Luxurious Apartment in the Historic Center of Catania

Property was clean and convenient to areas of interest in Catania. Owner worked with us in our check-in.

Spacious, great location. We would have rated Cleanliness 5 stars if it were not for the cigarette smoke smell that we noticed upon entering; although not overwhelming, it was definitely noticeable which is disappointing when you are renting a non-smoking property. We enjoyed exploring Catania from this apartment. We walked to many of the sights. There were many excellent bars and restaurants within walking distance. On one of the days we did a guided day trip to Mt. Etna, Castelmola and Taormina. Carlo our host was an excellent communicator. The directions to enter the building and apartment were labeled photographs that he sent me! When the hot water heater stopped working, he immediately texted directions on how to reset it. Unfortunately, our combined efforts were not able to fix the heater; Carlo (or someone he hired) fixed it the next day.

I would NOT describe the apartment as luxurious. Very sparsely furnished. Both rattan chairs in the downstairs lounge area were in disrepair and not useable. No bedside tables in upstairs bedroom. We were a group of 4 adult friends (not couples). The apartment has three bedrooms, one with two small single beds which was adequate for our group. Unfortunately, the master bedroom had a horrific mould issue with a water leak (possibly from the aircon) that had clearly been an issue for some time as the wardrobe inside was warped and large areas of mould. The contents (sheets,doona etc) were damaged and mouldy. As a result, one of our group was forced to sleep on the sofa. The smell of mould permeated the entire apartment. We reported this immediately to Carlo (property manager and brother of owner) but he denied the issue had been going on for some time and was not responsive to our concerns, even when I submitted photos to show how extensive the mould was.

Carlo the manager was as helpful as he knew how to be. Difficulty communicating, we’re never met by Carlo or anyone to explain the property to us such as the use of the washing machine or how the security gate works. We struggled greatly with how to use the appliances on the property. However, the greatest problem and threat was the lack of smoke alarms and disfunctional security gate that would trap us in the apartment if there was a fire. We called Carlo and ask him to come over so we could address our problems. Although we had trouble communicating, we did so through Google translate. He was kind, understanding and tried to help but he was unable to solve our concerns. We decided to leave. Carlo was very understanding and apologetic. He refunded our money and now we request a refund from VRBO. Safety issues should have been addressed by VRBO when approving this property for VRBO rentals. Please consider my request for a full refund. I await your prompt response. Thank you.

Enjoyed our stay in this lovely clean building. Carlo was very communicative throughout the whole process. Would book again

Just a short 5 min walk and your at the city tourist area. 20 min bus ride from the airport. Apartment was well presented and ideal for an adult family of 4 with all comforts met. Would recommend to anyone looking for a city central location.