I understand that most guests had a great experience here. Ours was not. It was uncomfortable and just kind of bizarre. It was my first negative Airbnb experience.
The room was advertised as having two beds, but when we arrived there was just one. The hostess said I could use the pull-out for an additional fee and I could pay her now. I said I'd be happy to make the bed, and she said, "But this is how we make our money." I referred to the ad, which showed two beds and did not indicate an extra charge for the second one. She asked more than once, “Is it the money?” In an Airbnb message, she said that she was sorry I was making my teenage son sleep on the floor (untrue). She also told me that everyone else reads the directions.
I messaged the hosts photos when I turned down the bed. The sheets were stained/unclean and there was a ball of hair in the bathtub drain. The hostess said this was due to a new housekeeper needing training. She apologized and remedied it the second day. The first night, I slept on top of the sheets and used my own pillow. The bed itself was very comfortable.
Twice I was told I "must not have read the house manual." The first time was with the bed debacle, and the second time was when I pointed out the hair in the drain from a previous guest. The host messaged me that the fact that I was planning to use the tub clearly indicated I had failed to read the house manual. The hosts have laminated notes throughout the property and the room (not an exaggeration). If they didn't want guests using the big bathtub with jacuzzi jets, perhaps they should laminate another note. "Here's a great jacuzzi tub. Please don't use it."
A note about privacy: We found Marie peeking out at us coming and going from behind the trees in the garden, which felt strange. My son did help her carry her bed inside so we could use the hot tub. The hot tub itself was very nice.
There are lots of beautiful, comfortable, normal Airbnbs in Santa Cruz. I cannot recommend this one.
Some guests might only have that one time per year to get away. We want to have a vacation, not spend the time being “corrected" or trying to get clean sheets. This property just wasn’t a good fit for us.