Kimkim Trip Reviews

We could not be happier with our experience with KimKim and Romania Activ. Raluca created an excellent itinerary for us, taking into account our peculiar habit of travelling by train as much as possible!

All the accommodation she booked was comfortable, clean, and ideally located to see the sights in the cities we visited. Particularly memorable was our stay with Georges Iurca in Botiza, a wonderful and knowledgeable host in a beautiful village.

I had a very good time in Nepal thanks to the Social tours team (Anura & Raj), everything went smoothly and they were very flexible with my plans even dealing with changes to fit my preferences once in Nepal. This tour included the key cultural highlights of the Kathmandu valley as well as a trek from Pokhara. All guides provided were very knowledgeable and left me some free time to explore by myself as well. My only suggestion is to make sure you have the direct contact details of your guides to keep them posted on your arrival time outside of working hours, as this has been required during my trip due to my flight to Pokhara being delayed early morning. Luckily we could reschedule the trek to the following day. I could not recommend Social tours enough, thanks again for the amazing experience! :)

Amazing coordination, Ingrid is top notch guide and trip organizer. Would HIGHLY recommend this to anyone traveling to Norway!!!!

Julien and Olivier from Allibert Trekking did a fantastic job in planning my itinerary for my Dolomites trek. Given that August is the high season, I thought the task of booking my trip would be almost impossible given that I booked in June. Nevertheless, within 48 hours of initial contact, I had my itinerary mapped out and all rifugios confirmed. It was almost too good to be true!

They were super responsive and possess great knowledge useful for people wanting to take a self-guided tour.

The itinerary they planned was very detailed, and the accommodations were excellent.

I'm already thinking about the next trip I will want to have planned for them. Great job guys!

My nephew and I especially enjoyed the guide Miguel who took us to Teotihuacan pyramids and other places near Mexico City and Alex in Oaxaca who took us on a tour of the Santo Domingo Church and museum as well as Monte Alban for their knowledge of the archaeological digs as well as ancient Indian history. Chef Carla was also great at providing us information about the local produce market and teaching us how to cook traditional Oaxacan food while allowing us to be quite interactive in the preparation of the food.

We had an amazing 10 days in Croatia and working with KimKim was an absolutely wonderful experience. Veselka our local specialist was a joy to work with and she checked all the boxes in helping us set up our family sailing adventure to Brach, Hvar, Vis and the Pakilani Islands. Every detail was covered and all the suggestions that were made and the advice that was given was right on point! Our Captain Alen and his wife Natalija were A1 and treated us like family as they took us on around the beautiful Adriatic Coast for 6 days in their 42ft Catamaran The Avacado. (with it’s Avacado Pink Sail!) The meals on board the boat were fabulous and made according to the seasonal availability of all the freshest and healthiest ingredients. The dinner recommendations from the crew in each of the port cities we visited were perfect! (The Naked Fisherman of Hvar!) actually have a restaurant and boy was it fabulous! A big Thank You! to the both of them for the vacation of our lives!. Our day trip to Plitvice lakes was coordinated perfectly with no waiting to enter the park. Our Driver Miran and our charming and knowledgeable guide Ivana, made the day one we will never forget. The time we spent in the Split was unforgettable as well, and Nevis our tour guide gave us so much insight about the Croatian culture (proper coffee😊 ) and the history and Architecture of the city as we toured the Diocletian palace. We Love Croatia! Thank You KimKim for making travel stress free by not having to worry about the details when vacation time is meant to be spent enjoying the moment. Zivjeli!!

We had a terrific experience working with KimKim. There were some glitches and problems along the way, but the fact that we had a cell phone number to call and that someone ALWAYS answered the telephone and assisted us immediately made a huge difference in our feeling that we did not have to resolve the issue on our own. The hotels that were booked through KimKim were fine, and without exception the staff at the hotels, many of which were family-run, were kind and helpful. Regarding the guides: the only one who was questionable was the person in Palermo. Although knowledgeable, he was on his phone way too much during our time together. All of the others were friendly, took their job very seriously, and had much to offer. They had great pride in being Sicilian and that was great to see. It made a big difference to be able to just arrive at a location and know that someone was waiting for us and that we did not have to first try to hire someone ourselves. They all (except for the Palermo guide) spoke about the importance of being a professional guide and their concern for quality of service.

Carmelo, Alessandra and Ketty were great. Without repeating myself, we also greatly appreciated how Ketty handled our situation in Lipari. We arrived there not realizing that the hotel we had booked for a week was at the far end of the island, the staff there not particularly pleasant - we had to wait almost an hour for them to pick us up at the ferry despite repeated calls, the beach narrow and all big stones, and that the only way to get to the town was by a bus that ran once an hour and stopped at 7:00 pm. Otherwise, we would have to take taxis at 35 euro each way. There were no cars to be rented. Ketty was wonderful, she booked us into a beautiful hotel 10 minutes walk from Lipari, with a swimming pool which we used daily, and easy access to everything in town. She took care of cancelling the week at Hotel Cutimare and KimKim absorbed the additional cost of the Hotel Tritone, and so the whole situation was hassle-free for us.

