Christine Mayol

From our earliest interview with Kim Kim, we felt heard and were accommodated throughout. We always received prompt replies to all our questions from Christine over several months of planning and while in Japan. Our accommodations were convenient, comfortable and of high quality. Our booked activities were exceptional. Our guides were knowledgeable, prompt and flexible. We wholeheartedly recommend working with Kim Kim on your next adventure.

Activity Reviews

14-Day Ordinary JR Pass

Japan

This is a must for any foreign traveler. The mass transit system is pretty amazing and the JR pass provides easy access without having to figure out tickets and fares.

Quality of Experience

Sumo Tournament

Tokyo

A one in a lifetime experience! Just magnificent to attend the Grand Sumo Tournament thanks to Kim Kim.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Toyosu Fish/Tsukiji Market Food Tour

Tokyo

Great sites and food! A bustling indoor/outdoor market.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Arashiyama & Kyoto Landscape Views

Kyoto

We visited in the rain but it didn’t dampen our amazement of this beautiful park.

Quality of Experience

One of our dream destinations to visit was Japan, and the whole experience booking with kimkim was great! From the planning phase, Christine was able to grasp our needs quickly and was able to make all the adjustments we were looking for our 16 day long trip. The activities booked (shout out to the Osaka food tour and the Kyoto tea ceremony) were very memorable and the accomodations (shout out the the Ryokans on the Nakasendo trail) were also great! During the trip, Christine was also available to answer our questions and get us a functioning pocket wifi devices quickly after we received a faulty one upon our arrival. All in all, our trip was simply amazing.

Hotel Reviews

Sotetsu Fresa Inn Daimon

Tokyo

Good breakfast and helpful staff.

Authenticity & Character

Relatively basic hotel, but the japanese breakfast buffet was delicious !

Location

Even if Minato City is not as vibrant is Shibuya or Shinjuku, it's close to transportation (and Tokyo Tower as well).

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Super clean, rooms a little small for western standards, but totally ok for Japan.

Wayfarer Hotel Kyoto Shijo

Kyoto

Nice little hotel, the tatami room was nice and comfy for 4 people.

Authenticity & Character

Tatami room was pretty nice ! Bathroom a little small for 4 people.

Location

Close to the subway stations and buses

Staff

Very friendly

Cleanliness & Comfort

The futons were very comfortable!

Kinosaki Yamamotoya

Awesome Ryokan with a lot of character and good japanese breakfast.

Authenticity & Character

Alot of 60-70s vibes with old-school japanese charm.

Location

Great location in Kinosaki, close to everything.

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Very clean, but futons were not the most comfortable.

Ibis Osaka Umeda

Osaka

Authenticity & Character

Typical hotel, not much character.

Location

Super close to the subway, well located in Umeda.

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Comfy beds!

Sanco Inn Nagoya Shinkansenguchi

Nagoya

Nothing fancy, but clean and well located.

Authenticity & Character

Nothing remarkable

Location

Directly in front of Nagoya station

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Windows were facing another building, so no natural light in the room. Besides that the room was comfortable.

Kisoji-inn Daikichi

Nagano

Awesome Ryokan, staff super friendly and one of the best meals of our whole trip.

Authenticity & Character

Very authentic and amazing food.

Location

Very cute location in Tsumago

Staff

Super friendly and welcoming

Cleanliness & Comfort

Kaidou Roman Onyado Tsutaya

Kiso

Authenticity & Character

A little more "hotel" vibes, but still very nice.

Location

A little far by foot from the station, but still well located.

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Very nice outdoor Onsen bath.

Ryokan Echigoya

We had the Ryokan to ourselves, it had a ton of Edo japense charm. Our host was amazing, the food was delicious, the room was comfy and beautiful and the overall experience was exactly what we were looking for in a Ryokan.

Authenticity & Character

Old building with a ton of character and authenticity

Location

Directly in the middle of Narai's main street.

Staff

Yutaka-san was an amazing host.

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Arrive in Tokyo - Train to Tokyo Station

Tokyo

It was nice to have a greeter help us buy our IC cards and bring us to the train, but she seemed in a rush and we were expecting to have our wifi devices atthe airport, which would have helped us find our hotel faster.

Quality of Experience

We were expecting pocket wifi and passes upon arrival, which weew at the hotel. Thus, getting the hotel was not the easiest

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Our greeter was nice but a little in a rush.

Transport

We made it, but instructions could have been a little more detailed.

Tea ceremony and see shrine, temples

Kyoto

This review will only be regarding the Tea ceremony in Kyoto (Maikoya). It was really fun, relaxing and authentic!

Quality of Experience

We got to wear kinomo/yukata, the tea was good, awesome experience!

Guides, Drivers and Staff

The staff was very insightful and nice !

Day trip to Nara and Uji

Kyoto

We didn't have a chance to stop in Uji, but even though it eas raining, we had a great time in Nara!

Quality of Experience

Visit Kinosaki Onsen

Kyoto

It was very nice being able to visit and use mutiple onsens.

