Where to find a budget hotel in Istanbul, and is Eminönü a good area to look?

For budget accommodation, check Booking.com and sort options by price. Compare a hotel with breakfast against an apartment with a kitchen, where self-catering can reduce costs.

For budget stays, start with Eminönü, which was mentioned as an Istanbul area where hotel prices are still fairly reasonable.

A practical option is to compare rates on Trip.com, since the same hotel may appear there at a lower price than on other booking platforms.

Another useful method is Google Maps: open the Istanbul area you want, search for hotels, apply price and rating filters, and read recent reviews before booking.

Once you shortlist a hotel, make sure it actually has the number of rooms you need instead of choosing by search price alone.

Based on the discussion, hotels can sometimes be better value than expected, so it makes sense to compare them against apartment rentals as well.