Kimkim Trip Reviews for Nepal

Amanda was really helpful and flexible with our change in plans. I was so busy in the run up to the holiday that it was great to have someone else taking care of all the details. Our guide Mingmar was very experienced and professional (hugely overqualified for taking us up a 4000m peak which for Nepal is no more than a hill...) and the views were spectacular.

The whole trip was fantastic and thanks Erin for putting me in touch with Amanda!

Amanda (with Himalayan Trails) was very helpful throughout the trek coordination process. She had timely replies, good advice, and helped me suss through all the many options for my Nepal hiking experience. Plus, she made the time to meet me in Kathmandu before I left with my guide. I'll strongly consider booking my next trek with Himalayan Trails.

We took months to plan our trip and Amanda was patient and quick to reply to any question we had. Once we arrived in Kathmandu, everything was taken care of. Our guide and porter, father and son duo Mingma and his son Darje really went out of their way to take care of us during the entire trip. The Khopra Danda community Trek allowed us to visit many local villages, with Mingma and Darje explaining the local custom, we learnt so much about Nepal. We are very impressed with Himalayan Trails as a tour company, even the staff members who picked us up at the airport or hotel were very professional and friendly. If we decide to go on another trekking tour in the future, we will not hesitate to travel with them again.

We had the best time on our honeymoon to Nepal, completely planned by Raj at his team at Socialtours. From our first interaction on KimKim, we knew we had found something special in Raj--he listened to us regarding our budget, activity level and timing. We loved that once we arrived in Nepal, everything was taken care of for us. They booked all our ground transportation, in-country flights and tour guides. All we had to do was show up with our passports. Raj and Socialtours were excellent with communication via KimKim and I could not thank them more for taking away all the stress of planning a vacation to an unfamiliar country and making it so fun! Highlights included a 4-day trek in the Himalaya with our wonderful guides Kancha and Badal, "Cook Like a Local" class at Socialtours, mountain flight to see the Himalaya, Jeep safari ride in Chitwan, tours of Bhaktupur and Kathmandu. Thank you Raj and Socialtours for a trip of a lifetime!

Review for Nepal trip from13th February - 19th February
This was my first short trip to Nepal.
On the first day that I touched Nepal, my tour planner Kripa, Jeevan, driver Narayan, welcome me at the airport, Jeevan such a meticulous person, he quickly open a bottle of mineral water and pass it to me. Arrangement to meet Amanda, my tour guide Pratikshya, make me feel warm welcome to visit Nepal.

1st & 2nd day, stayed at The Inn Patan, an old traditional brick and timber Newari house transformed into a beautiful heritage hotel and interesting olden way to lock the door of the room. If it was not in winter time, it should be a very comfortable lying on the floor mat. Besides the building attracted me wanted to come back to stay in this hotel again was the service provided by the waiter here, his name Sam and also the great food provided by the chef.

One thing must try in Patan here was the mountain flight and I was quite lucky to be able to take the flight and view the long waited, charming Mt Everest and panoramic view of the Himalayas.
I like greenery and mountains, though can't stay near to Mt Everest but thank you for the arrangement to Astam, Annapurna Eco Village, it was a very beautiful place eventhough has to go thru a very bumpy road but worth for it. Along the way, you can see the magnificent views of Annapurna Range and Fishtail (Machhapuchhere). I like the warm, authentic and hospitality, I like the feeling of whole family involvement in preparing the food, sharing the joy, singing & dancing which left me a memorable experience. Hope can stay longer and try the yoga and meditation in future visit.

I think it is not an good idea to leave Astam at noon, because have to miss the delicious lunch and upon reaching Pokhara after the normal lunch time.... Self exploration of the Lakeside town also not suitable for person like me whom don't like the heat and dust under the sunny afternoon.
Back from Pokhara to Kathmandu, meet another driver, Arjun. He was quiet but with wonderful smile. You will feel safe with his skillful driving along up to hilltop. Another place that I love - Namobuddha, Pratikshya arranged to have short walk and climb some staircases was a great way to explore Namobuddha, if the sky is clear, I can imagine the great view from the top however Nepal wanted me to go back therefore still left some mystery (foggy weather).

