When I first arrived at my unit, there was a strong odor. I assumed it might have been a sewer…read moreissue and, unfortunately, I did not report it during my stay. Instead, I stayed mostly in the bedroom, where the smell was less strong, and avoided using the living room and the front bathroom. On checkout, I reported the odor to the receptionist and asked for the manager.
The manager, John Claude, did not come up -- I was told he was too busy on the phone. Instead, the receptionist and a maintenance staff member came to my unit and discovered that the gas had been left on. Even after they turned it off, the smell remained, and they did not open any windows to air out the space. Coming from the U.S., I did not recognize the odor at all, because gas in Mexico smells different than in the U.S. The fact is, I did not recognize it -- and if I had known it was gas, I would never have put myself in such an unsafe situation for two days.
Later, John Claude responded to my concern by email, but the message was not respectful or understanding. He claimed the maid and receptionist had checked the unit before my arrival and said it was fine, which could not have been true since I smelled the gas immediately upon opening the door. Instead of showing compassion or acknowledging how serious this was, he put all the blame on me. When I asked for some kind of compensation, it was not for a refund -- it was simply for a sincere apology and acknowledgment of what happened, without placing blame on anyone. Instead, he became defensive and dismissive. I told him that, because of his attitude and uncaring approach toward customers, I would not be leaving a good review. His response was, "we don't take good to threats." I explained that I was not threatening him -- I was simply stating there was no reason to leave a positive review when treated with such disrespect.
I travel often and my reviews all over the world are consistently excellent. This was one of the most disappointing and unsafe experiences I've had -- not just because of the health risk, but because of the complete lack of compassion and respect from the manager. I also had to contact Airbnb directly to resolve the issue, as there was no reasoning with him.
I strongly recommend management begin doing walk-throughs with guests upon arrival, properly airing out units if an issue occurs, and following up during each stay. More importantly, they should learn to treat guests with compassion and offer a sincere apology when things go wrong -- not simply shift the blame onto the customer.
Finally, I would suggest that anyone staying at this place be very careful -- if something goes wrong, it seems the guest will always be blamed, and there is no compassion from this management. John Claude continuing to state that I was going to stay there another night, I did book a reservation somewhere else due to the smell and lack of customer service. Very sad
