About Us

The story of Kandilhane

Kandilhane sits on one of the slopes of Beyoğlu that run down to the Bosphorus, in a small neighbourhood named after the lamp makers who once lit these streets. Our building was designed in 1892 by an Italian architect as an apartment block; for more than a century its six floors, stone façade, cast-iron balconies and wooden staircase were home to tailors, musicians and painters.

Over a four-year restoration that began in 2019 we preserved the façade, the stair railings and the hand-painted ceilings, and redesigned the interiors to today’s standards of comfort. The result is 34 rooms and suites, each with its own plan, the Fener Terrace facing the Bosphorus on the eighth floor and the Kandil Hammam in the former cistern below.

What we believe in

• Less, but better: we keep the number of rooms small and know every guest by name.
• Part of the neighbourhood: our simit comes from the corner bakery, our flowers from the florist in Tophane.
• Telling the city: our concierge shows you the Istanbul that guidebooks miss.
• Quiet luxury: spaces chosen for texture and light, not for show.