Kimkim Trip Reviews

We had an excellent 2 week experience in Morocco. The only thing we wish we had done was to spend a day or two at a coastal town. Otherwise we saw urban, mtns, the gorges, the desert and even Chefchaouen. We started in the southern area in Marrakeck which worked out well. Turns out that the prices of items in Fez are much lower than the other areas. We were told that a lot of the linens and leather etc was made in Fez which helped to lower the prices. We resisted buying on the front end of the trip saving it for Fez which was the last few days of our trip. So the lower prices were an added perk. The tannery in Marrakech was a highlight however the Fez tannery was even better. We loved the Secret Jardin in Marrakech preferring it to the Marjorelle Garden. Fewer crowds and we were really interested in the old water system of getting water from the Atlas Mtns. Our guide, Ayoub, picked us up in Marrakech. He was a young, extremely nice fella. I appreciated his temperament and his values. He is also a musician and he shared with us his talent by showing us videos of his songs. He also shared videos of his Berber village customs associated with dancing and singing. As well as videos of similar things but from different tribes. It was a great cultural experience topped off with our arrival at the Gorge's hotel with entertainment that was very similar to the videos that Ayoub shared. Perfect timing! As we approached the desert he shifted to different music to get us in the desert grove. We were traveling with our late 20 year old boys who so appreciated that both our driver and our guide were mid 20s.
Ayoub seemed a bit inexperienced in that he needed coaching on telling us what to expect for the day. Clothing, water, money and timing in particular. He got much better as the trip progressed.
Our elder son would have appreciate more input about history. The same son, got an eye infection. Ayoub was really helpful and flexible. First taking us to a pharmacy for meds ( The meds did not help.) The next day we went to the hospital (no service) and then to a private doctor (immediate service and no payment). It took all morning to do this and still Ayoub was able to adjust the schedule so that we could still go visit a Berber household. The Berber father, Mohamed, is quite a character. He lead us on a hike in the gorge which was probably the high light of our whole Morocco experience. It was so unexpectedly beautiful and surprisingly cool. This was followed by a meal in his house. I was given a tour of the house by his wife, who did not speak one work of english, but we hugged several times, shared gifts and photos. Our group referred back to Mohamed several times as the trip progressed.
It was awkward paying for the lunch. Before we left on the trip I was of the understanding that it was included. Ayoub told us that there was a change and that dinner was included that day but not lunch. The problem was, that we did not know how much to pay him and Ayoub did not provide any guidance.
Lodging- often our lodging was upgraded and we ended up in the suite. Quite a treat!!!! We appreciated the 2 places that had swimming pools. It was a great way to cool off during the days of 100 degree temps. All of our lodging was interesting and very comfortable.
Food in Morocco was delicious. However after about 7-10 days of Tagine we were ready for some variety. Our cooking class in Fez was great. Our teacher was a grandma and did not speak a word fo english but she was a delight. She effectively demonstrated the steps and there was a translator when needed. We all really enjoyed the class and the teacher.
The highlight of the trip for our boys was sandboarding. They loved it and shared stories and videos for the rest of the trip.
Ayoub is a talented photographer. He often took my big camera to get photos of the whole family and individuals. He ran up and down lots of sand dunes to get amazing pics of us on the camels. I am the family photographer so it is a treat to have some pics of me and to have such great pics of the family.
Our driver, Jilel, was very good. Also young like Ayoub. Our older son in particular enjoyed him. He provided a contrast with Ayoub. Ayoub is from a middle Atlas Berber village. He is surprisingly progressive and has compassion for women. Jilel is from Marrakech and has already been married and divorced twice, currently has 3 girlfriends and yet, has less progressive views. He was a courteous, cautious driver but able to pass when needed on the mountainous roads. He was always on time. We suggest that he figure out how to get to the riad before he begins driving. We always got a bit lost the last few minutes of the day. He brought levity to the group which was very much appreciated.
All in all it was a GREAT trip. Wonderful memories and a great time for the whole family. We found the people to be exceptionally warm, inviting, generous and helpful. Everyone should visit Mococco!

We are so happy that KimKim connected us with Abdellah, because we have had the most wonderful experience travelling through Morocco in a private tour that he organised for us.
He was so easy to talk to, and so accommodating as he tailored the tour to suit us and our schedule.

