Kimkim Trip Reviews for Myanmar

We had a fantastic time in Myanmar; it's a magical place. Our itinerary: One day, Yangon, two days in Bagan, two days in Mandalay, one day in Heho.

We took four internal flights, and we found the domestic airlines to be excellent. I felt more safe than on some US airlines. All we're prop planes.

The whole tour was great and the guides we're wonderful. They all had different strengths
Our guide in Yangon, Ong, was extremely knowledgeable. We called him as a nickname Google. And his English was fantastic. Our guide and Bagan, Tin, was enthusiastic. He was very much concerned with us understanding Buddhism and the cultural practices surrounding the religion. He was thorough and seemed to really enjoy his job. Our guide in Mandalay, Ben, was more on the personal and caring side. He was quick to assure us when our children were running around not to worry about it that Burmese children do that as well in temples. Our final guide, a young lady in Inle was really sweet. We we're with her only for a short time and we were on the boat all day so there was a little less interaction. She actually gave her shoes to a woman who list hers in a temple. Talk about a good deed; ring the bell in a temple. Very kind. Of course my wife gave her her shoes at the end of the day.

The drivers in each stop we're attentive and careful.

The highlights of the trip both involved water. The sunset river cruise on the Irrawaddy in Bagan was once in a lifetime. We we're really moved by the experience. And the day on Inle Lake was fascinating. We loved every minute.

We experienced only one low point which was U Bein bridge. I saw it as a crowded tourist trap and we were out of there in 15 minutes. There is really no need to go there.

My only recommendation for future tours has to do with the hotels. Hotel Hazel in Mandalay had essentially no Wi-Fi. Not a big deal in the grand scheme of things; however, it's nice to post pictures to Facebook at the end of the day so your friends and family can see what you're up to. Additionally the hotels were a little far from the city centers so in the evening we really couldn't stroll anywhere just to relax and taken some more of the cultural experience.

Our agent Linn did a really nice job; often following up with us.

I highly recommend using Kim Kim, especially if you have children, ours 11 and 5. I would use Kim Kim again. Thinking of Bhutan next!

The communications should be directly with the person and not with the whole group!
Payment should be in 2 installments, 50% down payment and the final payment of 50% 2-4 weeks before the trip.
You should give us the phone number of the local person who will be receiving us at the airport.
We should have a copy of the flight reservations/confirmation.
We thoroughly enjoyed our trip and the resort- I’ll at Lake Inle. We wish we had more time there!
Most of the guides were excellent.
Thanks,
Jaya and Satya Ahuja

Guides in Yangon, Mandalay, Bagan and inley lake were good. However, the ones in Mandalay and Inlet lake had no clue about our departure times or flight iternerary causing confusion on the last days in those cities. The guide in Yangon was misinformed about our arrival at airport on Dec 3rd and showed up 1 and 1/2 hours after our arrival at the airport only after we communicated with Su by email. If Su had not answered we would have had to find a way to reach Savoy hotel ourselves at night one way or the other.

I enjoyed the complete trip, my guides, Thwe Thwe Gmtt, May Han Thu, Kyikyi Aye and Ko Zay were all very knowledgeable and fun to be with. Riding the bike in Yangan visiting the villages and seeing all the markets were very special for me not only as a photographer but to interact with the people. Being able to go to peoples homes and have shared meals was very memorable. Seeing lots of things and never feeling rushed. The Balloons over Bagan was an experience not to be missed.

Overall, my experience was great. Su was incredibly helpful and very responsive on the planning portion of the trip.

My local guides were very knowledgeable, although sometimes my questions where unanswered mostly due to a language barrier.

On a scale from 1 to 5 I would rate them all at a 4. Out of all my guides I was particularly fond of my guide in Mandalay, as he was the easiest to communicate with.

I would recommend Su and all of my guides to anyone visiting Myanmar.

Myanmar was AMAZING. The care and quality of the planning made all the difference. Anne went far far beyond my expectations in building a trip that reflected all that excited me (in this case cycling, culture, food, the people, the reasons why, ...). I have had countless great travel experiences, and working with Pure Myanmar was one of the top. Each day was unique; transitions were seamless; lots of little extras (I'm not a big beer fan & she handed me a bottle of rum ... I wanted consistent wifi and a hot spot appeared ... my companion bailed & she created a killer solo experience). Oh, and the guides - Anne has nurtured solid relationships with the best local guides. Really, I just can't say enough good things!

