Kimkim Trip Reviews

We decided to book our trip to Morocco with KimKim not knowing what to expect, and the result experience could not have been more wonderful. From the start, Hamza was able to guide us seamlessly through the itinerary after we stated the cities we wanted to visit. Hamza was able to change the itinerary several times to accommodate our needs. After arriving in Marrakesh, our in-country advisor, Said, was always available on WhatsApp to listen to our needs and concerns. The drivers, Soufian and Ibrahim, were always on time, professional, and extremely courteous. The vehicles were new and comfortable, and the accommodations in Riads (versus hotels) were fantastic. We did not hire tour guides because we wanted to tour the cities on our own schedule, which worked perfectly for us. I strongly recommend KimKim for booking your trip to Morocco and having a trouble-free, fantastic vacation experience.

Hotel Reviews

Palais Sebban

Marrakech

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Riad Salam Fes

Fes

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Le Bedouin Agafay

Agafay

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Taj Chefchoaune Luxury Hotel and Spa.

Chefchaoun

Unbelievable. The views were spectacular.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Riad Mokhtar Tanger

Tangier

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Review

Fes to Chefchaouen via Meknes & Volubilis

Morocco

Beautiful drive through changing landscapes

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

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

It was an incredible experience that really exceeded my expectations! The cultural immersion, the archaeological sites, and stunning natural wonders, it had everything I was looking for. The planning stage was really collaborative. Isa meticulously followed our preferences and requests and we loved all the places she recommended! All the drivers, tour guides, and local specialists were really friendly and helpful. One particular driver-Oscar, our driver in Valladolid, recommended a beautiful cenote that was not in our itinerary and we're so glad he did. It was so beautiful and serene and we had the place all to ourselves! Our Mexico trip definitely left a strong and lasting impression on us. Well worth the money!

Hotel Reviews

El Mesón del Marqués

Valladolid

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

The Fives Oceanfront Puerto Morelos

Puerto Morelos, Quintana Roo

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Review

Ek Balam Archaeological Site & swim in a cenote

Mexico

I had an incredible trip to Japan. Stefaan was very responsive to me as we were organizing the trip and helped witha ll of my questions. Hiking the Kumano Kodo was an awesome experience in and of itself, but it was enhanced by the hotels and ryokan along the way that offered incredible food and hot spring baths to relax in after a hard day of walking. I particularly enjoyed the Keyaki Guest House and the lovely family that ran it.

The overall planning and organization was excellent. All arrangements worked as planned. Last minute changes were accommodated easily. Ashley was extermely responsive. Accomodations were exactly as expected.

This was my first time using Kim Kim, and I will definitely use them for all furure trips.

Our Australian specialist Vicky Steinhardt was great. We worked with Vicky for several months creating a perfect itinerary for both Australia and New Zealand. Vicky was always responsive and provided several options for both cities to visit and tours to take. Further, Vicky was able to modify our itinerary while we were traveling. She and KimKim provided an excellent travel experience that was seamless with no problems. I highly recommend both Vicky Steinhardt and KimKim.

Hotel Reviews

InterContinental Sydney

Sydney

Excellent accommodations and great location

Authenticity & Character

The hotel is a renovated old office building that retains it’s original charm but is modern in all other aspects.

Location

Easy walk to the Sydney Opera House, Botanical gardens and many great restaurants.

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Peppers Beach Club

Port Douglas

Room was pretty small. Restaurant was very limited except for breakfast. Not great views. Staff was not very knowledgeable but friendly.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Easy walk to town and restaurants

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

The Langham

Southbank

Great location, exceptional staff and great restaurant on site. But rooms are dated and need to be updated.

Authenticity & Character

Old world building but the rooms are in dire need of an update. Furniture and decor was very dated. But still comfortable.

Location

Easy walk to town center for sites and restaurants

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Sudima

Christchurch

Relatively new hotel near town center but still a pretty long walk. Rooms were small

Authenticity & Character

New hotel with little character.

Location

Near city center but still a pretty far walk. A few restaurants in close proximity but not many.

Staff

Staff was very accommodating and knowledgeable

Cleanliness & Comfort

Hotel St. Moritz

Queenstown

Room was spacious. Well located and an easy walk to town center. Staff was excellent. Great breakfast buffet. Bar and restaurant overlooks the lake.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Very easy walk to town center.

