Kimkim Trip Reviews

Overall we were very pleased. Yuri provided the guidance we expected and fulfilled our experience. The trip was great.
Pickup at the airport was a little disorganized but then which airport isn’t. Checkin was good but had to wait for our room. After 15 hours in airports this was unfortunate but again not surprised.
Tour of the Familia Sagrada was great. Danny was informative and helpful. What a place!
Wine tour was also great. We’ve been on many but this one was more informative and extensive. Plus portion size was large compared to North American wineries.
Montserrat was good but did have it’s issues. Many unavoidable but it still made the day a little rushed. Our guides Matteo and Roger did what they could to alleviate the delays however it did take away from some of the attractions we wanted to do.
Overall though Barcelona is a beautiful, clean and friendly city. Costa Brava is also a beautiful area with much to see and do. Slightly off season definitely helped us enjoy our time.

Hotel Reviews

Hotel Aigua Blava

Costa Brava · Girona

Authenticity & Character

Location

A little complicated to get their

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Hotel Astoria

Barcelona

Well located. Walking distance to many attractions or alternatively the metro was two blocks away. Service was friendly, rooms clean and typical European size. Would stay again.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Review

Private Extended Visit to Sagrada Família

Barcelona

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

2 Star rating for response to bad weather in Lower Mustang

The 2-star rating applies to the entire team handling our trip.

The highlight of our trip to Nepal was supposed to be our mountain biking trip. Bad weather and poor anticipation and replanning made it an experience we rather forget quickly. We had planned to bike in the Lower Mustang region. While we did travel to Pokhara during rainy weather we never made it to Jomson as there were no flights and landslides blocked the roads. While the team is not responsible for the weather, the implication could and should have been anticipated. We pushed for a replan after an idle day in Pokhara. We ended up traveling to the Everest area where the weather was much better. We lost 3 days. Unfortunately, our guide wasn't very familiar with the trails. She wasn't prepared for the Everest area. We ended up going down two trails that were nothing short of dangerous and required a lot of walking with our bikes. Out of the 8 days of bike rental, I rode my bike 3 days (the bike broke down on the last day and I hiked the trail while my friend and out guide did the ride). The reason for given 2 stars instead of 1 is that the team was helpful, we had some nice experiences at the tea houses, changed plans to have a change to see Mt Everest (which worked out well), ... Again, it all started with bad weather, but the local team could have done a much better job preparing and triggering an alternative plan. We ended up spending about $500 / day (without bike rental) per person, for one hotel room (with double beds). That looks expensive given typical cost of a room ($10 - $20 / night, 1, 2 or 3 rooms as needed for driver and guide as well), meals ($4-$8, need to cover guide and driver), car and driver (on one of the days in KTM we got our own driver (not included in the kimkim fees) and paid $45 for car and driver for the day), guide, ... (we also paid over $200 in tips for guide, driver, ...).

A trip that definitely didn't meet expectations. Luckily the time we spent on our own gave us a chance to learn a lot about the country. And our guide showed us a wonderful monastery and helped us with a great morning experience seeing the Himalaya and Mt Everest (but that was really too little for $5k / 2 people).

I hope that our less than desirable experience will lead to some better back-up planning and makes a difference for future visitors who encounter similar weather conditions. Jan and I did enjoy the country and we look forward to another change to explore it (better).

Thanks for listening.

Niels

Dispite a rocky start after missing our flight from Istanbul we had a terrific tour. Berat and Murat were able to make some minor adjustments to our tour which meant we did not miss anything dispite losing 12 hours due to missing our flight. Our guide Hati in Cappadocia was awesome, we hear stories and history along the way and there was never a dull moment. From outdoor museums to pottery to underground cities and of course our ballon ride, it was a wonderful visit.
We arrived in Izmir on the late flight a enjoyed a great sleep in followed by a fantastic breakfast. The house of the vergin Mary was a great followed by Ephesus which can only be described as amazingly wonderous. To walk in the same places and touch the same stone as some of histories most famous and iconic people was truely incredible. Topping the tour off with a visit to the thermal spa in Pamukkale made sure this was a trip we will not forget and will be part of our conversations for a long time to come.

Thanks to Jessica for tailor making our perfect trip in Peru and Bolivia. Machu Picchu was great, of course, but most suprising was the lovely Train trip from Cusco to Puno. Beautiful landscape, hordes of lamas, and a fantastic stop at a market on 4319 m. Bolivia and La Paz was also very exciting. Copacabana was also surprisingly interesting, we were lucky to arrive just before a local parade. Uros floating islands were nice, but a bit touristy.

Hotel Reviews

La Casona Hotel Boutique

La Paz

Nice hotel, very good location next to the cathedral plaza. Good breakfast with good view.

Authenticity & Character

Location

I

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Taypikala Lago

Puno

The standard of the hotel was good, but it’s too far away from everything. We should have stayed in Puno. May be the most disappointing on our tour.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Welcome to Puno: Free day

Puno

The train from Cusco to Puno was one of the greatest and surprising experiences. Luxury train, good food, beautiful landscape and lama hordes outside the train, and the highlight, a stop at a market on 4319 m.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

No guide.

