We booked Apartament Rosso in Łódź via Booking.com. Upon arrival, we were overwhelmed by an intolerable stench of tobacco smoke — despite the listing stating it was a non-smoking apartment. We were traveling with children and could not possibly stay there.There was also a huge ashtray full of fresh cigarette butts on the balcony. Clearly, smoking had been taking place right next to the open balcony door, and all the smoke had filled the apartment.We reported this to Booking.com immediately. I called customer support and explained the situation — they hung up on me mid-call. Then I received a generic message, saying that because the reservation was “non-refundable,” they couldn’t help unless the host agreed.They even admitted in the chat:“We’re sorry the call was unexpectedly disconnected.”They gave me a phone number to reach the host — the number didn’t work. I wrote again.They said, “We’ll contact you in 24 hours.”Meanwhile, I was with two kids at night, with no place to stay.Booking.com offloaded all responsibility to the host, who only replied with excuses but didn’t offer any real help.They allowed this host to break platform rules, collect off-platform payments, and ignore guests.I had to urgently find another place late at night. This is not just poor service — it’s neglect.If you care about safety, trust, or customer service — stay away from Booking.com.
