I was very excited about staying in the apartment we rented in Paris, but am completely disgusted and upset about our experience.
We stayed at 223 rue Saint Denis 75002 Paris from September 30 - October 4, 2013. It was presented as a high end 2 bedroom apartment with a lovely outdoor terrace - this is directly from their website: "moreover you are able to take advantage of very beautiful, spacious and flowery terrace, that is very precious and rare in the center of Paris ...".
http://www.private-homes.com/paris/en/d/110510-montorgueil-reaumur-terrace-2bdr/1ba-apartment-paris-rent-2-bedrooms?num_r=6
The state of the courtyard was UNACCEPTABLE. We expected to be able to enjoy our morning coffee outside, as shown in the photos the website. A large section of the terrace was covered by a tarp - we were told it was due to bad weather they'd recently had, but it looked like it had been there for a long time. Given the state of disrepair, it was impossible to use.
There were two things we were told were broken by the previous renters that were not fixed/addressed while we were there (as promised when we arrived):
1. we were told that the toilet seat cover would be fixed - it was not.
2. Upon arrival we were told that the curtain in the back bedroom would be fixed while we were there and it was not. There was NO privacy in the back bedroom - people could look in from other apartments as well as the stairwell. I awoke one morning to discover a construction worker looking in from outside.
BUT MY BIGGEST COMPLAINT IS WITH THE CONSTRUCTION THAT IS GOING ON IN THE BUILDING. They were retrofitting and painting the common interior stairwell from the street to all the apartments in the building! We should have been made aware of this prior to our arrival and asked if we'd like to change properties. Wet paint and the smell were ALWAYS an issue. One should not have to stay in a construction zone while on vacation. When my Mother and 87 year old Grandmother were leaving on Friday at 11:00am they were told by the workers that the stairs, banister and walls had ALL been painted and were WET. Basically, they had PAINTED THEM INTO THE APARTMENT! The workers asked them to wait to go downstairs - which WAS NOT POSSIBLE, as thier taxi to the airport was arriving at that time. As a result, THEY GOT PAINT ON THIER HANDS, CLOTHES, SHOES AND SUITCASES and flew home covered in paint. They can't get the paint out of thier clothes. The rental agency arranged the taxi at 11:00 for them - WHY WAS THERE WET PAINT ON THE STAIRS AT THIS TIME??? HOW COULD THIS HAPPEN???
I've rented properties in various locations: Lake Tahoe, Mexico, Hawaii, Tuscany, New Orleans, Yosemite, Cape Cod, Chincoteague Island and even Paris before and have NEVER had an experience as upsetting as this one.
I've contacted the agency 3 times via email with no response. This was a special trip - we were in Paris to celebrate my Mom's retirement and as such, this is the most I've ever paid for a 4 night stay anywhere. I expect some type of reimbursement for their lack of addressing and disclosing issues, as well as the inconvenience and damage caused to my family's clothes, shoes and luggage.
I've disputed the balance of the rental that I paid on arrival with my credit card issuer in the hopes that gets thier attention.
I will NEVER rent a property through this company again. read more