Guest House Sandra

The room and checkout were the worst parts of a truly awful stay. On departure, the older man shouted at us about whether we'd used the TV or AC, apparently to charge extra, and only backed off when we said we had barely used them. He yelled again when I was carrying my heavy suitcase downstairs. At payment, both owners were aggressive; the man locked us inside while we held the cash and didn't open the door until the woman had counted it. They hurried us out, shouting something insulting about Italians. Booking.com later gave us a partial refund and explained why. I wish we'd read the negative reviews first. This was the worst accommodation I've experienced despite traveling all over the world, and what those reviews said was true, if anything they understated it. There were other problems throughout the stay. The owners couldn't communicate in Italian, English, or French, though Italian was listed in the accommodation description; they speak Croatian and German. The breakfast was meager and low quality, with bits of broken glass in the eating area. The shower drain didn't work properly, the curtain was too long and blocked it, and the bathroom had no ventilation and smelled. Soap was missing for two days until we asked repeatedly. They even unplugged my electric toothbrush once while it was charging in the room during the day. The parking was chaotic. While we were at the beach, they took our car key from the room and moved the car without telling us or getting our permission. When we challenged the older man, he laughed at us aggressively, and their behavior became more hostile after that.

The worst moment came when the owners realized we planned to complain. They got more aggressive and threatened to lock us in the house. I wouldn't go back. There were problems before then too. On our first day at the beach, they took my car key from the room and moved the car without asking. When we confronted them, they laughed it off. The breakfast was poor in both amount and quality, and one morning we found glass shards on the table. That says plenty about the care they put into it. They also seemed to be looking for ways to charge us: the listing said AC and TV use was included, but they tried to make us pay for them. The soap dispenser was left empty, and after two days without soap they refilled it only when we kept asking. Avoid this place, it felt like a nightmare, not a holiday.

The room itself wasn't very comfortable, and I wouldn't recommend staying here. The parking caused trouble right away. The owners told us to leave the car in a particular spot, which meant blocking other people. We said it would inconvenience them, but the owners insisted it was fine. It did cause a problem. The air conditioning also wasn't working well. When I mentioned it, the owner got furious and came up to our room. My girlfriend was on the balcony and had opened the door to let him in. He saw it open and assumed we'd left it that way. He shouted at us and wouldn't listen, and we were actually scared by how angry he became. I understand the owners don't speak English, but we could manage a little in other languages. They didn't make any effort to understand us.

The owners' attitude left us feeling like we were worth less as guests. I could hear them gossiping about us on the terrace and questioning whether we'd paid the full 50% deposit. I showed the receipt, but the owner kept suspiciously challenging us. Their treatment of foreigners seemed completely different from how they treated us as hosts. Parking was the main problem. Although Booking said private parking was available, and the owner confirmed by phone that there was a space, the small yard lot was already full when we arrived, with cars parked one behind another. He sent us to paid city parking without guaranteeing a spot. Several times we couldn't find anywhere to park. He suggested parking illegally, saying any fine would be our responsibility. He wouldn't let us use the yard, even though he said he'd call when a space opened up, and never did. It seemed that spot was saved for German guests, who were clearly valued more. A very unpleasant experience. Istria may be more expensive, but people shouldn't treat guests this way.