Pretty great except for cockroaches
So unfortunately during my stay the city had just done a treatment on the streets to kill pests. Rather than killing them it caused them to flee and flee they did into this apartment. This is not a reflection on the host or the premises but an unfortunate situation that occured while I was staying here. It did cause me to end my stay of 4 weeks, 2 weeks early because I just could not live in a place with cockroaches.
Pedro was very helpful and tried his best to fix the problem, but I don't think there was a whole lot he could do for a number of reasons. The apartment is in a very old building which is not sealed very well and so the roaches were able to get in easily.
On other notes:
-Check in was very easy, I did self check in with a lock box and key inside it as I was arriving later at night. Pedro made this very easy with simple instructions and photos to explain
-When I arrived it was clear that everything was freshly washed and cleaned. No dust and very fresh smelling
-The Aircon machine in the bedroom was great but very loud if you wanted to keep it on over night. I never did this because the apartment isn't in any direct sunlight and so doesn't actually heat up a huge amount. Even when it was 38°C outside. Something to keep in mind for the winter possibly, but I never felt to hot in there
-The apartment is completely black if you don't have the one window shutter up and lights on. Great for sleeping but not for waking up in darkness. The window is on a busy set of steps with a walking tour that stops right at the window a few times a week so you have people looking in at you. It's nice to have the window open but you get no privacy and all the flies come in. As well the shutter does not lock on one side as well as the window itself seems flimsy. This makes me think it is not very secure and if someone wanted to they could break in. The bugs certainly got in!
-The kitchen was very well equipped for a longer stay with pretty much everything you could need to cook a meal. Having a freezer and fridge was fantastic. I never used the oven so can't say if it works well or not. I turned it on but nothing seemed to happen, all the labels are worn off so there's no way of knowing how hot it is
-The washing machine was handy to have but again there is no manual so it's hard to know how to use it. There is a launderettes around the corner which is very easy to use and drys clothes very quickly
-The ceilings are very low, I am 5'3" and I could touch them no problem. The bathroom is even shorter and smaller so maybe not great for tall people. The hose doesn't have anything to hold it up, so you need to hand wash yourself. The heat in the shower sometimes wouldn't turn on no matter how long you left the water running. So I did have a few cold showers, the other taps would get hot but the shower was just iffy
-The apartment is in a really nice location in Alfama, not to far up the hills. It was maybe a 20 minute walk into the city centre. The street the apartment is just off has loads of restaurants and shops to you have plenty to choose from. There is a very nice vegan Italian restaurant called Horatio Trattoria one minute walk. The big flea market is also only a 5/10 minute walk further up the hill and a good way to spend a few hours
-I'd say this place would be great for a group or family for a short stay. You can use the scooters to get into the city which is super cheap and fast. Maybe 1.20 max and it would take under 10 minutes
-The apartment itself is actually part of a unit which wasn't clear from the listing. The front door pictured is actually the door to the hallway where there are three other apartments. I liked this as it made me feel more secure. I found the key for the apartment door itself to be somewhat finiky but eventually got the hang of it. The inner door has a pretty heavy duty bolt locking system
It's hard to say if I would recommend this place, if I hadn't had the cockroach infestation then it would have been near perfect