Kimkim Trip Reviews for Colombia

The arrangements for flights and hotels all worked perfectly. The guide we had for Bogota was extremely knolegeable about history, archaeology and art. In Villa de Leyva we had a thunderstorm but the guide substituted a talk on history and politics of Colombia. I didn't find the salt cathedral interesting. Guatavita was very beautiful but unfortunately there was no English speaking tour. San Agostin was particularly interesting, and the guide was very knowledgeable and helpful. Tatacoa was very interesting but much too hot for the hike we did. We particularly enjoyed Cartagena's beautiful architecture. The hotel and service were gracious. Our trip to fishing village and boat tour were fun, and we enjoyed the guide's explanation of the biology.

We enjoyed all of the trip. Our personal guides were all really informative, authentically and genuinely interested and passionate about their environments and willing to share their culture and lifestyle with us. To us, that is one of the best things about this sort of trip, and we were happy with your choices. It was a long trip, so there is much to recommend, and if I don't mention something, it doesn't mean we didn't love it! - I'm thinking of you Medellin with our great guide Marcello---

We always enjoyed the special heritage Colombian towns like Villa de Leyva, Jardin, Barichara... We won't ever forget visiting the Kogi in their village and our picnic by the river there.

There were a couple of odd things which I'd like to mention, just to keep you all in the loop. The driver at the airport in Medellin picked up the wrong travellers, so wasn't there when we arrived. A call to the agent who's number you provided soon sorted it out.

Our trip to Jardin was interesting. We noticed that most of your drive times are a bit optimistic... We expected a three hour drive or something, but about half way there we found the road between Medellin and Jardin is closed. We had to travel back quite a ways and then take the awful road down to Jardin, turning this into i think a 5-1/2 hour trip. We were surprised that the driver didn't know anything about it, because we are under the impression that this is a long term road project and the driver says you drive there all the time. Anyway, it was an awfully long trip, because it was at least as long back to the airport the next day and maybe longer.... just for a short one night visit. I would re-think your Jardin approach. Before we asked for an overnight, I think you had us going there on a day trip, which Obviously can not be! The rest of the day's description was out the window too.. We didn't see a museum, or taste any award winning sweets, and I can assure you, that cable car hasn't run in quite some time, although we did walk around the town and enjoy it! The itinerary indicated Dinner was included that day, but I don't know where! We had cervezas with the locals around the square and went out for Pad Thai later. So, we enjoyed Jardin, but we didn't seem to have had an experience as outlined in an itinerary.... When we left Jardin we went directly to the airport and flew from Medellin to Bogota at 6pm, then Bogota to Santa Marta at 8 pm. Of course we got into the Hotel Villa Maria quite late after dinner, and the bar were closed. We were wondering why we weren't on any of the direct flights from Medellin to Santa Marta that evening? Perhaps they were sold out, but they could have been booked two months in advance?

We particularly enjoyed the guides and the visits around Tayrona. The guides were all so enthusiastic and knowledgable, thank you. Christian brought a couple of books and props to discuss in depth the history and lifestlye of the local indigenous group, which we enjoyed at the nice picnic site set up for us. That day was a little "off script" too... we definitely went to a different village. We drove to Rio Ancho, then took a 4x4 up as far as the road went, then walked in the heat and dust about an hour and a half to the Kogi Village. We didn't meet anybody besides the kids there, but it was good, and the picnic spot on the River Ancho was awesome. We were pooped from this dusty day so much that the next day, we mostly sat in the shade and talked philosophy with the guide Juan. He had lots to tell us about Indigenous beliefs.

Barranquilla Carnival was a blast. Those people really know how to party, and we get why you picked the spot for our viewing (bathrooms, thanks!). We drank enough beer to need them. Luckily we were able to pick up our Fiesta tickets right in the hotel lobby upon our arrival. That, and a new hat to boot.

Finishing up in Cartagena was great. We enjoyed the shopping and dining scene there with many memorable food experiences. Unfortunately, on the last morning at 4:30 am, our last driver was no where in sight. We gave up shortly after 5 and hailed a ride with the help of our hotel.

All in all, these small things are just details, and our trip was long and varied, so everything can't be perfect! We had a wonderful time in Colombia and feel like we learned a lot and enjoyed quite a few different experiences. It takes a lot of patience to plan this type of holiday and the pre-booking questions and emails takes a certain about of patience and follow though. Nicolas did a pretty good job with all of that, Thank you Nicolas.

Kate and Mike

Natalia, and Kimkim, worked together with our group point person to facilitate our visiting many wonderful places in Colombia. We stayed in very comfortable hotels, were the staff made us feel at home.

Our guides added great interest to our visits to so many wonderful sites. In addition, the guides were really fun people to spend time with.