Besides scenery and rich culture, Kathmandu also has nice local food and snack waiting to explore, thanks Pratiksya recommendation. That I have chance to meet the member of Vespa Valley. Caring and friendly, Niraj, he brought me to taste the nice local Lasi, "laughing", meat momo, Newari food, samosa......the one that I love most -> Lasi, Bara?. Hope can try more and explore some other places by scooter ride.

Last, I would like to thank Kripa who planned the trip for me though I gave her a short notice for solo lady traveler like me, warm and caring call during flight delay at Pokhara and arrangement for hotel extension on my last day in Nepal because of late flight. Besides Kripa, someone whom I will not forget Jeevan, thank you for coming to say good bye.
Hope to see you guys in future visit.

Wow, what a fantastic trip. Thank you to everyone on the Kim Kim team. The trip was wonderful from beginning to end. Ngima Dorji Sherpa did not disappoint. He was there to make sure all the connections were flawlessly made. Our guide Lhakpa Chhetar Sherpa was fantastic. I described him as the mother you love dearly, taking care and looking after me every steep of the way. Our porter Nawn Pasang Sherpa was a true honor to have on the trek. We were traveling with a rock star, Pasang has made the summit of Everest 6 times. We fell in love with them both and feel blessed they were on the journey with us.
Chitwan was also fantastic. And again we fell in love with our guide Aasha Ram Chaudhary. He was able to get us safely close to the wildlife in the jungle. Aasha is also a birding expert and has a amazing ability to spot and identify wildlife in the air, trees, ground and water. The staff at Chitwan Adventure Resort Were great, warm and welcoming.
My bottom line, I would do this trip over again in a flash
Wayne Poplinski
01/31/2018

We had the experience of a lifetime with 2 teenagers.
Chhring and the porters Kobe and Kancha deserve a special mention for their empathy when we were feeling under the weather and their changes to the trek which made the trek more suitable to our needs. When there was any issue Raj , Surendra , Mads and Chhiring could not have been more accommodating. Thank you Chhiring!
The trek was everything we could have hoped for and I am coming back to do another one once I am fitter and will be using your team!
The team are superb, we are old hippies working at home so needed the basic structure, the rest we wanted independence. The team did this and more and we will use them again.
Tansen Srinagar Hotel had the best food we have had. The Chef and owner obviously seemed to enjoy it. My only regret was that I was not able to enjoy the spectacular wine list as I was on Flagyl Without Mads and the team we would never have heard about this place.
Lumbini should be on peoples list. Driving around Ankor Wat was the same as driving around here the difference is the 35 Temples are all working with Monks in them. It is vast. We stayed at the Buddha Maya Hotel and enjoyed the luxury.
Chitwan had a good game drive.
Hiring a vehicle with a driver when there are 4 of you is cost effective and so pleasant as we got to know the drivers and would use them again.
We have not had so much family time and wish we were still there.

I have recently done the Annapurna Base Camp trek. From my first contact with Ngima it was so easy to arrange and Ngima answered all my questions promptly and helpfully and made the whole booking experience so problem free. The trek was everything I had hoped for and more, we were blessed with glorious weather throughout and reaching Base Camp at sunrise was a truly memorable experience. I was travelling with my son (I am 65 and my son 29) and our wonderful guide Pemba was so professional, caring and fun to be with, and very interesting explaining to us about the local life and region. He was also so supportive to me while I struggled with what seemed like endless steps to climb on some days! He coped and understood so well the differences in age and ability between my son and myself and I was so thrilled to make it to Base Camp. Our porter Pasang was also a joy, never seemed to stop smiling despite having to carry our —-hopefully not too heavy —load. I cannot recommend both of them highly enough. My one bit of advice would be—-take more cash than you think you need on the trek—-EVERYTHING is extra, drinks, snacks , loo roll, phone charging, internet when available, showers, drinking water, etc and it really mounts up .
A huge thank you to Ngima and his team, a truly wonderful experience. We were sorry to leave.