The only other inconsistency in the trip was that we drove from Trapani to Agrigento and saw the Greek ruins. The following day you had scheduled us to go to Selimunte, but that would have been at least a 1.5 hour trip each way back to where we had just come from, and we ended up cancelling that excursion. It would have been much better to do these 2 excursions in reverse order.

We really enjoyed every aspect of the trip - probably least favorite was Palermo - the garbage was overwhelming- but the hotel was fine and the sites remarkable. We brought too much stuff - we did not realize that none of the places we stayed would have elevators and our suitcases were heavy, so in the future I would pack much lighter and find laundry places to wash our clothes. it would have been helpful to know in advance that there are no elevators. In Cefalu we had a problem with the taxi not coming to take us to the airport, and it seemed - if we understood right, that it was coming from Palermo - it would probably have been better to hire a local taxi that was not affected by traffic, as we almost missed our plane - but again, Ketty helped us through that.

We also stayed at some wonderful places that you did not book:
La Serenita outside of Noto
Ai Lumi in Trapani
Agriculturismo Casa di Basso outside of Agrigento
and we highly recommend that you explore them for other travelers.

The food was unbelievable - we did not have a bad meal the entire trip. The cooking school was fun. The trip to Mt Etna was great, as was the day-long excursion to Stromboli. We also took a boat to Vulcano one day. We went to a lot of beaches of all kinds, also to Modica and Ragusa, and did much "offbeat" things. At the B&B La Serenita, a woman who works there is also an aspiring chef of typical food, and she invited us to her cava in the mountains and prepared us a wonderful meal.

Thank you again for all your assistance and mostly especially for being available throughout our trip.
Allyson and Bruce

I am SO happy that I stumbled upon KimKim and, more importantly, Ingrid! I was feeling very overwhelmed at planning a trip to Norway, as it is such a beautiful country with so much to do and see. Ingrid shared her expertise and worked with us to plan a custom trip that fit in everything we wanted to do! We kayaked, hiked, boated, and explored our way through the country and couldn't have done it without the guidance of Ingrid. She was very patient with us in the planning process, making multiple itineraries for us to choose from. And it was so comforting to have her contact info on hand while we were travelling, because we did have a few minor questions throughout the trip (i.e. where to buy the best/coziest Norweigan sweater!? or, what time are we supposed to be at the boat terminal again?!) Her attention to detail was amazing. She booked the major bus and boat trips for us, sent us tickets, and even sent us maps with walking directions. I highly recommend Ingrid to anyone traveling to Norway, I've already told all my friends/family/coworkers about her!

Luka was our initial contact who responded quickly and was very informative during our initial inquiries. Closer to the trip, we we worked with his colleague Stasa who was our guide for the week.

The trip to Slovenia exceeded our expectations. Stasa planned an amazing itinerary and I did not realize the extent of the concierge service we would get. In a short week, we did an amazing hike in Triglav National Park, paddle boarded Lake Bled, wine tasted, rafted the Soca River, went canyoning, had a picnic/swam at a beautiful waterfall in Bovec to name just a FEW highlights. Stasa even took the kids out to pizza and gelato so the adults could have an amazing dining experience at Hisa Franko run by Anna Ros featured on Netflix Chef's Table.

Stasa's knowledge and history of the area is remarkable, she was fun, her logistics were impeccable, and was very flexible. The van that carried our crew of 4 adults and three children throughout the trip was spacious,comfortable, and clean.

If anyone is considering traveling in this area and in search of a guide, Stasa is a must! I could not imagine anyone delivering a more memorable experience for our families.

My 4 star review instead of 5 is due to a Kim Kim issue in which there seemed to be some confusion when two families are both on a single itinerary. Our billing was confused as an example and our family was billed the incorrect amount at first but that being said was corrected quickly when I discovered this and brought it to your attention.

Andrew, Diana, and Mia

Simon and Florian were both wonderful. The itinerary was great, although I wish I Arles was included in the itinerary given its significance. When I had to go to the hospital for emergency surgery Simon helped rearrange everything, and Florian even came to the hospital to visit. Since I was traveling alone, their attentiveness and consideration made all the difference. I was able to tailor the rest of my trip the way I needed. Simon was always communicative and made sure I was okay. Thank you guys for taking care of me and being so supportive and professional!

Tang & Driver Thang were fabulous. Their planning and execution was perfect. The route interesting with plenty of variation. The bikes perfect. The weather - we’ll sadly torrential rain and some flooding on 3 of the 5 days. But we still thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. Thanks for a great cycling holiday.

One word to describe this whole experience and adventure: AMAZING! Linda has gone above and beyond in making sure the trip was curated to accommodate my needs and requirements. Searching for the best prices/affordable trips always takes time and energy, however kimkim made it seem effortless, and the best part is that they offered a great price value relationship. If I had to do it again there would be no hesitation in working with kimkim again. Hands down made the experience memorable and rewarding, which is what it’s all about. Thank you for being phenomenal Linda, and thanks kimkim for making my first time experience with you special.

