First time I have ever written a negative review after an AirB&B stay. However, in this instance, the circumstances require it - in order to warn others who may want to rent here.
The Ice Cream Parlor, built in 1840, is a lovely home in the garden district of New Orleans. My wife and I love older properties such as this (having owned our own older home some years ago). While the online pictures on AirB&B showed a place that was a little funky, it looked very interesting and historically unique. We were excited about staying there. While we’ve been to New Orleans many times, staying in hotels or with friends, this was our first time to stay in the Garden District in a historic home.
The first night and day were uneventful. While the window air conditioner could barely keep up with the almost 90 degree heat, it was still not unpleasant (don’t know how it would be in the summer heat) the first night and the short time we were there during the day.
The second night of our stay, however, was not something we will forget. When you are awakened at 4:20 in the morning with a drunken woman screaming obscenities and tossing furniture and a barbeque grill around the balcony outside your window – the only thing that enters your mind is please don’t let them have a gun or throw something through our window. Fear and seeking safety were our concerns.
When I gathered my wits, I called the number I was given for the hostess. But I got VM, as she was probably asleep like I was (and she does not live on premises). I left a message to say I would be calling the police to make a report. As the shouting by the woman and man in the next apartment commenced again, my wife looked out our window. She saw the woman was pouring beer on the balcony and then laying in it – all the while shouting obscenities at her boyfriend inside the apartment. So I called the police non-emergency number to report this. But, as I was trying to leave a message, my wife said the drunk woman was throwing around the propane tank from the gas grill and was saying she was going to burn the place down. I then called 911.
The police came fairly quickly, talked to the woman and told her to go inside or they would take her in. Around 5 am things settled down…. Until 6:30 am when she came outside again and started screaming at her boyfriend, again. But this time it was about helping her clean up the mess she‘d made. And, of course, waking us up again.
When I spoke to the hostess at 9 am, she said she knew the man who rented the apartment and couldn’t believe it had happened. She said she would talk to him and get back to me. Around 10 am we met Paula, the owner and hostess, and discovered the man who rents the place is a permanent resident – not an AirB&B guest. What was worse, this was the second time his drunk girlfriend had done something similar. I asked Paula what she was going to do about it. She said she was going to talk to him and possibly send him a letter stating if it happened again she would kick him out. She said it was not his fault that the woman was crazy drunk! He had told Paula he no longer dated the drunken woman, therefore Paula said he could not be responsible for her behavior (although she went straight into the boyfriend’s apartment when the police came).
Now, this is New Orleans. And crazy things can happen. But when the owner and manager of the property does not take responsibility for the safety of their guests, then it is not a place I think should be rented out on AirB&B. At the end of the day, we want to be safe when we lie down to go to bed. And every AirB&B owner/manager should take that very, very seriously. Amenities are nice. But we want to wake up alive in the morning – not having to worry about being burned alive or having to flee for our lives. But when the property owner would rather have the rental income and not worry about your safety – then it is not the place to stay. At least for us. We sure will not be staying there again.