Kimkim Trip Reviews for Greece

The tours and tour guides were above and beyond what we had hoped. We were wowed at every turn. Thank you Tasos and the whole crew!!

This is our second trip with KimKim and it went well but not quite as smoothly as our first trip in Iceland.

Initially Chris (local travel group) did a great job planning the trip but I am not sure if he left the company or what happened, but it was a bit stressful to have no contact from him after multiple attempts to contact him for 2 weeks prior to our trip starting. Basically after we made the final payment, he never assisted us again. We still had questions on the final details and wanted to add on a few excursions that he said would be no problem to do so later. Thankfully, team members at the Travel12 local company stepped in and answered all of our questions and assisted during our stay in Greece.

Extra special thank you to Dimitris for all of his assistance during the stressful time - he was excellent in answering our questions and helping us finalize items and we thank him very much.

One issue, and not certain if it is a difference in our terminology, but several times I asked if the wedding cruise we booked in Santorini was "private", and Chris assured me that it was just so (and you can see this documentation on the chat history). "Private" tour to me means just our group and no other people; however we were surprised to find that this was not the case on the cruise we booked in Santorini. The cruise was beautiful and fun; but just did not meet our expectations.

Thanks for an overall beautiful trip and experience, if not for the stressful time prior to leaving and the surprise on the "private" tour, it would have been excellent.

Our group of 4 arrived in Athens on Aug. 28th. Our driver was there to transport us to our hotel, the Pi Athens Suite. The hotel was nice, although it’s location (1/2 block from major road) made road noise a bit of an issue. The staff was friendly and they served a made-to-order omelet with your breakfast. Our welcome dinner at Mauro Parvato was delicious. There was confusion as to whether the cost of this dinner was part of our package, or on our own, but this was readily resolved. It was within a pleasant walking distance from our hotel.
Our first full day in Athens started with a Mythology tour lead by Maria from Alternative Athens. It was just excellent! Her knowledge and enthusiasm made it such a memorable experience. We appreciated our small group size (our group of 4 plus 4 others). Any and all questions were welcomed and completely answered. It was a great experience.
Our second day, Aug. 30th, began with an Athens Food Tour, lead by Maria Boli. Again, another wonderful experience! Maria lead us (our group of 4 plus a family of 3) on an extensive and delicious walking tour of various culinary sites in Athens. Well organized, informative, and so enjoyable! Maria’s enthusiasm was contagious! By the end of the tour, we were taking pictures together and exchanging email addresses with the former “strangers” in our group. What a fun time! Bravo, Maria!
Aug. 31st started with a ferry ride to Mykonos. Our accommodations on Mykonos were provided by Aletro Cottage houses, a beautiful small hotel with a breath-taking view of the Mediterranean . The staff was very friendly and treated us like family. A wonderful breakfast and a beautiful pool were just two of our favorite things at Aletro . In fact, when it came time to leave and our transfer to the ferry was late, the owners of Aletro offered, and did, drive us to the port so that we would not miss our ferry!
Our event for this day was a trail ride at Mykonos horses. The horses were good, and the hosts were very friendly. However, the ride itself was underwhelming. Not to the level of our expectations.
The next day, Sept. 1, we scheduled the traditional farm visit and Mykonian dinner. Other than the delay caused by confusion regarding our pick up time, the evening was a lot of fun and we were more than impressed with the delicious food served at our dinner. It was an added treat to have the chef stop and visit with us as we dined, to answer any questions and enhance our experience! A very nice evening!
After a day to transfer to Naxos via the high speed ferry, we arrived at the Adriani Hotel and were pleased to find an attractive hotel with very nice rooms, located within walking distance of the seaside shops and restaurants. The morning meal provided by the Adriani Hotel was outstanding! At least three entree dishes, along with several dessert-type options were included with many other items to make this an outstanding dining option for breakfast!
Sept. 3rd started with a transfer to a small village outside of the main city in Naxos. It was here that we met Katarina and began our cooking classes at her home, along with her mother. The opportunity to spend part of our day in their home was such a treat! They were fabulous hosts and wonderful chefs! An added bonus was the opportunity to meet the local historian and tour his museum. Truly an enjoyable experience! Once again, we had a communication glitch between our driver, our hosts and the organizers. It was quickly resolved, but had us a little concerned.
Our final scheduled event was a bike ride lead by Michalis (Mike) Manios and his son at Real Bike. What a great adventure! High quality equipment and the care and expertise taken by Mike and his son to ensure that we had a safe, yet challenging ride made this day one of our favorites! The route included beaches, city streets, the countryside and an added bonus of a historical site. They were so friendly and accommodating and welcoming. We all had a great time!
Although I cannot say that our trip went off without a hitch, I can say that whenever we encountered a “hitch”, our contacts at kimkim were readily available to quickly resolve any issues. We felt that we would have had a difficult time securing the quaint, family-owned hotels, the local guides and business people and wonderful experiences without the use of kimkim. We will definitely consult with kimkim when planning our next vacation!

