Calling myself a city breaker is not true. Travelling to Budapest,Hungary and Cardiff, Wales gave me a sense of what guests expect from a staycation property on Airbnb or Booking.com I wasn’t visiting these destinations for a city break in the tourist sense but more with a specific purpose in mind. Entertainment was my focus, in Cardiff it was to see the band Bastille at Utilita Arena. Dan Smith of Bastille has a wonderful voice (still!). Budapest is home to Sziget music festival (pronounced zig-get), based on Óbudai-sziget (Old Buda Island) on the Danube. A great alternative to Glastonbury music festival in the UK, and for less money you get a few days in the capital city of Hungary. There wasn’t much time for tourism although my travel partner and I found time to zip round the streets of Budapest on electric scooters, giving us access to some tourist spots, restaurants and cocktail bars (with amazing views).
Having not used Airbnb or Booking.com before I had no expectations about using them. Afterwards I realised what Cherry View House is not, and what my guests may expect. Cherry View House in Bristol, UK is a self catering staycation and short term accommodation I manage. As a host and unfamiliar with online travel agencies, the same agencies with which we are in partnership, my travels to Budapest and Cardiff gave me a new perspective…Probably making me overly critical, although I didn’t share my thoughts publicly by way of negative reviews.
Cherry View House receives staycationers, city breakers, holiday makers, people getting together with family, and people on hospital visits. What do we all want? Quality, comfort and convenience, with as little hassle as possible, so we can enjoy or focus on what matters. Whatever your reasons for travelling, my story may be of some use to you.
Cherry View House is not a hotel, but we do have a laundry service: although you have to do your own. We don’t have small rooms or noisy neighbours. You know, neighbours above, or beside, who take a shower or flush the toilet at 5.30AM. We do have open-plan, bright airy spaces to relax and socialise. If you like to take your coffee on the patio basking in gentle morning sun, that’s okay. Not sure a hotel will give me that. A room with a view is guaranteed. My accommodation in Budapest and Cardiff cost more than Cherry View House both on an absolute basis and cost per person. So what was it like?
After finding a great looking apartment on Airbnb I realised later it was too far away from Sziget music festival. Not having a car would make life difficult, especially considering the afterhours nature of our commute. Alas Airbnb had no other property close enough. We made the switch to booking.com who did have properties closer, despite the reservations of my travelling buddy who once had a bad experience with payment for a hotel and subsequent refund (some time ago and it seems like his account was hacked). An iota of negative experience in a sea of happy travellers, I thought, so I ploughed on.
What I liked about Booking.com was they had a property that was closer and I could reserve it without paying upfront: useful because I was waiting for funds from my companion. My experience with Booking.com was five star good. Nothing ruffled my feathers, as far as their digital platform goes. To me it felt integrated and connected end to end. No searching around for a taxi to transfer us to the apartment. No waiting for public transport. A taxi was provided for me…I accepted the offer because it was a reasonable price and it was button click easy. Enter the airline booking reference and all the flight details appear in your travel itinerary. Couldn’t be easier. So far so good. As a host I will need to have high standards to compliment what I had experienced so far.
Our experience with the accommodation was more nuanced. Someone was coming to meet us at the property for check-in. Prompts were provided by Booking.com’s system to report when we would arrive, which I dutifully did. Heavy traffic into the city from the airport ruined the estimated time of arrival. Due to a breakdown in communication with what turned out to be a managing travel agent, the poor lady who was meeting us had been waiting for over an hour. She wasn’t pleased but still happy to welcome us to the apartment. When she was younger she used to go to Sziget, and her daughter was going at the weekend. We felt connected in some small way. I felt terrible and apologetic, but, I later realised it was totally preventable, had they only given me her direct contact details earlier in our communication.
After crossing the threshold to the flat we were given a quick tour. Unexpectedly there was a contract to sign and ID had to be provided. After some digging this is normal for Hungary where physically signed documents are standard for short term accommodation. Fair enough. We didn’t expect extra fees for air conditioning and a small local tax. All at such a late stage: I felt deceived. Needing to work with both an online travel agent and local agent was also a surprise.
Our apartment was practical and functional in the post war socialist style of the region. With 3 bedrooms we couldn’t imagine how a group or family could spend more than a day or two here, due to the small communal areas and kitchen. Polished parquet wooden floors, and very orange varnished wooden furniture stick in my mind, as do the outdated pictures on the walls. We were left wanting for a cork screw which set the tone for what the kitchen had to offer. Not wanting to go out again the last resort was to force a wooden spoon into the bottle barely avoiding the dreaded fountain of red wine that’ll splash your face as well as the ceiling. Luckily eating at two restaurants in the city centre was an absolute dream.
