Appartement Suites Berna

The place itself is nice, but once you've checked in and paid, there's no service at all. You're left to manage on your own.

It's clean, though the reception is open for only a couple of hours each day.

The apartment was spacious, very clean, and smelled lovely. Ours was on the ground floor and had an outdoor area with a table and chairs; the bathroom was also large, with a huge shower. We could get around easily by train, though a car might be better in Perca. Getting into the place was a whole ordeal. We arrived on Sunday to find everything shut and nobody at reception. In fact, there was no one there on weekdays either, since check-in was handled online, by phone, or by email. I hadn't received the room number or the PIN for the lockbox with our entry card. I called the number on Booking.com, but the woman on the phone kept asking me which room we'd been assigned so she could give me the code. Neither of us knew. Her English had a strong German accent, and eventually I pieced together a PIN, perhaps from a note she found, or perhaps she simply tried the only code she had left. I tested several boxes for different rooms before finding the card. Once inside, we still had to try doors on the stair landing until one opened. Hallelujah. I chose the property because it was a good quality-price compromise for the area, and it didn't cost much. Still, after a train journey from Rome, spending half an hour on the phone just to get in was frustrating. We were on foot, and the uphill walk from the station elevator to the building was exhausting. We went out in the morning and got picked up in the evening because climbing that hill several times a day without a car was impossible. Trains run frequently, but the last one is at 9 pm, so we couldn't enjoy nightlife. There isn't much in Perca either, just a pizzeria/bar and a supermarket that closes at 7 pm. Mountain life can be tiring, so that was fine for us.

The apartment had plenty of space, comfortable beds, and a fantastic view. But the building seemed abandoned and uncared for, and that would put me off coming back. Nobody was there when we arrived to hand over a key or explain how to enter. It took several calls before I got instructions in English, since no one spoke Italian. The elevator was out, so we had to carry our luggage up two flights of stairs. Wi-Fi was available, but we weren't given the password. The kitchen had very few utensils, and the mini fridge barely cooled anything. The shower was great, but it flooded the bathroom. There was no one to ask for help. Avoid.