Transport

Recommending everybody to take this train.

Sacred Valley: Pisac Market & Train to Aguas Calientes

Peru

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Lake Titicaca Tour: Uros Floating Islands & Taquile Island

Puno

Great experience. May be expected Uros Island visit to be longer and a bit more personal experience. We were just arriving, looking and left. May be we should have taken the over night tour.

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Discovering the Treasures of Machu Picchu

Aguas Calientes/ Machu Picchu

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Cusco City Tour (Terje)

Peru

Great view of the city. But not much from in the city itself. I would have appreciated a walking tour of the centro.

Quality of Experience

Include a tour of the city itself

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Private transfer from Puno to La Paz with visit to Isla del Sol

Bolivia

Copacabana was a surprisingly beautiful, and we were lucky to see a parade of farmers. Once in a lifetime happening, according to our guide. Isla del Sol tour was very similar to Taquile Island tour. That was disappointing, since we were told it’s a bigger and different island.

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Half Day Tour of La Paz + Valley of the Moon

La Paz

Exciting tour, great views from the gondola and exciting to see the moon valley. Colorful Witch Market. Very helpful guide.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Christina was fantastic! She put together an itinerary that was a great fit for my family, as we have two children ages 5 and 7 years old. The hotels were in great location, convenient for traveling, and the views were great. Her recommendations for restaurants, bakeries, and sits to visit were also spot on. More importantly, she has been very responsive throughout the planning and booking process. Even during the trip, she was able to help with some issues and well as answering my questions very promptly. I highly recommend Christina and the Kimkim travel team for trips to Norway. I certainly will for my next trip to Norway!

Hotel Reviews

Svinøya Rorbuer

Svolvær

Our very first experience with traditional fishing cabin style hotel. Simple design and amenities but has enough space for our family of 4. 2 bedrooms, 2 baths, and family room and a good size kitchen with eating area. 7 min driving from the airport which is very nice. Connect to E10 (major route connecting the island chain) via a bridge. Secluded and quiet. Nice view of the bay from our cabin. Hotel has the best restaurant on the island.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Scandic Byporten

Oslo

Located the the same building complex as the Oslo Central station. We literally walked from the train station to our hotel in 5 min without having to step outside into the streets. The train will take you to and from the airport in 20min (the Express train only has 1 stop before reaching the hotel or the airport, depending on the direction of your travel). Many restaurant, sites (including the art district, the Opera House, Munch Museum) , shopping, are all within walking distance. The tram and buses right in front of the hotel can easily extend the travel distance conveniently. Buffet style breakfast is included with the stay, and has a very nice selection of items. Staff is very friendly and responsive. Rooms are modern, clean, and very well maintained. Definitely would stay here again.

Authenticity & Character

Modern European design.

Location

Easy short walk to many attractions/sights. Buses and Trams stop right in the front of the hotel. Many restaurants and shopping close by, all with short walks.

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Reine Rorbuer

Reine

Very conveniently located. Close enough to the famous Reinebringen trail head to walk to (for adults), which is important due to lack of parking spaces at the trailhead area. Spacious with 2 bedrooms (one with bunkbed for the children) and a large great room (kitchen, dining room and family room all in one) with fantastic view of the harbor/bay. We parked our car right in front of our cabin, which is convenient. The restaurant on site is very good, and breakfast is included with the stay. There are convenience store (Circle K) and cafe all within a few minutes of walking from our cabin.

Authenticity & Character

Built in the style of traditional Norwegian fishing cabin. The decoration inside also reflected the area.

Location

Fantastic waterfront view

Staff

Friendly and responsive

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Oslo City Walk with a Local

Oslo

The tour is tailored to our family since we have 2 young children ages 5 and 7 years old. Both me and my wife, as well as our kids, enjoyed the tour. Our guide Stig was fantastic. Extremely knowledgeable, friendly, and has a great sense of humor. He also recommended things to see/do after the tour, as well as instructions on the transportation to make it very easy for us. Highly recommend him.

Quality of Experience

See above

Guides, Drivers and Staff

We learned so much more about the rich history of Oslo than we would've had we done this on our own. I am so glad we booked this tour.

Transport

Utilizing the public transportation was a breeze.

Explore Reine and the Surroundings

Reine

The location and view from our hotel helped set the tone. Reine is easily one of the most beautiful places we have visited. Hiking up the Reinebringen trail is a must. Bonus with included buffet style breakfast.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Hotel staff is friendly and helpful.

Transport

We rented a car and drove. One of the most scenic drives anywhere in the world.

Explore Svolvær

Svolvær

Great for outdoor activities. Short drive to trailheads. We went during the rainy season but was still able to get in some hiking. The recommended bakery was fantastic.

Quality of Experience

Somewhat limited by rain. Would've like to get in some casual walks and run.

