2/10 Terrible
G. G.
17 Jul 2019
Disliked: Cleanliness, check-in, communication, location, listing accuracy
BEWARE!
This was an upsetting experience that made us feel unsafe. We never received any confirmation or check-in info upon booking. Finally, after sending several messages through VRBO, the "Happy Address" people refused to use the VRBO messaging platform and said they would only contact us through WhatsApp. Well, we don't use WhatsApp, and even if we did we would not communicate off of the VRBO platform for obvious safety reasons. There needs to be a record of your communications with the host in case anything goes wrong. We were 3 women traveling to a foreign country, and even with 72, 48, and 24 hours (!) before our plane was scheduled to depart, we had NO INFO on how to check into the apartment, the exact location, etc. Finally, I got an anonymous Gmail message from someone claiming to be "Emmanuel" (no last name given), the concierge. But the name on the Gmail account was that of another person, and "Emmanuel" kept insisting we had to use WhatsApp. It was all extremely sketchy, with red flags all around, and we were not having it. We disputed the charge on our credit card and booked another place for the Playa de Carmen leg of the trip through another website. Sorry to say VRBO was NO HELP at all. We were legitimately scared for our safety, as any person with half a brain would be under these circumstances, and all indications were that the "Happy Address" company was a scam, or maybe worse. For the record, I am a New York City woman who lived in Mexico City for 5 years and have been traveling regularly to Playa del Carmen, where I own property, for almost 30 years. I am fluent in Spanish. There is no way that this was any type of "cultural misunderstanding" and I am in no way skittish. The behavior of "Happy Address" and their "concierge" were extremely suspicious. VRBO should remove this listing as communicating off of the VRBO platform is against the rules. This is clearly stated in the policies and is obviously intended for the safety of guests and hosts alike. Bottom Line: Anyone who doesn't want there to be any records of their communications with you is obviously up to no good. BEWARE!!!
G. G.
Stayed 3 nights in Jun 2019