I want to begin this review by saying that I had asked this host to reschedule due to my mother being unwell. I even offered to rebook at another time that would have meant paying more money. The host waited a day to respond only to say a flat no, claiming they were a "family business" with bills to pay. They only cared about not refunding our money, putting profit ahead of people. Because the trip was my mother's idea, she felt obligated to go even though she was unwell. So, this host forced an elderly, unwell woman to go on a trip that she was not up to OR lose her hard earned $800. And while on the trip, her health continued to decline. Unfortunately, a "family business" does not appear to translate to "family values."
While this was not the best start, I had hoped we'd enjoy ourselves and be glad we made the trip. No such luck.
While I agree that the decor inside is very modern, and the location is good/close to many sites, I found this location to be underwhelming at best. While we booked at a discounted rate, the normal rate is very high. It's definitely too high for what you get.
While the inside is hip and fashionable, it's not as comfortable as you imagine it to be in the photos. It's on a major road, and traffic can be heard in the front bedroom all night long. The kitchen is small, and the dishwasher latch was broken (when I texted the host, she said "oh sorry, the latch sticks." For these prices, I expect fully useable appliances). Also, the TV is a smart TV, but it's not set up, and the password was not made available. The front bedroom was also insanely tiny; we barely fit our luggage and ourselves in there. I do not see how 8 people could stay in this condo; it felt tiny with four.
Finally, regarding the cleaning fee, I felt I did too much cleaning before I left. For $100, I should not be stripping my own bed, washing linens, and doing the dishes. That's no longer a vacation.
The host told me multiple times "we're not a hotel." I agree; they're not, and we deeply regret not booking a hotel. In fact, this may be the Airbnb experience that takes us back to hotels exclusively.
I encourage these hosts to care less about hip decor and hoarding profits and more about what people - their customers - actually want and need: empathy, comfort, working appliances, and reasonable fees/policies.