Espíritu Travel

We just returned from a fabulous trip thru Southern Spain planned by KimKim. Marta was our travel specialists and she did a wonderful job.

Itinerary--Malaga-Granada-Ronda-Seville
Had tickets for the Picasso museum in Malaga, which is far better than the Picasso Museum in Barcelona. Tickets were wonderful as we walked right in past a very long line of people waiting who had not purchased pre-timed tickets. Stayed at the Only You Hotel. Hopping place with very lively bar.

Granada was our favority city. Very walkable. Stayed at AC Marriot Palace, centrally located by the University. Marta arranged a flamenco show in Sacremonte, which is not to be missed. Daytime tour of the Alhambra with our guide Marta was fantastic.

Travelled to Ronda via private car. Although countryside was beautiful, it rained most of the way.

Our hotel in Seville was amazing--the Palacio Villapanes, an SLH hotel. The bathroom was luxurious and my daughter appreciated the full soaking tub.
Took a walking tour of the Triano market with cooking class--made paella from scratch. That was also one of the highlights of our visit.

We never needed to use the emergency phone # as every single driver, transfer, guide, ticket etc were expertly arranged in advance by our agent. Hassle free vacation. Loved it.

Our guide for the Sintra hike was spectacular! He went above and beyond to educate us on the history, to customize the day to what we wanted, and took pictures for us.
Anytime we needed to contact our support team, we revived timely responses that solved the issue. Having the app with the itinerary was also very handy. We had the best week :)

Activity Review

Sintra Heritage Hike: Hidden Secrets

Portugal

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Our guide went above and beyond to ensure we enjoyed the day!

Transport

I can't mention specific guides by names because they were only listed on the Trip Plans app which apparently deletes the trip after our return. That's unfortunate--I really found this app so helpful while we were traveling--very easy and clear organization, easy to locate tickets, maps to hotels, suggestions, etc.

Marta did an amazing job of planning the trip taking into account our preferences! She was quick to respond, answered all of our questions, and provided good advice. The hotels were all terrific and had wonderful locations. When one of our trains was cancelled, we were promptly notified and rebooked seamlessly--much appreciated!

The private guides that were arranged were all wonderful--prompt, knowledgeable, engaging, and passionate about their cities. The only one that was disappointing was the Seville tour which was supposed to be a small tour of 8 and was a tour group of 25. It also just covered the Cathedral and the Alcazar, not allowing for seeing much else of Seville.

One suggestion--it might be helpful in arranging tours to consider if participants are 65+. While we were waiting in a very long line at the Reina Sofia Museum with our tickets in hand, we learned that for people 65+, you could skip the line and get admitted for free!

Overall, the services provided by KimKim were terrific! Thank you so much!

Our trip to Rome was perfect. I worked with Rita on the itinerary and would work with Rita again. The accommodations and tours were fantastic.

First I want to thank Raquel for planning this wonderful trip, everything went as planned. It was beyond our expectation. Very organized, sites are fantastic, the best! The hotels are superb within walking distance to anywhere. We were also able to experience to dine at a Michelin restaurant which is one block from our hotel in Madrid. The guides were amazing, very friendly, knowledgeable. Amara in m Madrid for the tapas tour, Gaza very informative, and helpful, Rocio in Alhambra knowledgeable as well. And of course Ramon who took us to El Caminito del del Rey which I been dreaming of hiking! We rate this trip 10 out of 10. Really fantastic, we are very satisfied.

Hotel Review

NH Málaga

Málaga

Beautiful modern, close to everything we need to be.

Authenticity & Character

Modern

Location

Location

Staff

made us feel welcome! Very nice, helpful!

Cleanliness & Comfort

Everything

Activity Reviews

Guided Visit of Alhambra & Generalife Gardens

Spain

Tapas Culinary Experience

Madrid

The food & drinks are all delicious very authentic

Quality of Experience

Food choice!

Food

I like them all!

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Amara is very informative and interacts well with us!

Transport

We took the metro from our hotel, easy and quick with some walking which is fine.

Guided Visit of Madrid: History, Culture & Architecture of the Capital of Spain

Madrid

Flamenco Show in an Andalusian Patio

Granada

Private Transfer {{start_location}} to {{end_location}}, Hike the Caminito del Rey

Spain

Experience of a lifetime! If you like hiking, this is unique.

Free Day to Explore Málaga

Málaga

Nice to walk around the city. Lots to explore. Again food are excellent

Booking a trip via a travel agent is something new to us as we’ve been the type who like to book flights and hotels only and keep the day flexible.
Boy was I glad I gave kimkim a try mainly because:
- it’s a bit last minute and I didn’t have a lot of time to do research
- we have a teenager son and it’s getting to a point where a successful trip means letting him bring a friend along (which tend to be super hard to coordinate a multi-family trip), or involving more local guides and planned activities so I can delegate shepherding him along to the tour guides
- I was also hoping he can practice the Spanish he learned in school in a safe space 1:1 with a local guide on private tours.

