I strongly urge you to look elsewhere. This stay was nothing short of frustrating. The apartment smells strongly of sewage, the amenities listed do not match what is provided, things are not clean, and the owner/caretaker are difficult to work with. I spent a long time planning this stay as it was a longer term and booked months in advance, choosing to spend more money for a ‘nicer’ apartment. I was intentionally deceived and taken advantage of.
Things did not begin well. My arrival time was discussed several times and yet I was still left standing next to a pile of trash in the dark for over 30 minutes. The dishwasher, dryer, and other items were not actually amenities in the apartment so already I felt deceived. Claudio immediately said I could leave and get a refund for the unused days. It is impossible to find a replacement for a 6 week stay starting immediately though and it was late at night. I searched airbnb and even if I moved 4 times, I still couldn’t find places in neighborhoods I wanted to be in. Again, this was why I researched so far in advance- there were many wonderful options then! In addition to the lack of amenities, the apartment also smelled terrible. Jorge only suggested I complain to airbnb- nothing further. They later tried to caulk, but that did nothing. I do not think this issue is something new- just something they refuse to manage and fix. I am a single woman traveling and just felt generally unsafe that they were trying so hard to push me out of the apartment when I had no place to go.
The second day, I found the shower to be not just exceptionally small, but also so moldy and the doors broken (I fixed those). The kitchen cabinets were not clean and I found myself needing to wash everything. Even the floors were so dirty, as though someone had quickly swept but nothing more. The dresser in the bedroom is old with missing knobs and has gross, dirty plastic in the bottom of the drawers. I just found that I could not use anything provided. There are old, broken chairs around the apartment, apparently a decorative feature, though again, they just collect dust and dirt.
After a week, I was told there would be 'light painting' in the building. Well, that actually including drilling, cement, noise and dirt for the next 5 weeks.
Having stayed in other airbnbs for long stays, typically the owners provide cleanings throughout as well as fresh linens. That is not the case here, which is not surprising considering it wasn’t even clean upon arrival. Most hosts are accommodating and help leave instructions, tips, water, some small gesture of kindness. This couldn’t be further from the experience here where they could not even help me to use the washing machine. I’m not familiar with the European symbols. When I asked Claudio how to work the machine, he said to just turn it on… I asked what the symbols meant and he told me one was cotton and left the other 7 to my guessing. My whites somehow always turned brown- maybe that’s just the bad water, which Claudio told me is safe to drink when he saw me purchase bottled water. Thanks for the tip….
This apartment could be good- it has a balcony and is in a good location. But I was left so frustrated and discouraged by this stay. I felt like I was lied to by the host. He is intentionally deceptive. While he said I could leave, I had literally no options. It was a terrible feeling to be so trapped and taken advantage of. I felt I could not trust them and was scared for my safety. I requested a partial refund and he agreed to give me $100 of the $3300 I spent on this apartment! This type of host should not be tolerated on airbnb. Good luck...