Lucía Barrios

Planning the trip through KimKim was super easy and efficient. Lucia worked with us beforehand to plan the perfect Nicaragua trip! She was even extraordinarily helpful when there was an issue with the airlines and submitting the covid test on time. She somehow was able to work her magic and contact someone locally to make sure we got on the plane and also when the plane was delayed causing a missed flight was able to accommodate and change our transfer -- all which we would not have been able to do on our own and probably have missed out on the trip! The hotels she booked were awesome as were our guides (particularly Freddy and Oscar!) One thing that could have been better would have been checking in throughout the trip. I felt that once we got to Nicaragua, we did not hear from her as much and she was harder to get in contact with. I have traveled a few times with KimKim in the past and each time, the local specialist had checked in daily to make sure everything was going well and to give the more detailed time/itinerary/packing list/guide info for the next day. This would've been very helpful, and just a nice gesture all around. Even when we sent her a message, she did not respond (we had to call in order to get in touch with her). Aside from this the trip was great!

Thanks Lucia (and everyone else) for such a wonderful vacation.

This trip had to be replanned three times thanks to Covid. But Lucia did it. It was such a great, stress free time. All the transfers were prompt...and when one showed up 9 minutes late (the only one that was the slightest bit late), they sent a message at 9 to let me know the situation.

The tours were all private, which was great for me, because it was booked such a long time ago when my body was in much better shape (again, thanks covid).

Volcano Day sent a guide (Tony) that carried my board up the volcano for me! All of the guides were so welcoming and friendly.

Each hotel had its own charm...but Casa Marimba had cats. Not sure if I mentioned it to Lucia, but cats are my favorite. I might have spent almost as much time petting the cats as I did in the lagoon.

