Ismail Buyukcayir

Do not go with bookimed.com. I didn’t liked from the moment when I arrived to airport anyone wasn’t there to pick me up, you know when you arrive any place you have no internet and you can’t make any phone calls or text so night mares already start.

Not with bookimed.com

Communication was excellent from start to finish both from the co-ordinators and everyone at the hospital and all transport was efficient. The surgery went perfectly and the results are looking good considering it’s only been a week post op. I would definitely recommend both Bookimed and Istanbul Aesthetics.

The only thing I would change would be the hotel. The Veyron Hotel was meant to be 4 star, but it definitely wasn’t and I’ve stayed in hotels frequently all around the world. The photos were very misleading in terms of the general appearance of the hotel and the facilities. There was only one small terrace at the front of the hotel where people generally went to smoke (we don’t so it’s not pleasant) and our room had no balcony, so me and my partner were basically stuck in a small room for the week of my recovery and the area the hotel was in had very little in the way of shops/ cafes etc when I was able to do short walks. It would have been nice to stay in a resort where we could relax outside to enjoy the sun and eat in different restaurants without having to pay for a taxi.

My surgeon did excellent work and the nursing staff kept close post-op care of me. I appreciated all of the provided transfers to and from the airport and between the clinic and my hotel. The whole experience from start to finish was a great value for the price. If I had the same procedure done in the US (tummy tuck, abdominal muscle repair, and lipo), I have spent close to $20k. I spent a fraction of that in Istanbul and I was so impressed by the results one week after surgery.

Please be aware that some of the medical staff do not speak much or any English, so they provide support rather silently. Turkish people are also fairly serious, so while efficient and thorough, I was not coddled or babied. Also, there's also smoking allowed in the nurses' lounge or illegal smoking in the stairwell because I frequently smelled smoke in the corridor outside my recovery room while completing my post-op walking. Lastly, I would recommend the clinical staff provide more post-op directions for safe and expedient recovery. Everything I've learned was from my own online research.

I had a 360° VASER liposuction procedure, tummy tuck and abdominal muscle repair, and overall I’ve had a really positive experience from start to finish\. From the very beginning, Bookimed answered every question I had and were incredibly helpful\. No matter what time I messaged, someone was always there to answer my queries and put my mind at ease\. The transfers between the airport, hotel and hospital were excellent, and the instructions for where to go and what to expect were very clear\. The hotel was clean and comfortable, and the breakfast each morning was lovely\. My coordinator, Ege, was absolutely fantastic throughout the whole process\. He was always at the end of a message whenever I needed him, kept in constant contact, explained everything clearly, and was always able to reassure me whenever I felt anxious\. At the hospital, I met the anaesthesiologist, who was kind, professional and explained everything clearly\. My surgeon, Dr Ergin Er, was equally reassuring\. He carefully went through the procedure with me, completed all of the markings and made sure I understood what would happen before surgery\. I’ll admit I became quite emotional as I was being taken down to theatre, but the nurses were incredibly kind\. They held my hand, comforted me and made me feel safe, which meant a great deal\. When I woke up after surgery, I was looked after wonderfully\. The nursing staff were attentive throughout my recovery and were always there to help whenever I needed anything\. Even the hospital food was surprisingly lovely\. My mum stayed with me throughout my time in hospital, and she was provided with meals as well, which was a lovely touch\. Before we were discharged, we were both even given breakfast and lunch, which was much appreciated\. There was occasionally a slight language barrier with some of the nurses, but it was never a real problem\. Most spoke good English, and anyone who wasn’t confident simply used a translation app, so communication was always possible\. Throughout my recovery, Ege continued to check in regularly and made sure I knew exactly what I needed to do at each stage\. Although I’m still healing, my scar already looks very neat and tidy, and from everything I’ve seen so far, I’m extremely pleased with the results of my surgery\. I would happily recommend Bookimed, Ege, Istanbul Aesthetics Centre and Dr Ergin Er to anyone considering cosmetic surgery in Turkey\. Travelling abroad for surgery is a big decision, but I felt supported every step of the way and wouldn’t hesitate to choose them again.

Genuinely I can’t think of anything. It’s such a massive decision and the whole time I had full confidence in what was happening and the staff.