Ferrera Park (CDO120)

Finding parking in Cala D'Or was the main hassle, especially when traveling with kids or carrying groceries. There was also no outdoor lighting at night, which didn’t feel very safe, particularly for women walking back after dark. Apart from those inconveniences, we had a pleasant stay at the Ferrera Apartment in Mallorca. It was clean, modern, matched the Airbnb photos, and made a comfortable base for exploring the area.

After two nights of barely sleeping, we drove around the north of the island. By the time we were a couple of hours from the apartment and tired, we found a hotel for the night. The bed was comfortable, there was no damp, and the TV was a real one with sound you could hear. Back at the apartment the next day, we knew we wouldn’t enjoy the rest of our stay, so we cleaned up and left for a nice hotel five minutes away. Luckily, we could afford to book somewhere else. The bedroom smelled damp and musty, and there was a dehumidifier in the corner. We had only a thin sheet on the beds and the nights were chilly. There were extra blankets in the wardrobe, but they also smelled musty and damp, so we chose to stay clean but cold. The mattresses were awful. I could feel the springs through the material just by laying my hands on them. There was a big water stain on the bathroom ceiling with mould growing on it. The TV was an old computer monitor, too small to see properly, and the sound was so distorted it was inaudible. We’re active and don’t watch much TV on holiday, but it’s nice to have the option. We travel a lot and have stayed in everything from hostels in South Africa to five-star hotels in Europe. We’ve never felt the need to leave a bad review before. What prompted me to write this was how the owner handled things after we got in touch. I emailed to say we’d left three days early because of the damp and the mattresses, and asked for a partial refund. She refused and said she knew nothing about damp. When I brought up the dehumidifier, she ignored that and said other people had called the mattresses comfortable. After going round in circles, we were offered a meeting with her ‘agent’, who I understand is a friend of the owners living on the island, to discuss the problems. We declined. This was supposed to be a relaxing holiday, we’d already left, and we didn’t want another futile discussion. Before the trip the owner had agreed to give us a £20 discount, but it didn’t arrive before we left. It came more than two weeks after we got home, after I’d complained to Owners Direct. The owner said I wouldn’t be able to leave a review and that Owners Direct had closed the matter. Neither claim was true. I’ve kept all the emails to confirm this is an honest account of what happened. Most of the ‘positive’ reviews are left by the owner’s family and friends!

The rooms had a strange bug-spray smell that lingered all week. The place also fell short of what we expected from the pictures: one room was extremely small, the furniture was old, the towels had holes, and the beds didn’t look very clean.

Great views and a good location. The apartment was nice.