I was sad to see this as a review Felicity, and I felt I should respond so there is a fair representation of your comments.
Firstly, I would like to address where you are right.
You are right about the beach. We do have a full time life guard, but it is worth being careful as it does get quite steep quickly. It is a shingle beach, and yes, it is about 15 minutes of walk, but through the most glorious, Unesco-protected, pine and eucalyptus forest. We often walk through it at sun set. Quite majestic.
You are right about the distance into Pizzo. We have always recommended a car to drive around to see the beautiful sites and towns. Taxi's are not really viable.
For a bit of balance to the review, some elements are just incorrect. You stated "There are no restaurants, cafes or shops in walking distance at all and certainly not in the complex". I don't understand this, There is one of each at the main swimming pool; open for breakfast, lunch, and dinner throughout the summer season. With a car, there must be 10 restaurants in a 10 minute drive. Some of our favourite restaurants anywhere.
You were absolutely right to raise additional costs. We have rented on the resort for over 10yrs, and were one of the first. When you raised your concern, we promptly spoke to other owners. Some, but definitely not all, stated they include additional costs. As a result, we immediately rectified this so all costs are now included (and we made sure you were refunded).
You mentioned furnishing. I can only apologise that you felt they were worn. We left a couple of weeks before you arrived and had just installed some new sun loungers and replaced some of the cushions, so your comment surprised us. As for the rattan; my favourite chair, outside on the balcony, where I sit every day for my morning coffee, does have one worn armrest. Sorry about that.
The mattresses were only replaced last year. I am sorry they were not comfortable for you.
Tea towels are an endless pain. They seem to go missing every time. I promise it is true! As for the "mishmash of kitchen stuff', you are absolutely correct. We love to cook while we are out there and so there is a huge collection of equipment to cook with. Over the 15yrs we have owned our apartment, we have made sure it is as well stocked as possible. As for wine glasses. We actually opted for 'stemless' glasses after a few years as too many were getting damaged, i'm afraid.
You mentioned the music. In nearly 15yrs of ownership, and countless summers, we have never, ever heard them playing "non-stop thumping rapping music 9.30am to past 11.30pm at night". This is simply untrue. Rarely is there any music before 8pm and never is it unpleasant There is one exception, that of a national holiday (Ferragosto in the middle of August) when music may go a little later but it is all part of the fun of that celebration.
That is a long reply, and I hope I have been fair in my comments. We rent our apartment out to share our love for the resort and the region. It is a home that we have built over 15 years, with our two boys, and we hope that everyone has as lovely time in it as we have over that time. When we don't get it right, we rectify it, as you will have seen above. But, when comments are sadly incorrect, we feel we have to reply with a balanced view.