Seaside Comfort in Giannella

The location is the one real highlight, just a hundred meters from the beach and lovely at sunset. The rest of the stay was almost entirely negative. The room was poorly lit, the sheets that were supposedly clean had sand in them, and the shutter came off its hook and fell when I tried to lower it. Cleanliness overall left a lot to be desired. When I first entered the studio apartment, they said it had been cleaned, but there was a dried-up piece of croissant under the fridge, apparently left by someone weeks earlier. Checkout was unpleasant too. I needed just 10 extra minutes, still earlier than the stated check-in time of 1:30/2:00 PM, and reception staff came knocking and calling my phone as if I were squatting there. Service wasn’t great. The residence felt anonymous, like a Los Angeles-style condo where Bruce Willis lives in Pulp Fiction, surrounded by a pretty mediocre area. The rooms were basic, and plenty else could use improvement. Not a place I’d want to return to.

We paid €3,000 for 14 days, plus cleaning fees, and arrived to find a dirty, shabby, smelly house. The woman handing over the keys didn’t show us around. There was underwear under the bed from previous guests, and dirt all over the place. The beds hadn’t been made, so we had to carry sheets and towels from reception ourselves. The woman told us, “Come on, you’re strong, bring them.” The kitchen was disgusting. We had to disinfect everything before we could even consider using the plates and pans. The place felt neglected and squalid, nothing like what we expected at that price. The owner was rude and unhelpful. This was the worst house or villa I’ve ever rented by the sea. Old, dirty, and terribly managed. I wouldn’t recommend it to anyone.

We fled with our two-year-old daughter after seeing how dirty and unsafe the apartment was. She took off her slippers, and within 5 minutes her feet were black. There were broken mosquito nets full of dead insects, a dried moth on a window, and insect remains on the walls. The old windows cracked when touched, and the electrical system seemed substandard. It’s hard to understand how a hospitality business could provide an old, clearly inadequate electrical system. We booked La Colonica 2 through Airbnb. After we sent photos, we were moved to another property the next day and refunded, though the stress and time taken from our vacation came at an additional cost. The listing said there was a separate entrance, but both apartments use one staircase. The advertised barbecue was just a small, dirty, worn-out grill. This was for a week’s stay. A rustic farmhouse is one thing, but this home felt abandoned, unsafe, and filthy. A few soaps and sheets aren’t enough to make guests feel welcome. Embarrassing.

We left and asked for a refund. The rooms were filthy, with cobwebs and animals everywhere, the air conditioning didn’t work, and the garden was in terrible shape. Even reception was full of cobwebs. The staff weren’t welcoming and came across as unprofessional.