16 of the best affordable hotels in Istanbul under £200

Times

08-05-2025

O nce bitten, forever smitten — that's Istanbul in a nutshell, a place that easily deserves to be up there with Paris and Rome on the city break bucket list. Founded in distant centuries before Christ as Byzantium, a Greek colony, Istanbul has rich, ancient culture in its DNA. Not least because the Romans later came, depositing aqueducts and domed churches that still grace the skyline today, while subsequently the Ottomans blessed the cityscape with huge, ornate mosques, beautified by slender minarets. Come to Istanbul for the mesmerising heritage, then — but add a few days longer for the thriving gastronomic scene, centred in downtown Beyoglu district as well as along the shores of the Bosphorus Strait, which Istanbul clusters along, east and west. Stay up late in summer, in cool open-air rooftop bars, and check out the swinging art scene; Turkey's first museum of modern and contemporary art is Istanbul Modern, packed with galleries of vivid head-turning works that will easily fill an afternoon. As you'd expect in a place with a population of nearly 16 million, there are hotels for every taste and budget. Here are the best affordable hotels in Istanbul.
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SPA | POOL | Best for nightlife
Central and accessible, the once-industrial Bomonti district is for night owls: its main attraction is the sprawling renovated Bomonti beer brewery, run by Swiss operators in Ottoman times then left to decay. Rock up now and you'll find, about its low-lit, funky environs, a honeycomb of bars and restaurants, spiritually not unlike what's on offer in London's upcycled Battersea Power Station. At the hotel the deal is affordable, unfussy urban comfort — twin rooms, executives with lounge access, and high-floor options with mesmerising city and sea views. Settle in with sunset drinks at Cloud 34, the summit bar, lunch lazily in the Grand Lobby, with its garden terrace, and rest weary limbs in the Turkish hammam.
Adahan DeCamondo Pera, Autograph Collection
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Best for rooftop dining
This downtown stunner is an absolute steal for its style. It's set over several floors of an elegant European-district townhouse on a steep sidestreet, with a corking rooftop alfresco dining terrace overlooking the Golden Horn estuary. Seen from here as you neck Turkish red wine, the famous mosques glitter orange after dark. Meanwhile inside, Béatrice Restaurant does delicious grilled fish dishes, pasta mains and veggie casserole. High-ceilinged bedrooms are crisp, coolly monochrome, fairly minimalist and very Instagrammable. Check in for proximity to the bar-lined streets of surrounding Beyoglu — and the evening starts here.
POOL | Best for location
You'll feel like you've been transported back to Istanbul's glamorous early 20th century belle époque at this boutique hotel in an artistically renovated, historic building in the heart of the decadent Pera district. Expect an atmospherically low-lit rooftop restaurant, Simone, with views of the pencil-like Galata Tower, antique telephones in the rooms and live jazz piano music to welcome you in the lobby. It also has everything you need to fully enjoy the magnificent location, including a fine fifth-floor cocktail lounge, as well as well-informed staff who can point you in the direction of all the sights that are on your doorstep. Thoughtful details help lend it a luxury feel, including the complimentary minibar and unique artworks in each room.
Best for a romantic break
You will think that you've walked into one of Paris's chicest quarters when you pass through the doors of Georges, a boutique hotel founded by the Turkish-French duo Alex Varlik and Eric Kamhi, who completely redesigned the structure, dating from 1882. The cosy interiors are inspired by the taste of the building's former resident, Avram de Castro, a prominent physician in the Ottoman Empire. Its rooftop restaurant, Le Fumoir, serves up Gallic cuisine (come in winter for the coq au vin) alongside an extensive French wine list. The location is Galata, a maze of atmospheric backstreets. But don't expect to pay Parisian prices: while Georges features in the Michelin hotel guide, room rates equal those of a budget chain in the French capital. Fabulous food, luxury bed linen and a prime spot in the centre of the city, too.
Best for proximity to the city centre
This modern, no-frills hotel provides a welcome calm among the exhilarating but often exhausting chaos of the historic peninsula. Rooms are pared down dens in tones of creamy white and cookie-dough. Tens of thousands of tourists flock to the Blue Mosque, Hagia Sophia and Topkapi Palace every day, and the Alilass is less than ten minutes' stroll from all of them. To beat the crowds and see this timeless cityscape at its most breathtaking, set your alarm early and come out to watch the sun rising over the skyline as the call to prayer rings out — the best spot is the huge square between Hagia Sophia and the Blue Mosque.
SPA | Best for families
The Skalion sits within striking distance of all the historic sites, making it the perfect choice for families — Istanbul can be hard to navigate with small children. The Basilica Cistern, Topkapi Palace and the city's most famous mosques can all be easily reached, even on the smallest of feet. Its immediate neighbourhood, Kumkapi, is one of the best places to find Pakistani, Yemeni and Uyghur cuisine. By sacrificing (slightly) on location, you also get luxe touches for a budget price, including an on-site spa (the great aromatherapy massage is £73 for an hour) and a terrace restaurant serving burgers, spag bol, lamb chops and pizza, with views over Istanbul's old city walls and the Sea of Marmara.
Best for explorers
Get ready for some serious hill walking when you stay at Angel's Home: like many old houses in Istanbul, this place is located at the bottom of a maze of steep streets. But the short trek is worth it, because within a few minutes you will reach many of Istanbul's sights. There's something magical about making the approach through the backstreets rather than arriving with the tourist hordes. Rooms, with free soft drinks in minibars, are bare-floored and budget-boutiquey, including a suite with a private hammam. There's complimentary coffee, tea and breakfast patisserie on the roof terrace.
Best for art lovers
