Verified review
2/10 Poor
Ruggero
Sep 18, 2019
!!! Be careful !!! Bad service / betrayed by owner
I am born in Venice and I had the worst experience ever. Please be careful with this host. I am often in Venice and I am absolutely sure you can find a much better service elsewhere in Venice.
I booked a three bed room. At arrival I was given a two bed room and offered an optional third bed for 25 € per night extra.
I had to pay the city tax upfront and gave 69 € cash. I asked for a receipt and was promised one the next day but I never got one.
After check-in I decided to refuse the service because I had an allergic reaction. The room had a very bad smell like not being used for a long time. Opening the windows for more than an hour did not help. I had to book another apartment.
Later I learned that the city tax is 6 Euro not 69 Euro. I tried to get my money back but the owner was suddenly claiming to be outside Italy. He promised to send someone with the money but no one showed up. When I asked him to return the city tax money using PayPal or bank transfer the owner refused because of the cost of a bank transfer (which is for free in Europe) or the cost for PayPal (which doesn't exist).
I had only a first name and a mobile number from the owner so all communication after check-in was on WhatsApp. I felt betrayed and very helpless.
When I was threatening to report the tax fraud to the city authority the owner became very angry and called me a criminal because I was "blackmailing" him.
Back home the owner finally agreed only to a 50% refund of the booking fee.