Everything went flawlessly, all of our check ins, check outs, getting picked up, getting dropped off, making connections.

For me this was a wonderful introduction to South America.

The experience:
Our visit to Amazonas felt like a real adventure!
We were met in bustling Leticia by Darwin, our English-speaking guide, and spent the next 90 minutes awe-struck by the immensity of the river and the expertise of the boatman, who skilfully navigated past tree trunks and other floating debris as we sped our way upstream to Callanoa.
Our ‘home’ at the ecolodge was a beautifully designed 2-storey casita (more than just a cabin). Surrounded by a garden of heliconias and other floral delights, we were immersed in the sounds of birds in the secondary forest – the crested oropendolas with their liquid ‘glopping’ call, yellow-rumped caciques, and a multitude of diverse tanagers - with a rhythmic backing of frogs and cicadas.
We spent three comfortable nights here on the banks of the river Amazon as the river was rising at the start of its annual flood.
Each day started with a tasty breakfast –often in the company of a visiting troupe of squirrel monkeys or black-mantled tamarins. Then we would be hailed by the enthusiastic Darwin and taken off for a visit to the neighbouring village or, further afield, by boat, to flooded forests and islands, where we cruised amongst the trees spotting birds, sloths, pink dolphins and other wildlife. We will never forget the huge horizons and looming cloudscapes (nor the tremendous downpour that caught us midriver).
Going back to the lodge each day for lunch and supper –usually fish (always locally caught) and always delicious - provided opportunities to relax and rehydrate with a beer or exotic fruit juice.
We would love to return to the Amazonas wilderness in the future and, after a blessing from the local shaman at Callanoa, who knows, maybe in spirit at least...
The people who helped to make the trip so good:
-Darwin, a cheerful and knowledgeable guide. He appeared to know the area and the people and interacted well with the local guides to enable us to get the most out of our visit.
-The owner of the ecolodge, Diego. He was often present at meals when he was willing to answer our questions and to explain the ideas behind the Callanoa project. He aims to develop sustainable tourism as a way of restoring the natural forest and to provide the local people with employment and a cash income.

Thank you Nathalie for your attention to detail and personable approach to organising our holiday. We had a fabulous time and have fallen in love with Colombia. The tour guides and transport alway arrived early or on time. A thank you to Laura who was able to help when you were off. She was well informed concerning our trip and able to assist when we had a concern. Our tour guide in Medellin deserves a special mention. Andreas was wonderful. Such a lovely young women. We would love to return to Santa Marta and Cartegena. I would recommend the trek to The Lost City. The highlight of the trip. Once again thank you.

We had an amazing trip organized by Nicolás to Cartagena, Minca, and Tayrona National Park. One of our favorite experiences was touring the Bazurto in Cartagena with Chef Mely, since we were able to taste and explore the local cuisine with the help of an experienced guide. We also loved bird watching in Minca, and we even got to see a Toucan! It was so relaxing to have all of our transportation arranged ahead of time, and Nicolás was always available with a quick response whenever we needed to make adjustments to the schedule. The most difficult day of our trip was when we were driving from Tayrona to Cartagena due to heavy traffic caused by protests. The local Colombians were protesting because they did not currently have electricity or clean water. This obviously could not have been prevented, but I do recommend that other travelers plan for a whole day of travel if they are also making this drive. Overall, we were very happy with Nicolás and the entire Kimkim experience!

Natalia was just awesome. She did an amazing job tailoring our whole trip and made sure we got to see the main highlights of Bogota, Medellin, Santa Marta and Cartegena . She was available at all times and accommodated all our requests. All our guides were very friendly, knowledgeable and made sure that we had the best experience from Colombia. Special shout out to our local tour guides Sharon, Eduardo and Juan.
Columbia is just incredible and vibrant, so much to see and experience; from sightseeing , hiking and relaxing beaches.

Guides were excellent. Standouts were Manuel in Villa de Leyva, Sharon in Bogota and Leo in Bogota. Hotels were very good choices.

Jess, our agent/local specialist has been amazing. Our trip was very last minute and had some special circumstances, yet Jess was on top of it. It was our first time in Colombia and we had not time to research much, so it was amazing to have KimKim's recommendations, and then Jess's guidance in booking things. Jess checked in many times to ensure everything was going well, she answered all my questions almost instantly, which given the last minute nature of the trip was very much appreciated, she was very patient and detailed and professional in all her communication. She even informed us about the schedule of some museums that we wanted to visit and could not do on the days we had a guide for.

The activities booked all worked out as planned. The guides and drivers were not only on time, but in most cases early. I traveled most of the time alone with my 7-year-old, therefore having this service was reassuring. While there have been some minor communication errors between the guides, their bosses, the agency, mostly about the timing of the activities (somehow most of them had earlier times than us) , all the guides and drivers were very flexible, accommodating and understanding. All the guides had excellent English. The private rides were in very comfortable and clean cars, with working seat belts (not a given in any Colombian taxis :)), and nice chatty drivers (if you speak Spanish). We also liked that we had the same guide for our entire stay in one location.

