Overall I enjoyed my 2-week stay in the flat. Great safe location between the Biaxa and Alfama districts, easy walking distance to many restaurants, shops, markets and public transportation stops. The flat itself was clean, cute inside and spacious.
The reason for only giving 4 stars had more to do with multiple small annoyances that reflected a pattern of inattention to detail.
First, the owner (who was apparently on vacation the entirety of my stay but still managed the property) forgot to email the ultimately helpful and detailed information packet describing local restaurants/markets and tips until a week in to our stay.
Check in was a bit clumsy. Despite my emailing that I would be arriving by train from Porto the owner repeatedly asked for my flight arrival information. Because the owner was on vacation, she had someone else meet us on day of arrival (not a big deal and understandable), however in order to communicate and coordinate with this new person, I had to download and set up “what’s app” which was inconvenient.
There were several small issues with the flat including a broken toilet seat and a broken handle on a hallway door. The flat had a nice Nespresso machine, but it would be nice to have had a starter set of Nespresso cups. Also, there was no dishwasher detergent, no back up garbage bags and a broken light over the kitchen table. Again, each issue itself was small but taken together in my view represented a lack of attention to the small details that can make a stay 5-star.
Finally, although understandable since she was on vacation, the owner did not respond to my emails sometimes for over 24 hours and at times seemed not to really read them or answer the question.