A few doors along from the Pera Palace, this is a real find. It occupies a beautifully restored 19th-century townhouse, built by the great Camondo banking dynasty, ‘the Rothschilds of the East’. The exteriors are suitably grand, but the interiors very far from stuffy, with wonderfully generous rooms, full of natural wood – in one case scented lime.

The overall feel is of wonderful space. The owners are architects and the rooms are chicly austere, with fragments of murals, original woodwork and often handsome marble basins. The furniture is beautifully carved and contemporary – stylish, but never over-designed. There are solid timber floors throughout. The ceilings are high, the decor pared down; the suites are as large as generous apartments. For these people, God is in the detail. Every item of furniture has been carved to order, down to the bespoke, natural-fibre mattresses and inviting white bed linen.

A place to hide away for a monthr. And to cap it all the view of the Old City from the top-floor terrace restaurant is a pure joy. Unusually for Istanbul, they also stock Ankara’s excellent Vinkara wines.