Where to stay in Istanbul?

Sorry to be conviniently sneaking to your post to request similar info. My friends are coming from India early june to Istanbul. i was gonna request links for previous posts (as far as i know there is no easy browsing for past posts) for convinient acconadation around 50-70 euros per room for a young couple. Thank you everyone and to you lovestoexplore! A quick tip to you by the way is to check www.pudra.com even if you need to use googletranslate.

http://www.pudra.com/eglence/

Try Entes Apartment Otel in Beyoğlu. You get a good-sized self-catering apartment that will very comfortably sleep three about 200 meters from Taksim Square for 60 EUR/night. Very clean and the location on the south side of Istiklal is much quieter than some. No breakfast and while I won't call it "stylish" the price is almost impossible to beat. Book well in advance as it is almost always filled.

If you want to be somewhere around the entertainment area but also convenient for visiting Sultanahmet in the daytime too then I would recommend Galata,Karaköy or Cihangir.All are great hip neighbourhoods and all offer easy access to the tram and metro systems to get around on.These neighbourhoods are also still'locals' area's,that is ,not just tourists hotels so you get a nice local feel there too.
In Karaköy try Hotel Hettie,right on the Bosphorus water front.The nearby Map Room Hotel is also very good.
Around Galata check out Nar Pera Hotel,Nar Galata Mansion,1312 Galata and Pera Tulip Hotel.
In Cihangir take a look at Hotel Villa Zurich,Urban Suites Hotel and Stories Hotel Kuloğlu.
All of the above are in great locations and are places with character.

FatmaK...for your friends Duo Galata Hotel or maybe Karınca Guesthouse in Karaköy or Golden Galata also in Karaköy,or Hira Suites in Çukurcuma or Otto Plus Suites near Tünel.All good for tram and metro etc.
All of these fall at the lowest end of your friends' budget so if they want they can afford to upgrade upon arrival if they want to.

Thank you both Mike and Sarikanarya.. fantastic details and insights.. they will help tremendously!

For " history and culture" you really can't beat the Sultanahmet area. I always stay there, though I've been visiting Istanbul for many years.
But for nightlife it's across the Golden Horn and especially around the Taksim area.The latter has good public transport links with Sultanahmet up to about 11.30 at night; if you're night owls you'd have to consider whether or not to pay for taxi rides.

So - up to you where you choose to stay, depending on your interests. All the booking sites have places listed in both/all areas. (But don't stay on the Asian side if it's your first visit.)

I vote for north of the Golden Horn. Late at night when public transit dries up, you're more likely to be doing entertainment stuff than history stuff, and therefore will be closer to home if home is in Beyoğlu.

Though cabs are pretty cheap, too...

I don't know why Mother Courage tells people not to stay on the Asian side, but we absolutely loved the Kadikoy area and lived there for six months. Lots of bars and restaurants in Moda, plus you get to take the ferry to the main sites and then go home to relative civilisation. A simple bar of chocolate cost me 2.5x as much in Taksim as Kadikoy, and taxi drivers don't seem to rip you off on the Asian side either.

We're currently living on the island of Kinaliada, 30 minutes by ferry from Kadikoy (50mins from Kabatas, down the hill from Taksim). No cars, peaceful, fragrant scent of flowers, beaches, it's a whole different world.