ML Apartments Avenue

I arrived after the official check-in time because of a travel delay, and the host offered no flexibility. I had to find somewhere else for the night. When I tried to check in the next day, he refused and called it a “no-show,” then kept all my money without providing any service. Afterward, I looked at the reviews and found many others describing the same experience. The host doesn’t try to help, but uses the situation to cancel the stay and keep the full amount. I also saw multiple negative reviews on Google Maps for all his properties that appear to describe the same pattern. Be careful: you could end up without accommodation or a refund. I advise against booking with ML Apartments. If anything runs late, you may lose both your money and your place to stay. There’s no customer service, flexibility, or fairness.

Access was quick, the apartment had everything, and it was comfortable and well located. I hadn’t read the reviews until after booking, and then I traveled there worried and in a hurry because we might arrive after 8 p.m. too. We were afraid of finding a locked door, losing our money, and having nowhere to stay. In all my years using booking sites, I’ve never seen rules this strict. The messages had already given me an idea of what the host would be like. I asked about a place to store our bicycles and was told there was absolutely no room anywhere. When I politely asked for alternative storage suggestions nearby, I got no reply. We’d already paid for the apartment, so apparently our inconvenient requests didn’t matter.

The apartment was clean, and the location was convenient for the historic center, about a 25-minute walk. There are mini markets and bars nearby for all kinds of needs. That’s where the positives end. Miguel told us check-in was until 8:00 PM. Our flight was due to land at 7:00 PM, but before we left we learned it would be delayed. I kept Miguel updated the whole time and apologized repeatedly. We landed only 30 minutes late, took an Uber, and arrived around 8:30 PM. He wasn’t there. About 15 minutes later he showed up, visibly annoyed. We apologized again and thanked him for not leaving two twenty-year-olds outside. He replied, exactly, “It's your problem, not the apartment's.” We could tell he had little empathy, seemed aloof, and had a questionable sense of humor. He showed us where the bed and bathroom were, but seemed more concerned with telling us not to smoke inside. There was a balcony, though calling it that takes courage. Then he left. Within 10 minutes, we realized the fan didn’t ventilate the room at all and was the only source of fresh air. The toilet wouldn’t flush. We did what we could to fix it ourselves, then I messaged him the next morning. He said, “Please tap the lid so it moves. This happens because it's not closed properly.” I thanked him, but said it would’ve been nice to know earlier since we’d spent a night unable to flush. He answered, “It's not possible to predict it, just sit harder on the toilet and the lid moves,” with a surprised smiley face. We laughed. We’re not used to jumping on toilets, especially when the seat was like a surfboard. I didn’t reply, and we had no more contact after that. Over the next few days, we noticed basic things missing, like a roll of paper towels and a colander. There’s no closet, either. I’ve said enough. I wish I’d found a more polite way to tell him, “It's the apartment's problem, not ours!” Maybe next time. 🤷‍♂️🥹

We found out the hard way that we should’ve read the Google reviews first. Our flight landed late in Porto, so we missed the check-in time. Our entire booking was then cancelled, and the host already had new guests. We spent hours on the phone with Booking.com without getting anywhere. Booking.com said we’d get our money back if the host agreed, but naturally he didn’t. The host ignored our calls and WhatsApp messages. Because a booking gets cancelled, you can’t leave a review, which explains his good rating on Booking.com. Outrageous. Please don’t book!