We loved our stay here, and we had some problems; but overall we would stay again.
We booked for 1 month & stayed for 2 weeks.
The Good: truly gorgeous old colonial home that doesn’t feel like a cookie-cutter boring Airbnb. Incredible architectural details like 8 foot tall wooden shutters, antique light fixtures … it’s special. Gorgeous enclosed garden - great if you have a dog. Roof access. Fast, reliable wifi - I worked without interruption. Plenty of hot water & good water pressure (rare for CDMX). Clean & cleaning person came weekly. If you speak Spanish, Sergio, who lives on the property, is WONDERFUL - warm, kind, helpful, full of cool stories & info about the house & neighborhood. Azcapotzalco is safe, walkable, everything you need close by (markets, tianguis, supermarket, restaurants) - azcapo is not touristy at all & has plenty of working class charm. Honestly the food isn’t as great in azcapo as elsewhere in the city & it takes a while to get to tourist sites/neighborhoods but Camarones metro stop is super close by & Uber is easily available (CDMX traffic is hell tho). We loved NOT being in the Roma and experiencing a different flavor of CDMX. Azcapo truly charmed us.
The Bad: kitchen isn’t as well stocked with dishes/cooking implements as it could be - we made do, but could use a few more items to truly be workable. Beds and couches are not that comfy. None of these were that big of a deal considering the good price & overall beauty of the place.
The Ugly: the roof leaked so much we had to put out pots to catch leaks, and there was an ant infestation in the beds. Mariana was very responsive by message but didnt actually come by or do anything to solve the problems until we got Airbnb customer service involved. Perhaps this is cultural and things move more slowly in Mexico? Not sure. After Airbnb got involved, she took it seriously and when she couldn’t fix the problem, she relocated us to their other Airbnb listing which was gorgeous and well-appointed. But it did take a lot of communicating, advocating & negotiating, time on the phone with Airbnb US & Mexico, and relocating took about a full day to pack, travel across town, & get settled again.
I sympathize with problems like this. Old buildings have issues that come along with the character and beauty and any building can get pests. We came back a week later to say hi to Sergio and saw that Mariana had had roofers & an exterminator come. So I believe the problems should be solved now.
Overall we had a good experience. If you stay here, I suggest:
- if you have any issues, get Airbnb customer service involved immediately so Mariana takes it seriously & responds promptly
- advocate for yourself
- if Airbnb Mexico isn’t helpful, call Airbnb US and ask them for assistance.
Even with these hiccups I still look back on this Airbnb fondly and would consider staying again. We had a good experience and I feel nostalgic for the beauty and peace of the garden, chatting with Sergio, and the happy public life of the azcapotzalco plaza.