GreatStay Apartment - Melchiorstr.

Wonderful
Traveller Type:
  : Great location, and a super spacious and comfortable apartment perfect for our group of five! The hosts were very communicative and kind.

Good
Traveller Type:
  : Great location, spacious apartment in a calm area.
  : When we arrived, there was a little slot to get the keys and it was quite stressful. The apartment didn't correspond to the pictures we had seen on Booking, there was another room on the images. I told the company in charge of the apartment, they promised to get back to us and didn't. The dishwasher didn't work and again, no solution was found for us. Very disappointing.

Good
Traveller Type: Family with Young Children
  : Location was quite good, a few stops on the U-bahn from the centre of Berlin. Closest station is Heinrich-Heinen-Strae on U8. Quiet neighbourhood, not touristy at all, which was refreshing. Large flat, possibly a bit too large, with very high ceiling, on the ground floor of a block of very nice flats. The block has a very distinctive brickwork of red and yellow bricks as it is depicted in the photos. I suspect it is a conversion from manufacturing use. All the flats that I could see had the style of "New York loft conversion", with big and high open plan spaces. The building is surrounded my big, more modern and more utilitarian high rise apartment blocks which offer soundproofing from the street traffic (which is not too heavy anyway) and make the flat very quiet. The complex of apartment blocks lies next to St. Michael's church (Michaelkirchplatz), which has lots of greenery around it and brings a sense of calm and peacefulness. The flat is well equipped with kitchenette area, which has a sink, fridge, dishwasher, 2-ring cooker, small oven, microwave oven, coffee maker, kettle, crockery and cutlery. Only used the fridge, crockery and cutlery. There is a washing machine in the bathroom on the right. I imagine very convenient, but did not use it. The area looks a bit gritty but feels quite safe. Within 5-10 minutes' walk, there is Aldi and Endeka supermarkets, a Bio-Markt (organic supermarket) with a bakery inside, a pharmacy (apotheke) and an ATM (geld automat). Also nearby, in front of Michaelskirchplatz, is Caf am Engelbecken, a nice place for breakfast by the water pond, which opens at 10am. In case one needs to eat in the vicinity, I recommend La Piadina, an Italian pizzeria with a simple menu of freshly made pizzas and piadine, which you can reach in under 10 minutes on foot.
  : Lack of communication was the big letdown. As soon as I booked, I received a message with the mobile of the manager and that of the person who would meet us with the key. I tried to contact them both on 28 May, two days before our stay to see if it was possible to drop our luggage off at noon as we arrived in Berlin in the morning. It wasn't possible, which is fair enough, but the official answer came back via Booking.com message on 2 June, five days later and one day before we were due to leave. I tried calling the mobile numbers given as property contacts and messaging on WhatsApp, no answer.We just turned up at 3pm on the first day, which was the earliest check in time possible. We were met by a young man who said he was Ukrainian. He spoke very little German, no English, but fluent Ukrainian and Russian. Communication was difficult and mostly via Google translate. He could just give us the key and I got his number to contact him about the key return at the end of the stay. I did send him a WhatsApp message in three languages, but he never turned up again. On the day we left, a bit before 11am, the lady who cleans the flat came, so we left the key with her. It all worked out eventually, but if you travel with a family with young children, this lack of communication is very disconcerting.The two bathrooms are fine, but all except one shower heads desperately need a good clean with Viakal to get rid of the limescale because they spray the water everywhere. We ended up using the newer shower with the grey tiled floor which had the one functioning shower head.The main room with the sofa, table and one double bed does have a residual stench of smoking, so frequent airing through the very large windows is recommended. The floor is a bit worn in parts and needs a bit of love and care. It also feels gritty to the naked foot. The decor is 'industrial chic' with lots of grey everywhere.