Apatel Gold Coast

The corridors and lifts are clean, the swimming pools are great, and the apartment is well maintained. The gym could use improvement, though. Tenant relations are helpful enough, but they should make authorization simpler. WhatsApp or a phone call ought to be enough, without requiring an in-person signature for everything.

The room was clean, and the landlord was very helpful, but the process didn't feel seamless to me. Check-in is self-service: between 2 p.m. and 11 p.m. you have to collect your key from the popbox yourself. The key only gets you into the elevator and public doors, and you then receive a pass to unlock the smart door. Checkout is also quick and faceless. Leave your card on the room table, take a picture, send it to the admin or landlord, and you can go. But you can only get down to the ground floor. If you're driving, keep the car on a low level. From P3 or above, you have to use the car ramp on foot, and sometimes reception doesn't help. So don't stay here if you're a lazy person. I can't speak for other agents or providers, just the one I used.

The access card I got for the residential complex's pool, gym, sauna, and other facilities didn't work. It took two days to get a replacement. The room also hadn't been cleaned after the previous guests. I noticed a bad smell as soon as I opened the door, and the dirty urns and toilet had been sitting in the hot room long enough to smell. They offered to move me to another property from the company and paid for a taxi, but that didn't make up for the time and nerves I lost. The deposit and extra registration fee were an unpleasant surprise since I had already booked and paid on Booking. They said they'd transferred my deposit, but it never arrived, and they ignored my messages asking about it.

Please don't stay here. This is the most troublesome apartment I've come across. Choose somewhere else, not this place. I knew at check-in that checkout time would be counted from when I sent a photo of the room card. But guests may not be locals, and they may have work or other events to attend while they're here. I was busy all day and only remembered at night, so I sent the photo then. Because of that, they kept my IDR 500,000 deposit. I had turned off all the electricity before leaving. Here's what makes it even more frustrating: I booked two nights, and they came in to clean on the second day. But when I checked out, I asked why they hadn't entered the room. They said they weren't brave enough to go in because I hadn't sent the card photo yet. Crazy, right? It feels like the real income comes from the deposit as well as the room rate. I hope the deposit you took becomes a blessing for you.