Wow! Great travel solution for busy people!
Costa Rica
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Jul 19 - Jul 27, 2022
Wow! Back when we were younger, we used to put everything together ourselves when we traveled but this time we were traveling with another family and did not want to drive ourselves around. We also didn't have time to do all the research that we used to have before kids. Brittany and KimKim made this trip possible.
Brittany and her team was fantastic and patient when it came to answering our questions. The website interface was pretty good and intuitive, though there was a bug where the changes I made to the schedule wouldn't "stick." Brittany found a workaround quickly. When we made scheduling choices that wouldn't work given the rain season, we got good advice for making better choices.
Because I had never used KimKim before, I did a bit of homework to check the KimKim prices vs. the prices offered by the tours on their own websites. In some cases, the tours were less expensive through KimKim, some the same price, and some about $10 more, but absolutely worth it to not have to do the coordinating ourselves. All in all, it would have cost us about the same to do it ourselves but it would have taken us a lot more time to do it ourselves.
KimKim offered many price points for accommodations except for the last location, since it was the most expensive area and not a fault of KimKim. Since we paid so little for accommodation earlier, we were able to splurge for this last location. Even with the lowest-priced accommodation, the splurge was luxurious and worth every penny. We never, ever would have booked a resort in the past but this was really great for families.
Every tour operator, driver, and guide that KimKim worked with were helpful, punctual, flexible, knowledgeable, and phenomenal. There was only one tour guide we didn't think was exceptional and that was the only tour guide that KimKim wasn't responsible for booking. I am looking forward to working with them again!
Hotel Reviews
We don't usually spring for resorts but it was the most reasonably priced option that we saw. I'm glad we did it! The rooms were immaculate and top-notch. Reception and guest services was super helpful for a huge variety of questions. Breakfast was great. Pool is great. Staff are great. Kids loved the pool table. It was generally very kid friendly. We saw a sloth on our first day!
I was glad to be isolated from the busy town. The trees and view of the volcano are magnificent. Even on our first day, we saw so many different birds and wildlife! The pool and the springs were a hit with the kids. The delicious food in the restaurant was very reasonably priced and my kid won't stop talking about their fish fingers. The staff is super helpful and flexible, and was always helpful with tours and accommodations. They even made to-go breakfasts for us in the mornings we'd leave too early for the included breakfasts! I appreciated the opportunity to have laundry done for about $8. The rooms were spacious and simple, but we didn't need more than that. It was great!
We saw lots of critters here! Monkeys, agouti, and the resident dogs and cat are a hoot. Great location right in town and close to restaurants (we liked Legado Monteverde, esp. the seafood plancha with Peruvian sauce). Breakfast buffet was delicious and varied. The rooms were clean and thoughtfully laid-out. Our suite was perfect for a family. Lots of hanging hammock chairs for the kids to mess around outside. Staff was helpful, especially Laura. Highly recommend!
Activity Reviews
Wow! We have done a bunch of riding tours in other places so I was expecting more of the same, but just for longer. We signed up for the whole day and I am so grateful! We learned a ton from Marvin about horses and it is so clear he loves them. They are so cared for and responsive, the easiest horse I have ever ridden—speaking as someone who only does 1-2 hour trail rides with a lifetime total of 10 rides and doesn’t consider themself a rider. Our kids have probably done 5 lifetime rides and they did great. I enjoyed the western style of riding (felt easier on my knees) and the horses didn’t have to wear bits. Marvin had lots of gentle and useful reminders for riding, and his English is much better than he gives himself credit for. The scenery was phenomenal and easier to absorb than on a zip line. The lunch was delicious and filling, nicely accounting for our pescatarian diets. We had time for the kids to scramble around and in a stream and the number of butterflies we saw verged on ridiculous. We were on the horses for almost 5 hours and we will be sore tomorrow for sure but everyone agrees it was worth it, even the kids. Advice? He will provide ponchos if you don’t have any (rain jackets are insufficient for keeping the saddles dry) and you don’t need to bring water because he will pack it. Bring stuff you can wear into the stream, or at least enough to stick your legs in. I probably should have worn jeans but I wanted to pack light, oops. I don’t wear contacts often but did for this trip and I am glad because some parts were very bumpy and my glasses would have fallen off. Definitely a highlight of our trip and we won’t ever forget this!
We've been on lava tube tours and other limestone cave tours in the US but this one blew them all away! Part of this was the structure of the tour and the cave setting (no guided trails) but a huge part of this was our guide. Marcus knew so, so much about everything. Seriously, I don't know if he has an advanced biology or botany degree or what. We mentioned not having seen a sloth yet (we were only 2 days into our trip) and not 3 minutes after we mentioned this, he located a sloth in the trees on the way there! He stopped the van, got us all out to look with his monocular telescope, let us ask questions and take photos, loaded us back into the van, and then found another one! That was even before we got to the cave. Marcus was great with our varying ranges of ages, fitness, and confidence going into this amazing adventure. We learned so much about the critters and the geology. He was encouraging and friendly, patient and passionate. We did this early in the trip and we knew right afterwards that topping this experience would be hard!