Not fair enough to speak the truth - Benediktska
Review Submitted: August 8, 2011
Date of Stay: July 2011
No one should trust those people even if they are so kind. In our case they didn't speak the truth about the condition of the flat that they offered us.
We are a small family with two kids (15 months - they are twins) so our needs are clear: a not so small CLEAN flat in a building (also CLEAN enough) with an elevator to bring our big buggy up and down. They told us that the building had an elevator but that it was small (3 people) and the building itself was an "historical" building with old but functional furniture....
This is what we REALLY found: The building is so tumbledown, so bad maintained that the walls have cracks all around and the painting is falling down in and out of the flat. The elevator is not an elevator but just a freight elevator where someone added a panel by hand that is stuck with glue (we never used it with the kids, just I was forced to use it with the concierge when he was showing me the flat). The furniture is not just old but old and scruffy (what you can find in a second hand shop is, in most cases, much better than what we found there).
I complained but they told me that there were no other flat available immediately. They offered something in the next day but we didn't checked it because move again after you brought all the stuff needed for two infants at the fifth floor by walk is just crazy for a three days vacation. We LEFT THE FLAT ALMOST 2 DAYS IN ADVANCE (in the early morning of the second day). It should give you an idea about how unfair was their behavior after I entrust our few but important needs to them.
We NOT recommend to treat with those people in any case to no one. We lost our money and our time, that is much more precious.
Owner's Response: Since the apartment which we advertise on HomeAway was not available, we recommended another apartment in a great location in the Old Town district which does not belong to us. We have exchanged over 20 emails with this guest, explaining everything about this other apartment. We have specifically pointed out that the elevator is small, designed for 3 persons/270kg and it may not be big enough for their stroller. It is indeed an old elevator but it is designed for personal use (all residents use it happily every day). I can imagine that it could be scary for somebody who doesn't like elevators but it is a complete lie to say that it is a freight elevator. We have also bought an extra baby cot and a high chair for their twins to make their stay more pleasant (free of charge of course). We have managed to get them a parking permit to enable them to park close to the building - something which is difficult to get, requires an application at the Town Hall in advance. We tried everything possible to make their stay pleasant.
Shortly after arrival I've talked to this guest who said that we are providing a great service but they didn't like the apartment. We have offered them a larger apartment (for the same price) starting from the 2nd night as no other apartment was available the 1st night. We offered to send our driver to help with the moving. I called this guest again after the first night and repeated our offer to move to the different apartment for the other 2 nights and he said that they decided to stay since moving would be too difficult for them. Again we didn't hear any other complaint then 'the walls were cracked' (a hair-line crack which was really difficult to find) and the furniture was old (antique = old) - something what can be easily verified in the photo gallery on our own website with plenty of photos of each room.
We tried everything, offered another apartment, bought extra baby cot, high chair, parking permit and yet these guests refused an alternative solution and instead of that took a vengeance by submitting an negative review. We've been in the rental business for more than 12 years and we have collected hundreds of positive reviews on our own website. We have great many returning clients. We like to help people to explore our beloved city. But like in every service oriented business, from time to time one meets people who come already decided to complain about something and they leave as unhappy as they arrived, I'm afraid.
I.L.
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