CAREFUL - BED BUGS!
It was not all bad, on the contrary, room was nice and looked (and smelled) clean. Room exactly as presented in pictures. Easy check in. Very central and close to everything.
On the down side, the actual downstairs/lobby area, as well as the hallways and front door looked very dodgy, had a funky smell and I admit to getting a bit disheartened as I was walked to my room.
There was nothing wrong with the room. Small kitchenette, private bathroom and comfy bed. Yes - the air con was slightly noisy, and yes, you could hear the rustle and bustle of the New York streets outside - but that’s the price you pay for a location that central.
I was due to stay for four nights. After spending two nights there I started noticing a few small ”mosquito” bites on my arms… and then, more, and more, and more. I quickly realized that those most certainly were not mosquito bites - those were bites from bed bugs!! These typically take 24 to 36 hours to become visible. I did inspect the bed, the sheets and the mattress but could not see any signs of bed bugs, but the host did agree that that seemed like the only possibility .
I reached out to the host who immediately came to the property to speak to me in person. The host rep Lucas was very nice, empathic and helpful.
I got a new (bigger room) and Lucas helped me put my clothes in the dryer as well as get a heater fan on my luggage, to kill off any bed bugs that might have snuck into my clothes and/or luggage. Lucas assured me that they had never had this problem before.
Three days in I noticed the full extent of the bites… at least 60 bites on my left arm, approx. 45 on my right as well as bites on my back, shoulders, legs and face!
The subsequent itch was terrible and pretty much ruined my holiday.
At first the host offered to pay me back the cleaning fees (80 USD). I declined this offer and contacted Airbnb. Meanwhile the host did get back to me with another, more fair offer, which I will probably end up accepting.
The bed bugs completely ruined my trip and I urge you to be careful… There are lots of pros to this place, but if you can’t be sure about the bed bug situation it’s simply not worth it.