Transport

Car rental was a easy. Just a 15-20 meters outside as you walk out of the airport luggage claim.

We waited 3 years for this trip and the wait was well worth it! Honestly the trip exceeded our expectations- and they were pretty high!!! Yassine was amazing. The trip evolved quite a bit due to Covid- it started out as a 7 day trip paired with Andalusia and ended up being 16 days dedicated just to Morocco. Over the 3 years of planning he worked with me patiently when I made changes and answered all my questions promptly. He really tailored a perfect itinerary for us. We started in the beautiful small blue city Chefchaouen and ended in an equally lovely small town Essaouira. The time spent in the Sahara in an awesome tent was something we will never forget! And the big cities of Fes and Marrakech certainly didn’t disappoint. The people, food and culture made each day an exciting adventure- we couldn’t wait to get up! Now what made the trip so special and memorable was our driver Hassan. He was kind, funny, knowledgeable and always ready to show us special and unique aspects of his home country. He is a real gem and certainly makes us want to come back and let him show us more of amazing Morocco . Thanks so much to Yassine and Hassan.

I wish that I could give more stars. Florin is extremely knowledgeable about the area and the history and he takes care of his people. I got very immersed in the culture and met people and we danced with groups of locals and had an amazing trip. Floin literally goes out of his way to show you things that you would not ordinarily see and or do. Second to none experience. Bravo Florin! Bravo!

I was very impressed with KImKim Travel. We had amazing guides who were very professional and knowledgeable. Everything ran very smoothly, with the exception of one driver being late but it did not impact our travel. Otherwise, the pickup drivers were punctual and took us to our destinations without any difficulty. I would not hesitate to use KimKim again and will recommend them to others!

Emanuela was great to work with. We had a few starts and stops with our planning and each time she was flexible and understanding.
She provided us with options for our trip and each time we provided feedback, she came back with updates to the plan that better reflected what we wanted. She was very responsive and got back to us quickly each time we had a question.
Hotels were very nice and ones we wouldn't have found in our own searching. That was a nice perk of having someone who is familiar with the area.
We drove the ring road and Emanuela provided detailed Google map driving directions with detailed stops of each attraction plus a few cafes and restaurants she recommended. This was so helpful.
She also was available and checked in on us during the trip. She was able to change some departure times for us on our last day.
Overall I would recommend working with Emanuela.
**Highlights**:
Zodiac boat tour among icebergs
Relaxing geothermal waters
Loads of waterfalls

The ring road has many worthwhile stops, but is very long so give yourself time at each waypoint to enjoy it while not feeling rushed. 8 days left us changing hotels almost every day.

Rebecca and her team were beyond excellent. They were in constant touch with my family, and the guides were pretty insightful, very friendly and helpful.

I generally do not do online reviews, but I felt strongly about this one. My family has beautiful memories from this trip and was certainly one of our bests. Thanks so much to Rebecca and her awesome team.

From start to finish Rachel was incredible. She responded very quickly to all our messages before we booked and then while we were away, she was quick to help with any issues, including delayed flights etc ensuring guides met us at the new times. She ensured all the hotels and guides were appraised in advance of our comprehensive dietary requirements.

While we were away for the last week the weather forecast was dreadful, with thunder and lightning. We spoke to Rachel, she and her colleague Paulo, didn’t hesitate to rearrange things for us. They got refunds where they could and re-booked the last part of our trip within 24 hours of the initial conversation about it. They could not have been more helpful, understanding and accommodating. Nothing was too much trouble for them. We were incredibly grateful as it made the last few days of our trip so relaxing and enjoyable.

Rio:
Hotel was nice, staff helpful and the breakfast was good. Plenty of options, including gluten / dairy free products and staff were able to assist with ingredients for other products.
Luis our guide was lovely. Knowledgeable and friendly. He made our tours educational and enjoyable. He mixed humour with information and we always felt very safe with him. His English was excellent and he was very helpful at the airport ensuring we got checked in and staff were able to assist us. Our extra tour with him was a bonus and we enjoyed that given the weather was not conducive to sitting on the beach!
Bike tour: This was the only aspect we were not happy with. The bikes were dreadful. They were very old, unsafe and didn't work properly. The gears kept slipping and the brakes didn't work well. The guide kept cycling off in the distance, not noticing that we had had to stop due to the bikes. He did switch bike with me at one point but it didn't help much as they were all as bad as each other. This spoilt the ride and we had to end it half way through to return the bikes as they were so difficult to ride. We felt as if he had chosen those bikes as the owner was a friend of his rather than they were good quality bikes that would be safe to ride.
We were appreciative of Rachel dealing with the issue swiftly and ensuring we were able to have the extra half day with Luis instead.

