As noted, great location! Place was fine.
There were a few experiential things that quite ruined the experience for me, though.
PHOTOS:
Gema mentioned that the bright photos were the handiwork of her wonderful photographer from Spain, who made the place look incredible, and I agree. In the photos the rooms were bright and airy, the tub was so inviting, I was so looking forward to having a bath! While the place was perfectly fine, even Gema notes that it’s quaint, but nothing special. The bath was fine, but IRL, the plastic curtain and shared facilities meant I paid more for this ‘amenity’ that I really wanted to use and didn’t use at all.
CHECK IN PROCEDURES:
This was so frustrating. When I arrived, Gema was there to welcome me. I thought we were making polite conversation while she looked for the keys - she asked me what I was in town for, what I’d be doing, etc. - but it quickly felt like an interrogation.
She took issue with all of the reasons I was in town, and many of the reasons I was at her place. I booked her “hotel”-like room so I could use the common kitchen to meet with a colleague and take a few photos in excellent natural lighting. I was informed that I didn’t read the full description of the place (I did), that it states clearly that couldn’t have a guest (it didn’t, I haven’t checked back to see if it says that now), and that I couldn’t take photos without permission from Airbnb (which Airbnb says is at the discretion of the owner - which I can appreciate).
She then called Airbnb. After explaining to the Airbnb rep that she had a guest who didn’t read or do her research - right in front of me, no less - she informed them that she was okay with all of this if they were, and emailed me as such to get it in writing. While I appreciated the notification of consent, the way that it happened bothered me.
All of this could have been avoided if a) Gema had my keys ready for me (regardless of whether or not the previous guest had walked off with the last set), b) she knew her own policies and Airbnb’s policies, and c) she had handled it with me directly instead of bringing Airbnb into the picture, making it feel incredibly awkward, lengthening the time it took to resolve the situation, and bringing in the big guns on an otherwise easily solvable problem.
This whole ordeal lasted well over an hour.
COMMUNICATION:
Gema was initially super communicative and sent a great email full of details and places to go, etc. She gave me her number, her daughters number, and the house number. Awesome! She asked me to send when I would arrive, and I did.
A few days later, she asked for the details again, and never responded to my responses.
On my way out, I left my keys on Gema’s door and texted her as such. Hours later, I got a text asking me where the keys were, and asking me to mail them to her when I got where I was going. She had them the whole time.
Felt a bit discombobulated, and I ended up trying to avoid being in the place as much as possible, which is a shame since my friends in Boston live so nearby. Would have loved for this to be my Boston home away from home.