Kimkim Trip Reviews for France

Valentine with Kimkim was professional and wonderful to work with as well as the individuals she had set up for our private transfers and lodgings. The lodging selections were superb, safe and beautiful. The logistics were perfect. We traveled by plane, trains, a rental car for six days and private transfers in between. Everything went like clockwork! I told Valentine what I wanted to see and do in France and what my budget was and she helped plan a perfect family vacation.

I can't thank Simon and Ambre Marie enough for all their planning and recommendations for our group! Everything was truly wonderful, from when we arrived in Marseille to our last night in Eze. Our guides throughout the week - LuLu, Arthur, Alex, Nathalie and Stephan - were all excellent, and the towns and locations visited spectacular. A highlight for us all was Captain Laurence, on our boat tour out of Marseille - she is wonderful. Our first dinner in Marseille at Restaurant Une table au Sud was truly memorable - we would definitely recommend this restaurant! And we cannot forget the Olive Oil Tasting/Cooking Class at Moulin Sant Jean in Fontvieille - another high point! Chateau Eze we will remember as a highlight of the trip, along with the fabulous dinner at the hotel restaurant on our last evening.

Accomodations: The Intercontinental in Marseille was beautiful and the food and service very good. La Maison Dauphine in Aix was the perfect guest house for the six of us. I would be sure when booking that your customers are aware that there is no lift - fine for us, but could be an issue getting to the third floor for some. Véronique was a gracious host, assisting us with restaurant suggestions and reservations. La Divine Comédie in Avignon was beautiful, but we would not recommend it. We are dog lovers, but huge weimaraners trying to sit on your chair while you're eating breakfast in the dining room did not seem appropriate when paying luxury prices. On our first night, having toured all day and bearing wine and cheese from our travels, we asked to utilize some utensils and plates, which were provided but at a fee per person - again seems out of line with the price point. We were also sitting in the garden at 5PM in the afternoon when one of the staff came out to tell us we were being too loud ( I know - Americans!). If it was late in the evening, a fair concern, but at 5PM in the afternoon? It was also VERY difficult for the guides to find us and to load and unload luggage at this location.

Overall, we couldn't have been happier with this long planned/delayed trip for our group. Many thanks for your thoughtful understanding of the type of experience we were hoping for - you definitely delivered! Best: Karen, Tom, Maggie, Brian, Jack and Kandy

Our trip was wonderful and we will use kimkim again. Valentine is great to work with and the kimkim team was very responsive before and during the trip. The drivers who provided the transfers deserve a special thank you as they took care of us. The hotels that Valentine chose were great! The Villa Florentine in Lyon, and the Hotel Imperial Palace in Annecy were wonderful. The Abbaye De Maizieres in Beaune took us back in time for sure. The people of Beaune were very warm and friendly. We were very comfortable there. The location, staff and rooms are 5 of 5 stars. Next time we go to Lyon we would stay in the newer part of Lyon as the older section was a bit uncomfortable at night.

Our trip to France was awesome. Kimkim put me in touch with Joel who put together a perfect trip for us. He listened to me and executed exactly what we wanted. He was unfamiliar with a couple of our requests but set out to find options for us and delivered an experience of a lifetime! Huge thanks! Online travel agent.... worked for me!!!

Enjoyed our small group tours that were set up for us by Isabelle with the Local independent tour guides

Isabelle did an amazing job at putting a memorable trip together for us. Everything went so smooth. The hotels were excellent everywhere. Can't say enough about the wonderful private tours, all the guides were 1st class.
Isabelle took all our requests, wishes and even apprehensions into account when helping us plan the trip. Everything was well timed, we never felt rushed and had plenty of time to really experience the places we visited.
Had the trip of our dreams. Merci Beaucoup!

Such an amazing thing to get to take in some of the most famous places and experiences in Paris! We spent 10 whirlwind but incredible days exploring all that Paris has to offer! Absolutely loved the Seine dinner cruise, Monets Garden, Versailles, the Louvre, Sacre Couer, Montmartre was an adorable village, and so much more! The food, pastries and wine and pretty much everything we ate and drank was amazing! Even at the tiny sidewalk cafes. We did a walking food tour that was a blast and really enjoyed all of the open air food markets.
The metro has an app and was very easy and affordable to use. The Catacombs was a mind blowing experience but not for those that are claustrophobic! We ended up at the large famous flea market on the north end of Paris on a Monday but half the vendors were closed, so not a highlight. Many things can be touted yourself instead of having a guide - like the covered passages of Paris or your own audio guide of the Louvre if you’re looking to cut costs, but the guides with the tours were all highly knowledgeable and professional and we learned a lot from them.
The hotel staff was friendly but the beds and pillows were extremely uncomfortable and the hotel, while in a great neighborhood was a ways away from the Eiffel Tower and some of the more visited places. (Mercure)
Altogether however, with transportation covered from airport and back and reservations made for us by Isabelle for tours and some dinners, it was a very stress free trip of a lifetime!