Everything about this trip was superb, from the moment I first got in touch with Anne. She was an excellent planner who understood exactly what I was looking for. On the ground, the guides, drivers, accommodations and arranged food were excellent. I was all around impressed. I had an emergency and Anne was on hand via WhatsApp immediately, which was a great help and relief. I highly recommend Anne and a trip to Myanmar.

Our trip to Myanmar was truely amazing. We had hoped to achieve meeting the locals & becoming part of the culture in a real way & this is what happened for us. Myanmar is a beautiful country & the people are warm & welcoming. They gave us such insight into their lives plus showed an interest in us as people also. We were very grateful for the hotels Anne had chosen for us & staff couldnt do enough to make sure we were happy. We were able to go into the villages & non-touristy areas & found it was refreshing not to be harassed by market vendors. Our guides along the way were exceptional. They interacted well with us & were full of great information plus their English made communication easy. Our cooking class was fantastic firstly visiting the local markets to buy ingredients then cooking in our cook’s home We especially loved riding around Kalaw on electric bikes, visiting villagers in their homes on our Treks & being transported around Inle Lake in the long boat. We had lunch with a family known to our guide in the floating village. . There was always time to stop along the way. Most evenings were free as we requested. We were very grateful to Anne who professionally organised everything. . She was totally approachable giving attention to detail from beginning to end. Anne was always willing to listen & adjust the schedule to suit our needs.
We were able to relax & recharge. Our trip was magical. A perfect way to experience a bit more off the beaten track , less touristy exciting plus time to relax & take in all Myanmar has to offer.

Our three guides and three drivers in the areas of Mandalay, Pyin Oo Lwin, Bagan, Popa, Salay, Pindaya, Dalaw and Loikaw were all excellent. There was nothing we could fault them on. They gave us an insight into the lives and culture in each area we visited. They warmed to our Australian sense of humour and made our trip a lot of fun. All the various Hotels that we stayed in all staff couldn't do enough to please us. Our guides on the Pindaya Trek and Loikaw Village Trek interacted well and we had a wonderful time. Anne Cruickshanks who tailored our trip to suite our interests was nothing but professional in her communication skills and there was nothing we would have changed. We felt we could relax and enjoy ourselves and re charge on our annual holiday and felt safe wherever we went.
We were pleasantly surprised by the friendliness of the Myanmar people.
Happy Travellers
Ros & Geoff Wilson
South Australians

Anne was great! My initial request was vague but Anne pulled together the perfect itinerary.

Reno hotel-Yangon almost if not all non smoking room smells smoking if the aircon is not running.
Guide in Bagan not explaining the history of Bagan and each monument we went well enough or none at all.
Guide in Yangon, enle lake, mandalay were very good. All Drivers drive good and safe. Restaurant were averagely ok.
Tour generally are so so. Why..?? Market here today and everyday and last day in Yangon were 3-4 markets all day. Photography is not just all markets. Sunrise and sunset is a must. Tribes , customs, traditions, history, important monuments and etc.

Our 2 main guides Akkar and Nye Nye were amazing: professional, funny, accommodating. And they truly made our experiences so perfect. We found Myanmar magical. Loved going by e-bike through the pagodas. Akkar got us a romantic horse and carriage ride through the pagodas the first night and had recommended the restaurant Moon which was delicious. Nye nye was a total joy to be with. We particularly loved going to his village on Inle Lake, eating lunch at his family’s house and getting a tour of the village by dug our canoe with he and his Mum. Loved it all

We had a wonderful trip. Myanmar is beautiful country, the people are so friendly! The first contact with Anne was very promising and after a few e-mails we got a very good proposal in which Anne really proposed what we like to do. We love having close contact with the local people and we had! Lunches at family homes, a trekking around Pindaya, the Inle Lake, Kalaw and much more. The train rides between Kalaw and Inle lake was a great experience. In Bagan we explored the beautiful area with E bikes which was great.
Our guides made the difference! Nee, Aka, Wee and Chris told us a lot about their daily live and about the history of Myanmar. They made it possible to interact with the local people.
the hotels were good, not the big chain hotels but the real Myanmar experience. Especially Kalaw Heritage; a lovely hotel, great service, beautiful rooms.