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Blue Mountains Full Day - Private Tour

Sydney

Great stops along the way and well worth a full day trip.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Sydney Opera House Tour

Sydney

Guide was very knowledgeable and was able to show us the important features and history in an hour.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Sydney City Small Group Walking Tour (Small Group Tour)

Sydney

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Sydney Harbour Gold Penfolds Dinner Cruise

Sydney

Food was good. Not the highest level Penfolds wines but still good. Excellent way to experience the Sydney Harbour.

Quality of Experience

Food

Private Daintree Wanderer Tour

Australia

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Laneways of Melbourne

Melbourne

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Foodie Discovery Walking Tour

Melbourne

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Milford Sound – Coach Cruise Fly

Queenstown (NZ)

This is a really long day of about 10+ hours. Milford sound is great and a must see if you are in Queenstown. But it’s primarily seeing waterfalls while cruising the fjord..

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Great Ocean Road Full Day Private Experience

Melbourne

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Akaroa Private Day Tour from Christchurch

Christchurch

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Vickie steinhardt was terrific. She planned a great trip and when we had a small logistic issue it was immediately addressed, perfectly. She always quickly responded to questions. Can’t say enough. Use Vickie and KimKim if you can for all your trips in this part of the world.

Our guide was excellent and very flexible. Planned well all the activities on time and helped us in exchange of our currency and loaning Rupea when we did not have local currency. The driver and the guide were very helpful and friendly.
Marc coordinated all our planning and his communication is excellent . We had an excellent trip. Thank you all .

Our trip to Iceland was absolutely amazing! We would have never been able to design a roadtrip like the one Eric did for us on our own. His expertise was invaluable when it came to seeing as many sights as we could within our 9 day window. His itinerary gave us the confidence to venture out on our own with a rented car, eliminating the need to go on any large group tour buses. The tours that he did book for us, like the glacier hike, ice cave tour, and walking tour of Reykjavik were small and the guides were engaging, accommodating, and knowledgable.

It was a seamless experience. We started at the blue lagoon right after picking up our rental car and then headed straight to the Snaefellsness Peninsula where we were able to see a spectacular glacier volcano, Snaefellsjokull, explore lava caves and endless lava fields, and walk on cliffs and black sand beaches. From there we spent a couple days in the Golden Circle seeing all the major sights like Thingvellar National Park, Geysir, Kerid Crater, and Gullfoss. We had a few days exploring the waterfalls, beaches, gorges, lava fields, and glaciers to be seen on the south coast before ending our trip in Reykjavik. All of the sights and driving instructions were in a logical order that kept us moving forwards, never wasting time backtracking.

We appreciate the time and care it took to design an itinerary specially made for us. We had told Eric that our main priorities were seeing the northern lights, soaking in hot springs, seeing nature, and learning some history. He booked us rooms at hotels with excellent views in case we might catch a glimpse of the northern lights; he fit 3 different lagoons into our itinerary (Sky Lagoon was the best); and we had a good balance of experiencing nature as well as making time for museums and history. We also tried some of the restaurants he recommended all of which were delicious! Thank you Eric for designing a trip we will never forget!

We had a bit of a problem receiving prompt responses from Camellia. But ultimately, when Thuy took over the administration of the trip while we were in-country, all went very smoothly.

Hotel Reviews

Tirant Hotel

Hoan Kiem, Hanoi

We loved the location of this hotel and found it to be quite nice. We loved that it was authentically Vietnamese. We were able to walk to so much of interest from it's location in Old Town Hanoi.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Peony cruise

The ship was nice with good food.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Unfortunately, Ha Long Bay is not being well protected from pollution and litter.

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Eden Star Hotel & Spa

Ho Chi Minh City

Very dingy hotel. Our first room had a party room above it. As music was pounding above, we requested a new room, which they immediately provided. However, the new room was smaller and more worn that the first. If anything, when we encounter a problem with a room, we expect a room of equal if not better quality.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Silk Path Grand Hue

A beautiful hotel. But it could have been in any country in the world and didn't have a Vietnamese feel to it.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Hoi An Historic

Hoi An

A hotel with Vietnamese character in a great location.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

HCM City - Cu Chi tunnels

Ho Chi Minh City

We enjoyed this tour very much. Mr. Thong was quite difficult to understand, but he was a delightful personality.

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Ho Chi Minh city - Vespa tour after dark

Ho Chi Minh City

Our guide, Heidi was fantastic. Very good English. Very delightful engaging personality. Again, our interaction was more like a conversation rather than a script.

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Free at your leisure in Hanoi

Hanoi

Old town Hanoi is delightful.

