Our stay at Alex's place was overall OK and in line with our expectations - Yet, we found it quite expensive for a low level of service. See below for details:
- The booking went smoothly; even though we made the request on very short notice (2 days before our arrival), Alex accepted our reservation quickly and gave us all the information we needed. This was definitely a relief, as we had no other option for an 'acceptable' price in Dublin.
- His roomate, Anurag, welcomed us into the apartment and was very friendly.
- The apartment itself is rather pleasant; it is well located close to the city center and has high ceilings that give an impression of space. We did not use the kitchen, but we found the room quite comfortable for two travellers (the bed was fine, we had room to leave our luggage, etc.).
- The street is rather noisy, so I would advise sensitive people to bring earplugs for their sleep (from the bedroom, you can hear very distinctively every car passing by)
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Having said all that, we found it was too expensive for the quality :
I know accomodations in central Dublin are very scarce and expensive, and I know we made ouf booking at the last minute. As we looked only 2 days before our arrival, we could not find anything under €100 per night, so when we chose Alex's place we were quite aware it would not be up to a €100 night standard of any other city.
This means we were not expecting much of it. Yet, we were quite disappointed by a few details that seem easily avoidable (with regards to the price we paid):
1/ When we arrived, the bed was not done. The sheets had been cleaned, but they were neglectedly thrown on the bed (not even folded). It takes 5 minutes to make a bed, and we were not really bothered to do it ourselves, but we would have had a better first impression if it had been done upon our arrival.
2/ The cleanliness was overall acceptable for a short notice booking, but not perfect. In particular, the shower glass doors could have requested a more thorough cleaning.
3/ There were no 'commodities' left for us to use. When we arrived, we realised we had forgotten towels for the shower (our fault really); so we asked Anurag whether there were some spare ones in the apartment but he said no and left us with no solution. I may also add that we were not offered to help ourselves with coffee or anything else in the apartment. I'll admit this is not truly shocking, and it was our fault we forgot towels, but again, for €100 a night, it would definitely be a nice to have if one or two towels / coffee / soap were left for the guests to use.
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To conclude, I would recommend a stay at Alex's place to anyone looking for a short notice, simple and practical central accomodation... as long as you don't expect much more than that.
Alex is a real Airbnb user and does not do that for a living, so I will definitely excuse him for a 'lack of experience' in hospitality. Yet, I hope that after reading this review, he will try and make an effort to make the experience worth the price for his next guests! (buy an extra set of sheets and 2 towels, it will be truly appreciated)