Buyer beware…
I read all the reviews and booked this flat for the great location (albeit a tight walk-up) and space for my guest and I to have to spread out. I messaged with the hosts who were polite and responsive asking about check-in options since we were taking a redeye in from the States. Seeing that early check-in wasn’t an option (totally understandable), I booked the flat a day early. Win-win, I thought. The place will be booked for an extra night without wear and tear and ready to welcome us upon our mid-morning arrival.
Although we received step-by-step instructions to find the flat keys, the establishments highlighted as landmarks are not in business any longer and that made our first step a bit tedious. After lugging our bags up the multiple flights, we entered a flat that had clearly been “lived in.” Beds slept in and unmade, all curtains drawn to make what showed in the listing as a bright and lovely place something dark and dingy, towels thrown all over the bathroom, trash throughout the entire flat, and the kitchen was overflowing with used items like mugs with tea bags remaining. A complete and total mess. We knew the flat would be small, but the mess and drawn shades made it look and feel tiny, so prepare yourselves for a much smaller footprint than the pictures lead you to believe.
I notified the hosts and Air bnb immediately of the cleanliness issue. Both were responsive, which I appreciated, but the host’s solution was to have the cleaning crew arrive and for us to check-in at 6pm. Unacceptable. We had paid for a Friday check-in to arrive on Saturday and now we were being asked to wait more hours? Absolutely not. After countless calls with Air bnb about a refund, returning the keys to the random post on a lock box half a block away, and scurrying to secure a much more expensive hotel room for the week, we were able to begin our planned vacation.
I get it. Schedule issues happen and mistakes can be made. Everyone’s human. All that to say, the fact that the schedule was miscalculated by two days when I very openly communicated with the host makes me wonder about the management. All the other reviews have been glowing, but that was unfortunately not my experience and I think other travelers should hear that side of the equation as well. As I said, buyer beware. Book at your own risk. My risk wasn’t worth the reward.