Amister Apartments

We stayed here from December 19 to December 26, 2021. Had we not pre-paid for the apartment in full, we would have certainly moved out. We found a number of issues: (1) Communication: the apartments are poorly managed. We never got the access code to enter the apartment building and didn't even know which room we were staying in after we had booked online. There is no receptionist on duty on weekends. We had to proactively call the number on the website, which no one answered. Then we called an emergency number, and finally found someone who gave us the correct information. This was very inconvenient. If this was a properly managed apartment (or AirBnB) someone should have immediately sent us the access code information after we paid online, in full. (2) The Building: the apartments are located inside a very old building, which is mainly residential. The building feels tired, and not well maintained. The apartments themselves are on the "second floor" - which by North American standards feels more like the 4th floor. When we arrived the elevator was not working. And we had to drag our luggage all the way up, with no help (again, no receptionists working on the weekend). (3) The Apartments: There were a number of issues with the actual apartment. There was a weird sewage smell that came from the washroom, and we had to close the washroom door all throughout the week. The Wifi was absolutely terrible. It made Zoom calls and even browsing the Internet difficult. The hot water turns cold after about 5 to 10 minutes of use, and it was often difficult for two people to take showers consecutively. (4) Cleaning: be aware that there are hidden fees. The management will charge you extra to clean the room or to change towels. (5) Photos online: the photos online make the apartments seem brighter and fancier than they actually are. When you actually get there, you realize that you are living in a old building that is not very well maintained. Overall, very poor experience with these apartments. I would give it 1 out of 5.

Great location, convenient, clean, BUT!!! The apartment is at a great location very convenient to many shops, restaurants, bars, and many attractions. The receptionist was very friendly and provided us with a lot of great information. The room was clean and had everything we needed. Our stay was perfect, except for the last day. Around 9:30am I heard a sound in the apartment door and didn't pay much attention, since I thought that the cleaning lady was just passing by the apartment. When we tried to leave the apartment the door will not open. It looks that the cleaning lady locked us in the apartment. The door has a very good security system/lock that has several metal bars securing the door. We called the main desk over 20 times!!! Called the apartment manager over 10 times without any success. The worse was that we needed to leave by noon to catch a cruise. We called a taxi that luckily for us helped us call the police and the fire department! Yes, you read right, the police and fire department. There was no way to exit the apartment safely, as we were in the 3rd floor! We even tried yelling for help and knocking very hard in the door to see if anyone could help us. However, nobody answered! Even though we later found out that the cleaning lady was in the room next to us!!!! It was not until the police and the fire department arrived that she went out of that room. They had to open the door themselves!!!! My 10 year old daughter was in tears, as we were stuck inside the apartment for over 2 hours!!! This is clearly a fire hazard!! the fire department and police told me that they were following up with the hotel management. In short, (again) the location is great, the room was clean and cozy; but because this horrible experience during the last day, I really cannot recommend this place to anyone.