ICON H Lugano – Luxury Suites & Apartments

We first found this place last year after getting fed up with Airbnbs in Lugano, and came back again this year. We were so glad they had rooms available. The staff at reception and the cleaning staff are kind and helpful, and having a kitchen in the room means I can cook for my kids. There's a gym, laundry on site, and now a restaurant downstairs. I really can't complain. 10/10, I'd stay again in a heartbeat.

We paid a lot for two nights at Icon H and expected basic respect. Instead, the apartment was dirty when we arrived and smelled of cigarette smoke throughout. We waited several hours for cleaning, and even then it was still dirty in spots despite asking the cleaner repeatedly to deal with them. The next day we found more things missing, including towels. We told the manager on arrival that we'd leave and wanted some money back if the problems weren't fixed. He promised to call the next day and said we'd reach a solution we'd be happy with. He didn't call until the afternoon, so we called him. He then said that because we'd booked through Airbnb, we had to ask them for a refund. Airbnb tried to help, but the manager denied everything, even though we'd already sent him plenty of evidence photos when we arrived. There were false accusations against us during and after the stay. At 10.30 PM on checkout day, the manager sent photos through Airbnb of a similar but not identical flat that appeared completely destroyed, and said he wanted money for damage “WE” had done. We knew we hadn't broken anything in our apartment. When we tried to explain by call or text, he ignored us. The next day I called to ask why he was lying or whether there'd been a mixup. He pretended he couldn't hear me and made noises as if the phone were breaking up, which sounded fake to me. I found the whole thing extremely inappropriate and childish. I'm very disappointed in Icon H and its manager. I have lots of evidence photos but won't post them here. I sincerely hope he'll admit to Airbnb what happened and refund part of our stay. Maybe this was an unlucky accident, but given how rudely we were treated, the repeated false accusations, his denials, and the fact that we got not a single Swiss franc back, we're deeply disappointed.

The building is modern and in a quiet neighbourhood. The room had a coffee machine, and the kitchen had everything you'd want for cooking for yourself. I'm satisfied!

A peaceful place to stay in Lugano, with modern apartments and quality furnishings that feel up to date.