To be honest, we put a lot of trust in Kimkim as we weren't paying a great deal of attention to the finer details prior to heading OS. So in reality, it could have all gone very poorly!

Luckily for us our faith and confidence in the service was not misguided and we had a great time. Being unfamiliar with a place like Nepal can be very daunting when it comes to planning a hike / trek so we appreciated the insight and experience offered by kimkim. I would also recommend the specific hike we went on for beginners; it's low altitude and not too rough with regard to physical capability (climbing lots of steep stairs etc!). I imagine that experienced hikers could cover this distance and climb in around 2days if they were rushing it but the additional time was welcomed so we could enjoy each location and also have some rest.

We had opted for a more budget option with regard to accomodation and even then, the places we stayed were quite good. We had 4 nights in the below locations:
-Guest house in Dhulikhel; Amazing roof top view of the valley and mountains but the room was very cold and the shower cold. Beers were 600 NPR each.
-The Monastery was an overall highlight and had a superb hot shower! (it takes some working out as there are several taps which feed into the shower tap.. you'll work it out!. We had dinner and breakfast with the monks and they also had a little cafe for coffee, tea and other extras you might want. Surprisingly, there was secure and very good quality wifi throughout the location (cost 30NPR per day) no beers here of course!
-The Balthali Guest House was also very good. We had a relaxing afternoon with a few beers on the roof in the sun and then enjoyed getting amongst the local ladies to strip the dried corn for a couple of hours. The farm fresh and local food was excellent and we may have had a few too many local Rum's before bed.
-The homestay in Panauti was cool, we very much enjoyed the cooking class and the guided tour of the town. It was super cold here and the evening fire was very welcomed! The hot shower greatly appreciated before our long flights back top Australia.
All in all the trip was great fun, was well organised and our guide was great, thanks Ļāmā Ťãmãņğ Đāwâ !

Returned about a week ago, from a wonderful experience in Nepal that will be in my heart forever. After discussing my winter trekking options with Ngima Dorji Sherpa, the owner of Nepal Myths and Mountain Trails, I decided on the Khopra Danda Trek. Every day was amazing! I was greeted at Kathmandu Airport by Tashi, Ngima's son and began my trek the following morning.

This was a solo trek for me, and I was accompanied by two outstanding people, my guide Gelu and my porter Lakpa. They made sure every day was perfect! While every day on the trail had beautiful views, the top of Khopra Danda is breathtaking. I cherish my time in Nepal! When it was time to fly back to the States, I was met earlier at my hotel by Ngima and escorted to the airport.
It was an amazing trek from teahouse to teahouse, and a great experience for me. I truly did not want to leave.

The trek was amazing. The views were spectacular and those in my group were really friendly. Ngima was an excellent guide, open to suggestions while also keeping us on a good schedule. The teahouses/lodges we stayed at were better than expected. The Poon Hill sunrise hike and our stay in the village of Ghandruk were the most memorable parts but, all in all, we made a good amount of memories and friends throughout the trek!

8 days tour Nepal Chitwan and Kathmandu Valley trekking - Kimkim organized a couple of fantastic tours for us whilst we were in Nepal. They ensured we were fully prepared and had all information at hand to prepare for out trip. Whilst there they ensured the local tour company took care of us and organised eveything during our trips whilst remaining adaptable if thing needed to be changed. We asked for a few specific things during the tours and kimkim made sure they were absolutely catered for. This is the first time used Kimkim and we will definitey use them for our next long haul family trip to South America (Ecaudor and Peru).

I could not have asked for a better experience! Mads arranged a perfect 6 day trek for me on short notice and it was absolutely perfect. All details were taken care of and he was extremely responsive and helpful. The entire team I interacted with were amazing, and the guide they paired me with could not have been more helpful and knowledgeable. The entire experience was amazing and one which I can't wait to repeat for a longer period of time. When I do, I'll definitely use Mads again - the service and experience I received were exemplary.

