Swan Street Penthouse

The roof terrace was nice, but we didn’t use the hot tub. It was full of grit, dirt, and bugs, and its cover sank to the bottom. The dishwasher worked well. We had only about two bin bags and not enough kitchen hand towels. There were no oven shelves or racks, so we had to cook breakfast for 15 by putting everything on the oven floor. I booked this for my friends’ hen party because the Google photos looked light and airy. In person, the property was dark navy with dark ceilings. On arrival day, the homeowner hadn’t sent any information about entry, the hot tub, rubbish, or house rules. I had to call the third-party company to get in, and they said the homeowner should have sent those details. The place felt grubby and in need of a deep clean and some TLC. I tried not to look too closely because it made my skin crawl. One bed was broken, and a guest ended up in a dip in the middle. When people tried to push beds together, they found dust, labels, tissues, and other debris underneath, as if the beds had never been moved for cleaning. The windows were so dirty you could barely see out. I took off the stained, disgusting bed throws. I didn’t inspect the linens closely because I hoped they’d been changed and was worried about what I might find. There’s one bathroom per floor. Three rooms share the one on their floor, and you have to go through a bedroom to reach it. On the top floor, where the kitchen is, there’s one bedroom and one bathroom, so those guests don’t share, though it serves as the communal bathroom when people are in the living area. The main communal space is the kitchen and dining area, with a long table, benches on both sides, and extra chairs. The 15 of us just managed around it. The listing says it sleeps up to 23, but that many people would be cramped around the table and in the shared space. There’s no living room with sofas. It did the job, but I wouldn’t recommend it or book again. Parking is available nearby at different prices, but none is part of the property, which is on a main road.