REVIEW ROADMAP:
A) Who we are
B) Wheather
C) Host requirements
D) Location
E) Safety
F) Room
G) Shared bathroom
H) Other amenities
I) Check- In Experience
-Summary
-Specific details of what happened with the check-in experience
J) Host & Rules
A) WHO WE ARE: We are avid travelers who work and study hard to fulfil our dream of traveling around the world. We care more about the experience than having luxurious accommodations. Therefore, our only demand is to have a clean place with a comfortable bed in a safe location. We'll follow the host's rules, respect their home, and expect the same as guests. We'll leave a review according to such reasonable expectations. This was our 2nd trip to NYC and we wanted to see it as if we lived there, avoiding crowded touristic areas/places this time. We strive to be as objective and thorough as we can for other travelers who value these types of reviews like we do.
IMPORTANT: Please know this review is based in our personal experience alone and the host might have already changed or improved their way of doing things which may have a different impact for you😉
B) WEATHER: Fall, cold weather, no snow. Sunny/Cloudy days.
C) HOST REQUIREMENTS: Vaccination card and questions as to how we protect ourselves in Covid times, meaning the host cares about protecting herself and others in pandemic times.
D) LOCATION: This is the best about this place. Together with the price, which was low for similars in the area, makes location the true protagonist of any budget traveler's review. 2-3 blocks away from a centric Subway station, which will take you everywhere, touristic or not. Tip: Buy the unlimited rides subway pass if staying for 6-7 days or more and you'll save tons in transportation.
E) SAFETY: The building is secured. You'll need the key fob to access and then keys to get into apt. The area is also safe. Just use common sense when navigating dark isolated areas. This goes to fancy neighborhoods as well. We took subway and buses and walked to the apt really late at night (12 am) and got to know Harlem and it was amazing. A lot of history and great little places to discover.
F) ROOM: Very clean. The room has a small closet very convenient for your clothes, a little desk, shelves, a bed with a night table and a lamp, and a fan. There's a heating pipe right next to the bed, going from roof to floor that gets really hot, so be careful with it when walking near it, especially if you're clumsy like my fiancée 😆
The room has a view of the next building' s apts but the window has a curtain that provides privacy. The bed and pillows were very firm for us, but good for a temporary stay. It may be that we're used to our soft mattress and pillows at home. We were out most of the day so we went to bed really tired each time and got to rest all night without issues. Even with low temperatures outside, we felt a bit hot sometimes inside the room and turned on the provided fan each night to cool off a bit. This may be due to personal sensitivity to the use of heat in the winter as we are from Florida. No Air Conditioner unit was visible in the room or the apt, nor it is listed on Airbnb. If there was any noise from thin walls, it was no issue either as we live in a big city too.
G) SHARED BATHROOM: Located outside the room at the end of the apt (around 20 ft away from our room). Also very neat space, hot shower with a curtain available. Sarah provided clean towels and toilet paper. Make sure you bring the rest of personal toiletries as it's not included as stated on her listing. We always do to every place we go, whether included or not.
H) OTHER AMENITIES: Everything was sparkly clean. Sarah is a neat person and you can tell by the status of the apt. The decoration is cozy, artistic, eclectic, colorfoul and very homie. We didn't use the kitchen at all but Sarah also offers you this space, if needed.
I) CHECK-IN EXPERIENCE: This was what we liked the least. You'll depend on Sarah's schedule to get into the apt. at a certain time since there's no self check in device or procedure in place to do so, and will have to coordinate with her beforehand, sometimes extensively if schedules/preferences differ. Sarah will try to accomodate for her guests but in our case, it meant we were the ones who had to accomodate instead after our itinerary was created.
--> Check-in Experience Summary:
We adjusted our itinerary when Sarah told us days before our trip that we couldn't leave our luggage and/or check in early 10-11 AM bc she had another guest. The following 48 hours, and without us knowing, Sarah rearranged an early check out with the other guest, so that we check in at 1 PM, and changed her work schedule for this purpose. Because we made plans already upon her declining our initial request, we respecfully let her know we rather keep the original check in time posted on Airbnb which was "3 PM". Sarah then sent us messages communicating her discomfort with a situation she created and we were unaware of to start with.
--> Specific details of what happened with the check-in experience :
1. We booked with Sarah a month before our trip. During and after confirming the booking, we inquired about the possibility of either checking in at 10-11 AM or just leaving our luggage at this time, but Sarah seemed to have no answer that early in time.
2. Three days before our trip to NYC, Sarah told us our request would not be possible bc there was another guest checking out later that day. We thanked