Bug infested Arniston Cottage- Collette Mark

The host was informed of insects attached to the mattress of which she responded saying this is common in the area due to the thatch roofing and that the bugs are harmless. However the only person travelling with us who did sleep in the bed got bitten by said bugs. A picture of the bite was captured at the premises with a time and location stamp. The remainder of the family slept in the cars as none of us were comfortable sleeping in the beds with the bugs as even though the latter option was advised by the host. The care taker was sent by the host to examine the bug situation and stated that we should sleep in the beds. Even if the bugs were not harmful, it is still unacceptable to expect guests to sleep with bugs in the bed. Please note this review does not state that the bugs were bed bugs but rather that there were BUGS IN THE BED. If it is indeed common for these bugs to be found in cottages with thatch roofing, the host should make this known in their booking.com adverti*****t so that potential guests may decide for themselves before booking whether they are comfortable sleeping with insects. We had asked for a cancellation and refund due to the beds being infested with bugs. The host cancelled the booking on booking.com however a refund of only R457 was received when the total booking value was for R2 750. The cancellation was made by the host directly on booking.com therefore not allowing us to leave this review. Considering we had to sleep in the car in an unsafe area as evidenced by the people next door to us drunkenly screaming and fighting outside where we had to sleep we believe a full refund should be made.