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Hanoi and walking street food tour

Hanoi

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Hanoi City Tour of Capital of Vietnam

Hanoi

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

We had trouble understanding our guide Daniel.

Transport

Hanoi - Ha Long Bay - Lan Ha Bay (Peony cruise)

Vietnam

We specifically asked for this experience. But we have concluded that Ha Long Bay is over-touristed and is not being protected from pollution and litter. We would not recommend this visit to others. However, if one does visit, Peony Cruise was a good service provider.

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

A full day explore the rural life in Hanoi

Hanoi

We enjoyed this day but were slightly disappointed with what was described as a 'village'. It turned out we stopped at a spot that was once a village and is now just set of buildings. The rest of the day tho, was great, with bike riding, market visit and a home visit with a war veteran.

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

We had trouble understanding our guide, Daniel.

Transport

The bikes were barely usable.

Fly to Ho Chi Minh City

Vietnam

Again, Thuy handled our experience beautifully and was very responsive.

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

More cruise on the bay - transfer back Hanoi

Vietnam

Thuy did a good job getting us boarding passes and making sure all arrangements were made.

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Hue City Tour, Bike to Rural Villages

Hue

We loved our guide, Quyen. His English was easy to understand. Our interactions were more like a conversation and less like a script he had memorized. He answered all our questions and was very knowledgeable. The biking was fun and the visit to the organic farm and farm-to-table restaraunt was excellent.

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Hue to Hoi An Ancient town

Vietnam

Quyen did a great job escorting us from one city to another. He gave us a short orientation tour of Hoi An upon our arrival which helped us enjoy the city!

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Mekong Delta Day Trip (Cycling)

Ho Chi Minh City

We loved this biking trip. The Mekong area is delightful. The Trek bikes were excellent.

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Mr. Thong's English is quite difficult to understand.

Transport

Visit Fishing Village & Tra Que village and basket boat

Hoi An

We loved the biking and learning to make and throw fishing nets. The basket boat tour was awful. Terribly touristy and fake. We would not recommend it for others.

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

My trip to Ecuador was wonderful thanks to Kim Kim and their local partners. The guide they assigned to meet me at the designated airport in Quito was amazing, had no problems finding me, and/or need of further clarifications. The customized trip itinerary was seamless , clearly understood, required some last minute changes and easily modified as that took into consideration. The tour guides provided were highly skilled, knowledgeable, and personable in each of the areas of Ecuador I visited. I highly recommend using Kim Kim for all your travel needs/destinations.

Hotel Reviews

Riviera Sucre

Otavalo

Authenticity & Character

Character and charm

Location

Central

Staff

Friendly

Cleanliness & Comfort

Clean

Casa Aliso Hotel Boutique

Quito

Hotel was beautiful and charming. The lobby hostess Michelle was amazing and helped me resolving a personal health issue.

Hacienda El Porvenir

Machachi

So beautiful and charming. Highly recommend.

Activity Reviews

Arrival and transfer to hotel in Otavalo

Ecuador

Hiking around Cuicocha Lagoon - Quito

Otavalo

My tour guide knew about local flora and birds. He was amazing and so much fun hike with.

Eric did an amazing job planning and timing everything. All our tours were small groups, so to get the most of every experience, we work with tourists in our everyday lives also, so we know how important that is. . We liked the Troll expedition company that was chosen for our tours on the glacier. Beda was amazing hiking on the glacier, Bearney at the ice caves. Bearney was especially patient since the weather was so extreme and uncooperative with blowing gravel and pouring down rain. We also appreciated that our companies vehicles did not break down, while we watched many that did.
Horse back riding with Julia was a fantastic experience and learning about the Icelandic horses and getting to experience their Tolt (walk trot). And finally meeting Paul for our local walking culinary tour, you can see he truely lived Icelandic culture. As a fisherman his whole life, his tour gave us a true view of what it was like to grow up in Iceland.
Our first hotel at Fire and frost was amazing and such a perfect way to ease into our vacation. It helped us adjust to the time change while appreciating the beauty around us. I really liked staying in each location two nights so there wasn’t too much chaos packing and unpacking.
I will use KimKim to plan my vacations anytime I can. Even with all the info online, there would have been no way to plan things so smoothly, no way to know which tour companies to use, and no way to know how much time we would want to spend in each site.

Activity Reviews

Solheimajokull Glacier Hike

Iceland

Better with Beda!!! What a great time! Once in a lifetime experience! Nice small group attention while we watched some guides with 35+ on the glacier. Lucky with the weather.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Better with Beda!!

