Property: The house is nondescript on the outside (which is a good thing), but the visual style is impressive in the interior. It’s also amazing how they built the house into the natural wall of the hill. It’s nice that there are so many bedrooms and ample bathrooms. While the style is great, there is little storage. No rooms have closets and most rooms don’t have enough space to open a full size suitcase and still navigate easily.
Location: You should really know what you’re getting into in this neighborhood. It’s not bad, just not for everyone. The street in front of the house sees a lot of tourist foot and car traffic (which I really like and don’t see as a negative). The area is very hilly and not for the faint of heart. At first we were put off by the neighborhood, but it really grew on us over time — especially getting up early in the morning and seeing folks wake up and start their day. Other properties might be a little closer to some of the restaurants and main streets visitors might want to see (we found ourselves taking taxis to the same spots over and over). The neighborhood does seem to dump its trash directly across the street, feet in front of the house, which can get a little gross. Finally, many of the restaurants closest to the house are obvious tourist traps, but there are some gems close by if you look.
Service/Experience: The manager Paolo agreed to let us store our bags in the home slightly early before check in, which was very generous. The communication before check in was great. When we met him, he notified us that the air conditioner in one of the bedrooms had been broken for three weeks and wouldn’t be working. This was a problem given there was a heat wave coming through. We really wished he had told us before we checked in so a couple folks in our group could have looked for other arrangements. He initially pushed back when we complained about it. Then he eventually sent a technician who installed a portable air conditioner, but did it in such a way that the exhaust flowed right back into the room. He eventually sent the technician back to install it properly, but after a few nights of sweltering heat. To apologize, he offered us an evening cruise on the owner’s boat, which was very generous (we had plans so couldn’t take him up on it). We also had two other problems. First, there was a cockroach issue. We complained at first, and they sent a technician to spray, but we saw cockroaches multiple other times after (mainly in the kitchen cabinets). Second, some of the fixtures had issues (drain caps in the showers were loose, handles came off sinks, etc.). Not huge issues, just slightly annoying. On the other hand, Paolo helped us with car service and other logistics, which was very useful.
Conclusion: This place might be right for you if you’re ready to embrace the neighborhood, don’t mind the room size issues and a little grit, and can be flexible on some of the maintenance. The managers are available and responsive even if not perfect, and eager to compensate for mistakes. We would have booked somewhere else if we were doing it over, but there were upsides and it could be the right fit for the right group.