Overall great experience! We were very pleased with our travel and everything was perfect! We are so thankful we used Kim Kim. Chris did a great job choosing hotels and excursions for us to do. It was everything we could have asked for! Lampros, our driver in Athens, was great! We loved getting to meet him and he provided excellent service. The staff at the Ammos Hotel went above and beyond to meet our needs. Loved every second of the trip!

My only recommendation is if anyone else is going to hike the Samaria Gorge, more information needs to be provided. Before the trip we were told we would have a guide and would be riding a bus. It wasn't until we were picked up by our driver at the hotel that he told us he would take us and pick us up (driver was much more preferred over a bus, but it did cause confusion!) and we did not have a guide (which was also much preferred because we were able to go at our own pace!) but still caused confusion. Also, we were unsure how the ferry tickets and entrance all worked. When we got to the top the people at the cafe told us they were the only ones that sold ferry tickets and that we couldn't buy them at the bottom. So we spent money not knowing any better. Once we got to the bottom we realized this was for a ferry off to the side and not the main ferry. It was a little sketchy so we decided to buy tickets for the main ferry and lost out on the money for the first ferry. In the end it all worked out, but a little more detail would have been preferred!

Using KimKim was definitely the best choice for us and we are so thankful for all the time and effort that Chris put in to make our vacation a once in a lifetime trip!

Chris was an amazing travel planner. He listened to what we were looking for in our trip to Greece and nailed it. We couldn’t have had a better time. The hotels were boutique and beautiful. Everything fell into place. Drivers were there and on time and courteous. Tours were set up for us by Chris and were outstanding! I can’t say enough about our experience. We had a blast. And I will definitely choose kimkim for our next travel!! Lots of love to your team!! Lynn

My wife and I used kimkim to plan our honeymoon to Greece. This being our honeymoon and the fact we were traveling internationally, I wanted the trip to be as stress free and seamless as possible. Whether it was helping us pick which Greek islands would be best for the type of vacation we were looking for, to booking private transfers from each port to make getting around as easy as possible, Harris helped us plan a trip we will never forgot. I was very impressed with the service that we received from Harris and his team both while planning the trip and on the trip itself, which included a 24/7 number that we could text if we had any issues. Overall, very happy with the kimkim experience.

What a well organized trip that we just got back from thanks to Tasos and the crew from KimKim. I was on a mission to plan a trip for a group of colleagues - initially for over 20 people. I had done a lot of back research myself then realized it was getting a bit difficult to coordinate (especially when it came to transferring from one destination to the other within Greece.

I had been to Greece plenty of times myself, having a Greek background but had never planned for such a large group. My concern was how to successfully get the group from Point A to Point B without any delays or headaches. I then decided to reach out for help and I had reached out to a different travel company at first but the response time was painfully slow. I then reached out to Tasos from KimKim based on some online reviews, and he was so quick to respond to my many questions! After many back and forths and advice on how to save money or suggestions on destinations we finally planned a trip outline and I received it even before the initial company I had reached out to responded with a quote!

Our trip consisted of 4 desinations: Athens, Nafplio, Naxos & Santorini.

Tasos worked closely with me to work on a daily itinerary which included enough ancient ruins, sight seeing, free time - and beach time to satisfy everyone travelling! He offered plenty of great suggestions based on our needs - including offering input on island choices and how to save money. He was always looking out for our best interests.

We were a large group coming from different cities across North America (and on different flights!) Tasos arranged drivers to pick us from the airport and take us to the New Hotel in Athens. Each hotel was excellent, transportation was pleasantly on time, transfers between destinations were seamless, and the tours were excellent and fulfilling!

Highlights were the Food tour in Naxos, the Catamaran in Santorini, and Sight Seeing in and around Nafplio. Tasos always was quick to respond, or someone from the office (either Maria or Harris) would quickly chirp in when needed. It was honestly perfect!! Some well-traveled friends of ours said it was the best vacation they had ever had!

I've already recommended others to use KimKim based on the experience and they also had a great time! I can't thank Tasos at Travel12/KimKim enough for organizing this trip leaving it all carefree so that we can truly relax and enjoy Greece!

