I rented Gaia's apartment for 30 days. This is an honest review of my experience.
The Good:
Gaia seemed friendly when reserving, easy to communicate with and timely in her responses.
The apartment is just as described. It is huge and rustic with thoughtful modern touches designed to make it comfortable.
The Duomo Bells. I found them quite soothing - they were the highlight of my mornings.
The 60 inch tv rocked - better than any bar! I was able to watch several soccer games in comfort.
The air conditioning units. Although they were small, but mighty!
The Balcony. I spent every moment I could - whether it was morning meditation or drying the laundry. While there were a number of things I didn't like about the apartment, the Balcony almost made up for it.
The Not So Good.
THE STAIRS!!! There are 3 VERY STEEP flights of stairs I counted 76 stairs in all - to get to this apartment. Instead of disclosing this important information in the main description (where it belongs!), it is hidden in the very end of the "Health Regulations". In my excitement about the balony, I did not see this information. When I brought this concern to Nicolo's attention at check-in, I was met with a rude and condescending response. While I realize that buildings with no lifts are common in Firenze, I also know from experience that plenty of buildings DO have lifts. After long days of walking, hiking and sight seeing, the stairs were difficult. I honestly would've made a different choice had this detail been disclosed more openly.
The Beds.
They are on the firm side...not the most comfortable in my opinion.
Cleanliness.
There were several areas that should've been cleaned better:
1. The shower curtain in the big bathroom should have been changed.
2. There was soap on the back wall of the shower and behind the bidet. (I hope it was soap!)
3. There were breadcrumbs on the cutting boards on the kitchen counter.
4. Crusted Spaghetti left over in the sink
5. Crusty, leftover sponges left on the kitchen counter
6. Only 4 cooking utensils, all of which were old and dirty. I ended up buying my own - I also took them home!
7. None of the large pots had lids. Several were unusable with food burnt on them.
Check-out:
Aside from carrying 3 suitcases down the stairs, self checkout was easy.