Crystal Blue Ice Cave

Iceland

Bearney was great with our small group, the weather was so miserable that day, but we all made it. We watched so many vehicles break down returning to base. It was comforting to know we chose the right company.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Horse riding tour

Iceland

Julia was knowledgeable and our small group made it a quality experience. Truely enjoyed learning and experiencing the Icelandic horse Troit. Having the horse riding suits available to us made the cold windy weather experience enjoyable.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Julia was knowledgeable and made sure everyone felt comfortable as we proceeded.

Reykjavik Food Walk

Reykjavík

Paul was a fisherman his whole life, he showed us a tour from a true local and not just someone working in Iceland for a few months. I appreciated the small group interaction so we could really get a feel for Reykjavík.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Enjoy the entire trip, the La Fortuna guide in the jungle & volcano tour was excellent! Same for the coffee, sugar cane & coffee tour. The Curu Wildlife Reserve was a highlight of our trip to Parquera with all types of wildlife and an amazing Plam forest. Tamarindo was was nice- a bit touristy but great beach. I would have prefer a hotel near the airport rather than staying downtown San Jose. Great trip, I'll book again with KimKIm.

Our local specialist was not Erin. Our local specialist Pratikshya and she was outstanding. The golden triangle was a great taste of city life to mountains to low land. The hotels / resorts were beyond top notch.

Working with Diana to plan our Portugal trip was such a pleasure!! She and her awesome team have made our 30th anniversary celebration a memorable one.
I really don't know how we could have managed such a wonderful vacation so easily if I hadn't contacted her via KimKim. She and her colleagues took care of every single, minute detail during our 5 day trip. Right from the very first call to the time we boarded our flights out of Lisbon, she was w/ us via What'sApp, checking-in at regular intervals, giving a heads-up regarding the next day expectations.
I also have to give special thanks to our drivers and guides Rafael and Ricardo. They have made our day trips to Sintra, drive around Lisbon, drive to Porto a breeze and such an informative trip - stopping at all the right places and being the best local guides :)
Overall, I would highly recommend Diana and her team to anyone who is planning a trip to Portugal. You will be doing yourselves a favor :)

Activity Reviews

Unveil the Fairytale Villa of Sintra with a Private Driver Service

Portugal

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Our driver plus guide for the day , Rafhael, was very friendly, punctual and ensured we did not miss any important/interesting spot.

Transport

Very punctual pickup/drop; clean vehicle

Porto's Historic Odyssey on a Private Walking Tour

Porto

Ana was our walking tour guide for the day. She was very pleasant, friendly and easy to talk to, has a good understanding of local history. 3.5 hrs just flew by going around this historic town w/ Ana. I would recommend this walking tour to folks who are able to comfortably walk around - esp hilly ups/downs.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Our guides Sun in Siem Reap and Sam in Phnom Penh were both incredibly knowledgeable and made sure we had a fantastic time. The hotels Kimkim had booked were both excellent.

First class seamless great value. Not a worry the entire trip. If I go on a trip again I would call them first.

Alex did a near perfect job designing our trip. He took the time to understand our needs and expectations and tailored the trip to provide the range of experiences and lodgings that fit our travel preferences. he also provided excellent guidance on what to do and expect at each of our 5 locations, e.g., the decision to add an excursion to Mountain Pine Ridge. The lodgings varied from spectacular (Las Lagunas) to very nice (Ramon's and Casa del Mundo) to pretty basic (Meson de Maria and Falling Leaves, which did have great service however). These choices were very consistent with the guidance we provided to Alex.

Some of our guides were outstanding, in particular, Dary in Antigua, the woman and grower at the coffee farm, Pablo for birding in Finca Santa Victoria, Oscar at Chichicastenanga, Oliver at Tikal, and our cave tubing guide. The rest, however, were mediocre at best. The guide for the Pacaya Volcano hike didn't add much value on a straightforward route, and discouraged us from climbing to the top, which I would have liked to try. The guide for our hike along Lake Atitlan was also pretty unnecessary and didn't add much, as was our guide for the Lake Atitlan boat trip to visit villages. Part of that problem might have been our overall Guatemala guide, Pablo, who was very nice and mostly helpful, BUT his English was nowhere near the level we expected. Therefore, there was alot of miscommunication, and very limited translation for our guides in Lake Atitlan. We really felt like we missed alot of useful information during the village visits and on our hike back to the lodge. AND, there was a major screw-up on our kayak/hike trip, with our bags in limbo for an hour and a wasted hour waiting for the bags after our kayak trip. We also felt like he was trying to scare us away from the full kayaking and hiking experience by overestimating the difficulty. Yes, it was challenging, but exactly what we wanted.