Abdellah chose for us the most wonderful riads and hotels for us to stay in during the tour. But the most special night was our visit to the Tiziri Desert Camp in the Sahara at Merzouga. This was a magical experience that we will never forget.
He also organised local guides for us in Fès and in Marrakech who were brilliant: we learned so much from them about the history and culture of this wonderful country.

Best of all, Abdellah chose for us the perfect driver, Karim. Karim was a delight to be with every day and he was kind and patient and lots of fun. We feel we have made a new friend, he was so lovely to us and shared so much with us about his land, his family and his Berber heritage.

My wife and I sincerely thank KimKim, Abdellah and Karim for our fabulous Morocco holiday.

The KimKim portal turned out to be an excellent tool to work with Silviu during the planning stages of the trip. It is easy to navigate and by keeping and allowing full access to the running dialogue, I found it a very good repository for reference and sharing with the rest of our group.

Silviu was responsive and very willing to tailor the trip to our requirements. He included everything that we had set out for him as our "wish list" for the trip and offered some options for our consideration as we planned the journey which was very helpful landing on our final itineray.

Silviu was very accommodating during the planning phase as well as throughout the trip. He was knowledgeable about the countryside while sharing history of the various towns, villages and regions while we were on tour. The accommodations were well appointed, comfortable with great amenities and the food was beyond our expectations. The bicycles that Silviu provided and maintained were very good quality road bikes that performed excellent.

His transport vehicle was comfortable for the transfers that we made between cities.

A taxi picked us up at the airport.
Taxi transfer to airport.
It was good but felt like there was not much to do. We were on our own a lot of the time.
The printed itinerary felt like there was a lot to do.

The Mulafossur waterfall was amazing.
We sat the trollfingur and the giant and the hag.
The old capital was adorable. The scenery was stunning. We did an amazing hike with Tummas in the mountains. Wow. Scared and enjoyed it at the same time.

We really enjoyed the trip and Collin was great about listening to what we wanted and making it happen for us. For the most part, the trip was easy and enjoyable and things ran smoothly. The accommodations, food and guides were excellent for the most part.
There were a couple of communication errors -- For the Salar de Uyuni trip, we were not informed of any details during the 3 days, so for example, we were not told to bring suits and towels for the hot springs. Also when we arrived to our hotel in Sucre, we were told they did not have a booking and we were sent to a different hotel, where they told us they had booked a matrimonial suite with one bed for us. Everything worked out in the end, but it was a little stressful and we don't understand why we weren't told of the change until after we had arrived at the wrong hotel.
For the Salar de Uyuni tour, we had been told it was just us on the tour, but when they picked us up to leave the next morning, they left us waiting for another family for over one hour and we didn't depart for the salt flats until after 11:30 am. This family expected a French language tour and came with a screaming 5-year old child. They kept us waiting several times over the 3-day tour, resulting in some rushed sight seeing and late arrivals in the evenings. The Uyuni guide was good, but also said some things that we thought were less than professional. While we understand this is "luck of the draw," we can't help but feel that this wasn't quite the tour we had arranged and paid for.

We loved our trip to Peru. Although it was a lot of traveling we were able to visit Arequipa, Iquitos, the Amazon, Cusco, Aguas Calientes and Macchu Picchu within 12 days. Our visit to Tahuayo Lodge was a true adventure. We were able to explore and see Amazon wildlife with the help of our amazing guides, Herzog and Eduardo. The accommodations and food were great and Siomey was our friendly face at mealtime who ensured our food was always delicious. Julio Cesar took wonderful care of us in Cusco and getting us to Macchu Picchu and all stops in between! Freddy gave us a wonderful Cusco city tour and Eddy personally walked us through Macchu Picchu taking special care with my Mom throughout the entire tour - lots of steps! We felt very well cared for and although I have been to Cusco and Macchu Picchu a few times, I still learned new things during our tours. The trip was well coordinated and most everything went very smoothly.