Pantanal:
We were disappointed by the condition of the room and dining room at the Pousada Rio Clara. The door handle fell off on the first day and was never fixed. The room itself is probably best described as shabby and in need of attention. There was nowhere to put clothes away, no wardrobe or drawers so we had to live out of suitcases on the floor which is not ideal. The dining room is best described as mess-hall style. The food was reasonable. We had made special requests which weren’t always followed and what was provided was basic and repetitive. It feels as if there is not enough funding, The staff all do multiple jobs on the property and so there are not enough available to ensure things are at a good standard. They are friendly and as helpful as they are able given the difficulties they seem to face.
The guide DJ was great, incredibly helpful, knowledgeable and friendly. We really enjoyed the boat trips most of all. The road safaris are a bit hit or miss as far as seeing animals which can’t be helped.

Foz do Iguazu
We were met by the very lovely Lurdes and the driver. She was so friendly and helpful, always trying hard to help us have the best experience, we were sad to say goodbye to her! She made the whole stay in Foz really special.
The Wish hotel was incredible, a huge property with a mix of property styles for the rooms. A lovely pool area and small pools adjacent to the properties. The restaurant was great, excellent choice of food at the buffet for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Options for gluten free and very helpful staff.
Salvador
The guide was very friendly and helpful, giving advice as to where was and wasn’t safe to go while we were there. He also advised my husband to take off his fine gold chain. This did all make us feel quite vulnerable there as we were obviously tourists. The city was interesting in parts but the deprivation was sad to see.

Prai do Forte
Such a wonderful place to end our trip. Beautiful weather, a lovely hotel with incredibly helpful staff and a very nice local area, in walking distance, and a beautiful beach with white sand, palm trees and water as warm as a bath!

All in all we found that going through KimKim and the local agent worked really well. This was the first time we had used an agent, we usually book everything independently and don't have guides or drivers. We felt this was a really excellent way of travelling around Brazil and would have struggled without Rachel's advice, knowledge and help. We will recommend both KimKim and Rachel to anyone wanting to book!

My husband and I had an excellent experience planning and booking our recent trip to Norway (including the Lofoten islands, Vesteralen and Oslo) with kimkim. From the start, we felt that Christina, our local specialist, was not only knowledgeable, but was listening to us regarding what we were hoping to get out of our trip. When she first sent our itinerary to us, it was awesome to see that she had included the balance of time outdoors and experiencing Norwegian people, food and culture that we were hoping for. The locations that Christina recommended within Lofoten were absolutely stunning, and we felt that the pacing was a perfect - we were able to see a lot of different towns and parts of the region, but still have time to enjoy ourselves at each unique stay. Especially memorable was our stay with Lone at her family-owned guesthouse, Skagakaia, where we sat outside, staying warm next to a beautiful fire, watching the Northern Lights, full from her delicious home cooking. We also very much enjoyed our tour of Oslo with Stig, who described for us the past, present and future of Oslo as we walked around and learned even more about the people, culture and history. Since we had time left in Oslo after our tour with him, we were able to take him up on several of his wonderful recommendations for food and drinks. We appreciate all Christina and her colleagues and partners did to make this such a seamless and memorable vacation and trip for us. We wouldn't change a thing, and we highly recommend kimkim and plan to use the service again in the future. Thank you!

Hotel Reviews

Sakrisøy Rorbuer

Reine

Beautiful location and place to stay, loved listening to the water at night. Very cozy and charming. Kitchen is well equipped. Love having a fireplace and logs provided for a fire. Convenient location close to Anita's market and restaurant. Would stay here again in a heartbeat. It was wonderful.

Authenticity & Character

Pure coziness. Loved the personal touches, fireplace and well-equipped kitchen.

Location

Convenient location, yet right on the water. Couldn't ask for better.

Staff

Really appreciated the communication and help with our laundry - thank you!

Cleanliness & Comfort

Very clean place!

Skagakaia

Bø

Beautiful place to stay. Lone is an amazing host and we felt so welcome in her guesthouse. Very cozy and charming. Lone is an amazing cook and we enjoyed every meal with her. Terrific location right on the water with some wonderful views and a sculpture park within walking distance - easy to get to and easy parking!

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Lone is so sweet and a wonderful host. We enjoyed talking to her and learning from her about the area.

Cleanliness & Comfort

Svinøya Rorbuer

Svolvær

Beautiful place to stay, loved listening to the water at night. Very cozy and charming. Great restaurant with delicious food and friendly staff. Terrific location - easy to get to and easy parking!

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Thon Hotel Terminus

Oslo

Wonderful location and friendly staff. Great hotel breakfast.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Henningsvær Bryggehotell

Vagan

Beautiful hotel right on the water within walking distance to just about everything. Wonderful breakfast.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Just a warning that parking can be tight and guests may need to pay for parking if the hotel lot is full.

Staff

The staff were very accommodating to us in helping us do some laundry on site - thank you!

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Explore Oslo's hidden gems with a local expert

Oslo

Stig loves Oslo and offered a fun and informative tour of Oslo that allowed us to explore its past, present and future. We learned about the culture, history and people, but also received personal suggestions from Stig regarding his favorite places to frequent throughout the city - without and pressure. Stig is a wonderful and enthusiastic tour guide! So glad we got to see the city he loves through his eyes!

