Turkey Trip Overview
Booking Flights To Turkey
British Airways First Class Lounge IAH
British Airways 777 First Class IAH-LHR
Transiting Heathrow and British Airways A320 Business Class LHR-IST
Marriott Courtyard Istanbul Airport
Pegasus Airlines Istanbul to Izmir and Back
Ephesus, Mary’s House and Basilica of St. John
Swissotel Efes
Pamukkale Bus and Preiene
Ritz-Carlton Istanbul
Major Sites to see in Istanbul
Radisson Blu Bosphorus
Turkish Airlines Lounge Istanbul
Turkish Airlines 777 Business Class IST-IAH
At last we had a day to ourselves. While part of me was ready to explore Izmir itself, the reality is that as 40- and 50-somethings, my friends and I just need a day off every now and then. And that’s OK. The good folks at Sea Song had booked us into the Swissotel Grand Efes Izmir and it was definitely worth whatever we paid. This hotel was recently named to the TripAdvisor list of Travelers’ Choice Winners for 2015 in the luxury hotel category, so you know it has to be good.
Our room was slightly larger than standard, which allowed us to add a rollaway along with the king bed. There was a small patio that overlooked the courtyard and the pool. We had a desk where we could set up the laptop and plug in our many electronic devices. A counter ran the whole length of the wall opposite the bed, which was nice for storing our stuff. There were a few drawers under the counter as well.
The closet was a good size, though we didn’t make a lot of use of it. The safe was large enough to store our tablets.
The bathroom was nice and big with a separate shower stall and bathtub. The sink area had quite a bit of counter space and there were shelves above and below it. Toiletries were Purovel branded.
Perhaps the highlight of the hotel was the glorious buffet breakfast each morning. Wow! Words really can’t do it justice but if you couldn’t find plenty to eat here, you weren’t trying very hard.
We also enjoyed sitting by the pool and just enjoying the warm sun. There are windows in the pool and there’s a restaurant underneath/beside it where diners can see into the pool itself. So, no skinny dipping! An indoor pool is also available year-round.
Though I didn’t take advantage of it, the gym facilities were really impressive. Quite a large weight room, a number of bicycles (they even have spinning classes) as well as yoga classes were available for use.
Spa and salon facilities are also at the hotel. This hotel also has an entire building of meeting rooms and conference facilities and we saw a number of folks attending.
When we were working with Sea Song we’d been considering another hotel but they said that the Swissotel was the only one they worked with in Izmir, and I see why. We had a fantastic stay and wouldn’t hesitate to return.
2B Traveling 
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