The apartment was great! The pictures on airbnb are quite accurate. It was very clean. João met us at the apartment, and although he does not speak much english, he did his best to show us how the apartment works. He was very fast at answering any questions through messaging.

The apartment comfortably fits 3 people, although I think it would be fine for 4 (one of the bedrooms might be tight for 2 people, though). There is ample sitting room and a dining room table. There is a fully functioning kitchen and a coffee maker (yay!!) There is a washer and dryer which was super helpful. There is also a machine to filter drinking water which was also super useful. There are two washrooms, but one of them is accessible though the patio so is an awkward spot - we only used the 1 washroom without any problems. There is a heater/A.C but we didn't really need to use this while we were here. There are TVs in both rooms, and most channels can be set to english or portuguese. The master bedroom and dining area has a window that overlooks a good nature view. There is a 24 hour doorman downstairs so it is very secure. Very easy to flag a taxi on the street.

15 minute walk down to the beach, and 8-10 min walk to the subway station and supermarkets. Lots of local juice bars and restaurants around. Make sure to try "Fredrico's Bar" for good home cooking!

Thank you for such great hospitality, João!