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Chase the Northern Lights in Svolvær

Svolvær

Geir went out of his way to find conditions that could help us see Northern Lights - and we did! His enthusiasm for the Northern Lights is wonderful and contagious. It was endearing seeing him help budding photographers get the best shots of the Northern Lights that he could. This was the experience of a lifetime.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Trollfjord Cruise

Norway

This was great way to explore the fjords. Appreciate that the company is eco-conscious. We learned so much from expert guide, Julia, about the sensitive ecosystem in and around the fjords. Thank you!

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

We had an amazing trip to Morocco. I initially booked during 2020 and had to postpone. They were very accommodating and flexible and let me rebook at no cost for 2022.

I traveled with my friend and we felt safe and taken care of the entire time. Our driver was Soufian and he was excellent! He made sure we had everything we needed and made the trips to each destination very easy. He was always on time, took us everywhere we wanted to go, stopped whenever we needed a break on the road, translated for us, answered all our questions, and was very accommodating. Treated us like family!

Everyone we interacted with was so kind. Our tour guide through Marrakech, Oussama, was great as well! He gave us a great synopsis on the history of the city and helped us navigate the markets.

Big thank you to Kim Kim! It is a trip we will never forget.

My fiancé and I used kimkim for the first time for our greece trip and it was a beyond amazing experience- Chris who helped us book it really seen our vision for the trip and helped us make it come true. During our 16 day trip Chris was in contact with us at some point everyday verifying tours / hotels / ferries / transfers where good. We really appreciated all the tours Chris set up for us we mostly did private tours but for the ones we did semi-private we had amazing young tour guides and a younger group of people who we were able to connect with (this is something we haven’t always experienced with large groups so being with people your own age really makes the tour more enjoyable). During our trip we had a few weather issue with the ferry as well as a catamaran tour we had having Chris handled it so quickly causing us no delay in our current day and even booked us a new tour to help fill the day, not only did Chris make our arrangements with our hotel to verify we can stay the extra day in our current room when our ferry got canceled he also arranged everything with the next hotel for us as well and had it all handled without us even having to ask. Chris definitely went above and beyond with his help and guidance for our trip, he was always quick to respond to us and always was ahead of the game with a plan when needed. I want to also personally thank Chris for helping my fiancé plan a surprise engagement for me and also keeping it a secret! We have been recommending kimkim to everyone when they asked us we booked due to how impressed we were with the services we received- some small details from our experience- we had private pickups in Mercedes (every driver waited for us with a sign with our name), private fancy pickups for tours (all on time ),we had fast ferries to every location with assigned seats when applicable, we had fast pass in the airport for flights with fast security line and a special lounge, we received welcome gifts from hotels and tour guides as well as kimkim. We really feel Chris did a amazing job and would recommend him to anyone going to Greece !

Hotel Reviews

Paros Bay Hotel

Paros, Cyclades

Hotel rooms are extremely cute with great views ! We really enjoyed our stay! Hotel staff is extremely helpful and was able to help us have a ATV delivered to be able to explore the island. Hotel offers free breakfast with a big buffet as well as lunch / dinner and a full bar. Hotel is not walking distance to town but the hotel staff can help you arrange car service. We really enjoyed our room and our view of the ocean and loved how close we were to the beach. Pool area is very comfortable with lots of comfy chairs and rest areas as well as an outside kitchen

Authenticity & Character

Location

Secluded

Staff

Extremely helpful and friendly

Cleanliness & Comfort

Mythology Naxos Villas & Suites

Naxos

This hotel was an excellent choice for the in room pool and view, however it’s a little far from the town(10 minute drive) - the hotel staff helped us get a rental car delivered to us which was beyond helpful! Hotel does not have a lobby but we did have hotel staff “what’s app” who was reachable to us 24/7 if needed! We really enjoyed our stay and the privacy this hotel had to offer! Definitely a great find for someone who just want to hangout locally around the area!

Authenticity & Character

Location

Private

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Extremely clean and newly updated

Achilleas Hotel

Athens

Great hotel in the heart of the city ! We especially loved how every time we came in it smelled like fresh baked pastries! Hotel staff was excellent and very accommodating! We really enjoyed our stay at this hotel!

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Manos Small World Santorini

Santorini island

Hotel has an amazing view, staff was excellent and friendly! Breakfast on the balcony is amazing way to start the morning ! We informed the owner we just got engaged and to our surprise we received a bottle of wine and a letter congratulating us ! We really enjoyed our stay! Just a heads up the hotel has a lot of steps (along with all of santorini) but the hotel had our bags carried to and from the rooms for us which we really appreciated !