We had an amazing trip, and experienced the local culture in many different areas of Nepal and saw breathtaking views ! It was like nothing else I have ever experienced . We felt very well supported by our guide Bhim when we visited ghandruk , and our guides in Chitwan. They were all amazing and friendly and full of information and knowledge in their local areas eg. the jungle animals, mountains, history of the area etc . Our trip planner Sangita and her husband bipin were so great and responded to our calls and text when we had unexpected changes to our itinerary.. eg plane or bus late , help with translating , even spoke to the locals at times, to help us plan changes we decided to make on the spot etc , we felt very relaxed and could focus on enjoying every minute knowing whatever happened we were very well supported and never on our own no matter where we were :)) we have had an adventure we will never forget and the best time!! Thanks so much to everyone:))

We were a group of 4 people visiting Iceland and we took several tours - the South Coast, Golden Circle, Silfra, Snæfellsnes, and the Blue Lagoon. Zeynep built our itinerary and gave us very clear instructions on the time and place to be for these tours. I will even give her credit for arranging for the terrific weather. When our return flight got changed, Zeynep was right on top of it and updated our return trip to the airport. Thorough, organized, and friendly! We were more than happy with the excellent service Zeynep provided and very grateful for her plans that allowed us to have a first rate visit. Thank you very much!

We enjoyed the guest house. First opportunity to see northern light. Also diamond beach. And glacier. And black sand beach. Everyone was helpful. And all accommodations where great.

Could not recommend Kim Kim enough, service start to finish was 1st class

Liz was our travel agent and she did a great job. Everyone at Andean Travel was really helpful. They provided additional guidance when we had a situation.

All our guides and drivers were great. The guides were all very knowledgeable and were able to answer our questions. I really loved the Machu Picchu tour with Javier? and the Sacred Valley tour with Ruth. They ensured that we had a truly unique experience.

I also really appreciated that we did not have to wait for transportation. All the drivers were waiting for us when we arrived in an area.

Our holiday was intended to give my wife and me a first time taste of cultural Greece.
Tasos from the Travel12 team suggested a great mix of archaeological sites as well as food and wine experiences extending from Athens to islands in the Cyclades, the astounding monasteries of Meteora to the Peloponnese and then Delphi. Our drivers were excellent, punctual and always courteous and friendly. All of the guides were exceptional, Tania and Constantine of Alternative Athens, Anastasia in Mykonos, George on Delos, Ilias with his deep knowledge of Greek history and the archaeological sites of Mycenae and Mystras as well as his home town of Nafplio. Lastly Tania of Alternative Athens led a tour of Delphi, a wonderful place.
We can recommend the wooden boat cruise in the caldera of Santorini, with a Greek BBQ dinner on board and a saxophone player entertaining us at sunset with a wonderful view of the white clifftop buildings of Oia, breathtaking!
We can also recommended a cooking class on Naxos where we picked vegetables with Jacob from the garden of his working farm and prepared stuffed tomatoes, eggplant and capsicums which we then ate with delicious white wine, nice!
The Travel12 team were always readily available with guidance and solutions to any problems that occurred. All in all a wonderful holiday experience.

Àll our drivers and guides were wonderful ! I admired our guide at Machu Picchu! He told personal observations that were not found in books! All the personnel were patient and kind! They were knowledgeable and considerate of our health and well being! As I’m presently on my last bus ride home, I can honestly say that I would recommend this service to anyone ! I need more time to find all our guides names to thank them personally - but I’m so happy to experience the beauty of Peru with the assistance of your staff and all the tours we took! Thanks to all!

We enjoyed our trip very much and found the Travel12 team very responsive. The hotels were in great locations, but the rooms were very very small...especially the bathrooms. Other than that, all great. Although the two tours we had on Santorini were repetitive, we enjoyed the guides and our fellow tourists very much. We especially liked Sophia. She was extremely well informed and personable. Thank you for our great trip.

Our trip in Italy was fantastic. The drivers who picked us up and drove us to all of our destinations were extremely friendly, nice and professional. One of our phones was forgotten in one of our driver’s car, and he was kind enough to bring the phone back to us the next day in perfect condition. The hotels were greatly located, clean and the staff were very accommodating. The hotel in Amalfi and Rome were beautiful, however the hotel in Sorrento lacked some appeal as we were put in a room below ground level that was dark and very small. I would highly recommend all the hotels, except that one.
The food was fantastic and there was a great breakfast selection at most hotels.
The tours were fantastic, including the guides and staff.
Matthew was a great help throughout the trip, always answering our questions right away and giving us wonderful suggestions.
All in all, I would recommend kimkim to anyone that is travel to an unknown country and thank you all for planning an unforgettable trip for us!

