Facelift Surgery in Istanbul, Turkey
What a Facelift Is, and What It Is Not
A facelift is a surgical operation that repositions the deeper soft tissues of the face and neck — the SMAS layer and the fat compartments that have descended with age — and then removes the skin that has become excess as a result. It treats position: jowls, the softened jawline, the fallen midface and the loose neck. It does not restore lost volume, it does not resurface the skin, and it does not stop ageing. Those limits are why most of my operations combine a facelift with something else, and why a facelift alone is sometimes the wrong answer.
How I Assess Every Face: Position, Volume and Skin
I assess facial ageing in three components: position (descent of the deep tissues), volume (loss of facial fat) and skin quality. A facelift corrects position. Volume loss is addressed with fat grafting, and skin quality with resurfacing such as CO₂ laser. Most faces age in more than one component — which is why my surgical plans are individual, and why they often combine procedures in a single operation.
Facelift Techniques: Which Type Is Right for You?
Deep plane facelift — my primary technique
The deep plane facelift releases the facial retaining ligaments and repositions the SMAS layer and skin as a single unit, working in the plane beneath the SMAS. It treats midface descent, jowls and early neck laxity at their anatomical source, with low tension on the skin. In my practice this is the reference technique: I use the extended deep plane approach in most of my facelift patients, particularly when midface descent and jowling are established, and it is the technique I would choose for most patients seeking a comprehensive, natural, lasting result.
Deep neck lift
Neck ageing — platysmal bands, fullness under the chin, loose neck skin — is treated with a neck lift. Facial descent and deeper neck ageing usually coexist, so I most often combine a deep neck lift with an extended deep plane facelift in one operation.
SMAS facelift
The SMAS facelift tightens the superficial musculoaponeurotic system and manages the skin separately. It is a well-established technique that remains appropriate for selected patients with milder laxity. The full deep plane vs SMAS comparison explains the practical differences.
Mini facelift
A mini facelift tightens the skin and the superficial layer of the lower face through a shorter incision, without releasing the ligaments that hold the deeper tissue in place. I do not perform mini facelifts: in my practice the result does less than patients expect and fades sooner, and a meaningful share of the revision cases I see began as one. When less surgery is genuinely right, I confine the deep plane release to the area that has changed. The full comparison is on mini facelift vs deep plane facelift.
Midface lift
The midface lift specifically repositions descended cheek tissue and improves the lower eyelid–cheek junction — useful when ageing is concentrated in the central face.
Endoscopic facelift
The endoscopic facelift uses small hairline incisions and camera guidance, and is best suited to the upper and middle face in patients with mild descent and good skin elasticity.
The “ponytail” lift
The ponytail facelift is a marketing name for the same family of operations — and its page explains what the name can and cannot do.
Temporal lift and brow lift
Lateral brow descent and a heavy upper eye area are treated with a temporal lift or a brow lift — frequently combined with facelift surgery, because the upper face ages in parallel.
Revision facelift
If you have had a facelift before and the result has relapsed or concerns remain, revision facelift surgery is a distinct procedure with its own planning considerations.
Facelifts for Men
Men age with the same anatomy and different rules: heavier tissue, a beard-bearing skin, a hairline and sideburn that fix where incisions can go, and a lower tolerance for anything that reads as “done”. How that changes the plan, the incisions and the result is on the male facelift page.
What About Non-Surgical Alternatives?
Thread lifts, energy-based skin tightening and filler-based “liquid facelift” approaches can be reasonable options for mild, early changes — with the honest caveat that their effect is temporary and they cannot reposition descended deep tissue. When a patient's problem is genuinely surgical, I say so; when it is not, a thread lift or a skin-quality treatment may serve better than an operation they do not yet need.
Who Is a Good Candidate for a Facelift?
A good candidate has visible descent — sagging cheeks, jowls, loose neck skin — is in good general health, does not smoke or can stop nicotine for the required period, and has realistic expectations. Age by itself is not how I decide; anatomy, health and expectations are. I regularly advise against surgery for young patients without a true surgical problem, and for patients whose expectations surgery cannot meet. What I look for in your photographs is set out plainly.
What the Operation Involves
A full facelift is performed under general anaesthesia in a full-service hospital, with a dedicated anaesthesia team and monitoring of the facial nerve, and you stay in hospital under observation afterwards rather than returning to a hotel the same day. The incisions follow the natural creases in front of and behind the ear and into the hairline; what is done beneath them depends on the technique. What the day of surgery looks like, from admission to the recovery room, is on your surgery timeline; the indicative ranges for operating time and hospital stay are on each procedure page.
What Recovery Looks Like
Recovery depends on the technique. The rhythm for full facelift surgery in my practice: hospital observation immediately after surgery; discharge to the recovery hotel when I have examined you; peak swelling in the first days and then the turn; clinic checks and suture removal in the second week, ending with my decision on whether you are fit to fly; most patients socially presentable by the third week; and the deeper swelling settling over the months that follow. The complete week-by-week guide, including what is normal and what to report, is the facelift recovery guide.
How Long Does a Facelift Last, and How Much Younger Will I Look?
A facelift's anatomical repositioning is long-lasting, but no facelift stops ageing, and I do not promise a number of years or a “years younger” figure. What surgery changes is your starting point: you continue to age from a younger anatomical position. Deeper-plane techniques generally maintain their correction longer than limited or non-surgical approaches. My own long-term criterion is different anyway: the face should still look natural well after the operation — ageing without ever looking “operated on”.
Results
A good facelift is one nobody can point to. Every case in my results gallery is unretouched, published with written consent, and lists the full combination of procedures performed — so that a facelift with eyelid surgery and fat grafting is never mistaken for a facelift alone, and the reverse.