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Mykonos View

Mykonos

We enjoyed our stay at this hotel, very easy location to the town (5 minutes walk to little Venice) breakfast was included with a large selection and had long hours. We got an upgraded room by the hotel and our room had everything we needed and was extremely clean. There is also a pool with a bar as well as restaurant with a large menu for lunch and dinner. You can have an amazing view of sunset from your balcony or the pool deck

Authenticity & Character

Location

Very walkable to the town

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

A journey through Naxian flavors

Naxos

We had tour guide alex, he was extremely helpful and knowledgeable of the area. He was very funny and knew his facts about the history of the island. Alex took us to a bunch of great food places and even a place with an amazing view of the bay. We really enjoyed our tour and being able to purchase local products from local shops. My fiancé and I ended up back at the cheese store multiple times to get more gifts to bring back as we loved the store quality and authenticity

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Acropolis & Flavors Combo Tour

Athens

My fiancé and myself had a private tour with Natalia, she was so sweet and very knowledgeable! Her tour was awesome She showed us so many nice food and drink spots and took us all around the city! We really enjoyed the acropolis and got amazing pictures (she knew all the good locations). My fiancé and I both agree that the places she took us actually had the best gemesta and spinach pie !

Quality of Experience

Food

Great location and such authentic food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Amazing and friendly

Transport

Greek Cuisine Cooking Class

Paros

Chef Maria was amazing, my fiancé, and I did a private cooking class, and it did not disappoint! We made a 6 course meal of all local foods and even leaned a Greek dance! This was one of the highlights of our trip the experience was beyond amazing ! Maria team was so nice and so helpful- we couldn’t believe how big the kitchen was for the class and all the amazing dishes we got to make and we even received a cookbook to take home !

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Amazing very friendly

Transport

This was our second trip where we used KimKim for trip planning - our first time to South America and I would never have figured out how to have planned this trip on my own - relying on local expertise for this was a must. Johanna, our agent, selected hotels, guides, and experiences I never would have found on my own - even though I'm generally the kind of person to try and plan 100% of all my own adventure travel. I kept up with how much this trip would have cost if I had planned it on my own (even though I would never have figured out how to put it together) and the "extra" you pay for using a travel agent was totally worth the expertise, advice, and options we picked. In fact, if I had tried to save a little $$ by doing this on my own the trip would not have turned out as well - so paying for someone like Johanna / KimKim is totally worth the money.

Hotel Reviews

Antigua Casona San Blas

Cusco

Great location, helpful staff, beautiful hotel / courtyard. I would definitely stay here again.

Authenticity & Character

Location

San Blas is an area of Cusco that's super close to the main square / action. Great places to eat just a few steps outside the front door.

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Casa del Sol

Machu Picchu

Great hotel - but you can't hold these hotels to the same standards as those in Cusco as the remote nature means their access to supplies is more challenging. I would definitely stay here again. Be sure to ask for a room that faces the river and not the city - when trains come through at night they are literally 10 feet from your window and it will wake you in the middle of the night.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Costa del Sol Wyndham Lima Airport

Lima

The main appeal of this hotel is proximity to the airport - and for that reason I'd be willing to stay here even if it were a 2 star hotel. Food (dinner and breakfast) was marginal, service was acceptable (but not great), and they charge you for everything (you can't drink the water in the room yet they charge high rates for bottled water - for comparison our hotel in Cusco provided free bottled water and free filtered water in both the bathrooms and lobby). With Lima being an epi-center for food and service, I would have expected more from this hotel

Authenticity & Character

It's not exactly fair to compare this to the other hotels from our trip - it's just a corporate airport hotel - but I've stayed in much nicer airport hotels.

Location

It's right next to the airport - what can I say?

Staff

Not enough agents at check-in, English was a challenge

Cleanliness & Comfort

it's a simple, clean hotel

Activity Reviews

Fly from Cusco to Lima

Peru

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Discovering the Treasures of Machu Picchu

Aguas Calientes/ Machu Picchu

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Lunch Cooking Class

Cusco

An AMAZING way to spend the day - we would have taken 2 classes from Chef Jesus if we'd known how much fun this was.

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Rainbow Mountain Trek

Peru

Incredible experience - a long haul to get there but definitely worth the hike. It doesn't look exactly like the instagram photos you see (they've been run through Photoshop) but it's not far off - and it's truly remarkable / worth the day trip.

Quality of Experience

Food

The place we stopped to eat for breakfast and lunch was terrible - it's the pre-arranged place our operator always uses. Lots of canned food and not very authentic. There are better places along the way I'm sure (we talked to other hikers)

Guides, Drivers and Staff

EXCELLENT guide / driver!

Transport

Machu Picchu Excursion (Circuit 1, 2, 3, or 4)

Peru

The open circuit ticket is a great option if you can get it - allows for more options depending on crowds, weather. We had incredible weather and the experience was truly a bucket-list item. Our guide was a huge part of the expeirnece.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Moray & Maras, and ATV Tour

Peru

This was OK but not the best part of the trip. We enjoyed it but with hindsight would have spent this time doing something a little different - a Sacred Valley tour with more time in Ollantanytambo. 4 wheelers not well-maintained but they worked just good enough. If you're being transported here be sure to have your guide / driver stop in Chinchero to see the locals manufacture sweaters and local materials. I wish we'd been able to spend more time here.