Taksim, Istanbul's sprawling central square, is the frenetic heart of the city, which buzzes at all hours with the sound of traffic, nightclubs, mosques and the chatter of thousands of people. But you'll feel like you've walked into a serene otherworld in the Artisan, which — as its full name suggests — doubles up as an art exhibition space. Dozens of works are displayed throughout the hotel, and there are visiting events. Rooms have free tea and espresso-making facilities, and are sprinkled with restful touches such as aromatherapy sprays to help you drift off to a blissful sleep. Consider a suite-level stay to guarantee a Bosphorus view.
Best for young travellers
Ortakoy is coming onto the map as a tourist neighbourhood thanks to its prime Bosphorus location, right next to the suspension bridge. The cobbled old streets along the shoreline are packed with old-style coffee and tea houses, bars and meyhane restaurants that serve up fish, mezze and aniseed liqueur. Corner Hot offers a variety of budget rooms in a quaint and cosy old building that was a butcher's a century or so ago — look for goats' heads as decorative features on the façade. There are also longer-term lets in two self-contained houses nearby. Inside, it's a fun blend of historic features and modern fittings, perfectly capturing the bohemian soul of this district. All that and a pleasant ground-floor café, with Bosphorus boat tours to board close by.
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Best for solo female travellers
This row of old town houses gathered around an idyllic courtyard garden wins fans for its kitsch interior and friendly vibe, as well as its proximity to all the best-known sites. It is sited between ancient relics, including the ruins of a 15th-century hammam, and the panorama from the roof terrace is a picture postcard of Istanbul come to life. All 23 rooms are unique, and the top end includes spacious suites. The basic rooms are still comfortable and chic — and an absolute bargain — breakfast, included in the rate, is served in a tranquil little garden space with burbling fountains in good weather.
SPA | Best for groups
This hotel in Cukurcuma, with its galleries, design stores and cool cafés, is really a serviced apartment block and spa that hits the sweet spot between boutique hotel and self-catering. Expect spacious, modern apartments with bare walls and bright sunshine through big windows. Breakfast is included here but, with so many great places on the doorstep serving local dishes such as menemen (scrambled eggs and vegetables) or muhlama (a huge pan of melted cheese that you scoop up with bread) you may wish to venture out, past the hotel buffet, some mornings.
Best for waterside location
The port district of Karakoy is undergoing a renaissance, and its once-scruffy backstreets are now adorned with high-end hotels, bars and shops. The Nabu manages to capture the refined ambiance of the new Karakoy without the hefty price tag you'll find in other establishments. Rooms are cosy and embellished with lush plants and sumptuous fabrics, the deluxe rooms and suites have balconies and there is a gastropub on site serving pizzas, pasta dishes and burgers as well as beers, wines and spirits. Spend a lazy day getting lost in the cobbled streets outside, discovering hidden han — courtyard workshops — and browsing the ateliers.
Best for discovering a buzzing district
Istanbul's significantly less touristy Asian district was a late bloomer in the hotel scene, but now canny hoteliers have converted historic houses into snug accommodation that will give you a base to explore one of the best parts of the city. Belizia is a looker, interiors-wise, with retro-romantic slatted blinds in rooms. You're right in the heart of the action in buzzing young Kadikoy, beloved of artists, students and young professionals. It's 20 minutes' walk from Kadikoy port, where you'll arrive on the vintage passenger ferry, to the hotel, situated in a classic portside house nestled among newer concrete neighbours. Out back there's a cute private garden where they'll serve you morning coffee, Turkish style.
SPA | Best for a lovely spa
With the sublime Basilica Cistern — part of the city's ornate, Byzantine-era underground water system — as its neighbour, it's no wonder that the Antusa centres its pitch around its own historic cistern, which feeds its traditional hammam. The hotel's Zeugma Terrace restaurant commands the rooftop, with gawp-inducing views of the huge Hagia Sophia and its domes. As well as the steam bath, its spa also offers massage and salt therapy, with guests getting a discount. Rooms are basic but clean and comfortable, and you can't get much better for location: not just the Hagia Sophia, but also the Blue Mosque, Topkapi Palace and the Grand Bazaar are about ten minutes' walk away.
Best for feeling Istanbul's history
Across the broad Bosphorus Strait from tourist-thronged European Istanbul, Uskudar is a slice of real-feel city. As is this late-19th-century timber house, sensitively restored and decorated to give guests a true feel of genteel late Ottoman life. Expect rooms filled with antique furniture and rugs, and fine manicured gardens out front. Uskudar brims with history, all hidden mosques and monuments as you wander the steep streets. Just south along the Bosphorus is laid-back Kuzguncuk, with its idle cafes and dusty antiques shops to browse all afternoon. Views from here in Asia, back to Europe are splendid, with the full sweep of the historic peninsula to your left, the original 70s suspension bridge (Istanbul now has more) to your right, and the glinting towers of the modern city ahead; head to Uskudar's waterfront for crimson sunsets, which draw local crowds.
Best for escaping the city
The Adalar (or Princes' Islands), while not exactly a secret, aren't on many tourists' radars — but if you can, take a day to ride a municipal ferry from the city out to one (or more). Clustered an hour out in the Sea of Marmara, they include a clutch of inhabited outcrops, and Buyukada ('big island') is the magnet. You'll get a postcard of old Istanbul, where elegant residences, some in Addams Family-worthy timber, others faintly art deco with their sweeping facades, have survived and cars are banned. Actually, forget a day trip — stay a night or two. The Anastasia Meziki is a romantic pastel-pink mansion on Buyukada, all wrought-iron bedsteads and hardwood floors in bedrooms that sleep up to four, making for a fine family base.
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