We had a TERRIBLE experience - the lack of safety measures/protocol were completely unacceptable and put us in danger. I wanted to write a full blown, detailed review but this whole ordeal with Ryan was so exhausting I am only going to commit to the CliffsNotes version.
Summary:
1) There were other guests sleeping in the unit when we arrived. We entered the unit and their stuff was everywhere, and eventually they SCREAMED at us to leave. Turns out his cleaning team let them in. Serious safety issue #1
2) We booked this 3 bedroom so we could stay together but were forced to split up in temporary units for the first night. Both bathrooms in one of the temporary units were also not in the best condition. The toilets and showers were filthy and we were not okay with using the showers (I have photos of the conditions).
3) Our first morning in the temporary unit, people attempted to enter the unit for ONE HOUR. They tried opening the front door and were banging on the windows. Fortunately we had deadbolted the front door the night before so they weren't able to enter.
Ryan later confirmed that it was his maintenance staff trying enter the unit. He had scheduled work with them prior and failed to successfully cancel once he allowed us to use the unit temporarily for the day. If we hadn't deadbolted the front door, they would have entered the unit while we were sleeping... Serious safety issue #2
4) Ryan admitted fault initially (confirmed (1) that his cleaning crew let the other people into our originally booked unit, and (2) that he never got a cancellation confirmation from his maintenance crew in the temporary unit) but denied responsibility when I asked him if there was any way we could work out a refund/comp for the first night. He denied any wrong doing and responsibility and complained about how he now had to pay for 3 different cleaning services he didn't originally plan (for the random strangers who squatted in our originally booked apartment, and for the two temporary places he offered to us). He had a condescending and terrible attitude.
Fortunately we were able to get a refund for our first night once Airbnb launched an investigation into the case. They reviewed all of the messages we had with Ryan through the app and confirmed that he violated multiple host guidelines.
There is not a case where I would ever consider booking a stay with Ryan again. I know that Ryan has a lot of positive reviews (something I look for when I am booking an Airbnb), but I do hope that you think twice when considering reserving through him. It is easy to click 5 stars when you're able to easily access the Airbnb you booked and it generally aligns with the expectations set through the booking description, but the way a host mediates a situation when things don't go according to plan is all the more important. Clearly Ryan did not handle this situation well and I hope that no future guests have to encounter the issues we did during our stay.