We had a television to help kill some quiet time back at our lodgings…it’s a shame the smart TV hadn’t been connected to the internet. My travelling companion enjoyed watching reruns of ‘Allo ‘Allo (The British Sitcom that aired between 1982 and 1992) in Hungarian. Which introduced a whole new dimension of enjoyment, apparently. I didn’t want to bother the agent after our late arrival and didn’t expect the connection issue to be resolved in time. An over the bath tub shower was fine for us but some would surely find it too much of a trip hazard. Towels were provided, which weren’t very big, but at least they were provided. More than can be said for the Airbnb trip I took to Cardiff with my wife.
Forgoing the cooked breakfast which I always enjoy at city centre hotels I decided upon a small apartment in Cardiff city centre booked with Airbnb. Slightly cheaper than a hotel it had a comfortable bed, and some interesting books in the living room. The money saved went towards breakfast at a local restaurant. The host obviously lived at the property, which I didn’t know was a normal thing through online travel agencies. Sleeping in someone else’s bed may have felt strange if I’d taken time to think about it, which it didn’t. Towels? No way. Every cloud has a silver lining; there was a tea towel to dry my face and hands after a morning wash! Having to pay for parking wasn’t listed in the description and it felt a bit awkward parking in one of two guest parking spots for the apartment block. Luckily we arrived late afternoon and left the following morning. Hopefully we didn’t irritate any residents. The location was perfect and we checked out the next day to head for Voco Spa St Davids, Cardiff, which has hydrotherapy pools as well as all the other stuff you normally find. It was Magic. The Argentinian rugby team was staying at the hotel…no doubt looking forward to hydrotherapy after beating Wales later that day.
My experience with the online travel agencies, particularly Booking.com was a positive experience. Using their Extranet platform was a breeze and made life easy. A cornerstone of their brand, which has been carved out in the sector, and well earned. Cherry View House is not accommodation that comes with the niggles mentioned above… we live up to the expectations of our guests and support the brand of our online travel agency partners…
But How?
What Cherry View House Is
Natalie (Airbnb | February 2026): “ A lovely house with a big kitchen and dining area which was very nice in the evenings. Plenty of space for the 5 of us to relax in… A quite family cul-de-sac so no traffic noise.”
Daniel (Booking.com | April 2026): “You rent an entire house (3 floors with an extension and garden). The house is very comfortably furnished… so you don’t feel like you’re staying in an anonymous apartment… Our two children could also have some space from each other.”
William (Airbnb | September 2025): “Spotless and welcoming property… Just outside the clean air zone so it’s a perfect location.”
What about the Kitchen?
Lara (Booking.com | December 2026): “Massive kitchen fully stocked.”
Alison (Airbnb | July 2026): “The house was brilliantly laid out with the standout space being the kitchen/diner-leading out to the garden-beautiful, functional and well-equipped and the perfect spot for a family meal.”
Graham (Booking.com | August 2026): “The kitchen is well equipped, there is a washer/dryer, dishwasher and lots of food storage space as well as a fridge/freezer.”
And parking?
Samantha (Airbnb | October 2025): “The free off road parking was much appreciated.”
Alissa (Booking.com | August 2026): “It was also nice having laundry and off-street parking.”
What is check-in like?
Hannah (Airbnb | May 2026): “Firstly, communication before check in was excellent and the information sheets provided were fantastic. We also appreciated our host checking in during our stay.”
Dayna (Airbnb | November 2025): “William was quick to reply to messages and accommodate early check in.”
At Cherry View House due to the time and effort required to get everything ready for our guests we do charge a small fee for early check-in and late check-out. We appreciate your understanding in this matter.
What else?
Yu-ju (Booking.com | May 2026): “a very pleasant walk-in shower, a bathroom upstairs.”
Carol (Booking.com | January 2026): “ Lovely new shower room and utility room downstairs.”
Cherry View House Is Not
a hotel.
Daniel (Booking.com | April 2026): “The price was more than fair. I have absolutely no complaints. Everything about the house was great.”
Saskia (Airbnb | March 2026): “Spacious and fantastic value for money, the garden was beautiful”
Rhiana (Airbnb | May 2026): “Was an amazing stay especially for the price and felt right at home with games and books already available.”
Cherry View House is not in the city centre, but it’s close. Less than 15 minutes by bus (normally). Walkable and scootable, as well as close to the Bristol to Bath cycle path.
Ulrich (Airbnb | July 2026): “ If you want to head into Bristol city centre, it’s easy to get there by bus, but if you know your way around a bit, you can have a wonderful time right here!”
Ulrich walked through St. George Park on the way to Church Road to find restaurants, bars, and shopping. There is also a fish and chip shop as well as a health food store with a deli.
Sheridan (Airbnb | April 2026): “This house is in a great location for visiting Bristol, bus stops are in the next road, it’s a quiet neighbourhood…”
Cherry View House is available at Booking.com and Airbnb. Guests can get bespoke quotes and exclusive sleeping arrangements via our direct booking website with our partner Travelnest. Message us with your requirements. Many larger groups have enjoyed great value accommodation at Cherry View House. All our reviews from our partner online travel agencies can be read at our direct booking website, here.
