This AirBnb is run by a management company and not an individual. The stay and treatment is more akin to staying in a hotel with average customer service (by American standards). From our arrival after midnight on the first day to our departure, we didn't have WiFi and we were only given a measly 10% discount for such a great inconvenience. After reading the reviews where sinks and drains were not fixed, we were not alone in getting problems resolved. They did come quickly to fix a espresso maker that didn't work but the repairman made quite a mess and didn't completely clean up. They also have a pamphlet they give you that outlines are a litany of extra charges (3 euro for an extra towel!, charges if you stain a towel, etc. ) and conflicted with verbal instructions and the check out email.
The location in reference to La Rambla, the Cathedral, subway station, Belem, and historic Barcelona is outstanding. However, the apartment itself is located on a very small side street off a side street and is very hard to find even from the "4 minute walk" from their office. It is also across from a Hostel and very noisy after 11pm (the time they advise you to be quiet) and has many homeless people on it. We came in after midnight and had to struggle to find the location and were accosted by a homeless person during the process. It would have been so much better if we had been dropped off by our cab closer to the apartment and been able to use a lock box at the actual apartment to get our keys (I know their response to this will be "I told you this in the listing" but the listing didn't cover the homeless issue and the difficulty to find the apartment And making things easier for the customer should be a priority). Count this down as a lesson learned to never book an AirBnb without a lock box on location.
Another thing that made me uncomfortable was their use of an outside system for check in and check out. My husband had always told me to never communicate outside the AirBnb system and AirBnb advises you to do the same thing. The check out process asks you to rate them which certainly violates the AirBnb spirit as reviews are not to be shared until after all parties have given their reviews. Since I didn't get their check out email until after we had checked out and been reviewed, putting in the review wasn't an issue but it is something that should be skipped (if you can).
As previous reviews have stated, the beds are very hard and uncomfortable.
Overall, the apartment was clean and comparable to the pictures in the listing and has good space for a studio style apartment. The bathroom had mildew in the tub/shower combo grout and the floor grout.
If we return to Barcelona, we will seek other accommodations that reflect the AirBnb spirt of a more "personal" place to stay.