Four Seasons Hotel Istanbul, Istanbul, Turkey

Along the meandering alleys of Istanbul’s historic quarter, round the corner from the Byzantine splendours of the Haghia Sophia stretches the mustard-yellow façade of the Four Seasons Hotel, a jewel in the crown of this romantic city.

A hundred years ago this was a prison where dissident writers, artists and scholars languished, in a building which is now a splendid rare example of late Ottoman/early Turkish neoclassical architecture. Now designated a historic treasure, the bastille features turrets and arched doorways, originally built to be sympathetic to the architecture of the Topkapi Palace, a short stroll away.

With only 65 rooms and a lovely residential feel, the hotel is something of a boutique number, though this doesn’t diminish the incredible level of service that is the Four Seasons’ trademark. In fact, the hotel’s opening in 1996 brought to Istanbul the sort of service formerly enjoyed only by the Sultan.

Establishing the hotel involved painstaking restoration of the original building while the interiors carefully reflect the period style. Antique pieces, drawings and photographs by Turkish artists reinforce the sense of place.

Then again, wander out on to the terrace on the fourth floor and there, looming large on each side, are the domes and minarets of the Haghia Sophia and the Blue Mosque. And sparkling in the distance, the waters of the Bosphorus recall centuries of glory for the only city in the world to span two continents. You can’t get a better sense of place than that.