Suite Dolce Vita

There was no separate bedroom in the bachelor apartment we got, even though the listing on Booking.com described a two bedroom apartment. I raised that with the host on WhatsApp and got no reply. Parking was another problem: he said not to worry because it was available, but there wasn't any, and we had to hunt for a space on the narrow street. The advertised breakfast was just a grocery store croissant left in the apartment. The internet barely worked, the oven had a pan with dried old cheese inside, and the bathroom door handle was broken. The cabinet under the sink smelled moldy and foul, and the sofa bed was uncomfortable. I was very disappointed with both the apartment and the service. There are much better places to stay in Tirana.

We needed a vacuum cleaner to seal our luggage before flying, and when we asked to borrow one, the man replied, “You’re staying in a hotel for this price, what more do you expect?” The room had several problems too: our children's bed was broken, there was no soap, and the toilet paper seemed left over from previous guests. The outer handle on the bathroom door was missing, so once it shut we had to pry it open with a credit card. The door locks just spun when turned. First, a man arranged our booking through Booking.com, then made excuses until Booking canceled it. He called us afterward claiming to have another room, but took cash instead of payment through Booking. We reported this to Booking support right away, and they assured us action would be taken. We think this may be a way to bypass Booking and avoid commission. He only cares about money, and we reported what we considered fraud.

Francesco left some really good food suggestions for the area. The place is central and has the basic amenities.

We had two kids with us and left at the last minute for another hostel. The so-called included breakfast was just a couple of packaged processed foods left in the kitchen, and the bedroom lights kept flashing like a disco. Everything else felt creepy. Someone had mentioned the owner gives back part of the money if you leave a five-star comment. That’s bribery. He kept the money from us and denied responsibility.