Our stay with Michelle was nothing short of amazing. We arrived at our original AirBnb and learned that it was illegal (there was a “vacate unit” notice posted on the door by the Dept of Buildings). Thankfully Michelle responded to our request within 30
minutes and we moved to our new place to stay within the morning AirBnb approved of our cancellation. Michelle is such a caring host. Twice we contacted her outside of office hours (9-6) not expecting she would reply until then, but she did both times, giving us a heater and fixing the restroom less than an hour after we made the request! The room itself is very spacious and has its own kitchen area — the most useful thing for us was the sink / water fountain inside our room since we did not cook. Even though the restroom was shared with another studio room, we never experienced issues. The location itself is only 2 blocks away from the nearest metro stop for the 2 and 3 Lines, so it was very convenient to go downtown (where most touristy soots are).
Most AirBnbs are illegal in NYC so we would advised doing your research carefully before booking. This was the case for our original AirBnb (NOT Michelle’s) and when we looked Michelle’s place up, we were glad to see that it is an inn and so definitely has a license to operate AirBnb-like services, which was why we decided to book the place. I know the politics re: AirBnb legality is complicated, but I was not prepared to be potentially evicted on our vacation, and having a place that is certainly legal (such as Michelle’s) to stay in a city where you don’t know anybody is so important for peace of mind. Additionally, renting an illegal place means you might be contributing to gentrification and helping building / apartment owners push out locals by taking up units that are supposed to be for long-term rentals. I would highly recommend Michelle’s place for the great service and being able to travel ethically.