I have been lucky enough to have stayed in some lovely places through Airbnb, but Gabrielle’s flat really has outdone them all. It’s spacious, clean, and cosy. Brilliant shower/bath, the cosiest (and largest) bed with clean, comfy bedding, and a kitchen stocked full of everything you need and lots of it. The WiFi is super fast, even faster than mine back home! Beautiful views greet you from every window, all aspects of the house. There is a much appreciated elevator, which saved me carrying a 26kg suitcase up four floors! It’s central, in the hub of the city, and on opening the windows you can feel that but on shutting them it’s like you’re a world away. Absolutely no noise from the neighbours. Step down into the street and you have bars and eateries within a few strides. And it’s true - you really do hear beautiful music from the balcony coming across from the conservatoire which was very special.
Above all else, Gabriele is the best host I have ever had the pleasure of meeting. He’s warm, kind, thoughtful, and so incredibly knowledgable about this beautiful city. I’ve never experienced attention to detail at this level before. He was always available to communicate with before arrival, and remained that way throughout my stay. Though I arrived very late into the evening, he greeted me so kindly. The time he took to show me around the flat really made me feel at home, and the recommendations he suggested for Bologna that I tried were all perfect. Leaving a bottle of wine, and those delicious (unbearably addictive) olive oil snacks, a hairdryer, laundry detergent and fabric softener, drying rack, plug adaptors, thick blankets, shampoos and conditioners. Taking care of storing my luggage on checking out and booking my taxi for me. He made it all so seamless, even when I arrived late, when I changed my taxi departure multiple times, fixing the blinds that I accidentally broke. I felt so at home here, I really didn’t want to leave. In fact I stayed here twice within the period of a week. I was meant to travel to Lake Como, then go on to Milan for four nights. I decided to cancel two of those nights and return to Bologna - even though it’s further from the lake than Milan! That should say it all. I hadn’t drank the wine during my first stay, but he kept it there the second time along with a carton of orange juice which I thought was so thoughtful. Please don’t miss a chance to stay in such a wonderful flat. This was the perfect base for discovering such a wonderful, vibrant, city and I can’t wait to come back. Thank you Gabriele.