Our misgivings began as we navigated our luggage around the scaffolding on the stairs & in the entryway. Once inside, the apartment did not do the photos justice. In summary, the apartment is poorly ventilated & the information provided regarding its amenities is blatantly misleading.
The washer & dryer (listed in the amenities at the time of booking & during our stay) were not present. Queries to our host (Xavier) & the management company (Hamac Suites) as to the whereabouts of these appliances were ignored. {Subsequently, these 2 appliances have been removed from the listing.}
As the week wore on, the weather got hotter & so did the apartment. The bedroom was like a sauna with its tiny 6 inch window (the window glass itself baking hot). The dusty standing fan supplied was ineffective. There was a remote control provided, but there was no corresponding A/C unit. We flicked a switch in the bedroom & something happened with air – but really no idea what & we could not control the flow or temperature to any extent. It seemed to be moving hot air around. Messages to the host concerning the A/C & its operation were ignored. No A/C instructions could be found in the property. The powerful mobile air conditioner mentioned in the listing was nowhere to be seen!
We received numerous messages from our host & the management company after booking. Yet, following check-in, they ignored all our messages questioning the lack of laundry appliances & querying the workings of the A/C. The amenities for the apartment were misrepresented. There was no apology for the misrepresentation or the inconvenience.
We received cryptic messages from our host about someone calling in to the apartment & could we leave the keys in the lockbox? But no explanation as to the purpose of this person’s visit. We hoped it might be to provide some instruction as to the operation of the A/C, but apparently not. Eventually after days of to & fro with messages, we were offered a fan - which never eventuated.
A large part of the living/dining area is unusable, due to the low timber beams & steeply sloped attic ceilings. You need to be bent double to access these areas. The only two decent sized windows which open are located in the kitchen & dining area. Elsewhere there are tiny glass partitions for light only, so the flat is generally dark & poorly ventilated. The bedroom is very stuffy, especially at night. All the bases of the plastic dining chairs are cracked, so we had to sit on them with great care. The base cushions on the sofa keep sliding to the floor, so we couldn’t sit comfortably on the lounge either.
The shower has a severe mould problem & the floor is slippery. The shower itself is a hand held affair, so you need to balance the shower head on top of the mechanism. The toilet is housed in a cupboard off the dining room. You can’t close the door to the toilet room when it’s in use & the workmen on the roof can see through the Velux window in the ceiling into the toilet room. Flimsy items masquerading as furniture reside in the bathroom & toilet room. They were a bit like a Jenga tower; you felt they could collapse at any moment. On arrival, the bathroom basin was blocked & the cleaner turned up to fix this problem – a small victory.
The essential areas seemed clean enough, apart from the crumbs on top of the fridge & around the microwave. The flat could do with a deep clean though as it’s very dusty in places, especially the toilet room which has obvious cobwebs & dust.
Currently, workmen are accessing the entryway to the apartment (right outside the front door) & the rooftop of the building. Men & materials are going up & down the scaffolding. There is drilling. It is dusty & noisy.
One saving grace was the location – close to tram & metro (& a laundromat!). In many years of booking via AirBnb, this was by far our worst experience.