There are many reviews of this property that cover its many good points which I concur with so I will only cover the points that made it the exception from all the good airbnb hosting experiences I have had so far. Be aware that I never had any contact with anybody called Andre, the listed host, management is by TCP and from my experience, review points relating to Andre are no longer relevant.
When I arrived it was raining and chilly, sometimes with hailstones. One of the factors for choosing the property for a 10 day stay at this time of year was it's listed as having “heating”. The property has good hot water but isn’t fitted with a heating system or and form of space heating provided I need to wear my outdoor clothing to keep warm.
The description says “The kitchen is equipped with everything necessary” Except it didn’t provide: knives for food preparation (it has unused cutting boards), scissors (opening packets was a challenge), can opener (my purchased can remained unopened), no kitchen sink plug (wash under tap), no deep eating bowls (only shallow soup bowls). I didn’t bring these deficiencies to the attention of the host because of previous frustrations and time wasted getting helpful responses.
There is no mention of food consumables being provided but to be clear nothing was provided including: cooking oil, salt and pepper or any other condiments so I had to buy them in minimum purchase quantities that exceeded my short-stay needs.
The apartment is very poorly sound insulated from the floor below I got a complaint that me, walking around the apartment in my stocking feet in the morning was stopping the tenant from sleeping. I resorted to tiptoeing around for the rest of my stay.
I had to contact AirBnB support twice relating to my stay because of problems dealing with TCP. AirBnB were as professional and helpful as they could be and offered support, based on the poor communication with the host, offered to change my booking to an alternative property.
AirBnB state that you should only communicate with the host through their messaging system. As I discovered by experience, TCP wont respond to AirBnB messaging for communication, just for sending long messages I would describe as upselling spam. As I learned the hard way, TCP use whatsapp for communication.
The first incident relates to arranging access to the property. I provided my flight number as requested using AirBnB messaging immediately after booking but didn’t get any personal response just more spam including more requests for my flight number. To cut a long story short I was finally contacted the day before departure by the TCP in whatsapp. After long response delays and confusing requests by TCP to provide information and deadlines for information I had already provide I contacted airbnb who gave full support but also failed to contact TCP. I spent a lot of precious pre-departure time looking for alternative accommodation until I finally tried and succeeded in making a voice call to TCP and the arrangements were agreed and thankfully went smoothly.
The second incident regarded toilet paper (listed essential item) not an expensive item but not easy to carry from the shops. Two small rolls were initially provided one for each toilet but not enough for my stay. I asked for more when I first arrived and later through an airbnb message and two whatsapp messages. I finally got a response, I pointed out that this is an essential item listed as being provided. I was asked if some was provided on arrival, I confirmed and was told to add it to my shopping list along with any cleaning products I may require. I contacted Airbnb about this and they discussed the issue with the host. I eventually had 4 rolls delivered but only after running so low I resorted to going out shopping to buy some.
Yet another concern was that I got back one evening to find somebody had been into the property to make a repair to the bedroom ceiling light but without getting my approval for entry first and leaving my unmade bed sheets covered in bits of plaster.
Overall a good property but an experience spoilt by poor hosting.