Quality of Experience

The onsens were so nice and relaxing!

Welcome to Osaka

Osaka

One of the best nights of our trips, we ate and drank to our hearts content! We hung out with some locals, tasted delicious food and even went down a slide !

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Big shout out to Levy!

Magome to Tsumago

Japan

The hike was great, going through small towns and the country side! We saw watermills, water falls and awesome forest and mountain landscapes. The tea house on the way was really cool and the trail was well indicated.

Quality of Experience

Yabuhara to Narai Hike

Japan

Awesome little hike, nice fews atop the moutain in Yabuhara and very nice forest landscapes. Narai is probably the nicest post town we visited!

Quality of Experience

Exploring the Facades of Tokyo

Tokyo

Tokyo Departure

Japan

Not an actual activity, but we were very sad having to leaving Japan :( But we left with a ton of awesome memories!

The trip went smoothly and the bookings and recommendations aligned with our vision of the trip and were extremely enjoyable. I found it not always clear what was included and what wasn’t, but once I did, I had no issues.

Christine did an amazing job and was very responsive to all our questions during the trip. Koyasan was a great suggestion that I would not have thought of and I loved it.

Japan is an amazing country! We really loved our trip there! I'm so glad we had KimKim to help us plan a lot of the logistics, book, lodging, and make recommendations for experiences. I really loved all of the hotels that we stayed at. And the sushi making class that we did, renting kimonos in Kyoto, as well as staying in Hakone to experience natural hot springs. Christine also made reservations for us at an incredible restaurant called Nadaman which was a 5 star meal. The one thing I would have loved more of is more recommendations for restaurants and places to eat. We understood that a lot of restaurants were already booked up for Golden Week, and that reservations were not always possible. However, it would have been great to have a list of a few casual, walk-in type of restaurants/eating establishments that we could check out. We did have to do a bit of our own research, which is fine, but some guiding parameters from KimKim would have been really great. We were expecting a little more help and guidance with where to eat, which was really important for us as travelers!

Our specialist travel advisor Christine, started planning our trip from a blank slate…. we really didn't know what we wanted to do or see. We had limited days between other pre booked legs of our round the world trip, so a custom itinerary made more sense. We also wanted to travel independently rather than in a group. Christine made this all possible. She made several suggestions which together, we fine tuned, and within a couple of days of emails back and forth we had a firm plan.

The plan included Tokyo, Kyoto and Harkone.

The plan included Japan Rail Pass for our major travel requirements, all hotel bookings, a greeter on arrival at the airport who set us up with pocket wifi, which was invaluable for finding our way in a new country, Our greeter further helped us on our way through the crush of the start of a major public holiday.

Christine made suggestions for what to see in each city and to finish off a wonderfull adventure, a driver to whisk us back to the airport on the day of our departure.

The Hotels Christine booked for us were each of high quality and close to our arrival point in each city, in most cases right at the train station which made traveling by train with luggage so easy.

In summary Kim Kim and Christine made our dream come true.

This trip was organized by my daughter with KimKim. I enjoyed the trip thoroughly and I sense the joy and opening up from my family members as well. The trip brought us to Osaka, Kyoto, Nara and Tokyo to experience the different aspects of Japan. The Osaka city life and food, the religious and cultural aspects, the hotspring and nature (flowers, parks, mountains), the complex efficient transport network, unforgettable crammed hotel rooms, the demeanor of Japanese, the theme parks and Japan commercial products. There is also the interesting spring weather to experience in different locations from cold street weathers, gale in the mountain top, icy cold in Mount Fuji, beautiful sunset in a cherry blossom village Oshino Hakkai. The personal local guide and local transport driver add a touch of freedom and enjoy and experience Japan in a deeper manner. It seems to be costlier compared to the Japan trips made by others but the ability to experience so much in a 10 day trip make this a wonderful trip for me.

Not everything was perfect. Example, the driver came 30mins earlier than expected; the local guide detail was provided a little late than what we would be comfortable; an easier way to understand the complex Japan transport system which to be frank I doubt is very very hard. I like to think the imperfectness is what spices up also the trip in a different manner.

This is the second time I used KimKim for my family holiday. Kudos to them, I am glad to say that they have again done a nice trip for me and my family.

Amazing travel experience with KimKim.

I would like to pay extra thanks to our travel agent Christine. She is knowledgeable and approachable. She helped putting the trip together with us and booked all the necessary items.

During the trip, she went above and beyond to help us confirm reservations and help with issues came up along the trip such as luggage shipping. I cannot recommend KimKim more. Defintely using KimKim on my next trip to Japan.

We had another wonderful trip thanks to KimKim!
Christine helped organize our Japan adventure. She was kind, patient, and detail-oriented! She made sure to get to know our family and our interests and budget. She arranged for an outstanding itinerary that was perfect for our family!

During the trip, she was available for questions and logistical issues that arose along the way. She was responsive and handled everything gracefully and efficiently. We were so pleased with our experience! We can't wait for our next family vacation with KimKim!