Overall we really enjoyed our stay at this Airbnb! We just moved to New Zealand from the US and stayed here for 3 weeks while we looked for a place to rent and got settled. In that time we were really able to get a feel for the location and explore the area, and also did some commuting/working from home. No place is ever perfect, and we would highly recommend this place to our friends/family, however I have listed some of the pros and cons below.
Pros:
* Pet friendly: This was a big one for us as we have a small dog and its usually hard to find a pet friendly place in the city!
* Cost: The place was very affordable considering the amenities and location. Additionally, there was a nice discount applied to our stay since it was considered long-term
* Location: The location was great for going out and exploring. There was no parking, but we didn't have a car and this spot was so close to everything, public transit, shopping, etc.
* Amenities: The complex itself had great amenities including a pool/hot tub, gym, sauna, gardens, and a nice grassy court yard to take the pup.
* Appliances: We loved that the Airbnb had a dishwasher as well as a washer and dryer!
* Host: Our Airbnb host Ceri was very accommodating as our dates shifted around a bit due to some changes in MIQ requirements. Ceri responded quickly to our messages and allowed us both an early check-in and late check-out which was extremely helpful as we were moving from Airbnb to Airbnb with no car, a dog, and about 10 large pieces of luggage
Cons:
* Cleanliness: The sheets, towels, etc. were all perfectly clean however the carpet did not seem to be vacuumed (or at least not very well), we went over it ourselves but had to remove the head from the vacuum cleaner to get it to actually suck up the pet hair/dust. Many of the dishes were greasy/dirty and we washed everything ourselves before using any of it. The surfaces/counters in the kitchen/bathroom were not very clean so we bought disinfectant wipes to wipe everything down. Lastly there was a used covid test left on the entertainment center by the TV.
* Advertisement: There was a couple things the place was advertised to have which it did not. These included a microwave and a dedicated work area. There was a coffee table and a bar counter with two bar stools, however one of the bar stools was broken. The bar counter is not wide enough to set a laptop on and the coffee table is too low to work at (after two days of trying to work from home, I just went to a coffee shop instead). Additionally, the lamps in the living living room did not work as the cords had been chewed through by what looked like an animal (likely a pet of someone who rented the place before).
* Temperature: There was no AC/Heat Pump in the apartment and it got very hot during the day as the glass doors in the living room and bedroom get full sun. There were curtains and a fan that helped, but even at night it was difficult to cool the apartment.
* Noise: As the apartment is located in the CBD on the viaduct, it gets very loud and noisy on Friday and Saturday evenings. The majority of the noise is from cars and motorcycles revving their engines as they drive down a main road that is very close to the apartment. It's not that bad with the sliders closed, but as I mentioned before, it was hot, so we usually had the sliders open at night.
In general, it seems the Airbnb hosts haven't visited/inspected the apartment in a while, otherwise they would have seen (and fixed/replaced) the broken items, and it seems that the cleaning was maybe a little rushed since we wanted to check in early. But overall this was a great place and we would stay here again! Probably best suited for shorter stays as it is quite small but a perfect home base for someone who is out all day/night.