Sincerely,
Freda

We are so happy we chose travel 12 to plan out first trip to Greece. Harris and the team were so accommodating and flexible, as we booked last minute. They listened to what we wanted and planned an amazing tour for us!
Athens was an incredible however short visit. From the moment Lambros met us off the plane we felt comfortable. Even with coming in late from flying standby and not catching the mythology tour our hotel was in a convenient location to walk the Acropolis and make it to our welcome dinner. Mani Mani treated us royal with an amazing Greek feast. Just scrumptious. Yamas!
The ferry system in Greece is incredible as we were transported to Santorini! So appreciated the driver pick ups upon arrival when it was so congested! We enjoyed staying at the Aegean Gem hotel in Kamari. Lovely! Mary was so helpful there. The beach village offered a lot!
The hidden gem Argyros tour was great to get all around the island and hear incredible history. Sophia was an exceptional guide. We learned and saw so much from Fira to Oia to Meghelehori. The sunset and wine taste at Venetsanos winery was beautiful! Too light on the wine though. Pack your own snacks for the tour.
The wooden boat tour was a perfect adventure to tour the caldera! The crew and Kristina made it a blast. Walking the volcano and swimming the hot springs was so cool and BBQ feast and dancing after the spectacular sunset we will never forget.
Beautiful Naxos was our last island and we loved the pace. Enjoyed the Naxos Son food tour to partake in local delicacies and get our bearings around the old city. Great food and shopping, beaches and stunning sunsets by the Apollo temple arch. Don’t miss the outdoor movie theater! Staying at the Adriano Hotel was delightful, they were so accommodating to us! Delicious breakfasts! Before we knew it it was time to fly back to Athens. The flight was nice and quick but the delay at the airport made us question why we didn’t speed jet back. Good to experience hoping to save time. Our driver kindly stayed till we arrived late and delivered us to the beautiful Avra hotel. Perfect late dinner and rest and breakfast and we were off.
Appreciate Harris being available to contact and answer any questions we had and make adjustments we wanted! We will be using Kim Kim when we travel again, there’s more Greek islands we want to see! It was fabulous. Cannot thank you all enough!

Dimitris was such an excellent resource. I had many questions and emailed him A LOT. Every time I asked about my trip, Dimitris he always got back to me immediately with a reply. He was so helpful before and during our trip. We were 100% satisfied with his service.

When we arrived in Athens, our itinerary was a little tough at first. Since we arrived on a red-eye flight only sleeping a few hours, the morning/afternoon tour of the Acropolis grounds and museum was a little long for us, and it was very hot. The tour was very good and the sites were out of this world! We loved the hotel in Athens – Acropolis Hill.

Taking the ferry to Naxos was also a little rough. I think I would have preferred to fly between the islands, if I were to ever to return to Greece again. There are very long lines for the ferries and it was hard to handle all of the luggage with my daughter.

Naxos was out FAVORITE destination. It was such a great vibe for us. We loved the family friendly atmosphere. There were a lot of children (my daughter actually met a new friend also staying out our hotel). We loved the hotel in Naxos – Liana Hotel and Spa. It was an excellent location and the staff was really helpful. The hotel is beautiful and right on the beach. Everything was within walking distance.

Our paddle-boarding trip was a disaster. I love to go paddleboarding, so I was looking forward to this activity. We basically went to a place that had windsurfing (and I think for the times that there is no wind they offer paddle boarding). I would not recommend windsurfing for novices like us. Windsurfing is something that requires a lot of coordination and skill, and it is not something that people can just pick up in a morning. Moreover, since we wanted to go paddleboarding, it was a little frustrating because paddle boarding is NO FUN if it is very windy. We had fun, though. We basically beached out paddle boards and walked around the area. It was a beautiful part of the island to explore.

Speaking of disasters, the ferry trip from Naxos to Santorini was a complete disaster. The ferry was nearly 2 hours late. We had to wait in the hot sun. I felt like cattle getting loaded on and off of the ferry. Since we were so late to arrive in Santorini, we didn’t have a ride arranged. It took us nearly 2 hours to get to our hotel after our ferry arrive. The travel took almost the entire day – a day wasted. I would have much preferred to fly to Santorini so we could have enjoyed our time better.

The hotel in Santorini was also very nice. We definitely expected more of a party vibe and that is what we got. The location of the hotel was very convenient to many restaurants – they were also very helpful to help us plan our excursions.

The best activity on our trip was the Santorini Sea Kayaking. This was such an excellent experience. They really know how to guide a large group and make it a lot of fun. We got a serious adventure, and also got to see the red sand and white sand beaches. This was the best trip for our entire vacation.

Thank you very much for making such fantastic arrangements for our trip! We will definitely use Kim Kim again for another adventure!

Great guides. Would have been nice to have more I fo as what to wear on tours like proper foot wear recommended. Lots of walking hills, dirt paths, lava rocks. Bring old swimsuit for iron in water. Also on long tours nice to know where and when and what kind of time we have to grab food. Sophia was wealth of knowledge on our tour of Santorini.
A little disappointed we didn’t or could work out credit for missed hotel in Athens as Harris knew we were flying standby. Love the Greek dinner in Athens! Would prefer not to waste time on long ferry rides when flying was cheaper. Short one from Santorini to Naxos on fast ferry was fine.

