Hedera Estate, Villa Hedera II

The house was meant for 10 people, but with the air conditioning broken in every bedroom during 38-degree heat, none of them were usable. Hedra estate tried to repair it but couldn’t, and gave no date for a fix. They wouldn’t move us or refund us so we could find another place. We ended up dragging every mattress into the living room, the only room with working AC, and all 10 of us slept side by side, including small children and a baby. The fifth bedroom outside was also so strongly scented of cat urine that we couldn’t go in. Cleaners came and said the smell was awful and nothing could be done. I have a recording of that, but the estate later claimed the cleaners hadn’t noticed any smell. It took two days of frantic emails with the manager before they finally let us leave and offered a refund for the nights we wouldn’t stay. For the first two nights, they offered only 15% off, despite us being unable to use 80% of the house and still paying cleaning fees. Those first two days of our honeymoon were completely ruined, and the estate showed no concern for how distressing it was. We had booked five nights, but left after three. Finding alternative accommodation for 10 people in peak season was practically impossible, and it added stress and cost in the heat with small children and a baby. I’ve never rented from a worse company. Utterly unacceptable. Don’t book with them, if something goes wrong, they won’t put it right.

The worst part was seeing rats jumping around in the balcony tree, right over our heads. We saw them several times. I reported it on WhatsApp and got the reply, “omg.” This is a serious issue that could affect our health and the people nearby. We complained in person and by email too, but nobody answered. We were disgusted and definitely wouldn’t recommend the place. Getting to Studio Amy through this agency was also confusing because the location on Google Maps was wrong. A photo of the church in the guide, or a written address instead of a map pin, would have helped. The apartment wasn’t clean. There was dust and fluff around the bed, crumbs on the microwave table, and dead insects on the floor, windows and walls. Aphids on the outside tree had spread over half the balcony, so we had to clear them to make enough room to sit. A window was open when we arrived and the apartment was full of mosquitoes. If windows are left open, they could at least provide mosquito repellent. The Wi-Fi didn’t work properly from the start. Even next to the router it was too slow to send a WhatsApp message.

Our family did enjoy Dubrovnik, thanks to the wonderful, honest people we met, and we stayed at the very accommodating LeroHotel. But the apartment we booked through Hedera Estates was a terrible experience during a big family trip planned for my Mom’s birthday, my Aunt’s birthday, my graduation and time together. It looked beautiful in the listing, but wasn’t as represented. We couldn’t park, and were left on a ledge off the highway that felt scary and dangerous. The stairs down to the apartment were so steep that we couldn’t manage our full suitcases after coming from Canada. The man who brought us there told us to go back and complain, saying there were many problems and the company didn’t listen. When we asked the office for help finding somewhere else, the woman argued with my Mom, Dad, Aunt and Uncle instead. They refused to help and kept my Mom’s money, saying, “Too bad.” I looked at the Google Reviews afterward and saw a 5/5 review from Frank Bezic. My Mom asked me to look him up on social media, where I found he is a Director in Real Estate in Dubrovnik. I don’t think that review is genuine, and I believe it’s fake. I’m posting this to support my Mom and our family. Thank you, Gabriele

We booked what was described as a 5-star condominium for a special family holiday. On arrival, we found the apartment 106 steps down the hill. The description barely covered access, the stairs or how steep they were, and severely failed to mention that anyone with health concerns might struggle to reach it with luggage other than a backpack. We’d paid for parking, but none was available. The apartment was in poor condition and not as described. When we went back for help or to complain, the Hedera Estates team just shrugged. They offered no alternative. The service was the worst I’ve ever experienced, with no effort to solve the problem. HEDERA ESTATES completely ruined our stay in Dubrovnik. Looking back, Google reviews from the past year really do describe poor service standards. Too bad we didn’t research them sooner. Those reviews have value, though pretty property marketing pictures can easily overshadow them. The excuses from Hadera were interesting too. It seems people often get a “not responsible” response, so that’s the level of service to expect. #Hederaestatesworstexperienceever, #hederaestatesruinedourhiluday, #hederaestatesNOTRECOMMEND!!!