Antonia, we so appreciated your diligence and care in both planning and executing our incredible Croatian Adventure. All of our lodging, transports and activities were well done and suited our needs perfectly. The tour guides added so much to our understanding of the culture/ history/ people...most of them exceptional! So many wonderful experiences, hard to choose a favorite...kayaking, hiking Plitvice, biking/cooking/wine tasting in Konavle, drives cross country, Hvar and Vis, walking the old cities, swimming in the Adriatic, accommodation update on my B Day and locating my luggage which was mistakenly taken....wow! We had a memorable experience and hope to return. We barely scratched the surface of what this lovely country has to offer! Thank you for your exceptional support throughout our two weeks in Croatia. We are so grateful Antonia.

Spent five days on a six cabin sailing vessel, traveling to the islands south of Athens. Seros, Serifos, Kythnos, Kos. Eight other tourists, plus the captain Alex, and we all got along very well. Aside from sailing, we swam in the coves, hiked the islands, and had dinner on the beach restaurants at night. Then, 3 days in Athens at a very nice apartment rental in the city, seeing the Acropolis, visiting the museums, and spending time reading in the local cafes. The local people spoke English very well, Alex spoke English well having gone to school in Wales, and most signs also had English on them.

On the Athens airport on the way back, I came across two women from my state who took a larger cruise line. After our discussion we came to the agreement that my trip- the smaller sailboat- avoids large crowds, lets you really have a unique (non packaged) experience, and was easily the better way to see Greece.

My husband and I are retired school teachers and usually plan our own trips, however because Romania is brand new to us, I checked online. When I read reviews of Raluca I was convinced to give it a try. I was not the easiest client, because first I said we like to hike. When Raluca offered us a complete hiking vacation, I saw that would be too much. So she changed our itinerary to include one all day hike in Craiului National Park and the rest exploring old Saxon villages, going in a rental car. Our nine day road trip included quaint hotels and guest houses in the old town section of each village. If you want first class lodging, I suggest booking it yourself and keep to the big city hotels. But if you really want an authentic experience where you meet real people, go with Raluca. A couple of times we felt stuck and had questions. Both times Raluca answered our call right away and got us answers.

Our most memorable night was our “night in a museum” where our guest house was a farm house in the small village of Viscri, a UNESCO World Cultural Heritage Site. We have visited a couple of museum villages in Europe where they have houses set up to show how people lived 100 to 300 years ago. The beds were fine and the food very good, down home cooking, the sense of community among the other boarders was very welcoming.

I cannot do this review without mentioning a place we were fortunate to stay two nights; that was at Casa Dobre, in the village of Madura, in the Carpathian Alps. This couple were so nice, they made our stay outstanding. Most places serve you breakfast. They served dinner as well, with home made plum schnapps on the side, plus whatever beverage you wanted, including beer or wine. And both mornings they sent us off with a sack lunch, because they wouldn’t want us to starve! And the views all around them were Sound-of-Music BEAUTIFUL!

Every time we thought we might have a problem, such as with parking in the pedestrian zone of little old downtowns, where we were always booked, things were fine when we got there. We have no regrets at booking with Kimkim and Raluca at Romania Active.

We typically are DIY travelers. For air, ground transport, hotels, and activities, I enjoy the planning process. Often, this is driven by the very specialized aviation activities I enjoy. Indeed, the first part of our trip was to Belgium for an airshow and photography activities. However, I was a little unsure of myself when it came to Greece so we decided to go with Kimkim. I was struck by the professional nature of the website.

We were then put in contact with Rebecca who did a great job in tailoring an itinerary to our specific needs and interests. While more expensive than my original DIY plans, we feel that we received excellent value for that extra money. We are extremely happy that we made the choice to go with Rebecca and Kimkim.

It is difficult to state the most memorable attractions because there were so many. Every attraction was unbelievable and at times jaw dropping. The attractions and scenery were something to behold!The adventure gave us a briliant insight into the geography, geology, history , culture, cuisine and lifestyle of Peruvians, both past and present.
I should state at this stage that our original reason to come to Peru was to learn about the Inca civilisation and we came away with an indepth knowledge and appreciation of their culture.
Our guide Zac was fabulous. He was informative, knowledgeable and enlightening in his knowledge of all aspects of his country both in the past and the present.
He individualised our program to suit our team of people. He was excellent at reading the individuals in the group in relation to their physical ability to comlete hikes , mental resolve in completing these tasks and know when it was time to have a rest. He developed a strong rapport with the group . He was humorous and answered our many questions with authority and interest.
Clearly an intelligent man who looked after us so well. Our other short term guide who covered the Lake Titticacca patr of the tour was also very good.