I would appreciate if anyone who has stayed here could let me know if the deluxe double room is alot nicer than the standard room? Is there a specific room number for the standard room that was nice and quiet? Thanks so much for your help. Sabbin

Did you ever stay there? I am thinking of staying there next year and wanted to know the same thing.

Please post this question on Trip Advisor, istanbul forums.

Sirkeci konak is a popular hotel on TA and many posters have stayed there and one very prolific Istanbul DE specifically recommends it to all OPs (he may even be on the payroll).

For breathing the historic atmosphere, sultanahmet is a better location than Sirkeci, both of which are extremely touristy.

For breathing the atmosphere of the metropolis, Taksim/Cihangir/Beyoglu/Nisantasi/Tesvikiye are the areas to stay.

For breathing the fresh winds coming down from the Black Sea and giving yourself a visual treat of sea-land combination, the hotels on the Bosphorus should be preferred.

My busband and I stayed at the Sirkeci Konak for four nights last May and really enjoyed the hotel. Our room was a standard and was quite small but we wanted to stay at the hotel, and in Sultanahment, so we picked it. The hotel does live up to the TA hyp and we did enjoy the neighbourhood as we came to see the traditional sights and we were within a short distance from the major ones. The restaurants were not that good in our area though so it may depend on what your priority is. In any case both sides of the Bosphorus are touristy but wonderful with an easy to take modern tram running between the areas.

Wow -- thanks for the info! Really appreciate it!