Terrazza Marconi Casa vacanze

Our ride from Naples Airport to Terrazza Marconi took about 45 minutes. We’d planned to take the train, but Fabio, the owner, offered to pick us up. I thought it was a courtesy shuttle, while my husband assumed there’d be a small fee. The day before we headed home, Fabio sent a bill for 140 euro's ($155.00 US dollars). We were taken aback, since the train would have cost half as much. When we asked about it, Fabio said he doesn’t tell people the price unless they ask. A charge that high should have been explained up front. Had we known, we would’ve taken the train. Fabio had communicated well before we arrived and gave us many recommendations, but his lack of upfront honesty about the transfer made all the other problems feel worse. The apartment was too far from the city center, ferry ports and train station for our liking. It took at least 25-30 minutes to walk each way, not the 15 minutes listed, and we walk fast. The neighborhood had graffiti everywhere and looked run down, with trash even around the apartment building entrance. The apartment itself was a decent size and the price was good. There’s a small shop attached to the building that I visited every day, but nothing else nearby. Terrazza Marconi was advertised as a bed and breakfast, but there was no breakfast included or other amenities. We thought the customer ratings were inaccurate. The photos show dirt and other issues. We had a fifth-floor apartment, reached by a painfully slow lift down a dark hall. I can only speak to our room, since Fabio owns several apartments and others may be in better shape. When I tried to shower, the handle came off. The water temperature swung quickly from hot to cold and back, then the drain clogged about two minutes in and water overflowed the shower edge. The water then became scorching hot. I grabbed the handle to adjust it and it came off again. There was no shelf for toiletries, and the narrow, capsule-like shower was too small to bend down comfortably to reach things on the floor. We told Fabio. He fixed the drain the next day, but the fluctuating temperature and broken handle were still problems. The bathroom sink area was tiny with no counter space. The room looked generally clean, but the shower hose, light switches, remote controls and toilet flush buttons were dirty and gross. The walls were paper thin. Even with the balcony door and windows closed, traffic, barking dogs and hammering across the way at 7:20am made it too loud to sleep. A tissue box would have been nice. Fabio recommended several restaurants, and most of the places we tried were good. Salerno itself is a great place to visit if you stay in the city district, where ferries, the train station and shopping are only minutes away. It would be a better, cleaner area and feel more like a vacation. Ferries to Amalfi, Positano and Capri are convenient. I later noticed complaints about the shower in reviews from several months to a year before our stay, after we’d returned home. Those issues should have been fixed.