- Helena and team took care of all the hotel and train bookings saving me a lot of hassle entering passport info and lining up train and hotel logistics
- Helena was able to recommend activities based on our interests and timing of arrival, as well as lead time for heading to train stations and airport which was super helpful (googlemap timings doesn’t take into account for time for getting lost/not knowing exactly where to turn/going through security etc)

Helena went through iterations of planning and also identified a bug in the system with pricing (I got a little suspicious when updating the itinerary didn’t change the price) and got everything resolved in a timely fashion.

We are super happy with the cooking class (the food was some of the best we has while in Spain! And the guide to the market took a lot of stress out which stall to pick to get our shopping done!)

Our next favorite was our Seville tour, our guide was superb exposing us not only to history and architecture, but also fun facts and hidden gems. She’s also a great listener and made helpful recommendations from dining to shopping.

I am so glad Helena recommended the Segovia tour (such a dreamy historical town!) and our tour guides was very knowledgeable.

Our Madrid local guide was awesome trying to speak a little Spanish slowly with my son, and gave us recommendations which areas he wouldn’t recommend for tourists and where to eat if we want the local experience.

It was also helpful the espiritu local agents checked in with us during the trip and was super responsive when we had questions, even on a Saturday!

Highly recommend if you want to pamper yourself saving time on research/comparing tour options and pricing, yet still want a tailored experience (instead of big group bus tours where you are just rushed along).

Hotel Review

7 Islas Hotel

Madrid

Location was perfect in a trendy area, yet still close to a lot of the tourist activities as well as museums and Retiro park. Staff was courteous and helpful, and breakfast variety was great. I took off one star mainly because of: 1) the hotel should really invest in renovating the bathrooms to include ventilation- otherwise the steam and smell is just permanently trapped which wasn’t pleasant 2) if you are staying on a Fri or Sat night the noise from nearby bars at night can be quite loud.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Close to everything and a few mins walk to Gran Via metro that lands us in chamartin or Atocha station for day trips without needing to connect to a different line.

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Issue without bathroom vent per overall comment

Activity Review

Traditional Andalusian Market Visit & Cooking Class

Seville

Going around the Triana market for specialty stores and products was awesome! Very fun to learn about local foods and spices. Instructions for cooking class was clear and great pacing. Chef also kept things entertaining and very informative. And the best spinach with chickpeas dish and chicken paella I have tastes!

Quality of Experience

Food

Loved the chicken Paella and spinach chickpeas!

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Marta prepared a southern Spain (Andalusia) trip for us. She covered everything except airlift--private guided tours, Food tours, transport and hotels. Our expectations were exceeded, particularly with the choice of hotels that they made. I was specific in the type of atmosphere and location that I wanted to stay in each city, and each hotel was better than the other.

The Trip Planner app made staying aware of each days' activities VERY easy. In the past KimKim would just put it in an email. The App makes it available anywhere. PLUS there's an interactive chat feature which allows me to communicate with the agent--this alone made us always feel connected.

There were really no hiccups and I'd recommend using KimKim as I've done several times in the past. They really are local experts and saves you the hassle of fooling around with multiple website and blogs. Recommended.

Hotel Reviews

Only YOU Hotel Malaga

Málaga

Amazing location directly across the street from the Old Town, and next to a large urban park and the marina. Very safe neighborhood. The staff is AMAZING. They were friendly, very attentive, and accommodating. The hotel has great amenities, a phenomenal breakfast (included), and the lobby even has 24hr snacks like drinks, fruit and candy to tide you over. The rooms were spacious, quiet, and cleaned every day. This truly is a great chain of boutique-style accomodations. There is a coin-laundry right behind the hotel, by the way. Recommended.

Authenticity & Character

Charm and elegance of the rooms. Modern amenities throughout.

Location

Right in the old town, and next to a large peaceful urban walking park, the marina, and cafes and restos. Public transport is also right there. And a coin laundry behind the hotel if you need that.

Staff

Friendly, down to earth, understanding.

Cleanliness & Comfort

Hotel Palacio de Villapanés

Sevilla

If I could give it six stars I would. The hotel was an old castle or something in the olden days, but it's thoroughly modernized. The rooms we got upgraded to a suite--holy smokes. Unbelievable with living room, bedroom, and large bathroom. This hotel give luxury a new meaning. Breakfast was excellent every morning as well...I mean, it wasn't even a buffet. It's a la carte but you get incredible selection. It's included in our package. Staff was SUPER friendly. Rooftop pool and lounge, with nice views of Seville. Located about 20 min walk to the center of the old town. Lots of charm, character. HIGHLY recommended.

