Kimkim Trip Reviews for Ireland

Arranging a trans-Atlantic trip in these times is quite a risky project. However, Austin stayed with me and we eventually got a reservation. Without Austin's local experience we would never have found the ideal place for us to stay, Fullerton Arms in Ballintoy.
He was able to find a local guide for us and the trip was so good we are certain to go back again.

I have to emphasise that without Austin's help we would never have found this place.

I have nothing but good things to say about booking with Ireland Walk, Hike, Bike. A few details about the trip...It was my mom (60+ yrs), myself (38), and my 9 mo old daughter. We were there for 10 days and walked portions of "The Kerry Way" most of the days. I carried my daughter in a hiking backpack while my mom carried the food / snacks. Coordinating a trip with a nine month old in another country can be intimidating to state it lightly. We had cabs picking us up and dropping us to at the start/end of hikes which meant a carseat needed to be transferred. We needed a travel cot for her to sleep in and we needed flexibility in our days just in case she wasn't up for the hike that day and we needed to be done early. Thus, the reason for booking through Ireland Walk, Hike, Bike. I couldn't have been happier that we did this!

From the beginning, they had superb communication and custom built a route that allowed us to maximize what we were seeing each day, but still have some flexibility if needed. It was really nice to give them a budget and have them plan accordingly for hotels, transportation, etc. All of the lodging accommodations were phenomenal with breakfast included. The staff was friendly, the rooms were clean and well stocked, and my daughter's travel cot was ready to go at each location. The transportation to and from hikes was timely and each of our drivers were incredibly knowledgeable and we learned so much from them! No one ever made us feel like a "burden" with a carseat and so many bags full of baby stuff like diapers and formula. Everyone helped where they could and we never had any hiccups.

They reached out to us throughout the trip to ensure that all was going well and to check to see if we had any questions. We had one day that we needed to shorten and they accommodated that as well! Traveling with a little one and knowing that we were just a phone call away from assistance really provided me with a peace of mind that we would be taken care of throughout the trip! Loved our holiday and would highly recommend this company!

Our guide Maurice from Ireland Walk Bike Hike was very helpful both before and during our recent trip to Ireland. He and a woman from their office (whose name I don't recall) called twice in our 7 day trip to make sure all was well. Galway was a good base for excursions. Westport was a lovely little town. We heard the best Trad music there and on my husband's birthday too! Ballina was a fun. We tried the traditional hot seaweed baths since this wasn't something we could do in the US. It was a relaxing end to our trip. If we had it to do again, we would have spent 1 less night in Galway (we had 3) and added another stop or longer in Westport. We enjoyed our trip!

I had a really great trip with Kimkim. Everything was so easy all the way through and the team was always a phone call away if I had any questions or needed some help.
Dean was fantastic and even dropped in for a face to face half way through to check in. I received phone calls from the team during the trip which was really comforting as I was travelling alone.
Petrina was also always close by when I needed anything and responded very quickly to any questions I had.
The hosts at each of my BnBs we’re fantastic, and I’d really love for them to know I enjoyed my stay, particularly my stay with Kathleen at Finglas House in Camp. I was quite unwell during my night there and she was very accommodating.
The pack provided by Kimkim containing route notes, maps and dining recommendations was great! I actually enjoyed readying about the next day’s activities before bed each night. They were thorough and obviously put together by people who were familiar with each walk. My favourite I think would have to be the one from Dingle to Dunquin, absolutely stunning.
Overall, I’d definitely book another holiday with Kimkim, and I plan to return to travel the north next time!
Thanks team.

Our trip to Ireland was memorable and we will use kimkim and Ireland Walk Bike Hike again to plan new adventures. Although we did not bike at all we had many walks and shorter hikes in beautiful places. Our windy, rainy excursion to the Aran Islands was warmed by an Irish Coffee at a small island pub followed by a boat trip around the Cliffs of Moher. Our itinerary was ambitious and we will spend more time in fewer places next visit. Many thanks to trip planner Dean from Tralee who was so helpful and even visited us one morning at breakfast to offer assistance. We love photos of beautiful places and we will enjoy the hundreds pictures we took. The B&B’s were comfortable, and all were clean and welcoming. Big Irish breakfasts are wonderful!! We travelled from Glendalough Abby and Lake to the Ring of Kerry, astounded at the beautiful landscape and historical sights. We enjoyed the Pubs in Dingle and the funky town vibe. The Cliffs of Moher are a spectacular experience and traveling the small roads north to Westport was an adventure full of lovely country sights. We even stayed at Ballyseede Castle and enjoyed a night of luxury. Our travels were slowed by traffic ‘jams’ of sheep and cattle on several occasions and the scent of peat or “turf” fires let us enjoy a bit of the rural life of Ireland.