Raffael, our walking tour guide in Cartagena was great in giving us the lay-out of the old city center and it's history. The chocolate making activity at the Chocolate Museum was very educational and fun for both my child and me. Our guide there (I believe Nelson) was fantastic. The day trip to Playa Azul was nice, but I have been to nicer and quieter beaches that didn't require a 45-minute speed boat ride to it, so unless you are desperate for beach time, you can skip this activity. With that being said, my 7-year-old loved it, and Cartagena is surrounded by water, so it would be a tease not to go to the beach while there.

Mauricio, our guide in the coffee region, was the most fantastic guide one could ask for. He clearly loves what he does and is very good at it. He is very passionate and knowledgeable about nature and everything in the region. He was fun, flexible, accommodating and an endless source of information. We LOVED our hike in Cocora Valley, a must for anyone going to Colombia. We did the entire hike (almost 14 km long), and our 7-year-old was fine with it. It is a quite difficult and treacherous hike though, so I only recommend it to those in good physical condition. You must ride in a Jeep to it, a Willy, if you don't mind some minor discomfort. We loved it! The valley is simply gorgeous. We really enjoyed the coffee farm tour and visiting some of the villages in the region the next day.

We spent two days in Bogota with our guide Sharon. She was very knowledgeable about the places we visited and accommodating for our needs. We went to the local market which was very colorful, but nothing unusual for a European. The trip up Monserrate is a must while in Bogota. The view is gorgeous. We went on a walking tour of the Candelaria neighborhood, the Gold Museum, and the emerald row. Sharon was great at explaining everything we needed to know and in recommending great places to eat. We also visited the Botero museum (on our own, as it was closed the day we had a guide), and I think it is a must see while in Bogota.

Overall Colombia is great destination. The food is excellent everywhere. We felt safe everywhere. Our trip was unforgettable, and that is thanks to KimKim and Jess. There is no way I would have been able to plan such a trip and get so much out of it in short 7 days, even if it wasn't last minute. My only wish is to make the pricing of the activities more transparent, activity by activity, so we can decide weather some are worth it for us or not. Thanks everyone!

We only booked a portion of our trip with Kimkim and overall it went well, but there were a few hiccups throughout that I thought would have been organized through the service. For instance, it said we had a coffee tour booked, but the hotel was unaware and there was no English tour guide. Also the driver we had to Medellin didn't know the address we were going to, despite me giving it to the service beforehand, meaning we had to turn the data on our phone.

Otherwise went smooth and all parties turned up on time! Our guide in the Cocora Valley was great.

We had a truly memorable trip to Colombia. Clearly there are some internal communication issues with the Logistics Department at Aventura Colombiana but Laura was very quick to initiate action to try to resolve situations as quickly as possible.

Two guides that really stand out are Alejandro who took us on a bird watching expedition. Very knowledgeable and personable. We had a great time. And Gian who took us on a really relaxed and interesting city tour in Cali. The biggest disappointment was the guide for the Corcora Valley. He was due to meet us at the hotel at 8.30 but didn't show up. Eventually we caught up with him at 9.30am in Salento by which time no jeeps were available. Not only did we make a late start because his failure to be in the right place at the right time but he then cut short the tour which meant we had 4 instead of 6 hours.

The trip was well-planned but had a couple of glitches. We did not receive the packet of materials including daily schedule until 2 days before the trip. It probably should have been sent earlier. Also we were scheduled to leave the hotel in Santa Marta several hours before out flight. Since it was a domestic flight and the airport is only 25 minutes from the hotel, that was too early. Fortunately our birding guide was able to call the office and have it changed so we arrived only 90 minutes in advance.

Our birding guide, Breiner, was excellent. He is only 20 year old, but is able to recognize birds almost instantly by sight or sound, even when the birds are mostly obscured by foliage or flying high in the sky.

The accommodations at Eldorado lodge were fine and the food was good.

We did not like the hotel in Santa Marta, Casa del Farol. It was conveniently located very close to the center of town and restaurants, but the water for the shower was not even luke warm; the shower heads were broken; and their advertisement of an afternoon happy hour was not correct. They did not even have sodas to purchase.

Natalia was superb. I initially indicated there would be about 10 people traveling and ultimately there were 17. She did an excellent job of structuring an itinerary (consisting of Santa Marta- Zipaquira- Villa de Leyva-Bogota-Medellin-Guatape-El Penol- Santa Elena) to accommodate my requests. She graciously and quickly accommodated every change as needed. She did a terrific job of planning the trip, choosing the hotels, securing the airline tickets, acquiring all the subcontractors, responding to inquires, and making adjustments as needed 'on the go'. She was totally accessible, even responding to What'sApp texts on Sunday morning during the tour, and immediately interfacing with bus drivers when there was confusion about their location.

