This was a complicated review to write because we felt torn about our experience. Overall rating it a 3/5, more details below. We know it’s long but important for potential people to know.
Pros: 1.) the location is great. You can see canals from the front of and back of the apartment, which
we didn’t realize until we zoomed in on a foto in the listing, it’s not outwardly stated. It’s close to all main attractions but off the main areas enough to where you aren’t bothered by large groups of people but can truly walk anywhere (until you need a boat). I would suggest they add canal view in the description. 2.) the space itself. It was very spacious, we were only 2 travelers and this apartment could definitely fit more. We were on a working holiday and there was plenty of space for each us to have privacy. 3.) the decorations were great. The apartment was modern (hard to find in Venice) and was a mix of modern and old world charm. 4.) the shutters. Weird item to list, but we are light sleepers (to the point to where we pack something to put over a window if needed). The shutters blocked out all light and even though there weren’t curtains, they weren’t needed at all. Shutters are a common thing here but not in the US and they’re a game changer.
Cons: 1.) there was mold in both bathrooms (around shower and sink) that could easily be fixed by a little bleach and fresh caulk. The rest of the apartment was clean but these areas were not great. 2.) we arranged for a private boat to pick us up from the airport and provided our itinerary weeks ahead of time. The boat should have there waiting on us (like many others were for other people) but our boat was almost an hour late. We had a hard time getting a clear answer on what was going on with it as well. Things happen when traveling and I usually wouldn’t note this, but it fed into the communication issue we had later. 3.) the owner is really strict about rules, to the point it is off putting. For example, You have to take your own trash out (which seems like the job of cleaning staff) between the hours of 630-830 am however locations for trash aren’t clear. The way the rules are written are very strict (threatening fines if something is done slightly incorrect) and not very welcoming at all. We found this tone very odd since you’re in an Airbnb paying good money to rent the place. Making people feel welcome is part of renting properties like this. 4.) and finally the worst part. Communication with property. Before we traveled the people that assist the owner were very polite and courteous. When we arrived and they checked us in they apologized about the late boat. However, when we had an issue In the apartment they were nowhere to be found. The hot water and internet went out the day after we arrived. We alerted them to this and then had to follow up on Airbnb , and 3 numbers on what’sapp before they responded 8 hours later. At that point half the outlets and lights in the house weren’t working. The response we got was that we must have something to make all this happen. We must have accidentally flipped a switch somewhere, and that it was our fault. After an extended period of time of going back and forth the people that assist the owner told us to check a switch in the closet for the boiler and to flip the breakers. The breaker helped the lights and wifi but we still had no hot water. We had to get Airbnb involved because the communication was so slow. At this point we requested a partial refund for 1 day which was ignored by the owner. They finally informed us that they would have someone come in the morning, all while continuing to tell us that this was happening because we were plugging in too many appliances with incorrect adapters. We informed them we had only plugged in our phones with correct adapters. They continued to insist this was the cause of it no matter how many times we told them it wasn’t. When they came over they flipped the switch (the same thing we did when they told us) and then they realized it wasn’t working. They again told us that it was due to the adapters and items plugged in (2 cell phones). This was the third day. They then sent a technician late that day that informed them that actually a piece on the boiler was broken (surprise!) and they would have to order the piece and it wouldn’t be repaired by the time we left. They informed us of this late that evening. So of a 3 night stay we didn’t have hot water for 2 full days and nights in addition to the morning of check out. During this time the wifi continued to go in and out and the heat turned off in the middle of 2 nights (no timer set and it worked fine the night before) leaving us waking cold and no hot shower to turn to. In addition we had to contact Airbnb several times because the owner didn’t respond until the last day and the responses from the others were slow with the exception of one person that wasn’t responsible for the management of the property.
All this to say is that things break, yes, people are late, of course. Our issue with the rental was the way in which it was handled. The slow communication that led to not having hot water for the duration of our stay, the fact that the owner didn’t apologize until the last day of our stay for the inconvenience and it was not exactly heartfelt, and the way in which