I gave a low score to Punthill (and this is the first time I am putting a low score in AirBNB). Before getting to the reasons, I would like to say the staff were relatively helpful and polite and I appreciate their effort to help with a couple of issues.
- The listing title is "Studio Apartment" which I believe is not accurate and misleading. There are different definitions for a studio but usually, it is a combined living room/bedroom+kitchenette and bathroom and it should have a minimum area to allow for activities associate with living and bedrooms. However, this listing is just a very small bedroom (3x3 approx) with a queen bed and a narrow table. There is no room to sit (except a chair at the end of the table) and there is not even enough room for two people to pass each other. The pictures are taken with a wide lens and give you a wrong impression about the size of the room.
- When we booked we put two adults+ two dogs and expected the total price to be based on this information. However, on the second day, we were told because we had dogs we have to pay $250 extra for cleaning. The staff showed us a very small text in the booking description (i.e.small print). I can't think of any reason why this additional cost would not be included in the Airbnbs initial invoice. The hotel didn't clarify this before the booking although we had some communication before arriving and they said they weren't sure we are bringing the dogs! I don't find this approach transparent and honest. In the end, the staff said they can reduce the cleaning fee to $125 which we accepted because there wasn't any choice and we couldn't find another place in the middle of the Christmas holiday.
- The room was relatively clean (not very) but the public areas including the car park were not as clean as you expect. There was an intense smell like an air deodoriser in the lobby which we found unpleasant.
- We both found the bed uncomfortable and I got neck pain from the uncomfortable sleeping.