Four Seasons Hotel, Istanbul at Sultanahmet

Set in the heart of Sultanahmet—less than a minute’s walk from Hagia Sophia, the Hippodrome, the Blue Mosque, and Topkapı Palace—this property’s century-old Neoclassical building and manicured garden courtyard have hosted hotel guests since 1996. (In its earlier incarnation—as the city’s most famous prison—it was home to longer-term “visitors,” such as dissident poet Nazım Hikmet.) The 65 plush guest rooms here, though outfitted in traditional Four Seasons fashion (genteel wood antique repros, European-style damask upholstery, plush wall-to-wall carpet), are greatly enhanced by the building’s graceful architecture, which incorporates vaulted ceilings and arched windows. Though there’s no swimming pool, the roof terrace, with views across the Sea of Marmara, is lovely in the summertime.