2/10 Terrible
Jennifer W.
11 June 2022
Liked: Cleanliness
Disliked: Check-in, communication, location, listing accuracy
Not exactly "picture perfect"
We took a risk on a property being offered for the first time so it had no reviews. The pictures were so cute! Big mistake. To begin with as you approach the area you start to feel like it is not the best neighborhood. (Not the worst but not the best either.) When you get there you climb a narrow set of wooden stairs to a dark hallway. The door is just a typical bedroom door with a doorknob lock and no deadbolt. For small town folk visiting the city that was not comforting. The room is far smaller and far shabbier than it appears to be in the photos. To be fair it was very clean which was nice. But the chipping paint and plaster and the scuffed floor are hard to make up for. The bed is really to small to sleep two comfortably although the couch wasn't too uncomfortable. I think it was a hide-a-bed but we didn't open it up. The bathroom has no counter space besides a small shelf over the toilet and a window sill. The bathroom sink is so tiny that you can't wash your face without getting water all over the floor and it was almost impossible to take a shower without soaking the floor; there is no bathmat. I was uncomfortable enough that as I laid down that night I had my pepper spray in my hand. Around 11pm I heard footsteps on the stairs and thought someone tried the door handle! I don't know if I've ever been that scared in my life. Around 12 pm more footsteps and at that point I figured out that there must be another apartment up there although it was not visible when we came in. After the adrenaline faded we were able to sleep some and in the morning we decided to go ahead and stick to our plan and went to find the best way to downtown Boston. The bus stops are not helpful. We finally found one with a phone number and called to find out what bus to take etc. You have to catch a bus to the closest subway station but the subway is much easier to figure out once you get to it. Unfortunately the stress of the VRBO situation was ruining the enjoyment of our visit. I found myself worrying about how we were going to get back there in the evening since we were still not sure about the buses or safety. (And even stressing about that darn bathroom!) In order to salvage the trip we ended up bailing on the VRBO, forfeiting the money, and just moving to a hotel. IF (big if) we ever use VRBO again I will look for stand alone units with no one else in the building and make absolute sure it has tons of great reviews.
Jennifer W.
Stayed 5 nights in Jun 2022
