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| - We rented a condo through Expedia (under the name O Hotel Suites) for 10 nights during the holidays. We were at the Pulse at Evolution condos in East Village. Based on our experience and from other reviews, I would recommend using O Stays for long term rentals only if you have friends or family in Calgary that would be able to help out in the case of an emergency or issue with your booking. We are familiar with the city and were visiting family so any annoyances we faced were easier to deal with!
Pros:
- The unit we rented was clean (other than towels and linens, mentioned below) and had everything we needed for our stay (i.e. kitchen is well stocked, vacuum cleaner, dish soap/ dishwasher pods, etc.).
- Furniture and décor was modern and tastefully selected.
- Small bottles of l'Occitane shampoo and conditioner, as well as hotel-size bar soaps are provided for each bathroom.
- The price is very reasonable for the location and building (new condo in East Village, downtown Calgary).
Cons/ Things to Know Before Booking:
- We were not given the unit nor the building we had booked online. The suite we had booked on Expedia was advertised as being approximately 1300 sq. ft. When we received our confirmation email, it became evident that we were assigned a much smaller unit (under 900 sq. ft.) in a different tower. When we called O Stays directly to inquire, we were given a very rude response basically saying that there was nothing that they could or would do on their end to resolve the issue and that we would have to deal with Expedia directly. There was no effort made to explain why this had happened or if the original suite would be available for us. At both check in and check out, we tried again to ask why we were not given the suite we had booked online and were given the same response. The customer service representative at check-out did offer to provide a discount on our next booking but otherwise did not apologize for the inconvenience or attempt to look into the matter. At both check in and check out, the general attitude from the representatives seemed to be that we should feel lucky enough to even be able to rent such a luxury condo at this price. We are still trying to figure out with Expedia as to why this happened.
- As other reviews have mentioned, the O Stays office is separate from the rental suites with specific open hours, meaning check in/ out must be done at another location (approximately 10 minute drive for our rental suite in East Village). We had a car in Calgary but I imagine this could be very bothersome for guests relying on other modes of transportation or tight on time, as the office is also only open during specific hours. It also deterred us from reporting any of the issues we had (described below) because we knew it would take a while for resolution. There is a concierge in the condo building so it would be ideal if O Stays could coordinate pick-up/drop-off with the concierge instead. (However, the concierge was not present 24 hours in our condo.)
- Only one key is provided for the rental suite, even though we were renting a 2-bedroom suite for 4 guests. Again, no explanation was made to us for why another key is not available for guests. This made our day-to-day itineraries very cumbersome as there were four of us constantly having to schedule our comings and goings.
- The towels are very old (not soft) and had a terrible burnt smell. One hand towel was extremely stained with make-up. The sheets and pillowcases were very thin and did not seem clean. For example, we found hairs all over the pillowcases. Luckily, we were able to borrow towels and linens from family. (The toilet paper they provide is also the cheap kind!)
- The carpet in the living room sheds unbelievably. We had to vacuum twice during our 10-night stay just to control the fluff that came from it.
- At check-in, we were told that parking (i.e. assigned spot within the underground parkade) would be $25/night. We declined the offer as it seemed overpriced and we wanted to scope out the options in the area first. We called the office back on the second day and were able to negotiate a rate of $15/night. Note that the parking space is on P3 and the parkade requires you to open "gates" using the key fob to get to the lower levels. However, given that we didn't have to go back to the O Stays office to activate the key fob, I am sure the fob would work for you to access the first level and noticed spots for "Residential Visitors" - it may be possible to get free parking! I would check with the building concierge.
- The rental agreement includes a requirement for the guest to dispose of all garbage from the unit, as well as clean and put away any dishes used.
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