Harris was great. He was very responsive to our needs and requests and planned an excellent trip for us to the Greek islands and to the mainland. We would definitely use his services again and again and recommend him without reservation.

Trip was nice. Hotels were fantastic for the short notice we had booking this trip. Dimitris did a good job here. We specifically asked for booking of all transport in Greece. To and from ports and airports. Dimitris had this lined up for us in the beginning of the trip, but not toward the end. Attention to detail when booking trips is important. If a client asks for all transport within Greece to be arranged, please communicate clearly as to whether or not this is done. There was some confusion in regards to this.

The guide to the eastern Peloponnese was exceptionally engaging
The Atlantis Hotel on Santorini was one of the best stays of my life
The pool side bartender at the Porto Naxos hotel was also very engaging

It was a phenomenal trip—thank you, Dmitris for all of your planning, and Andreas absolutely made our trip! We got so insanely lucky with you guys. ❤️

We had the most exceptional experience with kimkim. Upon entering the details of our desired travels, we were immediately connected with an agent, Dimtiris, who assisted us in planning the trip of a lifetime.

Dimitris was everything we could have looked for in a travel agent. Following the parameters we laid out for him, he provided us with the absolute best options for our travels. He was both honest and patient with us, and made sure we took as much time as we needed to finalize a trip that felt right for our group.

He informed us on everything that was going on throughout our booking and travel process, so there were no surprises along the way. He answered every question we had and made sure we were prepared when we arrived in Athens.

Dimitris also set us up with a fantastic Skipper for our travels, Andreas. Andreas was patient and thoughtful, and exceeded all of his duties as a skipper throughout our trip. He put so much effort into making sure we had the best trip possible, and he succeeded in doing so.

Thank you, Kimkim, Dimitris, and Andreas for giving us a week we will never forget! We can honestly say we would not have had the same experience if it wasn't for all of your help and consideration.

Stelios was excellent. He engaged my wife, sister and children in a very positive thoughtful way. Our food was excellent and our chef was fantastic. All above expectations. Highly recommend this trip

Kim Kim and Harris were spectacular. The process of booking was smooth and Harris was very attentive to my needs and and wants for the trip. He had great suggestions and our trip was flawless.
I highly recommend using Kim Kim and especially Harris when planning a trip to Greece.
All the transfers went great and the hotels were amazing.
This is a 5 Star Team

Our Greece vacation was everything we had hoped it would be. Beautiful locations and great food. Our guide dimitris for acropolis was extremely knowledgeable and a pleasure. Naxos sailing was wonderful. And our guide for kayaking was both safety conscious and very comical in his approach. Maria was an excellent hiking tour guide on santorini where she took us to a fabulous sunset view and also surprised us with food and drink for the magic moment. Dimitris and Kimkim was very responsive to all requests pre trip and tried to help customize our requests.
The things I would recommend is to book early to get the better hotel options and there were a couple of times we would have preferred to have our ferry transfers included vs searching for our own transfer at a couple of the island stops.
Overall it was a very memorable trip and I would definitely recommend Kimkim and the team again!

My trip was amazing and your entire staff was right on point and made my wife and i feel like we were part of your family. First rate see you guys soon

Thanks again

First of all, my apologies for this delayed response. Nothing to do with our pleasure about the Greece trip. It was delightful in all respects. I am delayed in communicating because there were just a great many chores to complete on our return to Connecticut and Rhode Island.
I have just completed annotating the photos from Greece and so many great memories surfaced. I feel really fortunate to have chosen your team for this planning. Without exception the accommodations could not have been better. Each was different and each had a charm all its own. Beginning with the Acropolis view from our room in Athens to the center of town situation and fine staff in Nafplion to the gracious and helpful staff (and amazing breakfast choices) and beautiful location in Naxos and ending with our superb cave house on Santorini. Fantastic, all of them.
The individual guides in each location were great, perfect English speakers, interesting personalities, extremely knowledgeable about local culture and history - I could go on and on. Our driver/guide/historian on the drive from Athens to Delphi was truly memorable. I would like to give each one a special commendation! And as to the actual planning of the trip, PERFECT. My granddaughter, Piper, is a very engaging and active 12 year old and loved all the water activities - swimming at the olive grove on the way to Delphi, sea kayaking while in Nafplion, SCUBA in Naxos (this is what Piper really loved), catamaran in Santorini! I loved all the ancient history and those tour people were terrific. Can't say enough positive about the whole experience. Thank you.
Rogene Gillmor and Piper Cameron