Kempinski Residences Astoria

Dominating the skyline of Esentepe – the Istanbul equivalent of London’s Canary Wharf – the twin towers of the mixed-use Astoria complex certainly make an imposing statement. Ranked as one of the most expensive developments in the city, the Astoria houses 110 retail stores, a 49-metre-high double atrium, a 3,000m2 spa and health club, 10 movie theatres, a host of restaurants and bars, 800-vehicle car park and 160 residences that are arranged on the upper floors of both 27-storey towers. Developed by Astas Group over a period of three years beginning in January 2005, it combines a unique blend of lifestyle experiences in a fast-growing commercial district close to the Bosphorus and 0-1 highway, which links Europe with Asia.

Private residences measuring up to 430m2 and offering up to four bedrooms have already been sold. A total of 30 fully furnished, one-bedroom residences measuring between 110 and 136m2 are located in the lower half of Tower ‘B’ and have been managed by Kempinski Hotels since they opened in January 2008. They come complete with a range of five-star hotel services, including 24-hour concierge, daily housekeeping, laundry, business centre, food delivery and dedicated car park space. Guests of the residences also have free access to the fitness facilities in the Anantara Spa.

“Since Kempinski already has the established Çiragan Palace in Istanbul, we didn’t want to compete directly with our own business by opening another hotel,” says Kempinski Residences Astoria General Manager Eyüp Babür. “But we did want to expand the residence part of our operation so signing a management contract with Astas to provide our expertise in hospitality made sense.”

While residences are typically rented from one week upwards, at a cost of €2,000, usually by senior business executives, Babür says the company can host clients for short hotel stays of less than a week. This is particularly important to the loyal corporate client base built by Çiragan Palace over the years.

Kempinski has also been instrumental in providing technical specifications and standards for the development. HOK London in partnership with local firm Tunca were selected as architects for the project, working on public spaces, including the hotel lobby, elevators, shopping centre and parts of the residences. Adil Tunca says: “The brief was to create a theatre for a premium luxury lifestyle, without compromise, and the concept was to see and be seen. Luckily for us, the developer was very generous so we were able to find the best design solutions to maximise quality, style and volume.”

To make the complex bigger and better than the competition, the architects worked around the restrictions of the towers’ existing shell to introduce air, space and light from outside. Glass has been employed to maximum effect, allowing natural light to flood into areas such as the lobby and residence elevators. Muscular cantilevered canopies and balconies, shaped seamlessly to fit the building, have been fitted externally and internally with the intention of lighting up previously dim areas. The acoustics of the original shell have also been improved through design.

With the stage set structurally, designer Sefik Kabas of Artepe was brought in to take responsibility for the interiors and furniture and product design. A specialist in residential projects, he was asked to create a tranquil environment with a contemporary feel, which should appeal to a wide variety of tastes.

As guests enter the generous-sized lobby, the distinct impression is of timeless luxury, with earth-coloured marble flooring, contemporary Ottoman-inspired screen partitions and carefully placed objets d’art from around the world breaking up the space. Benefiting from a high ceiling, the lobby also features a raised seating area, which doubles almost as a plush living room, with books and ornaments arranged in a beautifully polished wooden display case.

Moving up to the rooms, the glass-panelled residence elevators provide tempting glimpses of the restaurants in the shopping mall below. Once the elevator doors open, sensor-controlled lighting illuminates corridors, guiding guests to their temporary residences, some of which benefit from panoramic views of the Bosphorus.

The rooms do not all look identical but a range of ecological colours and wood finishes such as light oak and wengé ensure the décor is soothing and pleasing, if not particularly memorable. “Some guests stay for a long time so the design has to accommodate individual tastes while making people feel at home,” comments Kabas.  “While I have avoided strong contrasting colours and stuck to warm browns, greens and creams, different shades have been utilised in wallpapers, rugs and bed throws from room to room.”

But it is in the room amenities that the residences come into their own. The marble bathrooms come equipped with bathtub and shower and a separate shower cubicle, all stocked with large-sized Molton Brown toiletries. Plentiful storage space, leather desks and flat–screen televisions make the bedrooms extremely comfortable. In the living rooms, flat-screen televisions with DVDs, generously proportioned sofas, fluffy rugs, sleek glass tables and chairs and a fully equipped kitchen ramp up the homely environment, albeit one at the luxury end.

With Kabas’s company providing the custom designed furniture and the designer given input into the smallest details, such as the choice of fresh flowers, a truly harmonious interior scheme has been devised.
Add into the mix services including food delivery from one of the mall’s restaurants, rent-a-cook/waiter and in-house doctor, and it’s easy to see how Kempinski Residences Astoria is redefining top-end hospitality in Istanbul.

KEMPINSKI ASTORIA RESIDENCES
Buyukdere Cad. No:127 34394
Esentepe Istanbul, Turkey
Tel: +90 212 370 0000
www.kempinski-astoria.com

Rooms:    30 one bedroom residence
Food:    Various
Drink:    Various
Facilities:    Anantara Spa

WORDS BY NEENA DHILLON
PHOTOGRAPHY COURTESY OF KEMPINSKI HOTELS