Our apartment in Belgrade was an amazing $43/night, net of all fees. Wow. I confess to being not only tempted by the price, but really curious to see just what we would get at that rate. The reviews were good; David, who’s become more and more willing to give the fruits of my bargain-hunting a try was game. I felt pretty optimistic about this booking…which isn’t to say I didn’t have a few niggling doubts on the taxi ride from the airport. But, our hostess, Vesna, had provided lots of comforting information, been super-responsive to my emails, correct about free wi-fi at the airport, and quick to respond to my WhatsApp text when we landed in Belgrade. So far, so good.
As promised, Vesna’s husband, Zoran, was waiting for us. The 1-bedroom apartment was on the 6th floor of a modern-style building some decades old. We had a security door to the lobby and an elevator. Although the area outside was not immaculately groomed (and tended to have a group of teenaged boys who hung out on the “stoop,” it was nice, in an Eastern bloc sort of way, and we never felt insecure in the neighborhood.
The apartment itself was spacious and homey (being our hosts’ former home) with a stylish living room. If anything, our hosts had left a tad too much in the way of supplies, particularly baby things, of which we had no need. I was not surprised, though, as the AirBnB description had been accurate. On the plus side, we had a lovely big living room with a large flat screen t.v., 2 balconies, and air conditioning (although the latter turned out to be only in the living room, less than ideal for nighttime coolness in the bedroom which was around the corner). I’m not sure how much of an issue this normally would be, but we arrived during an unseasonably warm spell. Still, even without a/c, it wouldn’t have been too bad with all the balcony doors open, including the one in our bedroom.
In the previous post, you’ll find a photo of the big balcony we used frequently for meals and just to relax. It’s a huge plus. The apartment was quiet, too, save for the near-constant sound during the day of children laughing and playing in the nearby schools. (We had the doors open, remember.) It wasn’t a sound we minded at all.
Vesna and Zoran live nearby and they were quick with any problems we had (like when I stupidly unprogrammed the t.v.). They also kindly agreed to print for us at their office bus tickets we’d need in Montenegro and even delivered the tickets to the apartment so we wouldn’t have to interrupt our activities. Very nice people!
You can check out the apartment at: https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/5499461
If you’re new to AirBnB and want to give it a try on this or any other apartment, you can use my referral link which should get both of us $30 in AirBnB travel credit: http://www.airbnb.com/c/tcuthrell Let me know if you have any questions.