Sunset Villa Girne Cyprus

We arrived at Sunset Villa in Çatalköy on 5th August 25 for a family stay, but the problems piled up and four of us left five days early for a hotel. The villa looks lovely, but it wasn't well maintained, and the owner could have taken our concerns more seriously. It took up to five days for him to come by. Only then did he say the water pump could stay on for up to five hours and replace the gas canister so we could cook on the hob. We were also told we'd need to pay a separate electricity bill at the end, something the original AirBnb page hadn't mentioned. There was no welcome pack, just vague notes around the villa and no useful information about the house or area. One note warned that the water pump should only be switched on for 20 minutes, or we'd be charged 200 euro if it was damaged through overuse. With eight people, that limit was unrealistic. We often had no running water, and when it did run, it was cold. The water cooler didn't work, and its replacement didn't either, so we kept having to shop for bottled water. The upstairs bathroom shower leaked all over the floor, leaving all eight of us to share the downstairs shower. There was no gas for the stove, and with the frequent power cuts we couldn't cook. The owner only spoke to another tenant at the villa site and asked her to check the canister before he believed us. The landing and loft room were also dangerous, with a large gap between the floor and railing and only tarpaulin along the railing for safety. We kept the children away from there. Eight days into the stay, the fridge stopped working. The owner wanted photos showing the fridge light was out and of the fuse box before he would come replace it. We'd just bought a lot of food and it spoiled. That was the last straw, and four of us moved to a hotel for the rest of the holiday.

The pool was lovely and the villa looks nice, but the facilities let us down badly. The water tank was broken, so we had to buy bottled water every day, and it was never fixed. The upstairs shower leaked across the bathroom floor, so all eight of us had to share one bathroom. The gas stove was broken too, which mattered a lot during the frequent power cuts, and the fridge failed about a week into the stay, spoiling all our food. The owner took five days to come and see the problems. He fixed the stove, but not the upstairs shower. One person in our group had booked the villa and left a lovely five star Airbnb review after building a rapport with the owner over the two weeks. They were both from North cyprus, so I guess they felt they had something in common. Honestly, I think our group member was being swindled so the owner wouldn't have to come out as often to fix things. A few of us left for a hotel for the rest of the trip. The owner may reply that we left because of a family feud, and there were arguments, but the fridge breaking was the last straw. If the villa had been up to a normal standard, we wouldn't have rushed out and spent an extra £1000. A lot of the arguments were about the poor state of the villa and the people who booked it not wanting to 'bother' the owner, since he was so reluctant to come fix anything. I wouldn't recommend it for an easy, relaxing break. Be ready to work for basic comforts like it's the 60's. P.s. To the owner, any reply about arguments between sisters is irrelevant to the problems with the villa. We wouldn't leave a bad review over a row with a sister who has no connection to the villa, doesn't own the place and has no ties to you. I'm writing to let people know the property needs updating before it's rented out again. It's not great to pay for a holiday and deal with problems you wouldn't even face in a council flat.

We had a quiet, peaceful haven here, with easy access along the coast. The villa sits in the mountain foothills, with a marvellous view over Çatalkoy, the sea, Kyrenia, and up the mountain range. The pool was great too, with cool water to dip into any time of day.

We stayed for 16 days in June and had no problems, even when a friend came to join us for a week. Huseyin was fantastic whenever we needed help, genuinely happy to assist and contactable at all times. The place is spacious, with plenty of storage and good aircon in every room. The pool is kept very well. Can't recommend it enough, and we'll definitely be back. Thank you!