# Sapanca & Kartepe > Lakeside lodges and forest hotels on the road from Istanbul. The easy choice for one or two nights away, in every season. The best months for groups are April, May, June, July, September, October. The main airport is Sabiha Gökçen (SAW), about 90 minutes by road. Hotel budgets start from about €100 per person per night. URL: https://www.bravodays.com/en/locations/sapanca-kartepe Last updated: 2026-10-21 Publisher: BravoDays (https://www.bravodays.com) ## Key facts - **Best months:** April, May, June, July, September, October - **Airports:** SAW · 90 min, IST · 120 min - **Flight times:** Istanbul (road) 2 h 00 min · Ankara (high-speed train) 3 h 20 min · Dubai (to SAW) 4 h 45 min - **Budget per person per night:** €100 – €280 - **Venues:** 6 - **Experiences:** 25 ## Why here Sapanca and Kartepe solve a common problem: the team is in Istanbul, the budget does not stretch to flights, and people still need to feel they have left the city. By coach it is about two hours from central Istanbul, or 90 minutes from Sabiha Gökçen, and the change of scenery is complete: a lake, wooded hills and cool air. Properties range from lakeside lodges with wooden bungalows to conference resorts with 200 rooms. Kartepe, above the lake, has a small ski area from December to March and forest trails the rest of the year. Sapanca is also popular with visitors from the Gulf, and most hotels are used to halal kitchens, family rooms and prayer spaces. Weekends in summer are busy, so we schedule group programmes from Sunday to Thursday when we can. ## Areas we work in The southern shore of Sapanca for lakeside lodges and bungalows; Masukiye for streams, fish restaurants and forest hotels; Kartepe for the ski area, mountain hotels and views over the lake; Kırkpınar for quieter villas. ## Featured venues - [Sapanca Lakeside Lodge](https://www.bravodays.com/en/venues/sapanca-lakeside-lodge): Wooden bungalows and a main lodge on the southern shore of the lake, two hours from Istanbul by coach. - [Kartepe Forest Glamping](https://www.bravodays.com/en/venues/kartepe-forest-glamping): Twenty heated safari tents in a beech forest above Sapanca lake, with a fire pit and a dining pavilion. - [Sapanca Lakeside Villas](https://www.bravodays.com/en/venues/sapanca-lakeside-villas): Ten private villas with gardens and a shared pool on the south shore of Lake Sapanca, with a clubhouse for meetings and a private pier. - [Kartepe Forest Resort](https://www.bravodays.com/en/venues/kartepe-forest-resort): A mountain resort in the forests of Kartepe, near the ski slopes and above Lake Sapanca, with a grand ballroom, a spa and year-round outdoor activities. - [Sapanca Lake Conference Hotel](https://www.bravodays.com/en/venues/sapanca-lake-conference-hotel): A conference hotel on the shore of Lake Sapanca, 90 minutes from Istanbul, with a 700-seat ballroom, lake-view meeting rooms and a large garden. - [Maşukiye Stream Bungalows](https://www.bravodays.com/en/venues/masukiye-stream-bungalows): Wooden bungalows beside a mountain stream in Maşukiye, on the slopes of Kartepe, for small, informal retreats in the forest. ## Things to do - [Team alignment workshop: goals, roles and ways of working](https://www.bravodays.com/en/experiences/team-alignment-workshop-goals-roles): A facilitated day to agree three to five team goals, map who owns what and write a short team charter, followed by a review after 60 days. - [Mountain-rescue coordination exercise](https://www.bravodays.com/en/experiences/mountain-rescue-coordination-exercise): Guided by professional mountain instructors, teams plan and carry out a simulated rescue: locate, stabilise and evacuate a "casualty" as one coordinated unit. - [Executive coaching circles](https://www.bravodays.com/en/experiences/executive-coaching-circles): Small circles of senior managers work through real challenges with a certified coach, using a structured peer-coaching format. - [Budget trade-off game](https://www.bravodays.com/en/experiences/budget-trade-off-game): Department heads share one limited budget and a list of competing projects. To win, the group has to agree priorities rather than defend territory. - [Fog-of-war orienteering: decisions with incomplete information](https://www.bravodays.com/en/experiences/fog-of-war-orienteering): An outdoor orienteering game where each team member holds only part of the map, and the route has to be decided again at every checkpoint. - [Four futures: scenario-planning workshop for your industry](https://www.bravodays.com/en/experiences/four-futures-scenario-planning-workshop): A facilitated workshop where leaders build four plausible futures for their industry and find the decisions that make sense in all of them. - [Lake Sapanca cycling relay](https://www.bravodays.com/en/experiences/lake-sapanca-cycling-relay): Teams ride a relay along the lakeside paths of Sapanca, swapping riders at checkpoints and racing to complete the loop. - [Kartepe snowshoe walk and winter games](https://www.bravodays.com/en/experiences/kartepe-snowshoe-and-winter-games): A snowshoe walk through the snowy forests of Kartepe, followed by sled races, a snow sculpture contest and hot drinks by the fire. ## Sample itinerary - **Day 1 Coach from Istanbul and lakeside lunch** Morning departure from Istanbul, lunch by the lake, afternoon workshop, dinner with a fire on the terrace. - **Day 2 Forest and close** Morning walk or cycling around the lake, closing session, lunch in Maşukiye and coach back to Istanbul by early evening. ## Questions ### What is the best way to get a group from Istanbul to Sapanca? A private coach on the northern motorway, about two hours from central Istanbul if you leave before 8:00 or after 10:00. Guests arriving from Ankara can take the high-speed train to Arifiye station, 15 minutes from the lake. ### Can we ski in Kartepe? From roughly mid-December to March, depending on snow. The area is small and good for beginners and a fun afternoon. For a proper ski programme we recommend Uludağ. ## Related pages - [All locations](https://www.bravodays.com/en/locations) - [Get a quote](https://www.bravodays.com/en/get-a-quote?destination=9)