Thanks Dean and Petrina! We had an amazing time in Ireland, and loved every moment of it! We would love to come back and see more of your beautiful country. All the work you put in for us, both in terms of making our bookings and planning our itinerary, is much appreciated. Almost everything worked like clockwork. We were also lucky to have great weather during our time there, and on the one day it wasn't great due to the rain, quite magically Dean showed up, and helped us plan our day!

In terms of guides and related feedback - here are a couple of things -

1. Hilltop Treks - Celts and Castles Tour. We had specifically requested a tour of Newgrange. Turns out this tour regularly does not enter Newgrange. That would have been a huge disappointment for us. As it turns out our tour started early since all the tourists got there in time, and the guide was able to eke out the time for us to see the inside of Newgrange which was amazing. I don't think the trip would have been worthwhile for us if we had not entered Newgrange. All's well that ends well - but I wanted to mention this, for future reference for you. In case there are others who specifically request a tour of Newgrange, it might be better to find a tour company that routinely goes inside the monument.
2. Lally Tours - Cliffs of Moher tour - In the interest of full disclosure, it would have been nice to know before that the money we paid earlier for the tour does not cover the cost of visiting the caves. Interestingly, they don't even mention it on their website. Also, we would have preferred a tour that covered Dunguaire castle vs the caves.

Overall, for us, I think it would have been better to have been given the option of a couple of tour companies before the bookings were made, so we could have checked out their itineraries and seen which ones worked the best with our interests.

Places that were most memorable - honestly, we enjoyed everything.
In Dublin - our favorites were the tour of Trinity college (the guide was really good), and the Book of Kells, and the Musical Pub Crawl.
Waterford - loved the tour of Waterford Factory
Cobh - loved the town and the beautiful St Colman's Cathedral
Ring of Kerry - loved the Derrynane Loop Walk. Your directions were perfect!
Dingle and Slea Head - were our absolute favorites! Absolutely stunningly gorgeous! Our favorite stop there was the Dunmore Head hike (which was not mentioned in your information - you may want to add it to your repertoire!).

Challenges - we had only one. We were unable to find the Old Head of Kinsale hike. I think we made some error in getting there and hence it took us for ever, and when we got there we were turned around. We parked at the Speckled Door, but were unable to find the start of the hike. It looked to us like you had to walk on a narrow road shared by cars which seemed risky. We asked the gentleman at the bar at the Specked Door, but he was too busy to help us. That's what delayed us in getting to Kenmare that night, and led to the problem at the B and B.
Everything else was really perfect.

I mention the above not as criticisms, but in the spirit of constructive feedback!

Our guide, Dean M was super brillant. We had the best time. He made sure we had the history of each place we stopped. And he added a few along the way he found after getting to know us better. We felt like we had first class service the entire trip. If I had to pick, the Aran Island trip was my favorite.
The food was exceptional. Every meal delicious. Saying good by to Dean at the end of our week together was like saying good bye to an old friend. Thank you for a great trip.

It was too much driving for the week, we wish we would’ve had more activities to do.

I had a great time! Everything was so easy at every step of the way. I especially liked the route that kept me on back roads with minimal time on the Ring of Kerry road.

Very friendly. Pick ups as planned. Accommodations very nice. Food was excellent

Dean was great to work with and it was nice to have things set up and prepaid along the way (car, B&Bs, etc). Also good suggestions on places to stop, sites to see. One place not to miss is Skellig Michael, especially on a clear day, but reserve well ahead!

My granddaughter and I had a wonderful trip!

Petrina arranged everything beautifully and was responsive to all my questions and doubts.
My only complaint was the weather. I doubt she could do anything about it, though.

Ireland is beautiful. The people, the scenery and the food were lovely.

Thank you for all your help.

Stephanie Penn

I thought overall this was a well planned trip. Every day was different and it felt that there were different themes. We didn't drive long between locations. What made it so successful is that we had a framework and a structure, but allowed us the flexibility to change our plans during the course of the day. Weather is Ireland is always unpredictable. We had a challenging start but the weather came through nicely at the tail end of our trip.

On the first day, driving up to Galway made sense because it was accessible and it was an easy way to get started with some light tourist walking through the streets and getting a flavor of Irish culture. We especially enjoyed watching the finals of the premier league championship in a packed local pub which resembled a mosh pit. The noise and enthusiasm was electrifying.

I enjoyed Doolin, especially the pubs where the locals attended listening to music. I highly recommend Sheedy's B&B. We enjoyed hiking the cliffs of Mohr from Doolin to the tourist center as it was private and less people. Getting a taxi to take us back to Doolin was easy and convenient vs. taking a bus back into town. I think starting from the Tourist center is a mistake as there are too many people.

