I hardly ever leave negative reviews of hosts and have received only positive reviews myself as a guest on [the other main site for home rentals], but this first time using vrbo was definitely a negative experience that affected my entire week in Daytona. I wouldn't have even voiced most of the disappointments with the property (very overpriced considering the location on a noisy highway near train tracks, cleanliness concerns regarding the floor, not stocked with some basic things, etc.) But my main concern during my stay was a pretty egregious one and a lack of a basic necessity: a normal shower. I didn't have a semi-normal shower with warm running water until day 3 of a 7 day stay. Apparently the lines got clogged with sand (though in 11 years of living in Florida, I have never heard of that happening) and the water would just shut off mid-shower. Then there would be sediment, rust, or dirt in it. I do understand that things happen, and I appreciate that the host was responsive at first, but was not respectful before banging on the door that it was a good time (pet secured, not on a work call, etc) to deal with a maintenance person in and out to work on plumbing. The issue was temporarily fixed, but happened again the next day.
Then, the 2nd shower I had to switch to when the first one would stop running, would very quickly run out of hot water before I could even wash my hair.
And even when I could finally return to the 1st shower, it would then irritate my sinuses and lungs (not sure if it was a chemical used to fix the clog issue or if there was a mold issue, but it definitely made me sneeze and cough).
When I reached out again to the host about a resolution such as a partial refund considering I couldn't take a peaceful shower the whole week, she didn't have the professionalism or care to respond at all.
Again, I understand that things happen and even appreciate the friendliness of the maintenance/host team as it was being worked on. But there was a lack of true empathy, professionalism, and desire to make the issue right. Some hosts truly care about people, while others take advantage of people financially and leave them hanging when something goes wrong. After this host's outrageous fees for an already overpriced unit, I would hope to at least have a decent shower and/or a reasonable resolution. The host's failure to respond communicates a lack of concern for their guests' satisfaction.