First off I want to say that we have stayed in several airbnbs around the world and I have always rated 5 stars with glowing feedback. I'm not a picky or demanding customer, but I feel people should know what they are getting into when they book this house. This was the third Airbnb we stayed in during our two week trip to Italy. I was really looking forward to staying at this particular Airbnb, but unfortunately it was not as expected. A few days prior to our stay Monica sent a $90 request stating it was for taxes and the fee for someone to meet us at the train station for check in (this was after I already paid the regular rates to stay here). I never had a host ask for more money on top of the original price before. I paid the fee because as a single mom traveling with three children, I was happy to have someone help us get to the house in an unfamiliar city. At the train station, the property manager met us and said the house was "just around the corner". I asked her if we should get a water taxi, but she insisted it was "very close." Since I had never been here, I trusted her and began the walk to the house. We had 5 suitcases. My kids are ages 5, 8, 9...so it was mostly me who would be physically able to handle the luggage (the kids tried, but they are kids...). Venice has bridges...the bridges have several stairs to get up and down..with luggage this is very difficult. The lady who met us at the station promised there were only 3 bridges to get to the house. It ended up being EIGHT bridges. And the house was NOT close to the house. It was about 25 minutes of walking with all of our luggage and tired children. What a miserable start to our trip. I can't believe I paid $90 for this service. I felt scammed. If you are going to Venice and have luggage, ABSOLUTELY take a water taxi - heavy luggage plus lots of stairs is a terrible combination.
Anyway, we arrive to the house and it is not what I expected based on the pictures. Excluding the kitchen, it had a very outdated 1980's feel to it. If it were an 1880's feel, that would've been great - but 1980's...no. The bathroom definitely needed an update. The cleanliness was not the best. The floors seemed dirty and whenever I opened a drawer to put clothes away the drawers had crumbs and debris in them. Gross. One of the cabinets had wadded up dirty blankets just stuffed in there.
Monica was very responsive in our communication - I appreciated that. However you can always tell when an Airbnb is managed by the owner and when it is managed by an outside company. This one was definitely managed by an outside company. Monica's house seemed to have no "love"...there were no special touches or signs that anyone cares about this home. All of the other airbnbs we have stayed in, the owners put thoughtful touches in the home such as guidebooks, cold water in the fridge, hairdryer, etc. Do not expect anything extra here. You definitely do not get that warm, welcoming feeling in this house.
And lastly there is the trash situation. We were instructed that we had to take our own trash out to the dump, and if any trash was left in the house we would be charged a fee. Why did I have to pay a cleaning fee when I also have to take out my own trash? Trash removal seems like a standard service when staying at a hotel or Airbnb.
Anyway, would I stay here again? Absolutely not. Would I recommend it to others? No.