Büyük Londra Hotel

Büyük Londra Hotel review

The Londra was built in 1892, so it's roughly the same age as the nearby Pera Palas. But whereas the Pera Palas is like a sleep-in museum, the Londra is homely and eccentric. Caged parrots peer dolefully out from their cages on the windowsills in the lounge-bar. Portable coal burners, wind-up gramophones, valve radios and plenty of other ancient junk clutter the corridors. Hemingway stayed here in 1922, sent by the Toronto Daily Star to cover the Turkish war of independence, and the place is still favoured by artists, writers and film crews. Some of the 54 rooms are a little down-at-heel, but they are clean. The upper floors have 'super' rooms with double glazing, plush carpets and jacuzzis.