I had an overall nice stay at Guest House Ruza. Ruza herself was welcoming and hospitable, offering me local juice when I arrived and giving me coffee and biscuits the morning I left! The room and bathroom were very clean and spacious and it was clear that Ruza went the extra mile to make it as comfortable a stay as she could. She was also very informative about the city and gave me some good tips about local places to go to, bus routes etc. It was a good location- quite tucked away in the Lapad area of Dubrovnik - allowing you to be more immersed in local life instead of being near the big touristy hotels- which is always my preference. Also very close to Lapad Beach which I loved.

Ruza lives with her very elderly mother there too and surrounded by other members of her family in the neighbouring apartments. It felt like we were all living together (which also felt quite nice and homely!) and there was quite a lot of loud talking and activity at night. The main issue however was privacy. The windows of my double room opened out to the terrace. Ruza was fixated on keeping the room aired and was quite demanding that this happened - to the point that she came and opened the windows and curtains herself when I was in the room one night. Luckily I was dressed! She would also suddenly start talking to me through the windows from the terrace. It seemed pretty exposing and lacking in privacy at times with no real boundaries between guest and host.

The landlady, Ruza, is very friendly and welcoming. Her vintage house is very well located, in a quiet area with easy parking.

The company that manages the reservations, Team Belville, sends messages constantly. They become cumbersome and uncomfortable.

A lot of basic needs were met. The location was close to bus stops. There was access to a convenience store nearby.

There was no kitchen access even though it was advertised. Would have preferred to have a washing machine too. Which brings me to the main problem: it was hot and sweaty, but there was not even a fan. We had to sleep uncomfortably with windows open, but it was peak mosquito season and the host did not have adequate mosquito repellant. Having windows open was also tricky for privacy, as the window opened directly onto a terrace people spend time on.