Authenticity & Character

Older legacy building thoroughly modernized, with beautiful decoration and feel.

Location

In the old town, but still about 20 min walk to the center.

Staff

Front desk and porter were always helpful.

Cleanliness & Comfort

Cleaned rooms every day. The entire hotel was spotless. Felt very comfortable.

Hotel Hospes Palacio del Bailío

Córdoba

A modern, boutique hotel built on top of old Roman ruins that you can see beneath you in the dining room. Great, incredible breakfast. All the amenities in the rooms. Location in the old town--about 10 minute walk to the center. Quiet area, but safe. Room was spacious, cleaned everyday. No air conditioning that I can remember--we just had to open the window and it was cool enough. Beds were very comfortable, plenty of pillows as well. Highly recommended.

Authenticity & Character

I mean--it used to be Roman ruins! How much more authentic do you want!

Location

Nothing really...it's a quiet area of the old town.

Staff

Friendly, accomodating.

Cleanliness & Comfort

Parador De Cadiz

Cádiz

A modern hotel right on the waterfront, with incredible views, large rooms and wonderful staff. All the amenities you could want in the room. We didn't eat there, since the town is right across the street. Bed was large, comfortable and lots of pillows. They also have a large patio on the top floor with great views. The hotel overlooks a large urban park as well. Great breakfast as well, hot and cold foods. This hotel was luxe--but it didn't feel snobby at all. The Minister of the Interior was using it for a few days to hold a big important conference--that's how luxe this place is. Recommended!!

Authenticity & Character

Very modern and updated. Clean, spacious, well lit.

Location

Right on the water, next to an urban park as well. Close to the old town.

Staff

The front desk and the porter were exceptional.

Cleanliness & Comfort

The rooms were cleaned daily, and the lobby and ground meticulous.

Activity Reviews

Tapas Culinary Experience

Málaga

Meeting great other travelers, with the guide Andrea who was so friendly and knowledgeable. You don't really have to walk far to enjoy the SIX different locales we went to savour local tapas and drink. You really do learn about Andalusian cuisine!

Quality of Experience

Food

Discovering Sherry was neat!

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

We walked.

Privately Guided Visit of Málaga

Spain

A great tour of Malaga, at a leisurely pace. You get to see all the highlights of the old Towne. The guide really knew her history. Spoke English very well.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

No transport--they met at the hotel and we walked.

Private Walking Tour: Mosque & Jewish Quarter

Córdoba

Great guide. Lots of good history knowledge. Guide didn't really focus as in-depth on the Jewish history as I had hoped, but maybe that's just my expectations. The areas we did visit were incredibly. I'd recommend this trip.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Amazing 3 days in Porto, Lisbon. Our trip was short but everything was arranged properly and on time right from pickup at airport as well as the tours. The tour of Duoro valley wineries with Migel was great and highly recommended. The hotels in Porto and Lisboa were very comfortable and conveniently located in city center, close walk to to major attractions. The Fado dinner at Lisboa is a must do!

Hotel Reviews

Pousada Porto - Rua das Flores

Porto

The rooms are cozy and modern. The breakfast is great and it's very close to major attractions. Porto has a lot of steep streets, so if walking is a challenge, plenty of taxis are available (5-7 euro max). Did not need Uber.

Authenticity & Character

Location

private street with restricted entry for vehicles makes it easy to walk around

Staff

Amazing and very helpful. Everyone can speak English and that's a plus

Cleanliness & Comfort

wonderful clean rooms. Appeared a little small once you get it it's perfect

H10 Duque de Loule

Lisboa

This hotel is located centrally and it's definitely premium. Every corner is well appointed, clean and fresh. Plenty of staff, great bar and breakfast. I would rate this 4-5 stars easy

Authenticity & Character

Has a unique decor with blue tiles theme

Location

Just off main shopping streets. Easy access by cabs if needed

Staff

Plenty of staff to help with luggage, answer questions etc.

Cleanliness & Comfort

Superb rooms. Awesome shower and great views!!

Activity Reviews

Day Excursion to Douro Valley: Wine Tasting & River Cruise

Porto

This was an awesome tour! I have been to NAPA valley but Duoro is just amazing. Breathtaking views as you drive up and down the valley. The guide Migel was fantastic and we had wine tastings at a small family owned winery and also one owned by a major corporation. This gave us both perspectives. We also had a cruise on the river which was amazing. Higky recommend a tour of Duoro valley with a guide

Quality of Experience

Totally worth your time

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Migel was amazing driver and guide

Transport

Fado Dinner Experience

Lisbon

This is a must do to appreciate the culture and music of Portugal. The dinner was amazing and so was the music.

Quality of Experience

Food

It's a full course meal with starters, entree and dessert plus Wine!