This was a great trip! Isabelle was able to pull this together for us very last minute and she did not disappoint! We loved the itinerary and thought it the perfect getaway! Thank you!

Overall this was a wonderful trip, and we were very pleased with our accommodations at Hotel a la Villa des Artistes in the Montparnasse area. That Les Jardins de Luxembourg was walking distance made it even lovelier.

All of our guides through Localers were extremely knowledgeable. We do want to offer a bit of constructive feedback regarding the Treasures of the Marais walking tour with
Patrick. I was at first reluctant to book this tour during discussions with Joel because I felt it would not be of much interest to our daughter, but he assured me that we would enjoy the historic aspects of the traditional Jewish community and the LGBTQ communities. The tour was far more about the French royalty and aristocracy than it was about the historic communities. Our itinerary also stated that we would be offered a midway stop at a traditional French and local cafe for a hot beverage — this did not happen. I felt that while Patrick was very knowledgeable, he was not reading his audience well at all.

While we found our Louvre guide, Melanie, did a great job, we found the itinerary description misleading. When we were told that we would have a private, after hours tour, we expected that the museum would be closed except for small private tours. This was not the case as the museum was open to the public at this time. I think you should be more accurate in the description of this tour. The term “after hours” has definite connotation.

I do want to offer a special accolade to our guide for Musee D’Orsay and L’Orangerie, Victor. He brought great insight and wonderful narrative to his tour with us. His passion and knowledge were outstanding. I am very glad that we were able to enjoy these two museums that highlight the Impressionists since Giverny was not an option at this time of year.

Our trip was Amazing! Simon was so responsive, both before AND during our trip. I've traveled a lot but never used a travel agent before and what a difference it makes! Thanks to Simon, KimKim, and the So Provence! So Alps! team, we enjoyed sights and experiences we would not have planned ourselves. All of our guides were very knowledgeable and experienced. We had a great trip.

I enjoyed the trip and tours arranged by kimkim. The hotels and guides were good with 2 exceptions - described below. I did not interact much with Simon so cannot provide comments on his service.
There are 2 things that were of poor quality however:
1. The hotel in Aux-du-Provence was not good quality. I also had a safety issue there, in that someone I did not know, tried to come into my room late at night. Also, my bathroom smelled bad and my refrigerator did not work. I would not stay at this hotel again.
2. The guide who took us to Monaco was not good. She was more focused on her personal activities and plans for later in the day. She provided minimal information on what we were seeing. She dropped us off and never accompanied us to any spots we visited along the way. She operated more as a driver than a guide. I don't feel we got what we paid kimkim, for this person's services.

Stephen's planning was exactly what we were looking for! Each of the guides/tours he booked for us were excellent - we learned a lot and had a blast the whole trip. Our hotel was also outstanding. Could not recommend his services more!

I think overall KimKim did the best they could to service my group. They provided many options based on my request but our intentions were different. The KimKim service is best for those who are ok with someone taking care of everything and not worries about the additional cost. I think I was trying to learn more about the place and see various price options and activities lined up next to each other so I could get a good comparison and it’s not meant for that.

On that note Simon and Lucie did everything they could to service our group. We had a great time in Provence for the most part. The dinner we had the first night was delicious and I highly recommend the food tour/ cooking class we did with Mathilde. The wineries were less than pleasing and did not meet my expectations in terms of ambiance at the facilities. The wineries did not seem they were ready for visitors or meant for visitors. Maybe my comparison is to California wineries so there is a mismatch.

Overall, glad we went, we had a great time but I might go another route in the future due to my own personal reasons. More clarity around the cost breakdown would help the comfort level when booking for sure. The unknown makes it feel uncomfortable and I expect that we are paying a higher premium for the service but getting a rough idea would help.

