym, a sauna and a mini-hamam. I highly recommend taking advantage of the ministrations of the expert masseur Zeki Ulusoy. His treatments are reasonably priced and absolutely fantastic. I speak here from personal experience. As a rather modest American, I confess to preferring cozy privacy to the more open areas of the popular hamams. I also feel compelled to rave a bit. As both a devotee of massage and one-time practitioner myself (alas, that was long ago and in another country), I am particularly critical of services rendered to me. I gave Zeki an unspoken test. This gently spoken man quickly found the source of a chronic pain without my telling him. At the end of a one-hour aromatherapy session, I could fully raise my right arm without shrieking. Ahhhh.

Information about the spa’s hours and Zeki’s nine different massages is posted in the elevator as well as being available in a brochure at the receptionist’s desk. Reservations for the massage can be made without being a guest at the hotel.

Yes, I wrote elevator. Don’t care much for stairs? A pleasant feature for older guests is the elevator to all but the top floor where the dining room, outdoor terrace and my favorite junior suite are located. Those of us with achy knees have only one short flight to climb in order to enjoy the terrace delights.

The view

Usually my overseas visitors stay at my apartment, but I always take them for a lavish breakfast on this hotel’s terrace under its red and white striped awning. Ah yes, the food is scrumptious, one of the best selections I have found except for at the really pricey places. However, what takes a visitor’s breath away is the panoramic view. A tourist practically can plan an entire day’s itinerary in the Old City simply by looking down and around. To the far left is the world famous Aya Sofya (Hagia Sophia), followed by Sultanahmet Square with it gushing fountain and curving hand-paved walkways. Behind that, rows of benches lead to the archway opening into the majestic Blue Mosque with its six minarets. The spectacular view continues down past the Hippodrome, where Ottoman royalty and other political movers and shakers once betted on horse races. Uplifted eyes spot Asia in the distance, the Marmara Sea sparkling, dotted with the Princes’ Islands and constant aquatic traffic. A glance straight down from the terrace shows the hubbub of Divan Yolu, the main tourist street, full of Turks and foreigners searching for eateries such as the long-known Pudding Shop and Sultanahmet Köftecisi. Far to the right, the minarets of Nuruosmaniye Mosque are visible, marking the easily walkable location of the Grand Bazaar.

Recently I took an 82-year-old American State Department friend to the hotel rooftop with the sole purpose of showing her a view which I consider one of the best in the neighborhood. By the time we finished our complimentary tea and water, she had decided that the Ambassador would be just the perfect place to bring several anticipated international guests during her summer-long stay in our fair city.

Rooms

The Ambassador is essentially a boutique hotel with its 20 rooms plus two junior suites. Although -- unlike my very favorite hotel in the world in Plovdiv, Bulgaria -- the rooms are not wildly distinctive, they are quite clean, comfortable and equipped with all the standard amenities. Of special note is that all rooms now have a wireless Internet connection, a valuable asset for travelers with laptop computers.

With the new national no-smoking laws in place, smoking in the lobby or the glass-enclosed restaurant is prohibited. Non-smokers can request a room on the smoke-restricted floor. Smokers can puff away in the open air on the terrace or in private on the designated smoking floors. Advertised on trustworthy sites such as Turkeytravelplanner.com, the Ambassador is often fully booked, so it is best to make reservations well in advance of anticipated travel dates. In fact, I plan to make one such reservation myself for my older sister’s long-awaited October visit to İstanbul. While she will be staying with me for a portion of her visit to Turkey, I want to give my only sibling one special night and day during which she can be pampered in a manner that I cannot provide. Making online reservations enables potential guests to take advantage of a variety of revolving offers from a free half-day Bosporus tour to a free massage. Be sure to check out the deals and special packages sections on the Web site listed below.

Some hotels are just hotels, adequate places to sleep and eat. Other hotels offer intangibles which make foreign guests feel at home. For those of us residents of İstanbul who can’t squeeze extra guests into our homes, the Ambassador Hotel is definitely an option to consider. Who knows, you may find me there, chatting in the lounge with Melanie, joking with Nuri or playing deputy assistant ambassador to Turkey on the rooftop.