Embracing the magnificent silhouette of the city, Raffles Istanbul crowns the evening of December 31 with a magnificent program where taste and entertainment reach their peak. Making every moment unforgettable with its unique understanding of luxury and service quality Raffles Istanbulis preparing to turn the last hours of 2024 into a feast to be engraved in memories.

The celebrations, which will last from 19.00:01.30 to 22.00:2025, will start with a “Welcome Cocktail” at Lavinia, accompanied by a glass of champagne and “canappes”. At the “fine dining” concept New Year’s Gala Dinner; a seven-course delicious New Year’s menu and unlimited premium local wine varieties will be served to guests in the magnificent atmosphere of Raffles Terrace, accompanied by a delightful DJ performance. Starting from 00.30:01.30, the New Year’s joy will increase even more with the unique musical feast of the Barbaros Orchestra at the Long Bar, which has both a lodge and bistro layout. The “After Party”, which will take place between XNUMX:XNUMX and XNUMX:XNUMX after the first minutes of XNUMX, will captivate all senses with its delicious snacks and entertaining melodies.

At Raffles Istanbul, where little guests are always considered; in the special section designed for children, the children's buffet, playmate, magician activity, PlayStation games, mini cinema will provide joyful moments for the little ones, while tired little guests will be accommodated in the sleeping room.

By taking advantage of the early booking advantage until December 8, 2024, you can reserve your place at Raffles Istanbul New Year's Eve Dinner for 19.000 TL per person instead of 15.200 TL including VAT, and also get a 20% discount on selected champagnes!

Raffles’ Signature Afternoon Tea Time Takes on a “Festive” Spirit

Located in the heart of Raffles Istanbul, Lavinia will bring the positive energy of the new year to the Afternoon Tea Time ritual with its “Festive” concept throughout December.

The “Festive” Afternoon Tea Time menu, which will include New Year's themed sweet and salty delicacies and unlimited tea and coffee varieties, will be offered to guests from 1 to 31 every day from December 14.00 to December 18.00. Lavinia's warm and friendly ambiance, which reinforces the New Year spirit, will be perfectly completed with a piano recital.

1.850 TL per person including VAT, with a 15% discount on selected champagnes throughout the month!

A Legendary New Year's Eve Start with a Legendary New Year's Brunch

Raffles Istanbul is adapting its legendary Raffles Brunch to the new year concept on the first day of 2025 at Rocca Grill & Terrace between 12.30-16.00. Raffles Brunch, which stands out with its rich menu that includes many alternatives from fresh seafood, charcoal grilled varieties and Isokyo’s signature plates to delicious breakfasts and healthy snacks, will serve guests a glass of sparkling wine, Raffles Istanbul’s signature cocktail “Bosphorus Sling”, unlimited tea, coffee, fruit juice and soft drinks. During the brunch, which will be colored by Solanch De La Rosa’s live performance, young guests will have the opportunity to learn while having fun in the kitchen workshop organized by the chefs.

4.950 TL per person including VAT. *Free for ages 0-6, 6% discount for children ages 12-50!

The Most Peaceful Destination for New Beginnings: Raffles SPA

Combining luxury with peace, Raffles SPA opens the door to a deep purification journey, allowing you to make a serene entrance to 2025 with its privileged offers. Standing out with its new year program with the concept of “Raffles Deep Purification”, Raffles SPA promises its guests a holistic experience where soul, body and mind are renewed with special care applications between December 1-31, 2024. Providing purification and relaxation from head to toe, the “Raffles Deep Purification” offer includes 45 minutes of Aegean Purity traditional Turkish bath, 60 minutes of Aromatherapy, Deep Tissue or Bali Massage, and skin care with Organic Pharmacy or Biologique Recherche, as well as lunch from Raffles Spa’s Healthy Menu.

New Year's Special Full Day Care Offer 385 EURO per person including VAT.

A Sparkling Accommodation Experience at Raffles Istanbul

Raffles Istanbul, which overlooks the unique panorama of Istanbul from end to end, It will take your accommodation experience beyond your dreams with its attractive opportunities special for the new year.

Raffles Istanbul's New Year's Eve Accommodation Offer, which includes one night's accommodation for two people in elegantly designed, spacious rooms or suites, surprise New Year's treats, a delightful seven-course New Year's Eve Gala Dinner for two at Raffles Terrace, and a New Year's Eve Brunch for two on the first day of the new year, awaits you with prices starting from 1.400 Euros + VAT.

