The Istanbul Modern, Turkey’s leading contemporary art gallery, has closed its doors on the banks of the Bosphorus, where a new home will be built on the same site. The museum – in the trendy harbourside area of Karaköy with its Ottoman architecture, modern shops and ancient mosque and baths – is to be demolished and a new building by Pritzker prize-winner Renzo Piano will take its place. Although Renzo

Canadian hospitality group Fairmont Hotels & Resorts is continuing its global expansion strategy with the opening of a hotel in Istanbul, Turkey. The 209-room Fairmont Quasar is located in Mecidiyeköy, one of Istanbul’s business quarters on the western side of city. It is housed in the wider Quasar Istanbul complex, which occupies a site once home to a liquor factory designed by the French architect Robert Mallet Stevens – parts

Wanda Hotels & Resorts will become the first Chinese hotel management company to export one of its brands overseas, following an agreement to open a Wanda Vista property in Istanbul, Turkey. The company will act as the hotel operator, while Turkish development firm Mar Yapi will fund the project. It will be located close to the city’s busiest shopping district and a five-minute drive from Ataturk International Airport. Wanda Vista

Turkish studio EAA-Emre Arolat Architecture have created a striking new home for some of Turkey's most important art works: a renovated warehouse which has been stripped of its floors and walls. The studio’s design team have stripped an abandoned dockland building so that only the concrete structure remains. This stark 24,000 sq m (258,000sq ft) structural grid will support large overhanging red containers, within which 15,000 art works dating as

Mövenpick Hotel Istanbul Golden Horn, Turkey, will open on 31 March. The hotel is sited 10 minutes from the Old City’s historic sights and 10 minutes from the Haliç Congress Centre, enabling it to target both business and leisure guests. The 136-key property, owned by Istanbul-based Akgel Real Estate Investment, has been designed by Loft Architects - with interiors by Sinan Kafadar from the Metex Design Group - to evoke

Starwood Hotels & Resorts will debut its first St Regis-branded property in Istanbul, Turkey in March – designed by award-winning Turkish architect Emre Arolat in an Art Deco style reminiscent of the city’s artistic 1920s era. Housing an extensive selection of artwork from the Demsa Collection of Art – a private collection belonging to the Demsa Group that also owns the hotel itself – the property has 118 bedrooms and

Istanbul has welcomed the opening of the new Shangri-La Bosphorus, Istanbul featuring Europe's first CHI, The Spa. Inspired by traditional Asian healing philosophies, all treatments are based upon the principles of restoring balance and harmony to mind and body. The spa contains eight large private spa suites offering Asian and Turkish treatments, customized massages and organic products. The extensive hammam facilities cater to both private groups and individuals. Both the

Turkish design hotel Marti Istanbul has unveiled Marti Wellness by Spa Soul on the top floor of its property. With views over the city the spa offers five treatment rooms, steamrooms, sauna, two private marble hammam rooms and a Roman bath in an 850sq m (9,149sq ft) Ottoman-inspired space. In addition to traditional Turkish treatments, including the Turkish Hammam Bath, the spa menu includes algo-radiance facials and foot acupressure. Those