Ingrid and Vilde were very responsive and kind in the trip planning and I enjoyed the KimKim platform. I was hoping the itinerary would help my group make the most of our time in Norway- but unfortunately the itinerary didn’t achieve that. Our first full day in a location put us in Ålesund on a Sunday when everything was closed. A few museums were open from 12-4 but it made for a long day waiting for the Hurtigruten in our hotel lobby until 1am. I would have expected recommendations on tours to book in advance or thoughtfulness to what is open. I was really looking forward to the Hurtigruten- but found that the view wasn’t very good and our ticket didn’t include lunch. Stranding us as bored captives until 2pm. We didn’t accommodate any fjord cruises or boat trips thinking this would be a cool experience and I feel like we really missed out. This itinerary was a big splurge for us and I thought it would be worth it and we would get local insight to the best things to see in country. We would have been better off just flying into Bergen and booking ourselves a few days in the fjords.

My wife and I joined two tours in Korcula, Croatia with Rachael and John. One a guided walk through an old town called Znovo followed by an amazing dinner with Frank and his family. The second was a cycling and wine tasting tour which involved cycling from Korcula through the
Lumbarda countryside and stopping at two venues for wine tasting and snacks.

Both were well organised and most enjoyable. Sue and I can highly recommend both tours.

From start to finish, this was an incredible experience. Trip planning was super easy. Trekking was super hard and completely worth it. Our guide, Rolfi, was fantastic, the food was fantastic (thanks to Edgar), the landscapes and people are fantastic.

Awesome! Guides were great and trip was wonderful. Thank you so much!

We had an amazing trip. We went horseback riding on the beach, we visited the secret lagoon, saw amazing waterfalls, went on a lava cave tour, went on the sushi boat tour and the blue lagoon. Everything worked out perfectly, not one snag. So happy we did this :)

My husband and I went on a trip to Norway organized by Elina in March this year. Start to finish it was a truly perfect trip. Our first three days were spent at Malangen, an absolutely lovely, modern hotel with breathtaking views of a fjord. The staff at Malangen was extremely helpful and friendly and there were wonderful activities to choose from. We snowshoed, went to a campsite owned by the hotel to see the Northern Lights and had a fascinating session with someone who taught us about Sami culture.

After Malangen, we went to Tromso. A charming small city where we went to museums and restaurants. We also had a driver pick us up and give us a tour of the fjords.

Every aspect of the trip went incredibly smoothly. Their was one glitch when checking into our hotel in Tromso, but Elina was reachable immediately and resolved the issue. Moreover, she was prepared to spend 6 hours driving if she needed to address the issue in person! Thank you Elina!

We can't say enough good things about the KimKim experience. We traveled as a family of four with 19 and 16 year old son and daughter and this was our first trip to Europe. Planning the trip with Ante was very easy. He provided several example itineraries which we were then able to adjust to fit our preferences. We were able to meet him when we were in Split, having coffee before leaving for Hvar. He was genuinely interested in us having a good experience. What made the trip so special was the local people Ante set us up with, from the drivers, to the apartment hosts, to the guides; every single one of them was exceptional. I might not get all the names correctly, but it's worth trying. Antonia, our guide in Plitvice Lakes park was great. The park is very crowded and she was able to get us around many of the long lines the visitors were stuck in. Diana and Christian, our apartment hosts and Sea Kayaking guide in Hvar were awesome. The Apartment was perfect, clean, comfortable, with a nice terrace. Daria, our hiking guide to the Lost Villages was absolutely the best. The hike and the lunch we had in Malo Grablje was a highlight of our entire trip. We hated to have to say goodbye to Daria. The apartment in Dubrovnik, and our host Octavia, were also excellent. The apartment was located a short walk outside the old walled city, and had a beautiful terrace, with a small pool. We went sea kayaking around Lokrum island outside the old city walls. Luksa, our guide was really great. There are many large kayaking groups with commercial guides. Luksa was our own personal guide, and made it a point to avoid the other large groups, and educate us on Dubrovnik's history. It's worth mentioning that the drivers, both to Plitvice Lake and the transfers in Dubrovnik were also first rate. They were on time, professional, and very personable. Overall, the trip felt like we were visiting with family friends. I would absolutely recommend planning your trip with Ante. We will definetly be using Kim Kim to plan our next adventure.

Overall, we would rate Linda & Ingrid's trip planning and travel services for our trip to Norway as 5 Star. They did a lot of work behind the scenes to make our vacation a smooth, seamless event. We made a very customized travel plan and they demonstrated considerable patience and much effort to accomplish our goals. Without their help and inside knowledge of Norway, we would surely have experienced a great deal of trouble, especially with the transportation.

The most memorable portion of our trip was our visit to Alesund and the Hjorundfjord & Grirangerfjord fjords. The Sagafjord Hotel in Saebo was outstanding.