A very disappointing introduction to a great city.
Check in was fine, note it is at a seperate location close to a transit stop, not bad, but a bit inconvenient if you have luggage on transit or if taking a Uber/taxi and need to stop and wait in line. They were unable to find the key and it took longer than it should have to check in (approx 30minute)
State of the unit was unacceptable though. I should have known better as there was no reviews, but it said newly renovated so I thought it would be ok.
Unit was cleanish on the surface but on closer inspection everything was dirty and there were multiple instances of mold.
Bedding - Yellow stains on the bedding, what looked like years of drool stains on the pillows which we’re obviously reused from a previous property. Bedding also had rips in it. Mattresses were the thin futon type from ikea, not the most comfortable but serviceable
Bathroom fans - 2 bathrooms with three exhaust fans, all three where incredibly loud rattling and irritating. Rendered the bathrooms very uncomfortable to use (actually used the bathroom in the dark to avoid turning on the lights (lights connected to the fans on same switch). One fan over the master bedroom shower actually had no cover on it with exposed wires hanging out
Other checkin mishaps - the fridge, hot water, outlets and washer dryer all did not work on check in. Had to find the breaker and flip them on which wasn’t a big deal but really should have been done before putting the place on the market. Also the wifi instructions provided were incorrect and the hot water tank had a small leak
Overall cleanliness - floor was in need of a mop and renovation dust on many things in the unit. Pink slime around the shower doors, black mold on the wood towel stand in the bathroom. Also mold inside the laundry machine soap drawer. Fridge was dirty inside with yellow spills and dead bugs, also dead bugs in the kitchen cabinets. Furniture also had stains on it and was pretty beat up, definitely used from a previous property
Location - location was right in a main shopping drag but after moving to a new location we liked the new location much better for being a tourist. Our new place was near the river in the Gaia neighborhood. Just over the Don Luis bridge. I would recommended staying on either side of the river as it was a great base, close to the sites and many restaurants
Building - building seemed like it was under renovation. There was loud renovation noise in the day time and at night loud music from what sounded like a club or party. There is a lot of scaffolding and renovation debris in the building(outside the living room window and on the balcony fire escape.
Security - front door was secure but fire exits from other floors it is easy to access other units balconies. Locks on balcony doors and windows are available but some may feel uncomfortable for example sleeping with the window or door open
Communication - We contacted the host but communication was very slow with a message being responded to once and then and hour or so went by until the next response. It took about 3-4 hours for a cleaner to arrive. She was apologetic and cleaned the areas we pointed out but obviously could not fix things like the fans etc. She changed the bedding and double pillow-cased the pillows but unfortunately the new clean bedding also had yellow stains on it. We ended up not using the pillows.
It was frustrating dealing with the management company and Airbnb due to their slow response time and Airbnb policy to give four hours for the host to respond. I would expect a Airbnb managed by a professional property management company to respond more quickly than a regular host but they did not.
We had requested to cancel the remaining nights of our stay as every time we opened a new appliance or cupboard we found new unpleasant surprises. According to Airbnb the host refused. We left anyway and found other accommodation after one night as the place just felt dirty and the mold and bathroom fan situation were unpleasant and we didn’t want it to ruin our time in the city. After starting the process at 3pm and working with three or four different Airbnb employees we got things resolved just after midnight, with Airbnb agreeing to refund the stay for us.
Disappointing the host refused the refund and did not seem invested in making things right.
Would not recommend this property or Guestready.
Charm Guesthouse by Yours Porto was where we moved to it was perfect try booking their instead