Bonsai Apartment II

Rated on: 03.04.2025 Length of stay: 1 month

When I arrived in Porto, the host took forever to meet me and then brought me to an apartment that was completely different from the one I had signed the lease on. Bigger, yes, but much less liveable (undecorated, no view or natural light, constant noise from the lobby one floor below). It was the same building, but his flat was not clean, the bed was broken and there was no surface for me to work at. Before I pointed this out to him, there was no apology or explanation on his part. Then, to his credit, he brought me a mini-desk and chair, and the bed was fixed (although the latter took 4 weeks). Throughout this process though, I felt increasingly uncomfortable as he repeatedly asked me out for drinks and inquired after my lovelife. At one point, he decided to show me the apartment upstairs (the one I was paying for); my heart broke when I entered the bright, cozy room I'd fallen in love with online. Assuming he was providing me with an option - why else would he show me? - I asked if there was any way I could switch, maybe just for part of the 6 weeks I was staying in Porto, but he told me this was not possible. Resigning myself to the situation, I started pimping the space I was assigned (buying candles and plants), and asked if he'd consider giving me a discount instead. Suddenly, he became very cold with me and said I was welcome to find accomodation elsewhere. I couldn't - not on such short notice and with my budget - which he know, of course. So I made my peace with my big, cold apartment, the shower that only provided about 8 minutes of warm water, the broken freezer and power outages. When the coffee machine stopped working halfway through my stay, I was not surprised that the host made no effort to have it fixed or replaced. I will say this for the flat: you can't beat that location. I ended up having a wonderful time in Porto, but no thanks to this host. I truly believe he means well, but this is no way to treat people who pay good money for their stay and depend on you to make them feel comfortable and safe.

Neighborhood
Fantastic location, nearly on top of Trindade station. Excellent connections to public transport in all directions, but you won't even need it being so centrally located. Plenty of supermarkets to choose from. Lovely coffee shops all around. Heading south takes you to the touristic centre, head north and you'll find yourself among the locals.

Anne O.