Wonderful trip from a great company that I would highly recommend 😀

Our 3 week self-drive trip through Nicaragua organised by Lucia at the local tour company Vapues through kimkim was excellent and exceeded our expectations. The initial discussions with Lucia about our interests and pace of travel were quickly understood and an appropriate itenery with realistic travel expectations proposed, negotiated, agreed, and most importantly delivered.
Despite our late arrival in Managua, the Vapues staff were there to assist with the 4WD booking and get us off to a quick start. The tours around Leon to Isla Juan Venado, Cerro Negro, and Volcan Telica were brilliantly guided by Alex and of sufficient length to appreciate the places and give us enough free time in Leon to walk around, and climb the cathedral at sunset.
Self-drive to Somoto allowed us the freedom to experience what we wanted to see en route at our pace. If you like rum, Flor de Cana is well worth the trip as are the boiling mud pools. The Cayon de Somoto 6 hr hike was one of the highlights and Noel was a splendid accompanyment for the adventure guiding us through the safe way to jump 12m into the river. The full tour of the canyon is recommended to see the full range of ecosystems including the roosting micro-bats. The surprise 50th birthday celebrations laid on by Vapues and Canyon de Somoto tours were delightful.
Next stop the cloud forest highlands around Jinotega where the varied birdlife, coffee plantations, and different climate were a surprise. The accommodation (Aguas de Arenal and La Bastilla) was very good, relaxing, and attentive with the few number of tourists making it to this area. In self-driving make sure you get detailed instructions as both are remote and not well signposted! An excellent bird watching tour from La Bastilla taken by a top guide seeing some rare specimens including the three-wattled bellbird, toucans, and numerous hummingbirds was not to be missed. The long day trip to the rainbow waterfall in Penas Blancas was slightly disappointing, but the scenery exquisite. Local side trips around Jinotega to the zip-line, lake, and local black pottery are worth the effort.
Granada next is a gorgeous town with more tourists than anywhere else, although still small in number. Fine churches, museum, cafes and nightlife. We stayed at El Respiro slightly out of town, which is luxurious with fine views over Volcan Mombacho and awoken to the sound of howler monkeys. Trips to Volcans Mombacho and Masaya are strongly recommended, particularly the sunset viewing of Masaya with the lava lake a highlight of the trip. Both guides Tiger and Rene added significantly to the experience. If self-driving get clear instructions of meeting places: if stuck the locals are lovely, approachable, and very keen to assist in any way. Additional sunset kayaking trip with William from Inuit Kayaks was excellent and his ability to spot wildlife deserves respect.
Next stop Lago de Apoyo, lovely spot and worth the trip. Birdlife was spectacular at all times of day. Scuba-diving in a crater lake is not the most spectacular in the world, but seeing endemic fish, and fumeroles bubbling underwater is unforgetable.
Ometepe was very different scenery with the twin volcanoes shrouded by cloud and the associated cloud forest. The climb of Maderas was VERY tough 7km each way with an average gradient of 1:5 on rocky muddy paths makes for an 8 hour, physical if rewarding experience, glimpsing views through the atmospheric cloud. Morning birdwatching kayak trip from Playa de Mangoes guided by Alan was brilliant just leisurely drifting through flocks of water birds, Cayman, and turtles. The brief rain showers refreshed and offered a different perspective. The half day walk to Ramon waterfalls is less physical, better views through the forest and the chance to see white faced capuchins as well as howler monkeys. Also spotted paca along the way. Waterfall would be more spectacular in the west, as would the walk in, but the water was refreshing to plunge and feel the force of the tumbling waters.
Next trip from Ometepe to El Castillo was a highlight of organisation by Lucia at Vapues. 4WD dropped on the mainland, transferred smoothly by 4WD to Colon on the SW corner of Lake Nicaragua ( the last 15km very rutted) the location of the 'port' is not really known to the locals! The private boat whisked us 50km to San Carlos via an observation of nesting migratory birds on a small island in the middle of the lake: pink spoonbills, wood storks, osprey...a real unexpected highlight. Then up the Rio San Juan to El Castillo. This trip would be nigh impossible to organise and very grateful to Lucia. The jungle in the Indio Maiz is again very different to the rest of Nicaragua. The walking through the post-cyclonic regenerating area around Rio Bartola is well worth it to see the poison-dart frogs and serenity of the jungle. Our guide Sayla was excellent with plenty insights into Nicaraguan life as well as deep knowledge of the jungle. The experience was compounded with a full-day kayak excursion travelling 20km from El Castillo into jungle less affected by the hurricane 3 years ago. The open nature of the jungle and the spotting skills of Harlem and Orlando were exemplary with the highlights being the spider monkeys and 3m crocodile where we were recently kayaking😁. The night Caymen tour with Sayla was another highlight with red eyes staring back from all points along the banks. Other night creatures added to the enjoyable, educational, and relaxing experience.
During the trip Lucia was always available to give updates to necessary changes in itinerary (such as cancellation of the white-water rafting trip due to lack of water). Any changes were quickly resolved with optional tours offered. The only slight criticism would be the lack of specific detail in some of the activity instructions and expectations for tours. This has got something to do with our independent nature of travelling and my pedantic characteristics, but more detail would have reduced some anxiety along the way. If a simple tour it would have been significantly easier.
Lucia as the sole point of contact throughout the 8 month duration from initial request to completion was appreciated. I would strongly recommend Vapues tours, even mentioning the name 'Vapues' when on the road opened doors in surprisingly places. All the guides, drivers, and contacts we met along the way were professional. The tours perfectly suited our description of what we wanted so definitely 5/5 for an exceptionally memorable trip.

Nicaragua far out weighed our expectations mainly due to Kim Kim. The tour and itinerary were excellent. Thanks Lucia.
Oscar was there to meet us at Managua airport and transfer us to Granada. The tours in and around Granada were great and the highlight for me was the zip lining at Mt Mombacho. That was amazing.

Rene gave us a great tour to Mt Masaya and his knowledge was diverse and enlightening.
Juan the driver was also a happy guy and he transferred us to San Juan del sur.

Sadly San Juan del Sur is suffering since the drop in tourism, so it was a quiet time there.
Rafa then transferred us to the border of Costa Rica (Penas Blancas) and helped us through the Nicaraguan immigration and customs, which we were most grateful for. It is also worth mentioning that the drivers were very safe which we appreciated.

Thanks again to Kim Kim

My trip to Nicaragua was outstanding and in large part due to Lucia. She was perfect from my initial research into Nicaragua until my last day of the trip. I told her how many days I wanted to travel, the things I like to do and the accommodations I prefer. She sent me a very detailed itinerary and it was everything I wanted to do. Her communication was clear and she always answered my emails right away. Once I got to Nicaragua - everything was always easy. Drivers were always on time, tour guides were knowledgeable and each guided tour was fascinating. I spent time in León, Granada, Ometepe Island and San Juan del Sur - always getting a safe ride from place to place. My guides for each on of the adventures all spoke English and were a wealth of information about the culture, history, flora and fauna of Nicaragua. I hiked up Madera Volcano and lost my guide on the way down (totally my fault - I went ahead and took a wrong turn) - I called Lucia from the trail, have her my google map pin of where I was (her idea) and eventually got back with my guide. She was on top of everything and it made my trip to Nicaragua one I will never forget.