Dear readers, as you may have already seen, I am back from the Amalfi Coast and our weeklong trip abroad. Italy is a beautiful country with breathtaking views and rich culture that must be experienced up close. Overall, I feel blessed to have been able to spend quality time with loved ones exploring these iconic locations.
But our trip didn’t begin as smoothly as we’d hoped. Not even close. And while I’ve never had to do this before, I feel that it is immensely important to share our experience so that others won’t have to endure this deeply disappointing struggle with what should have been a relaxing welcome to our stay. We all work very hard in order to be able to afford getaways with our loved ones. No one should ever take advantage of that.
In this post, I will share with you the photos and details of the beginning of our trip to Italy which quickly turned into a flat-out nightmare. We felt ripped off and in danger in a foreign place while traveling with small children. I hope you never have to experience what we did. Beware of the place known by several names, but booked to us as “Villa Camelia.”
ITALIAN TRAVEL NIGHTMARE:
Here is something I have never had to do before, but it’s a must-do. The influence of ‘word of mouth’ is so powerful, people must understand not to take advantage of anyone. This house that we rented in Italy for a week is NOT at all what was sold to us, and certainly not as pictures described. We are truly scarred by this experience.
After enjoying the beautiful outdoors overlooking Capri and not going into the house until we were ready to unpack and go to bed, this is what we encountered:
Filthy mattresses, disgusting soiled linens, a staff that was making excuses for its unsanitary conditions, and on top of that, electrical issues that were fire hazards – burned aluminum foil wrapped around the bulb’s sockets (see for yourself in these photos).
We had to leave and had no other place to go after arriving in Capri and EVERYTHING WAS SOLD OUT. And most frustrating of all, all we got were excuses. No one wanted to help us find an alternative or even refund my money!
They actually fought us rather than try to HELP us find a place to stay. I have to share this disastrous experience and let people know: Do not book through these people (aliases and social profiles are listed below). Do not book this house!
BEWARE: “Villa Camelia” also goes by other aliases. Here is a list of the names we know of that are synonymous with this location.
- Villa Camelia
- Villa le Camelia
- Villa Camille
- Villa Camile
- Villa Bismark
- Villa Bismarck
These villas are listed under multiple rental companies as ‘vacation homes.’ These companies are known on Instagram by these names (Italian Style Villas is owned and founded by Gianluca Ziveri):
@italianstylevillas
@luxuryretreats
@myprivatevillas
I hope you never have to experience what we did. To say that this was a frustrating start to our International trip is an understatement. Steer clear and avoid “Villa Camelia” in Capri, Italy at all costs!
