The ad claimed that it was a private room with its own bathroom close to shops and the beach. Upon arrival it was evident that the host had just rented out one of his bedrooms and everything else was shared. Furthermore, he had other tenants staying in the same house. The bedroom was so tiny my wife and I could not even move. The ad claimed the beach was a 3-minute drive; the beach was so far from the place that I presume you need a 10-minute car drive to get there. It was definitely not walking distance. After about 30 minutes my wife and I decided we couldn’t stay there so we left and when I contacted the host and explained why we left (false advertising) he refused to refund me any of my money.
In summary:
- The smallest room I have ever seen.
- This was not a private bedroom; everything was shared
- The host was completely unreasonable in terms of the cancellation policy. I now realize why he has a strict cancellation policy. I am sure most people would leave after seeing the place… total disaster.
A private bedroom means you have just that… a private bedroom. It doesn’t mean you have the apartment or house to yourself. Looking at the listing, it is clear that all common areas are shared. If the bedroom was too small, that is purely subjective.
Why should the host refund you anything? YOU didn’t read the listing properly or understand the terms of the listing. That is on YOU, not the host. Is this your first booking?