Source: HORECA TREND and Raffles Istanbul

Üsküdar Municipality, in cooperation with the Ministry of National Education and Public Education, opened a brand new Culinary Arts Academy with its infrastructure and interior equipment in Bağlarbaşı Muratreis District, to the service of Üsküdar residents.

On Yenidershane Street Üsküdar Municipality Üsmek Culinary Arts Academy In addition to Üsküdar Mayor Hilmi Türkmen, Üsküdar District Governor Adem Yazıcı and AK Party Istanbul Deputy Tuğba Işık Ercan also attended the opening.

Türkmen: “ÜSKÜDAR MSA will provide service 7 days a week”

Üsküdar Mayor Hilmi Türkmen, In his speech at the opening, he said that there was an intense demand for culinary arts in the district:

“It is a culinary arts academy, so this is a cooking course, a cooking workshop. Here, our citizens from Üsküdar will obtain a good education and great wealth with such a beautiful course. I wish good luck to this ÜSMEK Culinary Arts Academy, which has become a very special center in Üsküdar. This beautiful building is a building of our National Education Directorate and Public Education Directorate. We established a beautiful Culinary Arts Academy on the top floor of the building. We had a problem with a suitable place and environment for this culinary arts subject, which was an important need for us. As you can see, we are opening this academy in this beautiful building and in the most beautiful spot of Üsküdar. “Our building will serve the people of Üsküdar seven days a week.”

Türkmen: “Cooking is Now an Art”

Üsküdar Mayor Hilmi Türkmen continued his speech and stated that cooking with love is something else:

“The concept and definition of art and academy are not in vain. Cooking, making that food willingly, adding love to it and knowingly creating a successful product is of course an art. There is an art side to the job, there is a love side to it. We all say, why should we go and have a meal at a home-cooked place? There is a mother's compassion, a mother's love there. In addition to salt and paste and oil, the mother added her love and compassion, which is actually much more important, to the meal. We all love our mother's food. We love our brother's food. No matter how much we go to such expensive restaurants, we can never forget the taste, flavor, and peace of the meal our mother cooked. This art academy issue is actually a journey on the road to there, an important journey. My dear brothers and sisters, our young people, the people of Üsküdar, will prepare much more delicious meals, cakes, coffees and desserts by learning this culture and this education scientifically from experts, teachers and chefs. Since we opened it, we have to keep it open almost 24 hours a day. Everyone should come and learn and benefit from it.”

Üsküdar Mayor Hilmi Türkmen emphasized that the subject of coffee making (Barista) has become very popular in recent years and said that they attach special importance to this issue:

“You know our Gastronomy Street on Uncular Street recently. While I was walking there, a young man who ran a cafeteria approached me. 'President,' he said. 'It was a very beautiful street. We thank you for this place. "May God bless you," he said. 'There is an important deficiency. 'No one is aware of this'. I said, "What's missing, brother?" 'President, there are young people who will receive barista training. They need to be trained. This Barista issue is not an ordinary job. There is an aesthetic to this job. There is customer satisfaction and customer relations. There is quality of work done in that field. We can only make this possible through training. Our request from you is that you are doing great work. "It would also be greatly appreciated if you could open a course or a training center to train Baristas in Üsküdar," he said. A Barista course will also be given here, and our children and young people who receive training here will receive certificates, which we do jointly with the Ministry of National Education. With those certificates, you will have the opportunity to find a job much more easily. My dear brothers and sisters, this business of eating and drinking is increasing and growing day by day. Don't think of this as just consumption. This is a production. This is a hobby. This is happiness. This is an art. From now on, the movie of coffee, sir, is the song of cake, and the competition of cooking is now the documentary of gastronomy. I wish that more of our Üsküdar ladies, young girls, gentlemen, young boys and those who are interested in this field and are curious about this subject would come to this course. Let them learn here. With what they have learned, there is a commercial aspect of the job, let them pass, they can open a restaurant or give a course in this business. Children who will take the Barista course can go and work as Baristas, this will be a course that will pave the way for them to find a job. “

Following the speeches, Üsküdar Municipality Üsmek Culinary Arts Academy was opened. The course will operate every day of the week from 09.00 to 21.15. Approximately 1200 people will receive training annually in the fields of Cooking, Pastry and Barista (coffee making) at the center.

Source: HORECA Trend and Culinary Arts Academy