Unfortunately our stay was not as expected despite the high review rating. There were several issues that could not be overlooked. We initially considered leaving the first day we checked in but saw the nonrefundable policy and stayed to avoid wasting energy filing complaints and finding a new place to stay last minute, but in hindsight maybe we should have. The host declined our partial refund request saying we did not reach out until after we left. Most of the listed issues were not immediately fixable (the water pressure issue preventing usage of one of the two showers, was explicitly noted on a sticky note which implied they already know of and looked at the issue - more details below). I am still leaving a review to warn those who plan to stay with similar expectation as ours. I never left bad online reviews before… so here it goes.
Short version:
1) Listed as 2 baths but actually 1.5 baths (one shower does not work)
2) Filthy bedding (blankets look never washed and turned brown)
3) Stale smell of cigarette/marijuana in the entire building
FYI no living area
May be ok for college students looking for a place to crash and sleep and be outdoors most of the time (each bedroom has a lock on the door, TV and desk in room)
For those of you who would like more details, behold for the long review.
1) We specifically searched for a listing with 2 bathrooms, which greatly limited our options to choose from. Nonetheless it was necessary for us so it was one of the main reasons we selected this property. This place had 2 bathrooms, but one of them had a shower that had really low water pressure that it was impossible to take a shower in (had a sticky note on the mirror saying “water pressure low in the shower but it works” with a phone #, which implied they already knew and took a look at the issue). This came across as a huge inconvenience for our stay, and we would not have chosen this property if it were listed as 1.5 bath.
2) Although the kitchen appliances were mostly new and clean, as well as the bathrooms which seemed to be recently renovated, the beddings (especially the blankets) were very filthy that we could not even touch them; they were stained to the point it turned brown from sweat, and whatever other bodily fluids… One blanket had a brown stain that looked like either blood or someone attempted to turn off their cigarette butt. We were quite certain the blankets were not washed once for years since they were first bought for AirBnB use. We had to use the thin sheets to sleep in. Pillows were also very old and dirty but we tried to ignore it since they had clean covers. However some of them might be long due for replacement. Some towels had black streaks of stain, so we ran them through another wash cycle but the stains stayed and the host should probably toss them and replace. Also the electrical kettle had a filter at the spout which had grime (that looked like maybe food/soup scraps or dirt) and leaves (?). This made us question what the kettle was used for by previous guests. We ended up taking the filter out and boiled water a few times before we felt safe to use it. Otherwise, the bed linings/sheets, bathroom and kitchen spaces were clean.
3) This is probably something the host may not have control over but despite the building prohibiting smoking, the entire place smelled of stale cigarette and marijuana smoke all day, everyday. We tried to keep the windows open as much as we could while we were indoors to keep it ventilated, but every time we entered the place after spending the day outside, we were greeted with strong stale smoke smell that caused headaches. Same issue overnight, since we closed the windows before going to bed for safety reasons. Also, bathroom vents seemed to bring in the smoke from other units within the building, since every time we turned it on we could smell cigarette/marijuana.
Overall, we think this spot may work for younger people who travel to Montréal looking for a dorm-like stay (each of the 5 bedrooms has a plastic desk, TV and a lock on the door so it seemed to have been renovated for this exact purpose), where they just need a place to sleep for the night and are smokers and/or do not mind a smoking environment. It is situated in a fairly nice area with a parking space behind the building. Unfortunately, for a large family that was seeking to spend significant time at the place to rest between sightseeing and activities, having no living area (there is only a small space which is basically a kitchen with a table and a few chairs with no sofa), fewer working showers, unsanitary bedding and headache causing smoke smell did not add up to a pleasant/comfortable stay.