Adrigole Bay Studio Apartment

We could not have asked for better guests. They are welcome back anytime and we would highly recommend.

The review left by this customer is highly misleading and no remarks were made to us before they left, aside from the dog being too hot and uncomfortable (it was the middle of a national, serious heatwave). We, the hosts, live next door in a completely separate building to the apartment, above which is an artist’s studio, uninhabited and entirely separate from our house. During the period in question, the studio was not used at all so we find it a strange thing to even mention. The accommodation is advertised as a Studio Apartment, which is: “a self contained living space where the bedroom, living room and kitchen are combined into a single open room, with the bathroom typically being the only separate space”. The customer resides in Northern Ireland yet seems not to realise that most of Ireland’s coastline is rural. Both the information on the apartment and Google Maps give the exact location, confirming that the accommodation is on a main coastal road: The Wild Atlantic Way. Living in Ireland with a famously mild damp climate, we do not have air conditioning and neither do any of our business acquaintances, who run B&B or AirBnB rental properties. Climate change may cause future reconsideration. Previous guests and current guests have had no problem with midges during the night and have slept with windows open. We sleep with our windows open with no problems. The traffic noise can be notable during business hours but generally by 7-8pm, has dwindled to almost nothing. Certainly transport from the fishing port of Castletownbere, ceases at night and weekends. The comments about the seashore were the most difficult to understand. Our photographs clearly show the shoreline of pebbles and rocks and the clients knew this was the case. The access lane to the shore is our private property and is only open to us and our guests, as is the seating area by the sea where we have kayaks, barbecue, cushioned seating and shade. Any smell when the tide is out is from the seaweed and no one else has ever found it offensive in any way. The television is not behind the bed, but mounted on an adjacent wall with a swivel mount so the screen can be moved to any required direction. There are two antique Louis 15th armchairs currently in the apartment that can be moved around as preferred. Our listing allows for up to two small pets and the guest asked if their German Shepherd would be allowed, which we agreed to. Our own Belgian Shepherd loves to roam around the rocks on the shore so that did not present a problem for us. We have never claimed the apartment has a back garden or that a door could be left open for the dog. The rental of a house with an enclosed garden would have been more appropriate for this guest but would have obviously been far more expensive. VRBO T&Cs state we cannot issue a refund after guest arrival. The amount paid by the guest is not the amount we receive, which is paid to us after guest departure. The contact is with VRBO and not ourselves they would be the ones to issue a refund if they felt our apartment information had been misleading. We can only assume that this guest did not read the apartment listing properly. Our standards regarding fixture and fittings, bedding and facilities are all much above the average for an Irish rental apartment. We are sorry this client had a bad experience but believe it was more due to the climate and there own failings than ours.