Ostseeresidenz Gorki- Park - 07

We've been to Gorki Park eight times and have always felt comfortable there. Apartments 24 and 16, which we booked, were roomy and furnished in a practical but stylish way. The beach is only a few metres away, and there's an underground garage, plus a sauna and swimming pool. The place is showing its age, but we can still recommend it, and in Heringsdorf it's hard to match. The services have gradually been cut back, though. A few years ago you could get bread delivered and rent bicycles, among other things, but those options are gone now.

We've stayed here twice, first in apartment 12 and now in 16. Apartment 12 felt cozier, more like our own home, while 16 is furnished more functionally. The biggest drawback in 16 is that there are no curtains or net curtains, so the neighbours can see into almost the whole place. Keeping the blinds down all the time would make it too dark. The grounds are fenced and require special keys to enter. There's a sauna, an indoor pool with a counter-current system, and a small fitness room. Elevators serve every floor and both underground garages, and all the apartments have balconies. The accommodation is very nice and clean. We'll come back, but next time we'd rather stay in apartment 12.

Apartment 24 has a lovely view from the larger bedroom, which also has a balcony. The other bedroom is mostly under a sloping ceiling, so it suits shorter people better. The kitchen is tiny, with just one work surface, directly under the spiral staircase, which doesn't seem very hygienic. Otherwise it's a nice apartment, and dogs are allowed. The property is in a great location and has lots of extras, but the underground parking is really tight. With a larger car, you'd better be an expert at parking.

The noise ruined this stay. Had we known there was a construction site only about 30 metres away, with loud work even early in the morning, we never would've booked this overpriced holiday apartment. The listing didn't mention it. We paid almost €3,000 for two weeks, supposedly at a reduced rate, and couldn't sleep in, use the balcony, or open the windows without hearing a beeping excavator or crane from Monday to Friday. Then, just when we hoped to sleep in over the weekend, staff living right below our window were talking loudly in the morning. The complex has a pool, sauna, and fitness room, though not everything in the sauna was working. Those amenities didn't make up for the noise. The dog leash rule seemed to apply to guests but not apartment owners. This was our 23rd year in a row vacationing on Usedom, and we're very disappointed. We can't recommend the apartment or complex. Next year we'll give up the pool and sauna and go back to the place we know. What a shame.