When Dimple and I first made our booking we had so many reservations about taking our two boys (9yrs and 5yrs) on a trekking adventure in Nepal. Both have grown up in Singapore and never been on any long walks nor seen that much of the developing world. With so many questions going through our head, being able to reach out to Ngima and the staff at Kim Kim in preparation for our trip, was just ideal. We were able to ask questions and get answers pretty much around the clock - everyone was so responsive.
The trek itself was everything we wanted it to be. Some of it was incredibly challenging for the children - especially the night climb to see the sunrise at Poonhill - in hindsight, I think we might have done better to have opted out of the night hike to let the boys recover from the previous day's exertions. In any case, Ngima and his team, took everything in their stride - including being so patient with our boys and then ensuring that they were safe throughout. In fact, I don't think I remember a time when the boys didn't have a chaperone during any part of the trek - and when they were ever too tired or not quite up to it, the porters would haul them on to their backs and help them along. The boys struck up a really nice friendship with the team and really enjoyed themselves.
So, all in all, it was a fantastic trip and a fantastic experience. Thank you Kim Kim - all of us can't wait to return for another circuit!
Dipak, Dimple and our two boys: Ishaan and Zayan
X

The trek was amazing! What was even more amazing was my guide. I was quite ill on the first day - but Parbati was so understanding and patient with me from the outset and made sure I was at ease. On the second and third days, she pushed me to do better than I thought I could and I really appreciated this. The greatest part was that towards the end she was less of my guide and more of my friend whilst still maintaining a professional and courteous relationship. Hats off to her and the Social tours team for providing such an incredible experience for me!!

We were a family group of three people with 15 days in Nepal. Based on our own research and in-put from Mads we selected the Nar/Phu trek.
We had a wonderful trip that completely lived up to our best expectations.
The process of selecting a trek and booking our holiday was highly efficient and very flexible. Responses to any questions were received rapidly.
Our guide (Cheeri) and two porters were outstanding and are highly recommended. Cheeri was true to his name and clearly a very experienced guide. He made good arrangements for our transport and accommodation. He quickly recognized the abilities and requirements of our group and adapted to us.
My only minor criticisms were:
Travelling from Kathmandu to the tart of the trek in one day (6 hours minibus and 6-7 hours jeep) was really too much on our second day in Nepal. The first two days of trekking following this were long days with significant altitude gain so I would recommend taking more time to reach the start of the trek if time permits.
We expected to meet someone from the trekking company along with the guide in Kathmandu. The guide travelled 15km for this meeting clearly expecting a rep to join us. When contacted by phone she informed him she would not be attending.
The villages of Nar and Phu were fascinating so I would try to have a rest day in each again time permitting.

In summary I would recommend KiMKim for organizing your trek, particularly if you have limited time for your holiday.

We had an extraordinary trip, including amazing cultural and architectural experiences as well as a day of rafting and a multi-day trek.
Mads worked with us for months to set up itineraries for the various members of our four person group , since we had different arrival dates and did not always travel together. He arranged a wonderful visit to Bhutan for one of our group while the others did the Poon Hill trek. We loved the traffic-free stay in Bandipur, also the medieval cities Bhaktapur and Patan (although they suffered a lot of damage from the 2015 earthquake ). Some of our greatest memories are visiting the Kumari in Patan, the ghats near Kathmandu, and Baba Guru as he welcomed and blessed us.
And of course there was the gondola ride up to Manakamana where chickens and goats rode along on their way to be sacrificed at the temple.
Amanda and Suman provided exceptional support in Nepal. Suman ( also known to us as Super-man and Suman the Magnificent) was knowledgeable, informative, and always helpful, along with being a fun travel partner/guide. Our porters on the trek, Suman (the Second) and Manos,
worked very hard and always seemed to be smiling as they helped make our trek memorable and fun.

Our transfers were always smooth and on time; we never had to worry about whether we would make a connection or get to our hotel. We found the entire Himalayan Trails and kimkim group to be responsive and creative in making our visit to Nepal absolutely wonderful!