KimKim did a great job planning for the wants/needs of our group. We used KimKim for transportation, cooking classes, winery tours, and train tickets. I can’t say enough about our cooking class. Mathilde was knowledgeable, providing history and passion for her cooking class. She was also a great resource for things to do in the area. The meal we created in her kitchen was informative, fun, and delicious.
The train tickets and transportation was also great. With 5 girls and luggage, we always had a van with room to spare.
With regards to the winery, we weren’t very impressed. I am not sure if this is because our expectations were different from how wine tours are run in the Provence area, or if it was not planned properly. Our tour guide Stefan, was very pleasant and knowledgeable and was not the reason for our underwhelming experience. However, we are used to wineries that provide an experience of family history, a comfortable setting to sit, and food pairing (small bites) that pair well with wine tastings. This is not what we experienced, which made this tour somewhat lackluster to say the least. It may be a good idea for KimKim to provide specific overview of wine tours so as not to disappoint future customers.
I would definitely recommend kimkim and their services to others. We had some truly unforgettable moments. Cheers!

Our trip to Paris was flawless and memorable thanks to Joel’s help from Kimkim. From airport pick-up to drop off, we didn’t have to worry about anything. Each guide we had was knowledgeable, helpful, and kind. We especially loved our guided trip to the Louvre, our pastry baking class, and our bike trip to Versailles. Our guide, Rachel, showed us where to get the best crepes and make the trip memorable and fun.

It was a superbly planned and organised trip. Kudos to Lucie who managed the entire planning. As well as Simon from So Provence So Alps! Everything worked like clockwork and exceeded my expectations!
All the excursions were wonderful - the off beat walking tour through the coves and beaches of Marseilles, my stay in the beautiful town of Aix-en-Provence, the wine tours in Luberon, Tavel and Chateauneuf du Pape to the hikes up St Victoire and Calanques National Park, my time on the beaches in Cassis and finally the gourmet tour in the charming medieval town of Avignon.
The guides Marc, Stephan, Aurielle among others were all extremely knowledgeable and made the experience memorable.
I would definitely recommend a visit to beautiful Provence with its breathtaking landscape and make sure that the trip is planned by So Provence So Alps and its local partners.

We went for the 7 day self guided tour de Mont Blanc thru kimkim and had an amazing experience. Julien was fantastic communicating frequently and arranging everything to perfection. Highly recommend kimkim and Julien.

While our trip to Corsica was fantastic and the 4-day walk we did amazing - the whole experience was let down by the poor communication of logistics once we were on the ground.

1. Most egregious was the omission of details about where we would be staying each night along the 4 day hike!!! We didn't even know the names of the accommodation (much less contact details) and had to ask the initial luggage porter where he was dropping our bags the first night. For the following nights we had to ask our accommodation hosts each morning to phone around the next night's town to find out who was expecting us! Luckily one of our party spoke fluent french, or otherwise this could have been a complete disaster...

(On a bright note all of the accommodation was very good and clean. And the hosts were superb - helpful, friendly, welcoming).

2. The route and topographic maps supplied were very poor quality photocopies. They made navigating very difficult. I strongly suggest either including proper trekking maps in the price of the trip or charge a small surplus to do so!

3. The route description booklet could/should be improved with additional photographs & details - especially for key landmarks and tricky intersections. Also I'm not convinced the distance estimates were accurate... Our own GPS devices reported that each day was longer than stated. For example the first day was supposed to be 11-12km but was in fact +15km.

While none of these issues ended up ruining the trip, they certainly made it more challenging for no good reason. Fortunately the beautiful countryside, delicious food and wine, and wonderful people we met along the way are what we will remember from our time walking across Corsica!

We trekked from Corte to Evisa over 4 days in July so the weather this year was hot- often in the mid 30's. It was usually a moderate walk with some hard areas so the beautiful cold swimming holes found in the streams were a very welcome site a couple of times a day and made all the difference to our hike. Without them the weather would have been far to hot to enjoy.
The distances covered were good for each day- although they were futher than indicated and so oftern excluding stop imte took longer to cover. The beeer at the end of each day at the hotels went down well and fast!
Each hotel had its own charm and we very much enjoyed them.

This is my family's 10 day self-guided TMB trekking. Special appreciation to Julien, the local specialist, who provided consultation and support to my trekking. I am not good at English on oral and listen, our communication was done with plenty of text chatting. He always gives professional answers in patience.