Finally, there was a bit of confusion on our flight from Belize City to San Pedro, but it did NOT turn out to be much of an issue and we all learned from our mistakes.

Again, Alex was a joy to work with and designed a 5 star itinerary for us, and most of the experiences lived up to that standard.. However, the execution by a few of the guides was not quite up to this high standard.

Hotel Reviews

Hotel Meson de Maria

Antigua Guatemala

Great location, decent breakfast, beautiful courtyard, charming hotel, BUT, our room was very tired and not that comfortable.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Cramped room

Casa del Mundo

Lake Atitlán

Beautiful setting, a bit challenging to navigate the property, and our room was small, cramped, and outdated

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Las Lagunas hotel

Flores

Great setting, great facilities, fantastic suite, great food, unreal service. Didn't want to leave the property

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Falling Leaves Lodge

San Ignacio

A little out of town, facilities need updating, but the birding and service were excellent, and the food was good.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Ramon's Village Resort

San Pedro

Very convenient location, nicest beach on the island, easy access to town and services, mediocre restaurant

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Boat Tour of Lake Atitlán Villages

Guatemala

Local guide was nice but not very informative, and language was a problem. The visit to the bee collective and the mayan ritual visit were very interesting, but the rest of the trip didn't feel all that authentic.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Kayaking & Hiking Lake Atitlán

Guatemala

Loved the kayaking and hike and Pablo took some good photos of us on the water. However, the local guide did not provide much info on a straightforward hike through villages, and the logistics from kayak to hike were a disaster. Our backpacks (with wallets) were left at the dock by our hotel, and we had to anxiously wait an hour for the bags to arrive.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Tour the famous Chichicastenango Market

Guatemala

Local guide was fantastic.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Explore Tikal National Park

Guatemala

Oliver was a spectacular guide, with great information, flexible plans, a special extension to see a falcon, and a great lunch choice.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Transfer from San Ignacio to Belize City with Cave Tubing Tour en Route

Belize

transfer went very smoothly over the border, and our guide was excellent on the cave tubing, which was alot of fun and interesting

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Antigua Coffee Tour by Bus with De La Gente

Guatemala

De la gente was outstanding...both farmer and local guide and the farmer's wife

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Antigua Walking Tour

Guatemala

Fantastic guide, Dary...authentic, charming, and shared her enthusiasm and love for the city

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Traditional Guatemalan Cooking Class

Antigua

Great dinner, fun company, and accommodating for dietary restrictions.

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

car broke down on what to get us

Day Hike to Pacaya Volcano

Guatemala

Great experience, but not much help from local guide or our chaperone. Also, would have liked to try to go to the top, but not offered, and English was not good enough to make request.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

AC didn't work and van was a little dirty

Driving Tour of Almolonga Valley

Antigua

Nice villages to visit, but our guide, Pablo, had limited excitement, energy, or information to share.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Finca Santa Victoria Half Day Birding Tour

Guatemala

Pablo was a real character, but a little too full of himself. The birding was ok, but not all that productive

