The Peninsula Istanbul

The 177-room Peninsula Istanbul is as much a love letter to Turkey as it is an outpost of a global luxury hospitality brand. Peninsula’s latest property is a four-building complex that soars high above the rushing waves of the Bosphorus. Turkish designer Zeynep Fadıllıoğlu, credited as the first woman to design a mosque, placed culturally relevant reference points throughout the property: bathrooms done in Marmara marble, kilim-style carpets. It’s hard to pick which room you’ll want to book — some come with floor-to-ceiling windows, balconies, and private terraces that frame the water beautifully. Or maybe you’d prefer suites with direct access to the lush, manicured gardens or the pool. But no matter what, come June, everyone will head straight to the rooftop to eat at Gallada, Fatih Tutak’s highly anticipated Turkish Asian restaurant. It hasn’t opened yet, but it’s already where all of Istanbul wants to be. Until then, see you at one of the sexiest pools around: an 82-foot long indoor basin surrounded by theatrically lit Marmara columns.