Would NOT Recommend it. We recently stayed at this Airbnb, August 2021.
We were happy with the communication with the host, she also helped us with early check-in (1:30 PM). The place itself is nice, the building is good and the little extras were appreciated. She had free coffee, Netflix, free parking and proper dishes.
The apartment was clean and ready for us when we when in.
Unfortunately, there were some significant issues that we had with our stay.
1. The Mattress. Obviously, a big part of staying at an Airbnb is your quality of sleep. This mattress was unacceptable. It was uncomfortable and had major dips in the centre of the bed when you laid on it.
The host has said she is replacing the mattress. I would double-check that before booking.
2. The couch. A reoccurring theme for this review will be that the description used by the host doesn't match the experience you get. One of those things was that you can come back, unwind with some Netflix. It was great to have that on the TV, but the couch is VERY uncomfortable, it was better without the back cushions. We didn't go to Victoria to watch TV, but after a day of exploring it's nice to watch a movie or something like that.
3. The Windows and No Screens. Another reviewer has also mentioned this. The temperature outside during our stay was mid-teens to 25 at most during the day. Not super hot, but enough to be hot. The apartment is stuffy and requires air ventilation. The problem is the patio door and the window don't have screens, so you get bugs inside.
The owner said she would fix this for the other reviewer, but they are still not fixed. She told me that she is back and forth with the condo association. If the plan is to replace the windows entirely I can see that. I have lived in Condos before and understand VERY well the nature of dealing with the condo board/association. However, Amazon has $40 DIY magnetic screens that could be used until a more permanent solution is put in place.
4. The Towels and Bath Mat. The towels were the worst towels I have ever used. They may look nice, but they feel like cardboard, and quite scratchy. The worst part however is that there isn't any flooring...it's just concrete and sealant. Because of this the bathmat which was chosen to match the towels is VERY slippery and caused us an accident after showering.
The host has said they will be replacing the bathmat. It is a safety hazard.
5. It's not Safe and Not Quiet. In the description, the host used the words safe and quiet to describe the airbnb. This was not our experience.
I get it ... condo. All I am saying is that quiet shouldn't be used in the description, there was constant noise from the neighbours, sometimes tv, sometimes stereo and sometimes thumping. This was during the day, evening and sometimes at night.
The building is located just outside of the downtown area and is a block away from a significant homeless shelter. This also attracts a large number of different kinds of people. This is not an expose on the homeless and street culture in Victoria, rather a response to feeling unsafe where this airbnb is located. In fact, if you look up the neighbourhoods that are the most dangerous in Victoria, number 1 and number 2 are where this place is located.
We ran into a number of situations that we were uncomfortable with and could have potentially gotten worse.
The host blamed it on the homeless population in Victoria being bad, and I get it that could very well be a problem. The problem I have is that it wasn't communicated in the listing or in the private emails. The street that the condo is on, Mason Street, is a street used by this population, as is the adjacent street Amelia. We even saw the police there to deal with a situation.
Just warn people, let people know to be careful and aware of the situation.
Overall the description given didn't match our experience., and we would not recommend staying at this place unless a number of these issues were delt with and the communication changed for people booking.
Due to all of this we also think the listing is overpriced.