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

We had a wonderful trip to Japan thanks in large part to the help of KimKim Travel specialist Shona Zhang. We traveled from Sapporo in the Northern Island of Hokkaido to the Southern Island of Kyushu.
The guide in Sapporo was Yuko Sayu who did a great job explaining history, culture and any questions we had. Her communication skills we very good and her knowledge of Sapporo and of the Snow Festival. Se were able to see things we would have never experienced on our own. Yuko is a lifelong resident of the Hokkaido and gave us great insight into the lives and culture of the people there. The Hotel that KimKim Travel had arranged for us was comfortable and the the location was perfect as we were walking distance to the ice and snow sculptures as well as a myriad of eating options and shopping. Yuko recommended some excellent places and things to eat locally as well as things that were unique to Hokkaido…”Genghis Khan” bbq pork, local crab and sushi, Sapporo style ramen, as well as the Sapporo Brewery museum and the world renowned Nikka Yoichu Distillery in neighboring Otaru city. The night ice sculptures and lights along the Otaru canal were beautiful. The transportation was well planned out, on time and very accommodating.
We next flew to Fukuoka in Kyushu where we met up with our guide Asako Iwai who was born and raised in Kyushu. We were able to take a van from the airport on an excursion to Nagasaki where we visited the
Atom Bomb Memorial and Museum. That was a moving experience and more so because Asako knew so much about that history and the thoughts of the local Japanese. We spent 2 nights in a very nice Hotel convenient to the train station and close to places where the local people ate and shopped. There were many pleasant surprises in Fukuoka including old castle grounds, beautiful gardens at Ohori Park, Fukuoka tower, all with a rich history that Asako explained to us. We sampled local cuisine, including the local sake and pastries. We then rode the bullet train from Fukuoka to Kagoshima…a real treat to see the efficiency and speed of that rail system.
In Kagoshima we met our guide Mikiko Horikiri. She guided us on a ferry to Sakurajima Island where we were able to enjoy a free foot bath in the warm volcanic heated water, and visit an observation point to get a clear view of the Sakurajima active volcano. So much of area’s culture is based around the Volcano and the effects it has on the local people and the enviroment. Miki gave us a great overview of life there. She pointed out numerous places to shop and eat and had great recommendations of what to try…Kurobuta (black Pork) tonkatsu, Unagi, and a special Chicken dish served at the Senganen Garden. One highlight was the Shimadzu Satsuma Kiriko Crystal Glassworks where we viewed craftsmen blowing the glass and artisans etching the intricate designs into the glasses. We even got to try our hand at etching our own glass shochu cups to bring home as keepsakes.

We had very good accommodations and transportation while in Japan and all three of our tour guides were top notch! We especially appreciated Shona at KimKim Travel who took a personal interest in us and make sure all our questions and needs were addressed in a timely manner.

Thank you so much!
Reid Saito

Hotel Reviews

Ibis Styles Sapporo

The Ibis Styles was perfect for out stay. We were able to room 3 in one room which was significant savings. The Japanese breakfast showcased authentic Japanese cuisine with many choices. The western style breakfast was also available. The service and Front Desk were very helpful although they did not always speak English but with the cell phone translators we were able to get by fine. The location was great with walking distance to the Ice Scuptures and Snow Sculptures during the Sapporo Yuki Matsuri (Snow Festival). There are many eating places, pubs, and shopping malls within a few blocks making this hotel a great place to stay during the busy ski and festival winter season.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Right on the Susukino Street which is a great nightlife and eatery scene.

Staff

They Were help full and responsive to our needs and questions.

Cleanliness & Comfort

Clean and quiet, the cleaning staff was very efficient through in their cleaning.

Solaria Nishitetsu Hotel Fukuoka

Fukuoka

Nice hotel with a very good location in Fukuoka. The combination in Japanese and western style breakfast buffet was excellent and provided us with a chance to eat without leaving the hotel in the morning. The staff was very helpful and accommodating when we shipped our luggage to the next hotel.

Authenticity & Character

Location

The hotel was very close to shopping and great restaurants.

Staff

The staff was very helpful and made an effort to communicate in English using translators and maps.

Cleanliness & Comfort

Daiwa Roynet Hotel Kagoshima Tenmonkan PREMIER

Our room was very good size and was able to accommodate three adult adults. The Breakfast buffet was both Japanese and western food and was all very good. The hotel location was central to downtown Kagoshima and had easy access to restaurants and stores.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Shibuya Excel Hotel Tokyu

Tokyo

This hotel had a great location in the Shibuya District of Tokyo. It provided easy access to shopping and restaurants and was located very close to Shibuya train station. They provided both Japanese and western style breakfast buffet every morning.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

2025 Sapporo Snow Festival

Sapporo

A fantastic display of snow and Ice Sculptures taking months to make every year. The scale, diversity and number of sculptures is truly amazing.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Yuko was an excellent guide with so much local knowledge getting us place and coordination with the drivers.

Transport

Comfortable vehicles and prompt service.

Full day to Kagoshima with Sakurajima

Kagoshima

Our Guide Mikiko, born and raised in Kagoshima took us on tour of the city and of Sakurajima Volcano. It is truly an amazing sight to see so many living in the shadow of an actively erupting volcano.

This was the first time I ever used a trip planning agency and I’ll 100% do it again to new destinations. Ha organized our first time trip to Thailand. She had very timely communication and listened to what we wanted (and delivered!). Even when we wanted to make some last minute changes, she made it happen. Our guides Kan and Victor were incredibly nice, punctual, informative, and walked us through every process including right up to the check in counters at the airport. Looking forward to doing another trip through KimKim!