Kissimmee, Laguna Bay Getaway ~ 7 Miles to Disney!

Reviews

• Very nice condo

  5/5

  A+

  *This review was originally posted on Vrbo

• VRBO service, Evolve and Owner all contributed to bad experience

  1/5

  Bottom line, in the first 18 hours to my trip to Kissimmee for my long-awaited vacation:1. The VRBO app didn’t work with respect to messaging the “owner” or the “agent”. Who was the owner of customer communication for my rental? VRBO? Evolve? The property owner? It sure seemed like everyone, and really no one, was responsible. 2. The VRBO customer service number dropped my calls while I waited on hold for more than 15 minutes. 3. The VRBO reservation process never sent the check-in email to me. 4. It took Evolve an hour to get hold of the owner who said he wasn’t contacted for 55 minutes after I was directly told he would be contacted promptly on my behalf to try to resolve the situation. 5. Six calls and several hours were expended trying to get my check-in resolved. It seems that no one felt it necessary to accept responsibility for the customer experience, and as a matter of fact, in the end I was left to feel blame was directed at me for the check-in situation.6. One bothersome question several of my friends asked when I relayed this experience to them is, “Why would the owner not check in with a customer if they have not reached out to receive check-in instructions and the check-in time had passed?”7. There was 1/3 of one role of toilet paper in the unit. There was no shower soap in the unit. There was no shampoo in the unit. There was no laundry soap in the unit. 8. The advertised master bathroom shower did not work. 9. The internet was not working the first twelve hours of my trip causing me to nearly miss a client commitment. 10. The only timely response from anyone came when my friend and I wanted to have a non-recorded conversation on the front porch, which was in the form of a threat.In summary, I paid $315 in fees. And for that I spent three hours and six phone calls across three parties with increasing levels of frustration trying to resolve VRBO phone and system issues and Evolve communication issues for my check-in. I then had to run out to buy toilet paper, and then make a second trip for shampoo and soap. And then I could not work or watch TV or work (remote) on my first day because the internet was shut down. And then I was reprimanded for wishing to have a private conversation. And then the advertised master bath shower did not work. No one should have to take two hours and 1900 words to explain what happened to them during a vacation stay at a VRBO and Evolve location. No one - Ever.

  *This review was originally posted on Vrbo

  Manager's Response:

  Hi Doug, We strive to make vacation rental easy for everyone, and we'd like to clarify what happened during your stay:
  - Guests receive all check-in/out information before their stay through both email and their Vrbo account
  - We confirmed that the email was sent correctly, and we resent it and made sure that you saw it when you called our team
  - We also found that you had entered the number for your local contact incorrectly, which is why they weren't receiving your texts/calls
  - As is standard for vacation rentals, a starter supply of paper products is provided
  - You didn't notify us of any plumbing issues during your stay, and we have not received reports of an issue with the shower from any other guests
  - The owner does not monitor guests' conversations with the Ring camera. When you disabled it, the security company alerted the owner, and we simply asked you to uncover the camera in line with policies you agreed to when you booked
  - The service provider blocked the internet because you contacted them but did not have authorization for the account, which triggered their security measures. If you had reached out to the owner, they would have been happy to immediately assist you and reach out to their service provider
  We'll always do whatever we can to provide a great experience for our guests, and we're confident that future travelers can look forward to 5-star stays at this Kissimmee villa!

• Kissimmee Trip

  2/5

  Place was clean but very outdated. Stained, old carpeting. Old furniture. When using showers, had to pull so hard on faucets, was afraid they were going to pull off the wall. 2 televisions, both hooked up to their own in window antennas. One in living room, did not get local channels. The one in a bedroom, did but was constantly buffering. Called owner, stated that the get streaming services. TV in living room did get some. TV in the bedroom did not. Needless to say there were no instructions telling us that, hence the phone call. Would NOT rent again.

  Manager's Response:

  Clifford, we're sorry to hear that your stay fell short of your expectations. Evolve takes the accuracy of our listings seriously - it's one of our 4 Core Property Standards! We only use professional photographers so we can be sure that our images accurately reflect each property. We do this so that guests can decide if the property suits their taste and needs before booking. We also encourage guests to reach out to their guest contact while they are in residence with any issues so that they can address any concerns quickly for a most comfortable stay. The faucets work well, but we're sorry if you had issues operating them. The homeowners will add more detailed instructions on how to use the TVs for streaming so that future guests do not share your experience. The homeowner does all they can to make it the best possible stay, and we look forward to this property hosting many satisfied guests! Best, the Evolve Team