2/10 Terrible
Ana
Feb 28, 2026
Disliked: Cleanliness, amenities, property conditions & facilities
This is not a review of Aruba's Life Residences, as we were never actually placed there. This is a review of Casiola, the property management company, in hopes that it helps other travelers avoid a similar experience.
We reserved a specific apartment through Expedia only to be informed upon arrival that we were being placed in a completely different unit. The company told us that the reservation “came through that way from Expedia” and instructed us to call Expedia. When we contacted Expedia we were told that the original property was overbooked. Casiola claimed the alternative property was of equal value — it was not. The replacement unit was significantly smaller, older, and in poor condition. There was visible mold in the bathroom, ants in the kitchen, with no soundproofing — we could hear everything happening outside the unit. Even worse, there was no separation between units when it came to smells. We could clearly smell everything the neighboring unit was cooking. It was uncomfortable and unacceptable, especially considering what we had originally reserved and paid for.
Instead of enjoying our first evening in Aruba, we spent four hours on the phone with Expedia to resolve the issue, followed by another two hours the next morning. Thankfully, Expedia ultimately helped relocate us to a different property that actually had the amenities and standards we originally booked. Losing six hours of our vacation time to fix a mistake that was not ours was extremely frustrating.
Ana
Stayed 7 nights in Feb 2026