Her choice of subcontractors for guiding and transportation was excellent. All of the vehicles were new or nearly new, and had ample space for all passengers and luggage. The 6 personable guides were always on time, spoke excellent English, and had a immense grasp of the history, culture, and noteworthy information of the locations we visited.

KimKim's pricing was very fair. It's 5% surcharge became somewhat confusing from time to time, and it's payment system for payments from multiple guests was somewhat clunky, but we managed to get it straightened out quickly and completely before the trip even started.

In summary, I would gladly recommend KimKim and Natalia to anyone who wanted a great travel planner and booking agent in Colombia.

Nichols was an amazing guide. He was very knowledgeable, great communicator, available at all times via WhatsApp, Kimkim site email, and personal cell. It was our first time traveling to Colombia and relying on a local host to fully arrange a trip to Providencia gave us comfort and reduced our burden of researching and planning. We saved days by going with Kimkim and following Nicholas’s recommendation. Providencia was the most memorable part of our trip and every suggestion Nicholas made was worth it. Kimkim team, especially Yoos, was very helpful. I got sick two days before our trip and contacted Nicholas and Yoos and both very extremely supportive and gave me several options including cancellation with full refund. Luckily I got better and made the trip. If you are looking for trust worthy, easy to work with, knowledgeable, deliver as promise group KimKim is the best.

The Kimkim team was great in helping me plan this trip. I would give Nicolas 10 stars. He was so attentive and responsive to all my questions. Everything was as planned. Thank you Nicolas for helping us with this amazing trip. All the guides were great, especially Melissa from Foodies and also Enrique from the tour to Boquilla. I can’t thank everyone enough.

Desiree

Our experience using KimKim to book our trip to Colombia was amazing. It saved us time and made our trip run smoothly and painless.

Sharon was our guide in Bogota and she was very knowledgeable and gave us great recommendations for things to do or places to eat after our tours were over. We really enjoyed the trip up to Monserrate and eating the delicious food in Paloquemao market.

Juan Carlos was our guide for 2 days in Medellin and we had a great time. He went above and beyond and added in a few stops between our tours to show us more of the city.

In Cartagena we had a great guide who answered all our questions and even took us to a grocery store when we needed to grab a few items.

We are already set up with kimkim to book our next vacation to South Africa, we hope that we get the same great service we received from all the ladies in Colombia from kimkim.

We loved our trip to Colombia, it completely surpassed our expectations. The country and people are so warm and vibrant!

Nicolas helped us to build a great itinerary and he was available for us to contact in country. There were a few issues where information seemed to be lost between Nicolas and the tour providers on the ground, but everyone worked quickly to rectify them and ensure we had a great trip.

All of our guides were very knowledgeable, friendly and keen to ensure we experienced the best of Colombia.

Natalia did a wonderful job planning our trip to Colombia. She worked with me to ensure that I had the accommodations and tours that I wanted. We loved all our tour guides. Everyone was on time and super friendly. We loved our hikes, coffee tour, and bird watching. Thanks for a great trip!

Overall, we had a very nice trip. Nicolas prepared a diverse itinerary for us. We got to see a lot, although we all found the pace to be too rushed. My primary criticism is the car trip from Tayrona to Cartagena. We were told that the trip would take 4 hours but it took 7 hours due to heavy traffic.
I would recommend either flying to Cartagena or driving at night, if the roads are safe. As far as the guides, Jairo in Bogota was by far the best, due to his knowledge and enthusiasm. The guide in Bambusa was adequate and the guide in Cartagena was poor. The hotels were very nice- especially Bambusa, and Cartagena Sofitel. The setting of Los Naranjos in Tayrona was beautiful, but the meals were not very palatable. Bogota's EK Hotel, although very nice, charged for water, which left a bad taste in our mouth (no pun intended). Nicolas, although mostly responsive, did not receive our message that we were canceling trip to Rosario because we were too tired from long day of travel to Cartagena. He called us and woke us up early in the morning. Nor did the driver to the airport in Cartagena show up, so we had to order a taxi. We should be reimbursed for the boat excursion to Rosario. Overall, I would commend Nicolas for a job well done but urge him to take relaxation time into account when planning a trip.

While the planning process was quite smooth initially, at the last minute there appeared to be a rush to assemble information from us. Further, we did not received an updated itinerary to include hotel changes before we left on our trip.

But, those details aside, we had a great experience overall and an especially memorable experience with two of our local guides; namely Maria and Vivi. Their attention to detail, promptness and professionalism was outstanding.