Go to Mexico City and book your trip through kimkim and Rutopia! Only positive feedback for our experience booking a 10 day trip in Mexico City and Puebla/Cholula. Our drivers were prompt (early, usually!), our guides were knowledgeable and friendly, and our accommodations were wonderful. I really appreciated that in the planning stages, Sofie was willing to make any change I requested - we went through 8 different itineraries until it was the perfect trip for my husband and me. Mexico City...
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Go to Mexico City and book your trip through kimkim and Rutopia! Only positive feedback for our experience booking a 10 day trip in Mexico City and Puebla/Cholula. Our drivers were prompt (early, usually!), our guides were knowledgeable and friendly, and our accommodations were wonderful. I really appreciated that in the planning stages, Sofie was willing to make any change I requested - we went through 8 different itineraries until it was the perfect trip for my husband and me. Mexico City is a beautiful, cosmpolitan city with so much to see, learn, do and eat!
Special recognition to our fantastic guides: Emiliano, Mary and Pablo in Mexico City, Eloy in Teotihuacan and Guadalupe (Lupita!) and Maria in Cholula and Puebla. Guadalupe especially went above and beyond by going way over our allotted time by taking us personally to two can't-miss churches in Cholula. The tours were mostly private and the guides were flexible, personable and generous with their time. The "souvenir stops" on some of these tours (which I generally tolerate as part of the deal but mostly dislike) were much less of a hard sell than on other trips I have taken in the past, and some were even pleasant. The vendors were informative but not at all aggressive and there were several tours that didn't include them at all, like our excursion to Xochimilco and our mural walk with Emiliano. We also appreciated the clear and attentive communication from Lizbeth as we were on our trip. She checked in daily to see how we were faring and reminded us of any logistics for the next day.
We had friends over last night and I highly recommended this service to them for planning their next vacation abroad and intend to be repeat customers.
Hotel Reviews
Casa Mali by Dominion
Mexico City
Spotless, friendly and perfectly located, Casa Mali is a great option for staying in Mexico City.
Location
Directly across of Parque Mexico in Condesa, there are lots of restaurants right in the vicinity and feels very safe and lively.
Hotel Casa Eva
Colonia San Pedro Cholula, Puebla
A great location in Cholula with a lovely, helpful staff and a delicious breakfast. The only feedback I would mention is that the room itself lacked amenties that are standard in other hotels - no coffee maker in the room (although you can ask the staff to bring you coffee anytime), no hairdryer in the room (again, ask the staff), no filtered water dispenser in the public areas, no mini-fridge, etc. With that said, this is a charming, spotless hotel with staff dedicated to providing excellent service. Thanks especially to Tomas who was attentive and kind and responsive to any request.
Activity Reviews
A Walk among Murals: Exploring the History and Legacy of Mexican Muralists
Mexico City
Emiliano is a knowledgeable and personable guide with a deep understanding of the significance of each mural and the symbols and references in each one. Our entire trip was enriched by this tour, as we were able to connect what we learned on the tour with other things we saw in Mexico City.
Guides, Drivers and Staff
Transport
Our driver was attentive and communicative. Thank you Alan!
Be amazed by the pre-hispanic beauty of the chinampas in Xochimilco
Mexico City
We did an ecological tour of the chinampas of Xochimilco and the tranquil setting was a perfect reset towards the end of our trip to CDMX, as our legs, bodies and brains were tired from all the stimulation and walking. We relaxed on the boat and observed birds and the environment unfold around us. Mary and Rosalva were informative and personable, but allowed time for silent reflection and simple enjoyment, which I really appreciated.
When we visited the farm, it was wonderful to see all the products that were growing and to pick fresh peppers, tomatoes, flowers and herbs and enjoy them all right there.
Guides, Drivers and Staff
See Teotihuacan by Hot Air Balloon
Mexico
If you are wondering if it is worth it, YES! It is worth waking up at 4am! It is worth the price! It is worth the feeling of doubt and the little bit of anxiousness. We felt completely safe and totally at peace floating above the pyramids of Teotihuacan at sunrise and the operation that ran it - Volar en Balon - was completely professional and capable.
Be aware that the instructions on the balloon are issued in Spanish. A fellow passenger translated for us and made sure we knew how to absorb the landing safely, but I would recommend the operator make sure that all passengers are informed of the safety instructions.
Quality of Experience
One thing
Food
The food was fine but the service at Volar en Balon could be improved. We were kind of ignored for the duration of our breakfast, coffee not refilled, requests not fulfilled, etc, even when we tried to politely flag down our server.
Guides, Drivers and Staff
Private walking tour of Teotihuacan "The City of the Gods"
Mexico City
Truly worthwhile to take a knowledgeable guide on this outing to learn about the architecture and history of this archeological site. Less walking than I anticipated.
Food
Nice meal with great friendly service.
Guides, Drivers and Staff
Eloy and Omar are wonderful guides. Eloy is personable and very knowledgeable. I appreciated how he brought his own life experiences into our tour.
Transport
The roads in Teotihuacan are quite bumpy but Omar was a gentle and careful driver. Thank you Omar!
Between markets and corn in the magical town of Cholula
Mexico
So highly recommended to stroll around the market and the quaint town of Cholula with a lovely guide like Guadalupe. She offered all kinds of things for us to sample and was an excellent, friendly and warm translator. There is a lot of walking on this tour, including a lot of uphill and steps, but totally worth it. Guadalupe let us take our time and made frequent stops to catch our breath and take cute photos along the way. I learned more in the 6 hours I spent with Guadalupe than I ever expected. She is a gem!
We also loved the experience of visiting the maiz restaurant. The owners (I forget their names - sorry!) were so friendly and I loved how they warmly and patiently giggled at a couple of Americans clumsily preparing corn tortillas the traditional way. The food they served was fantastic as well. It is a really fun way to spend a little time in Cholula.
Food
We loved trying lots of things in the market and the lunch at the maiz restaurant was simple but exquisite.
Guides, Drivers and Staff
Guadalupe went well beyond her brief by taking us to two stunning churches that were not on the itinerary. We asked for her to maybe translate with an Uber driver so we could do independently, and instead, she chose to take us herself. We are so grateful because we got so much more out of our visit than we could ever have without her.
Gastronomic tour in Puebla
Puebla
Come hungry because you will try all the amazing street food to be had in Puebla. Molotes, tacos arabes, pan de muerto, coffee with Mexican chocolate and more are all on the menu. There is more deliciousness in four blocks of Puebla than you can imagine, and it is well worth it to have a knowledgeable guide to take you to all the best places and make suggestions.
Guides, Drivers and Staff
I cannot say enough about Maria. She is so knowledgeable and friendly and was an absolute delight to spend the day wandering about and eating. Gracias, amiga!
Local specialist: Sofia Durand
