CASA NATURA VALLADOLID DEPARTAMENTOS - 97784 Valladolid

I’m sorry to report that I had a terrible experience at Casa Natura and therefore I cannot recommend this apartment to anyone - I suggest you look elsewhere. In summary, the host acted very irresponsibly and as a result, I returned to the apartment after being out for a morning on the 4th day of my stay to find the security door wide open and the door to the apartment wide open with a stranger inside, with all my and my husband’s possessions (passport, money, photography gear, electronic devices etc) out, while the host was at work. This put all of our valuables at risk of theft/damage and resulted in a huge trust and security breach by the host. That is the summary, if you want the full digest here it is - my husband and I stayed in the apartment for 5 nights. The apartment is part of a complex of a few apartments but it is the first one in from the street. The host did not greet us on arrival (as promised in the listing) but we did bump into her in the common hallway on our first night. On our 4th morning my husband and left the apartment early. At 11:30am as we were leaving a cenote I checked my phone and had a message from Nefi (the host) from 20 minutes before, asking if it was ok if an air-conditioning mechanic visited the apartment to perform a 6 month service on the air conditioner that day. I immediately replied that no, that was not ok because we had not had any prior warning of the appointment and therefore had not had a chance to put our valuables away securely (but that we could leave early the following day to allow the visit). Despite that message, much to our surprise when we arrived back to the apartment just 2 hours after Nefi sent her message, we found the front security gate wide open and the door to the apartment wide open, with the air conditioner mechanic inside the room, amongst all our valuables. Not only was a stranger in our room, the host, nor her husband, were there to supervise the contractor and anyone from the street could have walked in and helped themselves to our valuables (keeping in mind this apartment is the first one in from the street). In addition, as we had had no prior warning, we hadn’t been able to pack things away that could have easily been damaged, like expensive photography gear. And I’m not being sensitive because this happened in Mexico, I wouldn’t let a stranger/contractor into my house unsupervised in Australia. I immediately tried to call Nefi but she did not answer. I sent her a message and she quickly responded asking me to vacate the room(!). She then claimed that she had not received my other message (where I expressly stated it was not ok for the air conditioning mechanic to attend) because she has poor reception at work. Nefi apologised for the “communication error” but most concerningly, she did not appear to appreciate the full extent of her behaviour - that she had put the security of all our valuables at risk. Nefi also didn’t seem to appreciate that she should have (1) told us about the appointment earlier if it was absolutely necessary for it to occur during our stay and (2) wait for our response to her message before allowing a stranger into the apartment. Nefi also made no effort to apologise in person or make sure we were ok, despite attending the property to welcome other guests when we were home that evening. Therefore not only was the actual security breach bad enough, but the host did not handle it well. A few more words on the apartment - I cannot deny that it is in a great location (Valladolid is a small town) but if you still decide to stay here despite this review, also be warned that the internet is very unreliable and often didn’t work (luckily we have Mexican SIM cards), I had to wash all the dishes before using them because they were sticky/greasy, there are no black out blinds and a lot of light comes in from the outside street light and light well, and there are two different apartments in the pictures attached to the listings on AirBNB and Booking.

We were at Casa Natura Departamentos in Valladolid for a week and our stay was very pleasant. The apartment was clean and pretty, the kitchen had all the essentials (including purified water) and the toilet actually worked, which is a plus in Mexico. Jenny was always happy to help us and give us information. The neighbourhood was quiet and the location was very good (about 7 minutes far from the centre by feet). The only negative aspects were an intense odor in the bathroom (like a pungent chemical sanitizer) and some tiny ants from time to time. Considering also the price, we would absolutely recommend you this place.