Very disappointing stay!! Magenta Loft!!
We booked a 3 night stay here arriving on Friday night and leaving Monday afternoon.
The Magenta Loft is advertised as a beautiful place to stay on the top floor of an elegant building central to Rome’s main attractions.
This description is not wholly accurate other than the loft is on the top floor – 5th floor to be precise.
The building is not elegant and is located in downtown Rome not far from the Central train station.
Upon arrival to Rome I called the host Paola as we had arranged a late check in and we caught a cab to the address that had been provided. We were warned by the cab driver to be careful around the train station and he dropped us a little away from the building. I had to call the host again to ensure that her colleague would be meeting us to check in we were assured somebody would be outside the building waiting. After walking with our luggage through a couple of streets and being accosted by several strange men on route we located the building and met with Ricardo who was inside.
The building was not elegant by any means and appeared to be quite dilapidated and there were guest houses listed on the intercom, we were excited to be in Rome and just accepted the character of the building and thought once we were inside we wouldn’t be affected by the run down location.
Ricardo advised that the lift was not working and the loft was on the fifth floor! We then with his assistance had to carry our luggage up 5 flights of stairs to the top floor corner where the loft is located. The staircases were steep, windy and made of stone my friend has a heart condition and really struggled to get to the top. We were told the building owners would fix the lift and there was nothing the host could do.
The apartment internally is pleasant and as per the photographs on the listing. Ricardo showed us how the heating and hot water worked pointed out where the kitchen and bathroom were took 25 euros late check in fee, advised us that it was not safe to walk at night around the area, he provided us with the phone number for Rome taxis and advised as two women alone we should avoid the metro and use taxis instead as it was not safe.
The loft is not located near any of the main attractions and to get there you must use metro or taxi – an additional expense we had not realised we would incur. There are a few cheap looking general stores dotted around the side streets and there are a couple of restaurant/cafes near the building – we did not venture into any of these. As advised by Ricardo we took a taxi and went to a restaurant in Piazza Campo De Fiori on our first and only night at Magenta Loft. The taxi cost 26 Euros there and 20 Euros return. We returned back to the Loft at around 2.00am and were shocked to discover that we could not enter the building. The keys that Ricardo provided did not work in the lock, we tried in turn to unlock the door whilst one kept an eye on the locals that were loitering nearby and were calling out to us. In desperation I called Paola’s number continually and there was no answer. We had left the apartment with only a small amount of cash and no cards or documents, it is now 2.30am and we are trapped outside the building in an unsavoury location being circled by even more unsavoury men. I tried Paola once again and still no answer, I then started pressing other numbers on the intercom in the hope that one of the residents would release the door, eventually they did and we managed to get back into the building. We then had to climb the 5 flights of stairs, on the third floor the man who had released the door was waiting for us and tried to lure us into his apartment and became very annoyed that we wouldn’t come in when he had let us into the building and disturbed him. My friend hurt her ankle as we were trying to escape him.
We eventually went to sleep around 3.30am and were woken in the morning by the neighbour’s loud bedroom action. I called the host and told them what happened with the key and she had seen my phone calls but did not call me back. She said Ricardo would be round to look at the lock and for us not to leave the building in case we couldn’t get back in.
At this point we had decided it was not safe to remain and contacted AirBnB to make them aware and were advised to speak to the host and they would be in contact to resolve.
Ricardo arrived at the loft around 12pm and was very apologetic he offered to show how the key worked and said sometimes it can get stuck but apparently there is a way to get in. This was too little too late as we had checked into a hotel for our remaining stay and at least enjoy some of our holiday. Also there was an issue with the running water at the loft which decided to stop!
The lift was repaired as we left the loft, Ricardo phoned Paola and Valeria who was dealing with this listing and they advised that they would refund us and were very apologetic.
I have raised a support case with AirBnB who have been unable to contact Paola to resolve this, so this short break has turned into an expensive trip as I have had to pay for a hotel in addition to the AirBnB. I would not recommend staying with this host or at this property unless you are happy