Villa Vergissmeinnicht

We felt trapped at Villa V because of how isolated it is. It's an hour and a half from the airport and almost an hour from downtown, so getting anywhere or seeing anything costs a lot. There are very few transportation options besides the owner's driver, and for us the distance and transport expense were too much. The neighborhood isn't great either. The villa is surrounded by ramshackle dwellings, dirt paths, and a rock quarry. Some might call that “cultural,” but walking those streets and paths is a very in-your-face experience, even though we never felt unsafe. There are some positives. The owner has made a literal fortress of tranquility behind barbed wire, with gardens, nicely furnished rooms, and a pool. The pool wasn't always heated and wasn't especially clean, though, so beware. Our family stayed for two nights in June 2018. The number of mosquitos was worrying, and we were horrified there were no mosquito nets. When we asked, the owner said, “there's no malaria in Tana,” and told us to shut the unscreened doors and windows. We tried that and used deet, but still left covered in mosquito bites, like pin cushions. Given how many mosquitos there were, it's baffling that the owner doesn't provide nets. Two people in our party became violently ill with vomiting and diarrhea for the next 24 hours, within hours of leaving Villa V. We can't say what caused it, but we didn't feel comfortable staying there again. We asked the owner to refund the two nights we'd prepaid for our return trip. He agreed at first, then changed his mind and insisted it couldn't have been food poisoning. He was so incredulous that he asked us for documentation from a doctor, and in the end refused to refund the two nights. For us, losing that prepaid money was worth it to spend our last two days somewhere else rather than stay there again.