Series of unfortunate events and poor communication…..
Although check in was really smooth and easy and the host gave us clear instructions, we arrived back to the property that evening to cook dinner and discovered a loud and persistent scratching noise from inside the wall, which we suspect was a mouse. Consequently, we didn’t stay at this property. We contacted the host who found and moved us to alternative accommodation but this was only available for 2 nights of our stay. We were told that to move for the 3rd night, they would pay for a taxi. On the 2nd day, we still didn’t know where we were going to stay for the 3rd night, knowing we had to check out the following morning with nowhere suitable to store our luggage. The host offered to refund us for the 3rd night which would have left us stranded with nowhere to stay. So, we asked that the host find us alternative accommodation for the 3rd night. We approved this alternative accommodation without looking as we were busy and felt we had no other option. There was no communication about booking details, contact details, luggage storage or transport to the accommodation. So we assumed we had to make our own way to the accommodation. We paid to store our luggage that day and the only viable transport option was a taxi. Upon arrival to the property, it appeared closed and after wasting 2 whole evenings of our holiday moving, this was very frustrating. When we did check in, it soon became apparent that this accommodation was not of the same standard and did not offer the same amenities as the host’s property that we had paid for. We sent a message to the host explaining this, along with the taxi receipt. The host’s response was less than friendly, refusing to pay the taxi fare and claiming that there wasn’t a mouse problem in their property, which they’d never confirmed to us before. This was at 9pm on the 3rd night which was too late for us to act. Regarding the transport, the host insisted we should have taken the bus/metro, which would’ve taken us at least an hour and a half, compared to 20 minutes in a taxi or that we should have called her to take us there, something she had never mentioned before, and which was not a viable option as we couldn’t waste more of our holiday waiting around. After multiple rude responses we didn’t respond to the host and we never heard back from them. All in all, this incredibly overshadowed our holiday and put us through a lot of unnecessary stress. This was by far the worst experience I’ve had on Airbnb.
If the host’s property hadn’t had a possible rodent problem, it would have been a nice place to stay. At first glance, the property was nice and clean but, after suspecting a rodent problem, it became apparent that the property was unusually clean without so much as a speck of dust behind the fridge and the washing machine.