Domus Minervae

The check-in was awful. We waited over an hour for the portiere in temperatures that felt frankly unsafe. The apartment itself is nice, but keep in mind it has just two bedrooms and one bathroom. One bedroom has a queen and a twin, the other has two twins, and there’s also a pull-out couch. Wi-Fi only reaches an area near the bathroom and parts of the main sitting room.

Problem after problem.

This place was extremely dirty and smoky. I didn’t want to touch anything. After our long trip, the Turkish concierge refused to let us into the apartment so my children could use the toilet and eat. We had already paid in full through Booking.com, but when I asked if the kids could use the bathroom, he said it was my problem. At first he wanted extra money for waiting, towels, and tourist tax, even though those could be handled at the apartment. Then he told us to go stay at a hotel, turned around, and left. I had to call the police. Only after that were my mother, my three children, and I able to get inside. Now I understand why he didn’t want to show me the apartment. It was very, very dirty and smelled of smoke.