I was very disappointed in our stay, which surprised me given all of the incredible reviews and pictures on Airbnb.
The apartment itself is extremely hard to find and navigate to. We only had 1 night in Lisbon, and spent most of the time trying to figure out how to get to the apartment, which was not accessible by car. We visited Lisbon in the summer, and the apartment was stuffy and very very hot. The hosts hide at the bottom of their Airbnb post there is no air conditioning, and provide two small, measly fans that largely do nothing. The hosts hired an excellent photographer with a wide angle lens which made the apartment look fantastic... the pictures on Airbnb is why we ultimately decided to go to the apartment. But the pictures do not truly reflect reality... in reality it is old and if you crane your neck you can see the water but it’s mostly just looking at the back of other buildings. The decor is terrifying, and consists of a stuffed owl that looks right at you as you try to sleep; the picture behind the bed shows a small girl sobbing and reaching out for help because danger looks imminent. Additionally, the bathroom tile is old and decaying.
The hosts were very transparent about the check in and baggage policies, and so we were well aware it was necessary for us to drop our bags off at the 24 hour welcome center (because we arrived early before check in). However, we were shocked the welcome center did not have a bag storage room... instead they told us we could leave our bags and valuables in the middle of the hostel dining room, next to the bathroom where many people walked by. When we suggested we didn’t think this was safe/ what we signed up for, reception treated us like we were the crazy ones, and eventually conceded and allowed us to put the bags behind the reception desk.
All in all it was not worth the $200 per night we paid for just one night in Lisbon. Yes the hosts add nice touches like wine and cheese on arrival, but I would have preferred cheaper accommodations (because cheap wine and cheese is literally everywhere in Portugal). I was looking to pay more because I assumed from the Airbnb post and misleading pictures that this was a high end listing, and I wanted to surprise my significant other with a romantic getaway. If we had a better price point it would have been less painful of a visit, but we did not think the apartment was worth the price.