I would like to note that AEJ Housing has an extremely strict cancellation policy that I have suffered from, despite the negligence of the host. In short, I had a traumatic experience in this apartment, having been trapped inside the bathroom for 30 minutes and having to break glass to get myself out. Of course after that experience I had to leave before my booking ended.
I booked this room for 7/11/22 to 7/18/22. I was happy to have found affordable clean housing in the high season in Lisbon. When I arrived the room was everything I needed, desk, bed, TV, even a little veranda. I could also tell that the place was extremely clean. It was also very well stocked with soap, tissue, kitchen appliances and etc.
However, the first morning after taking a shower the key to the bathroom would not unlock (I locked the bathroom because it was shared housing). I was locked inside a ceramic bathroom with no windows and I panicked. I wish this experience on no one because I truly thought I wouldn’t be found for another two days. I was all alone in the house and the listing notes that the apartment is cleaned three times a week. After being stuck for 30 minutes and eventually breaking the glass to get out (thank god the key worked on the other side), I immediately called Airbnb to report what happen and get a refund and leave.
I believe the host came to the apartment once he was contacted by Airbnb. He asked me what happened. I was still in an emotional state and explained to him that I wanted my money back and was leaving. However he tried to brush it off, saying it had never happened before and that it can be fixed. I probably should have left immediately after breaking out of the bathroom, but I didn’t know where to go at 10:30 in the morning with 60 pounds of luggage.
After Airbnb talked to the host, they reported that the host wanted me to pay for the broken glass. I got in touch with the host to express my disappointment and they called my experience “ackward.” By the end of the day, I received news that the host would uphold its strict cancellation policy and not refund me back my money for the seven night stay.
I truly wanted to put this experience behind me and move on but this has been such a disappointment. I truly hope no one ever gets trapped inside a bathroom. Please pay attention to the strict cancellation policy.
Additionally, while in touch with Airbnb, I learned that the apartment has CAMERAS inside of the apartment. Video of me breaking the bathroom door glass was shared with Airbnb. While I am glad the cameras proved what I went through, I think this is a bit invasive, given that the apartment has a shared bathroom and kitchen (the apartment directions explicitly stated to wear clothes when going to bathroom, now I know why). I also would like to note that the door to the veranda has windows on it so it is not complete privacy, as people can enter the veranda from the kitchen. On my first day there, the other person staying another room came through the kitchen and looked into the window as I was lying down on the bed. The host should probably add something to cover that up.