Quality of Experience

If you have plenty of time in your schedule, this isn't bad but if you're on a short trip I'd totally skip this.

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Half Day Cusco Tour

Peru

excellent trip - definitely a better experience as a private group as you could ask more questions to the guide and move at your own pace

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Fly from Lima to Cusco, Explore the City

Peru

On our own - a great afternoon of exploring.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

no guides on this day - but hotel staff helpful with suggestions

Transport

super small car - you could probably save a little $$ and just take a taxi if you're comfortable with this in another country

Felipe did an incredible job helping us plan our trip. He was very patient as we amended our itinerary a few times and recommended great places to see and restaurants. Couldn’t have made our trip to Colombia any easier and more enjoyable!

Activity Review

Cocora Valley,  Salento, & Coffee Farm Visit

Colombia

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Informative

Transport

Nice clean transport

I want to say thanks to Kunchok and his team for a wonderful experience. My brother and I visited Kathmandu, Pokhara, and Nagarkot for a week long trip in October 2022. The trip was an adventure and we had the opportunity to trek, explore the towns, and go river rafting. Kunchok was an excellent host and made sure everything went smoothly. We had enough downtime to enjoy the experience and I highly recommend KimKim and Kunchok in particular.

Our trip to Italy was fantastic! Fabio helped us plan an excellent trip that included Rome, Florence, Siena and Cinque Terre. Fabio took care of all the details including arranging for: private tour guide for the Vatican, tours in Florence, private driver to Siena, tour of Cinque Terre. Our hotels were excellent and the restaurants recommended great. We look forward to visiting Italy again within the next year and will definitely use Kimkim and will request Fabio.

Thank you to Kimkim and especially Fabio!

Soufian, our guide, driver and restaurant finder was awesome! He made our trip fantastic and easy. It was our first guided tour in Morocco and we would definitely do it again. We made great friends and memories.

Hotel Review

Palais Sebban

Marrakech

We had an issue with our room the first night, and they made up for it with great responses! Highly recommend it.

Activity Reviews

Chefchaoeun to Fez via Volubilis, Moulay Idriss & Meknes

Morocco

Volubilis should not be missed! Get a guide to tour you around. Amazing Roman ruins.

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Guided Tour of Fez Medina

Fes

Wow! What an incredible loving and breathing organism the Medina is. It definitely comes more alive and real with a guide. Highly recommend the trip