The Dingle penisula was my favorite part of the trip. Enjoyed the B&B and appreciated majestic views of the mountains in the backdrop along the coastline. Great walking trails. We just barely missed getting the boat over to Blassket Island but enoyed the museum had some nice walks in the AM along the coastline. We loved the Falconary and that was truly was an unique and unforgettable experience. The pub and music nightlife was great too.

Touring Skellig Michael was another highlight of the trip and we were fortunate for a very nice sunny day. Memorable. A must!

Heading up to Limerick the next day and seeing the castles and walking the trails was a good day to "strecth the legs". Nightlife was great too.

Ending our trip in Dublin was a good way to slow it down a bit. We enjoyed the museums at Trinity college, GPO (must), public gardens, as well as the Jamenson and Guinesse. Although it is a touristy thing to do, taking the "hop on and hop off" bus tour is a good way to get around to see the city. The early am drive from Dublin to Shannon airport was easy and not too taxing.

Donncha is a fantastic guide! We couldn’t have been in better hands. Louise needs to get some experience in scheduling tours. Very aggressive timeline. BUT, we loved our Ireland experience!

Donncha was the highlight of the trip. His knowledge and love of Ireland history, geography, politics, music, etc. deepened our experience. His singing was an unexpected treat and helped define Irish culture. My favorite memories include the Burren, Cliffs of Moher and Dingle. We had a great trip.

There were 10 of us hiking together during the first week of May in 2019. The KimKim team made our planning requests easy to book and were able to adjust the trip and tailor it to our needs. We would without a doubt use KimKim for any of our future travel plans. The response I received from all our friends after the hike was how everything from transportation, lodging, communication, and the hiking went without a hitch. We have never been on a trip where everyone from Maurice to the drivers and the owners of of our accomodations we stayed in, were so accommodating and quick to respond to our needs. Maurice in particular, prior to our trip was quick to respond to some of our unusual transportation changes we needed to make throughout our trip . He also assisted us in changes we needed to make during our trip due to a few of our travelers not able to complete a few legs of the hike. The response time and solutions, were completed in most cases less than 1 hour. That was amazing. We have never in all our holidays been treated so well. The hike itself was above what we had expected . Beautiful countryside, great views and just enough challenges to let you know you were actually hiking and earned your Guinness at the pub at the end of the day. The Wild Atlantic Way Hike is not to be missed. Thank you for making our Holiday a memory we will never forget.

Great trip! Donncha was such a wonderful guide . His knowledge, witt ,sense of humor and passion for his country made for a great trip. Not to mention his singing of his repertoire of Irish songs.
I enjoyed our hike of the cliffs of Mohr as well as the walk up the gap. Cape Clear was also a special place. We were fortunate to have great weather to enjoy all of the places we went.
All of the accommodations were good as well as the suggested restaurants. The owners and staff of all the accommodations were great. My favorite was the Quay house .

Blown away with frances hospitality coming to visit us in killarney in person and calls to make sure all ok.
Margo our bike hike guide was unbelievable. She was encouraging, so informed about so much, great conversation, felt totally blessed to have her for a full day. All accommodations were above expectations. Great locations, bfasts and hosts.
The Hertz GPS was slow and didn't provide accuracy we e expected. That is not your responsibility. Hertz did a wonderful thing in not charging us since we were 1hour late.

Pat Liddy tour was fantastic !!!!

Only suggestions would be to strongly urge drivers download offline maps if they have capability on their phones. That ended up better than Hertz gps.
Also, information on the charges to the suggested route stops. We probably would have changed some of our stops to be able to spend more time. (Ex. Bunratty castle). or not go . It got a bit frustrating to pay at every stop for more info. If I had known I would have planned better.
However, every place was amazing and the trip went without a gliche. It was amazing!!
Oh, also maybe add info about bus pass and needing exact change on buses in Dublin,
along with brief comment on norms of tipping and that last admission to quite a few sites is4-5p. We missed going in to some locations.

I'm rambling along so I hope makes sense.

Thank you for an amazing trip
Ireland should definitely be a must do for everyone.
God bless

We had an amazing time. Warner was the perfect guide: knowledgable, easygoing, fun, funny, flexible, everything! We all missed him so much when he dropped us off in Dublin, like we had left one of our family members! Our favorite place was Adare Manor, along with the falconry and archery there. But all of the planned activities were great fun, including the ghost tour in Kildare, the bike tour in Kilkenny, etc. We will be back on day to explore the north of Ireland!

Travel advice was great. Walk Bike Hike was very friendly. Great B&B hosts.