Safety, and Where I Operate
Choosing a properly credentialled surgeon and a full-service hospital is what makes facelift surgery safe — anywhere. I operate at a modern, fully equipped Acıbadem group hospital in Istanbul with a dedicated anaesthesia team, and I am registered with the Turkish Ministry of Health for international health tourism. The perioperative protocol is on the deep plane facelift page; how to verify any surgeon and hospital — including me — is on is Turkey safe for plastic surgery.
Facelift Cost in Turkey
There is no single facelift price, because there is no single facelift operation. Cost depends on the technique, on whether neck surgery, eyelid surgery, fat grafting or laser resurfacing are combined, on operating time, and on the hospital stay. After reviewing your photographs and, where needed, a video consultation, I provide a transparent, itemised quote based on your own surgical plan. What determines the cost is explained in full.
Travelling to Istanbul for a Facelift
You arrive before the operation for an in-person examination, stay in hospital afterwards, move to the recovery hotel, and remain in Istanbul until I have seen you at the final check and confirmed that you are fit to fly. How the trip is arranged, who should come with you and what the patient journey looks like from first enquiry to follow-up at home is on travelling to Istanbul; deposits, dates and policies are on the international patient FAQs.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the difference between a facelift and a deep plane facelift?
“Facelift” is the umbrella term; the deep plane facelift is a specific technique that releases the retaining ligaments and lifts the deep tissue layer rather than tightening the surface. It is my primary technique for comprehensive facial rejuvenation — the full guide is here.
Is a mini facelift enough for me?
In my practice, no — I do not perform mini facelifts. A mini facelift tightens the skin and the superficial layer over tissue that is still tethered, so it does less than patients expect and fades sooner. If your changes are early or limited to the jawline, the right answer is a smaller deep plane operation on the area that has changed, or no surgery yet. The comparison is on mini facelift vs deep plane facelift.
Am I too old for a facelift?
Age alone is not a criterion. I assess anatomy, health status and expectations — healthy patients across a wide age range can safely undergo facelift surgery.
How long do I stay in Istanbul for a facelift?
Until I have examined you at the final check and confirmed you are fit to fly — the decision is made at that examination, not on a fixed day. The indicative range for your operation is on its procedure page, and the trip itself is explained on travelling to Istanbul.
Does a facelift also treat the neck?
Often, yes — facial and neck ageing usually coexist, and I most often combine a deep neck lift with the facelift in one operation. Isolated neck problems are treated with a neck lift.
Will I look pulled or “done”?
Avoiding that look is precisely why I prefer deep-plane techniques: the lift is carried by the deep tissues, so the skin is closed without tension. My aim is a rested, natural result — not a tight one.
How much does a facelift cost in Turkey?
There is no single price, because the operation is individual. After reviewing your photographs and, where needed, a video consultation, I provide a transparent, itemised quote based on your surgical plan; what determines it is explained separately.
Should I lose weight before a facelift?
If you are planning significant weight loss, finish it first: losing weight after a facelift loosens the result, and I plan the operation for the face you will have, not the one you have today. Stable weight matters more than a particular number, and I discuss this in the assessment.
Can I combine a facelift with eyelid surgery or fat grafting?
Yes — combinations are the norm in my practice, because ageing affects position, volume and skin together. The most frequent additions are blepharoplasty, fat grafting and CO₂ laser; the logic and the limits are in the combination guide.
Is it safe to have a facelift in Turkey?
Choosing a properly credentialled surgeon and a full-service hospital is what makes it safe — anywhere. I operate at a modern, fully equipped Acıbadem group hospital in Istanbul with a dedicated anaesthesia team, and I am registered with the Turkish Ministry of Health for international health tourism. How to verify any surgeon: Is Turkey safe for plastic surgery?
Start Your Assessment
Start with photographs, not with a technique. Send them over WhatsApp or through the form and you will receive my initial assessment of what is driving the change you see, which operation — if any — fits your face, a proposed plan, an expected length of stay and an itemised quote before anything is arranged.
Request a personal review See before & after results
Every enquiry is reviewed personally by Dr. Yilmaz; scheduling is handled by the patient coordination team.
About Dr. Muhsin Yilmaz
Written and medically reviewed by Muhsin Yilmaz, MD, FEBOPRAS — Plastic, Reconstructive and Aesthetic Surgeon. Last reviewed: September 2026.
Dr. Muhsin Yilmaz is a double board-certified plastic surgeon, holding the FEBOPRAS diploma of the European Board of Plastic, Reconstructive and Aesthetic Surgery and the certification of the Turkish Board of Plastic, Reconstructive and Aesthetic Surgery, and practises in Istanbul, Türkiye. His practice is focused on facial and neck rejuvenation, centred on the deep plane facelift — around 150 facelift operations per year, performed at Acıbadem Kartal Hospital. He is a member of TSPRAS and ISAPS, and is registered with the Turkish Ministry of Health for international health tourism. Read his full profile.
References
- Hamra ST. The deep-plane rhytidectomy. Plast Reconstr Surg. 1990;86(1):53–61. doi:10.1097/00006534-199007000-00008
- Jacono AA, Bryant LM. Extended deep plane facelift: incorporating facial retaining ligament release and composite flap shifts to maximize midface, jawline and neck rejuvenation. Clin Plast Surg. 2018;45(4):527–554. PMID 30268241
- Rohrich RJ, Pessa JE. The fat compartments of the face: anatomy and clinical implications for cosmetic surgery. Plast Reconstr Surg. 2007;119(7):2219–2227. doi:10.1097/01.prs.0000265403.66886.54