After many years of positive times, sadly our first poor experience at an AirBnB ...
Although the property was in a great location within La Latina, one of the oldest residential neighbourhoods in Madrid, having safe feeling, bustling narrow streets to explore, stocking an interesting range of local shops including the delights of Mercado de la Cebada, atmospheric restaurants and bars along with numerous obligatory squares plus churches and a Basilica. Near to 2 Metro lines enabling easy access to amenities and sights across Madrid. This was tarnished by a simply resolvable issue with keys.
We missed out on an evening and morning of exploring due to what seems to have been a significant, long running saga with keys that wouldn't work and let you into the residential block. We had assumed, wrongly as it turned out, that the previously flagged, easily rectifiable key issue raised by other guests would have been sorted. Unfortunately the key for the middle door would not work /open the lock at all - despite trying for 30 mins !!! We were not able to leave the building as we knew we would not be able to get back in. When the host suggested it was our inability to use the key correctly and couldn't get a new key to us until four days later we felt compelled to contact AirBnB to help resolve the problem. We were in Madrid to explore the city, not order takeout to be delivered in an apartment that we couldn't leave!
AirBnB intervened and together assisted us in getting the host to
agree to supply the cleaner's keys a day later, so that we would be
able to enjoy the fantastic city. Whilst waiting to get in we meet
our neighbour in the residential block who we quickly understood, not needing much translation that they were also frustrated with the issue, fed up of of being disturbed by previous AirBnB visitors
frequently having the key issue and disturbing them (using the buzzer) at all times of the day or night trying to get in asking us to get AirBnB to get it resolved.
The flat had a good level of space with a couple of bathrooms ideal
for the 4 of us staying, but let down by the lack of an eye for detail
in terms of maintenance and repair, a poorly supplied kitchen with
basic levels of equipment (eg 3 tumblers and one wine glass for four
people) and some poor/uncomfortable furniture, which if resolved it could have been a great flat.
Madrid was great, just a shame about the small issues which created a big problem with such a simple solution, which the host knew how to resolve by making sure there was a working key. It was such a shame that this clouded 24hrs in on our first night and day in Madrid.