Viadukt Apartments

The promised late checkout was confirmed by email for 12 instead of 11, which was kind. Yet someone knocked at 11:10 and tried to come in. When I explained the time had been changed, the staff member insisted checkout was at 11. I mentioned the email confirmation again, and she left. Earlier, around ten, someone had tried to enter my locked room with a key. There was also a lot of noise from other rooms through the night, and someone rang the apartments' bell at 8 in the morning. The room was very different from what booking had led me to expect. It was small and cramped, with an uncomfortable double bed and one single bed. Only one of the three lamps worked. The shared bathroom door didn't lock, and one sheet was stained, which was gross. The stay was unpleasant.

The kitchen, living area, and bathroom were shared, and all worked well. Housekeeping cleaned the apartment whenever a guest left. There were three bedrooms, each with its own lockable, very secure door. A Coop supermarket is just down the road if you don't have a million dollars to spend at restaurants. We had a great time here.

We didn't get hurt, but we still felt unsafe, especially as women. My daughter and I booked a two-person bedroom. The other two rooms were locked and quiet, so we thought we'd have the apartment to ourselves. Later at night, we heard someone come in and try our door, and were glad we'd locked it. The next day we went out and came back in the evening just as a man was leaving. He seemed more like a resident than a traveler. We showered early and went to our room. Someone else came in soon after. When my daughter went to the bathroom to brush her teeth, a different man appeared wearing only underwear and asked her how to use the washing machine. He seemed harmless, so we explained it. Then we heard another man enter. That night, someone tried our door again, and we slept in fear. On the third morning, the bathroom was full of smoke and smelled of tobacco. While we packed, four more men arrived one after another. They didn't look like travelers, so we left quickly to check out. The place felt shady and the room was lousy, stuffy, and had no air conditioning or fan. We could always hear people talking and smoking in units above or below us. I would especially warn women against staying here.

The apartment was conveniently located near local public transport and a short walk from Zurich. But the staff were rude and immature, with no respect or empathy for customers' travel needs. They accused me of lying about the basement laundry door being open, though it wasn't. There were plenty of problems inside: a broken toilet seat, sparse or missing cutlery, a TV that didn't work, and food from other occupants in the drawers and freezer. The place smelled of cigarettes. Both irons were broken, and one had exposed wires. The pillows were small and useless, so I had to use the couch cushions instead. It wasn't worth the money or hassle. I'm sure the staff will accuse me of just looking for problems, but I strongly recommend staying somewhere else in Zurich.