Overall I was very disappointed. I booked this flat for my family of four plus my two parents in their 80s. The main reason I chose this apartment was because of the rave reviews about Massimos communication, hospitality and use of his boat services. First of all, he didn't return any email I sent before our trip. I needed to contact airbnb to file a complaint before I heard from him. I contacted him 4 times...once about 6 weeks before we arrived and then three times 1-2 weeks before our arrival. He didn't return any of these emails. Then unfortunately he experienced a tragedy and his boat was burned so he was unable to provide transportation at all for us during our stay. Although this was out of his control I do feel that he should have helped us find alternative boat transportation as this was the main reason I chose this flat and I expressed to him that I needed boat transportation. He was actually fairly rude when I tried to contact him for help. He never once contacted me during our stay to see if we needed anything.
Now, regarding the flat. I liked the location. It's in a happening neighborhood filled mostly with locals. I liked getting a feel for a different part of Venice which was not completely touristy. It's a ten minute walk to the Vaporetto and there are lots of restaurants nearby. The flat was very spacious with a beautiful view, and the wifi worked well, but there were a few annoying aspects. There were no hand towels in the bathrooms and no bath mat so the bathroom floor got very wet during showers. There were not enough towels for everyone. There was only one small trash can in the entire flat. The bed linens and blankets were old and low quality.
I would not have chosen to stay here if i hadn't seem all the wonderful reviews about how great Massimos boat transportation services were. I do understand this was out of his control and I sympathize with his boat situation but as our host and our only two days in Venice I feel he should have tried to find us alternative transportation.