My experience was overall positive, but there were too many shortcomings which I feel must be addressed.
I'll open by saying that the apartment has good potential, and IF MY COMPLAINTS ARE ADDRESSED, FUTURE GUESTS SHOULD NOT HESITATE TO BOOK IT.
Let's start with the positive aspects.
The apartment is pleasant and sunny, and generally matches the description and images in the listing. The location is OK: outside the city center, but close to the ring road. There are restaurants and convenience stores nearby (but that's true everywhere in the city). The apartment was mostly clean and very tidy. The bed is comfortable and the balcony is lovely. The host was pleasant during our communication.
My main disappointment was with the kitchen. The listing said that the kitchen was "fully equipped" and contained "cooking essentials". But here are some things that were missing:
- cooking oil
- salt
- kitchen towels
- vegetable peeler
- salad bowl
- baking dish
- boxes for storing food, or at least nylon wrap
- bag clips (e.g. for sealing an open bag of bread)
- a microwave wouldn't hurt either
Additionally, the stove is so tired it can't boil water. I had to use the electric kettle to boil water before pouring it into the pot. The only pan in the apartment has a deformed bottom, which limits its contact with the heating surface, so even frying an egg was a challenge. The toaster surface is so scratched, everything sticks to it. Even the pepper shaker has a broken lid.
I talked to the host about the oil and salt, he apologised and sent his aunt who lives in the building to refill the salt. She was very kind, and offered to help with anything else I needed. But I didn't feel comfortable to keep bothering her with every issue.
A functional kichen is the main distinguishing feature of an AirBNB apartment compared to a hotel room. But cooking in this apartment was a chore. It's a shame, because the apartment is otherwise well-equipped with "advanced" items such as a coffee maker and a vacum cleaner.
There were some other issues as well.
The internet connection is rather slow and unstable. Speed tests indicated around 50Mb/s down and 7Mb/s up, but with very high pings. The dedicated workspace has a simple plastic chair with a non-cushioned bottom - uncomfortable for long sits (so I had to drag over a chair from the dining area). An HDMI cable for connecting your laptop to the television would also be a welcome addition.
The bathroom door doesn't close properly - very awkward if more than one person is staying. The showerhead holder is installed at a weird angle, forcing you to stand in an awkward position while showering. The water temperature is great, but the pressure is a bit low. The soap dispensers in the bathroom sink and shower contained very runny soaps, as if watered down. Contrary to the listing, there was no shampoo (or possibly the soap dispenser contained shampoo, but in that case there was no soap in the shower).
For around 3 days, my reserved parking spot was taken by other cars. It wasn't an issue because other spots were available in the lot, but I was worried that neighbours would complain about me using their spots. The reason for confusion was probably the fact that the parking spots were unmarked. The host explained that they had just been repainted, but throughout my 8-night stay, no one bothered to paint new numbers.
For a "quiet neighborhood" the apartment is quite noisy. First, there is a constant hum of traffic from the intersection with the ring road. Second, the apartment faces two schools and a football field, so there is loud noise of kids playing outside every day from morning till evening. Compared to other noises, kids playing is a rather plesant sound, but it was still somewhat distracting.
I SHOULD CLARIFY THAT I DID NOT COMMUNICATE WITH THE HOST ABOUT MOST OF THESE ISSUES. IF I HAD GIVEN HIM A CHANCE, HE MAY HAVE BEEN ABLE TO SOLVE SOME OF THEM. But I'm not the kind of person to pose daily demands, and most issues (like buying a new stove) were beyond the scope of immediate repair anyway.
It saddend me to speak ill of an overall pleasant experience, but I feel compelled to reflect my disappointment in the rating. At the end of the day, I could not shake the feeling that the host / SKG Homes were being cheap at the expense of the guests. In certain aspects the apartment feels like a student residence, which was not justifiable by the price.
Importantly, some of my complaints had been mentioned by previous reviewers. Apparently, the only way to push hosts to improve is to be more harsh in our reviews: to expect more than four walls and a bed.
Thank you for the stay anyway.