I'm glad you didn't put a character limit on the review - this may take a while. I'll start by saying that we learned something new every day and had a great time doing it. The drivers (for the most part) were great and the tour guides amazed us with how easily they taught us about the history and every day living of the populace of centuries ago. The only downside we experienced on the trip was it forced us to realize we weren't 20 years old anymore. It would have been nice to not have to get up early nearly day and rush through breakfast to get to the tour - or to have more down time during an afternoon. We always had a good time, but we were getting tired by the end of our trip.
Villa Poggiano was the perfect first stop. Fantastic staff, grounds, and meals. There was a small field in our back yard with a farmer plowing up the ground with a small tractor and a 2 bottom plow. It took him 3 days. In the U.S. - that would have been done in about 5 hours. Just shows a different pace of living. Montepulciano was a lovely little town where we fell in love with a small little wine bar and the various shops. The staff at Villa Poggiano was great about calling a cab for us if we needed one. The taxi drivers were a little crazy, but we found that to be true all over Italy. Our driver - Danny - went out of his way to make sure one of our travelers was able to get a needed medication that was left at home, and in the mean time, kept us fully engaged with stories.
Palazzo Niccolini is in keeping with the small boutique hotels that sometimes gave us a "WOW" factor when we first walked in because of the paintings in the rooms. Supposedly original and untouched over the years, but maybe someone should "touch" them. It appeared as though there were water drips running down the walls and they needed some help. Again - meals were great and the people were fantastic! I'm sorry I don't remember the name of our guide (Livitaly Tours), but she was very good.
Train - Florence to Rome. Once we figured out how to read the train schedules, we were ok, but still managed to exit the train 1 station early. Louise was able to contact the driver and he picked us up with no problem.
Hotel Modigliani - location was great. Meals and staff were, once again very good. The room was way to small - to the point where it was uncomfortable and I wouldn't recommend it. Our sunset Rome walking tour, with Riccardo as our guide, was super. He was (in my mind) so typical "Italian", speaking with his hands so much, that I had to video him for about a minute. It was a great tour and while my preconceived notion was to not expect much, I'm glad to say it wrong and I would highly recommend this. The private Vatican tour with Sam gave me a lot of "wow's" because of the art, but I didn't feel this was exactly what I would consider a "private" tour, and Sam could have moved a bit more often. The constant standing in one place was starting to drain my knees and feet and it seemed his voice was becoming a constant monotone. It's a fabulous place and I think a different guide might be able to add more than I got out of it.
Our private Colosseum tour was probably the highlight of all the places we visited. I'm sorry to say I forget the name of our tour guide because she was really good! (Liv Italy tours) Walking through the bowels of the Colosseum gave me the chills wandering all tunnels and trying to imagine what it was like thousands of year ago. Really, really great!
Train to Naples. No problem. We got off when we were supposed to! 😉 Driver to the Caruso Place Hotel was jerk. He drove like a maniac (although it appears as though that is common in Naples), gave us a brief - and inaccurate - description of how to get to the hotel, and then asked for a tip! (so I told him to drive slower) We wandered around and helped by a local shop keeper who called the hotel and Alessandra came to our rescue. She led the way to the lobby and helped us get checked in. This was absolutely the nicest hotel we stayed in during our 3 week trip. The pizza making class turned out to be much more entertaining than I had anticipated - something fun for tourists to go to. The Pompeii tour was quite eye opening. I had no idea that the digging had to go down so far to find the artifacts and quite amazing at how well preserved they were. I can't remember the guides name (again), but she was just the opposite of Sam when we did the Vatican. She kept on going at a rapid pace, but still explained everything as we went along. Could have slowed down a little, but better than just standing around. Other than the Colosseum, Naples was probably my favorite city in Italy - but the drivers are crazy!! Glad I didn't rent a car while I was there.
On to Greece. An alphabet that I'll never figure out. We probably laughed more, and more often, than any one time in Italy. It wasn't that things were boring in Italy, it just happened that we clicked with our guides. Arrival to Athens was uneventful. Our first stop - Zillers Boutique Hotel. Great place, but the highlight was the view of the rooftop bar at night. There - in all its' glory, is the Acropolis all lit up. It's like seeing the Grand Canyon for the first time - all you can do is say "WOW!" Our tour guide the next day was Kiki. She was great at letting us catch our breath on the way up the hill, but still talking about the area or the ancient Greek society while resting. Somehow or other, she got us to the top but made it feel like we didn't work that hard. After that the rest of the tour was almost an afterthought. Kiki was one of the best guides we had if for no other reason than the pace she maintained. This was the one tour I was really looking forward to and it was overshadowed only by the Colosseum.
Our driver for the rest of the mainland was George. Always on time, always smiling, always a smooth and careful driver.
On our way to Olympia, we stopped at "My Precious Olive Tree". Ioanna was our guide. I thought this was just going to be a gimmick to sell us something, but we not only got lunch, we adopted an olive tree (thanks to Tasos). The best part was after lunch was over, we met Ioanna's father, mother, and the farm manager - Jimmy. Well, Jimmy is now my new best friend. He produced a small bottle of Tsipouro! Never had anything like it, and we drank and laughed and everyone had a great time! That was the hardest I've laughed in months. Great stop on the tour!! We finally made it to Olympia and while we weren't expecting a Marriott, but the Leonidaion certainly was step down from what the last couple weeks were. We all realized that we are not in a major hub, so the idea of a new, modern hotel was out of the question. It was clean, and breakfast was good, and Damion was a first class host always offering his help and giving us directions and making sure our dinner next door was taken care of. Great guy. The hotel? - you have to remember where you are. It was fine. The tour of Olympia was everything I was expecting. Nothing spectacular, but I wanted to see what it was like at the beginning. Lots of temples, statues, and pillars. Much the same as what we have already seen. Fortunately, our tour guide left time for us to sit and take pictures when we wanted. This tour might not be for everyone, but I'm glad we got to see it. Well worth the time. We also stopped at the Kilo Honey farm, met the owner, got a little tour and explained how it was all done. It took no effort and really wasn't out of the way, so I have no problem doing this.
Last stop on the mainland was Nafplio. What a cute little town. A big fortress on top of the hill to protect it years ago. Sitting right on the water, we had a front row seat to some extremely fancy yachts coming and going. Great little restaurants all over town. We stayed at the Amymone Suites hotel. No elevator to get our bags up to the 3rd floor, but we did have a balcony and breakfast next door at the Wild Duck was delicious. Our tour guide was Theo for evening and the next morning. There is more to be seen than meets the eye and while I wasn't thrilled with him in the evening, he earned his keep the next day. Our dinner the last night was from Alaloum restaurant (courtesy of Travel 12 - thank you) and it was fantastic! I had never had roast rooster before! Our final stop was a wine and farm tour at Venikos. Cate was our guide and by the end of the tour we were laughing like we were old best friends. The lunch was very good and they were kind enough to get me a beer when I told them I don't drink wine.
Last but not least - Santorini. The Ambassador Suites Hotel was listed as 5 star, and while it was nice, the up and down of all the steps (and there were many) would cause me to look for something else. ...but the view was great, the breakfasts were just about anything you want, and they have their own helipad - just in case. The second day was guided by Will from Argyros Travel, and he not only did a fantastic job showing us things that everyone wants to know about, by the end of the day he turned out to be everyone's best friend with a big group hug to say goodbye. Finally - our Catamaran cruise in the Caldera lagoon. What a perfect way to end the trip. The crew on board was top notch, and the food and drinks were never ending. We happen to be lucky in that we got a good group of people to help share the cruise with.