TO ALL THE LADIES OUT THERE, READ THIS!
Let me start by saying that I live in Chicago, and I had to stay close to the Uchicago campus for a conference. The app led me to this place and I read most of the reviews. As a result, I booked two nights and introduced myself to Silvia, who did not respond back but accepted my booking.
The heating system had been out for two days (it was mid-October, which is cold in Chicago) but was being fixed when I got there.
The first thing I did was greet Silvia. My tiny, dark room was the next place I walked to. At around 4 pm, I inquired about the stuffy air and if I could open the window. It's cold, she said.
A second message was sent through the app asking about the dark room and lack of light. All the light bulbs except for one recessed light had gone out. About two hours later, she knocked on the door and pointed to a small desk lamp. She did not respond to my question in the app. The photographs I have show that the room is very dark even during the daytime, not to mention at night.
I attempted to sleep around 11 p.m. as I had to prepare for a conference the following day, but was unable to due to a guy wandering through the hallways every 15 seconds as well as the extremely hot temperature of the room (I normally am very cold all the time, but due to a lack of airflow, it was impossible to breathe). It is also clearly stated in the house rules that everyone should keep a quiet environment after 9 or 10 pm.
Silvia informed me the next day that the other guest was a long-term tenant of hers. Continually, he used the bathroom with the doors open, gagging or throwing up, coughing extremely loudly, and then walked back to some unknown location. For approximately two hours, he repeated that action in the middle of the night. Despite the fact that I had to use the shared bathroom, I was unable to do so because I felt unsafe. If I had confronted that person and he had threatened me, what would have happened? There is no doubt that he intended to disturb or was seeking to provoke a fight. It is important to note that the Airbnb is located on the South Side of Chicago, a neighborhood with a high crime rate. On that floor, there was only me and another young woman. There was no one else present. Around 1 a.m., I immediately contacted Silvia and emailed Airbnb. She did not contact me until around 10:00 am the following morning when she knocked on my door dressed in a police uniform. I was unsure what to do with that information. Was she trying to intimidate me in any way? I am unsure. This behavior/the constant knocking on the door and invading your privacy was also mentioned in a review by another guest. For my own safety, I was prepared to leave that location.
As if she knew what I was about to say, she became extremely irritated, and kept telling me that her tenant's dissatisfaction with the cleanliness of the bathroom led him to make loud noises in the bathroom, including trumping on the floor, in order to scare everyone else. Then I reminded her that I and the other woman were the only women present and I did not even use the restroom due to my fear of opening the door.
She also kept telling me that was what you pay for when the price is only $35. I also reminded her that house rules should apply to all guests, not just a few. Furthermore, I reiterated that even if you pay $35 a night (which with Airbnb fees and cleaning fees is more like $70 a night) the lack of airflow and the fact that the room is very dark is something that needs to be addressed by the host. The amount you pay does not matter. It is your responsibility to fix something that is not working. The woman appeared to be oblivious to my presence and told me goodbye, effectively hushed me up.