Wow! Where do I begin?

My wife and I were a little short of time, having only around 8 days in Nepal but not wanting to miss out on the full Nepal experience; namely trekking, Himalayan views and the fascinating culture that the country has to offer.

Mads was immediately able to assist and his expertise and quick response time made it very easy to quickly establish how we could maximise our short time in Nepal. His obvious knowledge and experience was a reassurance in itself that we would be making the most of our limited time.

Under Mad's recommendation, we opted for the 5 day Solu Trek and this did not disappoint. It combined our request for Sherpa culture, Buddhist monasteries and of course, the humbling views of Mount Everest itself.

Amanda provided us with a very warm and friendly welcome when we arrived and took the time to answer all of our queries and concerns as well as making sure we were well equipped and happy with every detail of the trip.

Our guide Tendu was absolutely amazing. His insight into his homeland, his courtesy and his professionalism were first class. His attentiveness to our absolute well being (along with his patience) made the whole experience very special, not to mention him being a thoroughly nice guy.

Our porter Mingmar was also a gent in every way and his service was also of the highest order.

Overall we had an unforgettable experience of Nepal with Himalayan Trails, Mads and his team are obviously doing something right. We got to see a very special and relatively less touristy area of Nepal that offered us everything we could have hoped for and more. Thank you so much to the team for a lifetime of special memories.

The contact with Ngima was very professional. He responded very expeditiously, answered questions, made proposals and showed flexibility.
However, the tour as such left much to be desired.
On the positive side, the team arrived at the hotel before the agreed time.
But then the announced guide was replaced by someone whose name I do not know until today.
This person was sporty, young and knew his way. But there was a communication gap.
I would have expected that at the start the guide provide information likes this:
We drive now xyz hours/ Kilometres to the place abc from where we will hike def kilometres/ hours. Lunch will be at hotel klm.
There could have also been information on the villages we passed, on the cultivation of the plots, on nature, on the local way of life, local food etc., etc.,
None of this information was provided. It was somehow half-mentioned that we would walk 4 to 5 km, in the end it were 11 km, which is quite a difference.
When I asked in Nagakort where we would have lunch, the answer was “somewhere here”. I then suggested the Club Himalaya, which is a kind of reference point for Western tourists. On the way there, the guide all of sudden said that it was still 30 min to walk and suggested some other place. But my GPS showed a distance of 231 m straight line, so I insisted on going to this place which we reached after 5 min.
However, the weakest, almost unbelievable, aspect was the following: The tour price was USD 200. But for this price (hotels in Kathmandu offer the same tour for 50… 70 USD….), there was not even a bottle of water in the car or with the guide. So, I had to get out of my way and buy one (20 Rupees or 20 US cents) in one of the village kiosks on the way.
I have been working for many years in areas related to tourism development in developing countries (in fact, prior to Nepal. I had been in Ethiopia to check out two tourism destinations –Tigray and the Danakil Depression). So I can compare a bit many different experiences. The Nagakort experience was not among the better ones.
Finally, travel agencies make money by selling impressions and emotions. It should therefore be in their interest that the tourist places are in conditions that generate positive impressions and emotions. Nagarkot, particularly the Nagarkot Tower area, urgently needs a clean-up. Littering is so spoiling the place that I left prematurely. Travel agencies, in their own interest, should engage themselves in keeping this place clean and worthwhile a visit.

We had a fantastic time trekking the Manaslu Circuit with Lhakpa (guide) and Pasang (porter/assistant guide). It was our first time trekking in Nepal and Lhakpa and Pasang did everything they could to ensure that we were safe, and enjoyed our time trekking. They are amazing guides and people and we would highly recommend them for anyone planning a trip to Nepal (from beginner to advanced), as they are very experienced, highly skilled, and knowledgable. Ngima was also excellent to communicate with to book and arrange the trek. Ngima was always very responsive to our questions and the whole trek was well organised. Bronwen and Wayne.