I was disappointed in our stay here. Given all of the amazing reviews, I was excited to stay here, but it was not what we expected. We would not stay here again.
The apartment was not ready for us at check-in time. We didn't mind waiting an extra 15-20 minutes, but even then it was not fully ready (the host had to come back and bring clean towels later on). Upon entering, the place had a bit of a smoky smell and seemed like he had rushed to finish cleaning it (for example, the laundry was still going). After looking around, we realized that the host must live there (which is fine, just not what we had expected). The fridge and pantry were full, and we could see personal things throughout the apartment (for example, the cabinet under the bathroom sink was completely full).
Ken messaged me to let me know he would return shortly after our check-in to drop off some groceries. When he arrived, he kind of barged in and caught us off guard. He was very friendly, but we didn't feel fully comfortable, especially during a pandemic. He came right in, and only seemed to put on a mask because we were already wearing them (and kept pulling it down to talk). He then proceeded to show us around the apartment (touching everything, including the unwrapped candy and food he had brought). We appreciated the sentiment but it was not necessary. He also told us not to use the main bedroom, which seemed odd. If you are looking for an experience with minimal host contact, this is not the place for you.
The location was not ideal. We were technically walking distance (about a mile and a half) from downtown, but the walk was not very nice and there wasn’t much along the way or around the apartment. The neighborhood felt safe enough but a little rundown. It was nice to have a parking spot, though.
The apartment itself did not feel totally clean. It was cleaned on the surface but didn’t have that spotless “Airbnb feel” like other places we have stayed at. It felt more like staying at a friend’s house. While some might enjoy this experience, this isn’t what we were going for.
We kept asking ourselves how the reviews could be so misleading, and thought that maybe we were just crazy! But at the end of our stay, the host messaged me with checkout information and asked us to please leave a 5-star review. He said that if we had any dissatisfaction to let him know before leaving a public review so that we could “find a solution.” Makes sense now why this place has so many 5-star reviews if he is fishing for them. I felt compelled to leave an honest review of our experience. It wasn’t “bad” but it wasn’t great, either, and I wouldn’t stay here again.