We spent 12 nights at Suite 3 and frankly, it was a mixed experience. When we book an Airbnb with a 5-star rating, a “Superhost” and a $500 nightly rate, we would expect the place to be top notch and well-maintained. We pulled into the parking lot, found our parking space, but struggled to locate our unit --- the directions were not clear and the building does not have a street number on it. As we walked through the exterior space to find our unit our hearts sank. “Seedy” is the only way to describe this apartment complex. It is not well-maintained, to say the least. The staircase was dirty and the steps were covered with downed palm leaves, the handrail had bird droppings and other dirt. The steps down to the beach (once you eventually find them), are buried in sand, and no one ever swept them off the entire time we were there. As we walked past individual apartments to reach Unit Three there were shoes, towels, surf equipment, etc slung all over the railings. The building was rundown, rusty and pretty unsavory.
Once we got into the apartment, it was pretty much as the photos showed, and generally met our expectations. The kitchen is very well-equipped (nice stove), but the bathroom is tiny and not updated (stained tub/shower with very poor water pressure). The bedroom is fine, but lights from the exterior walkway shine in all night. We were there in winter, and it is a good thing there was a gas fireplace, because the wall heater in the living room stopped working halfway through our stay. Sara came at our request and supposedly re-lit the pilot, but it never turned on again. There was no heat for the bedroom or bathroom, and they were cold.
There is a lot of noise from the other tenants in the building --- a television that plays loudly all evening, a small dog that barks a lot, and a washing machine (apparently in the unit below) that violently shakes the entire apartment when it goes into the Spin cycle.
Carbon Beach is a treasure of a beach, and access to the beach is certainly valuable. However, if you are booking this location know that this is no “5-star” accommodation. It’s a run-down apartment building with a nicely furnished apartment if you can ignore all the rest of your surroundings.