Sublime Scandinavia!

Norway | Jul 5 - Jul 17, 2022

My husband and I recently made a very successful first trim to Norway and Sweden, spending a total of 2 1/2 weeks. The Swedish leg was straight-forward so we made all arrangements on our own. For Norway, we used KimKim Tours because we felt that the intricacy of the transportation system (in our case, a combination of domestic trains and ferries) was more than we were comfortable handling on our own. In addition, KimKim offered the maximum degree of customization compared to other providers. They took care of booking all hotel stays, 'Norway in a Nutshell' train tickets from Oslo to Myrdal/Flam, ferry tickets to Balestrand and one dinner reservation there (Kviknes Inn), Fjaerland fjord excursion, ferry to Bergen, and a walking tour of Tromso. To reach Tromso from Bergen, we self-booked a 4-night Hurtigruten cruise; however this could also have been arranged through KimKim.
While in Norway, we traveled with friends from the US -- a couple who, in addition to participating in our jointly developed itinerary, requested tickets for a Grieg tour in Bergen and slightly different hotel arrangements so that they could extend their in-country travels to accomplish ancestral research. The KimKim system allowed us to view each others exchanges with the specialist which was most helpful. It’s worth noting that at the start, the four of us were set up as a single account. However we learned that the way the cancellation insurance was structured, if one couple had to cancel for any reason, then the other couple would be impacted. As a result, KimKim offered to split us apart though we had already put down a deposit. This was very much appreciated though there were some initial technical difficulties in accomplishing the split. Therefore we suggest that KimKim clarify this particular aspect of their offered insurance before any money is collected. In the end, the global covid-19 pandemic seriously interrupted our travel plans which began in 2019. Our trip was finally undertaken in 2022. KimKim held the money we had initially paid and applied it to the trip when conditions made it possible for international travel to be resumed.
Overall, our bi-country trip was a great experience. In Sweden we easily got around on our own. We rented an apartment in Stockholm, took the train to Gothenburg to visit Swedish friends and from there went on to Norway via bus to Oslo. Once in Norway, we followed our customized itinerary designed through use of the KimKim online platform with advice from KimKim's selected local travel specialist (in our case, Guide Sør based in Kristiansand, Norway). As noted, the KimKim process allows maximum customization (up to 100%). For this to work well, the specialist needs to be given as much detail about the goals of the trip as possible. Upon request, the specialist was able to suggest specifics such as hotel bookings which we had the freedom to use or reject; we were also able to request that the specialist book alternative arrangements. In addition, the specialist advised us about days/hours of operation for various venues (e.g., restaurants, museums) so that we knew this before traveling.
A concern prior to departure was that the final itinerary was posted at least 2 weeks later than anticipated and was not packaged or delivered as expected. The itinerary was posted online in the system 'conversation' requiring us to then print a copy for travel as opposed to being sent to us in hard copy via regular or overnight mail. Nevertheless, the online version allowed us to move forward and provided reassurance that each booking requested had been made.
Land accommodations were all satisfactory (rooms were fine; included breakfasts were excellent). However, at 3 different hotels, our fellow travelers who had booked and paid (in full) in coordination with us, were told that that they had not yet made payment. The first such incident was resolved overnight by KimKim with no additional payment necessary. In the other two cases, our friends had to pay again and then get reimbursed by KimKim. This was accomplished timely but double-payment shouldn’t have been necessary. Apparently, there is a problem with the way things work 'behind the curtain' so to speak. It seems that KimKim uses a third party to accomplish hotel bookings rather than making or re-confirming them directly with each hotel. Other reviewers have similarly commented so our suggestion is that KimKim find a way to avoid this situation in the future. A similar, less concerning glitch occurred when we showed up at Kviknes Inn for dinner, i.e., the reservation noted in our itinerary was not recorded in the restaurant's log. Fortunately there was plenty of seating and no money had been paid in advance.
Of great value was KimKim's ability to advise us on the specifics of local transportation so that getting from one point to the next, whether overland or by water, worked seamlessly. Our helpful specialist secured passage for us, providing detailed input on the location of various stations and docks.
In summary, the degree of customization we sought led us to choose KimKim -- this is a strong selling point for the company. International travel, especially in the midst of a pandemic, can be fraught with problems so we were happy to have accomplished our journey knowing there were specialists we could reach if necessary. A final suggestion is that an emergency phone number to reach a ‘live’ voice after hours should be given to every client; using the number provided, we were only able to reach an answering machine. Luckily, because all hotels honored KimKim’s reservation requests on our behalf, the four of us we were never without accommodations and the various payment glitches were resolved.
Lastly, we’d like to personally thank Julia, Sonia and Kjeld of Guide Sør. We believe that each worked very hard to make our trip a success in spite of the extreme impact of the pandemic.