On reflection, it was a canny decision to open Raffles in Istanbul’s most ambitious mixed-use development. Designed by architects Emre Arolat and Murat Tabanlioglu, the Zorlu Center, in the Besiktas district, is a mammoth 21st-century bazaar heaving with boldface-name retailers (the world’s third largest Apple Store, for instance), a West End-style theatre, private apartments, offices, food and drink outlets, and art galleries. Occupying the seventh to 21st floors of the east tower, the 181-room Raffles has the feel of a modern pasha’s digs. The LA-based interior design firm Hirsch Bedner Associates has dressed the space in lush Byzantine silk, gold mosaics, traditional Turkish textiles and an impressive collection of specially commissioned paintings, sculpture, video art and photography. All rooms feature a balcony with the best views overlooking the Bosphorus and the Princes’ Islands. If none of that pleases, the two pools (one on the roof alongside the helipad) and a 3,000 sq m spa stocked with products from The Organic Pharmacy most definitely will.
ADDRESS
Zorlu Center
34340 Istanbul
Turkey
-
Wallpaper* checks in at the refreshed W Hollywood: ‘more polish and less party’The W Hollywood introduces a top-to-bottom reimagining by the Rockwell Group, capturing the genuine warmth and spirit of Southern California
-
Book a table at Row on 5 in London for the dinner party of dreamsRow on 5, the first restaurant ever to open on Savile Row, emerges as a perfectly tailored fit for fans of fine dining
-
How a bijou jewellery salon in Monaco set the jewellery trends for 2025Inside the inaugural edition of Joya, where jewellery is celebrated as miniature works of art
-
Turkish Airlines reveals its flowy new Crystal Business Class cabinsLuxury is in the air as Turkish Airlines pulls back the curtain on its anticipated new Crystal Business Class cabins
-
A wellbeing temple and ocean-side apartments: Scorpios brings its downtempo scene to the Turkish RivieraBeach club Scorpios opens its new Bodrum outpost, including the brand’s first accommodation offering, with Mexican-Mediterranean interiors
-
Istanbul’s Arkestra serves Michelin-starred dishes and three kinds of funArkestra is a one-of-a-kind and three-in-one Istanbul restaurant by chef Cenk Debensason and entrepreneur Debora Ipekel
-
Birdcage 33 opens with simplicity and elegance, perched on the Turkish RivieraBodrum welcomes Birdcage 33, a cool boutique hotel, to its Aegean coastline
-
Turkey’s Bodrum Loft hotel turns sculpture park this summerBodrum Loft hotel hosts artworks by Takashi Murakami, Daniel Arsham, Jean-Michel Othoniel and more in collaboration with Perrotin and consultancy Artsa
-
Visit Istanbul’s architectural gems, best restaurants and a historic bathhouseWhat to see and do in Istanbul – from restored architectural treasures to an experimental cocktail bar, a luxurious Turkish bath, and the city’s best kebabs
-
Villa One at the One & Only Palmilla — Los Cabos, Mexico -
Martim — Wroclaw, Poland