If you want to experience Myanmar a bit more of the beaten track, not the standard tour operating thing which you see everywhere, go for Anne. What we also really appreciated was the idea that the money we spend ended up well, local family businesses.

Anne: thank you so much for the beautiful journey! We loved every minute.

Thomas, Gienke, Martijn and Friso

What a great trip! Loved Myanmar. The first time I visited was as a backpacker in my mid 20s in 1986. That as a remarkable time to visit what was then Burma but I certainly travelled rough.
This time I requested higher end accommodation for my wife and I. Anne excelled with her selection. For instance, the Sanctum Inn and Bagan Lodge were modern suites in 5 Star accommodation. But we loved every choice she made for us, plus she saved us some money by recommending we stay at the Savoy in Yangon rather than the Strand.
As well the selected itinerary suited our preferred pace of travel. Every morning we were busy site seeing until after lunch and then most days we were free to swim and lounge around our hotel pool. We are in our late 50s so, for us, this was ideal. However, if we made the request our fantastic guides were only too willing to show us more. So to Nay, Arwar, NeeNee and Cherry, our guides, thank you. So too to the drivers.
We had lots of highlights but I think the pagoda strewn hills surrounding Mandalay, the railway journey to the viaduct, the cooking class in Bagan and the visit to the Elephant Camp near Kalaw will stay in my memory the longest.
Thank you kimkim.

Our guide in Mandalay, Thwe Thwe, was very friendly and extremely knowledgeable about her country's history and culture. We really appreciated the opportunity to learn more about Myanmar through a local guide. We liked visiting a Buddhist monastery and sharing a meal with a family. We also liked seeing a small village that produced palm oil and learning about their way of life. ToeHlaing was our guide in Bagan and he was very nice. Our most memorable part of Bagan will always be renting e-bikes and going on dirt paths to see many beautiful temples. It was definitely the best way to get around and experience Bagan, and so we are thankful that our guide gave us this suggestion. It was a great trip!

Had an absolutely fantastic 8 days in Myanmar with Kim Kim. From the very first email conversation with my consultant Wai Lin it was an absolute pleasure. He was incredibly patient and knowledgeable and built us an unbelievable trip! Everything ran to an absolute t! We chose the route Mandalay-Bagan-Inle Lake-Yangon route. The tour guides provided were absolutely top class and gave us such a great insight into the history of Myanmar. The transport was comfortable and very punctual.

Personal highlights include U Bein Bridge, the private cocktail cruise in Bagan, the hot air balloon ride in Bagan, all the temples (usually I get tired of temples after a day but Myanmar's are so amazing I never tired of them), the food, Inle Lake in general. Everything was just so well thought out and convenient. Would definitely recommend and will def use again! Thank you, Wai Lin and all of our amazing tour guides!

Our Trip- Myanmar off the beaten track 10 days.
If we could give this trip a 10 we would. Anne was a fantastic organizer/planner. She understood what we were looking for and put together an itinerary that suited us immensely.
Everything went logistically smooth in terms of timelines, dates, pick ups and bookings. Our guides or drivers were always there greeting us with a big smile wherever the next place be.
In terms of the guides themselves they were all locals from the specific region we were traveling in. They were friendly, warm, caring and very knowledgeable. We genuinely enjoyed their company.
Myanmar was an amazing country to visit. From the landscape, the people and the experience itself. We definitely would love to explore more there again in future.
We would definitely recommend Myanmar, Anne and her team of guides to give you a truly wonderful and real Myanmar experience.
Thank you!
Alex Trey

Andy took care of our 6 weeks tour of Asia and everything went well. We had a good time and most of it, drivers, guides, Hotel etc were perfect. I will used Andy again for a another trip for sure.

Very professional experience that meet expectations. I would recommend both kimkim and Anne.

Anne and the rest of the guides/drivers were great. I could not say more about Anne and the response time, care of client etc... This was a once in a lifetime trip and I was happy that Anne was the one that could plan it for me.