Marina Courtaut

It was tricky for me to decide where to go and what to do when we decided to go to Lisbon and Madeira. I contacted three different travel speacialists and from the start Marina and Kimkim were easily the most proactive and helpful to me and straight away made me feek like they wanted to help and not just throw a "standard" itinerary at me. The personalisation and the platform used made a real difference and was so useful throughout the trip. Also, when I decided to cancel a couple of things it was no bother and everything was supported out promptly, whether by Marina or by someone else when Marina was not working. It made no difference that the company is based in the US and that Marina was based in Spain and that I am based in Madrid! It just all worked really smoothly. Thak you so much.

Hotel Reviews

The Cliff Bay

Funchal

Amazing hotel. Great view. Fabulous food. Faultless really.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Portugal Boutique Hotel

Lisbon

It was a decent hotel. The breakfast tables were tiny and the noise from all the night time clear up outside was not helpful if you left your windows open. Otherwise, really good location and nice staff.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Get to Know Lisbon with a Local

Lisbon

Definitely do this. Really good.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Hike Madeira: Pico Arieiro to Pico Ruivo

Portugal

Great walk and amazing viws. Didnt need a guide but all the same it was helpful that we took a differenct route to most others who would hav ehad to have done a trip that went back the same way. Our guide had left a car at an alternative location the night before.

Evening of Fado

Lisbon

Really average food and felt very touristy. Not the best evening to be honest.

Lisbon Roots, Food & Cultural Walk

Portugal

Lovely guide and very informative.

Sintra Heritage Hike: Hidden Secrets

Portugal

It was quite good. Dont bother though if you don tlike queues. The palace was horrendously busy and this is low season.

Introducing Funchal - Food & Cultural Tour

Madeira

We did not do this trip in the end.

All of our guides were so knowledgeable and very personable. Made our trip so much more enjoyable.

Hotel Reviews

Hotel Regina

Barcelona

Breakfast was amazing and service was topknotch!

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

One Shot Tabakalera House

San Sebastian

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Exe Almada Porto

Porto

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Four Views Baia - Adults Only

Funchal, Madeira

Beautiful! Loved Madeira! Loved the hike and our guide was the best!

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Review

Barcelona & Gaudí; An Architecture Walk

Barcelona

Our guide was so friendly and helpful. Answered all of our questions. Went the extra mile.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

We were very impressed with KimKim service. The team's response was quick and answered our questions right away. Upon are arrival, with dinner reservation at Fada, which we truly enjoyed ,even with out much sleep. Our first city was Lisbon, and our guide Filipa was great she took us around the city, even though we had jet lag she kept our attention. Next day was a trip to Sintra, with our guide Paulo. That day it was pouring rain and windy, but we made the best of it. We felt very safe with Paulo, as he made the day very personal, by stopping at his wife cafe, called Bristol, for coffee and local pastry. After we visited the Pena Palace we drove towards Sintra Cascias Natural Park for some dramatic views of the coastal Cliffs, of Cabo de Roca. Then off to Cascias fishing town, and on the way we stopped again at this small place, where he knew the owner/chef and ordered some local food for us to taste. Paulo made that day very special to us. Next, we had a driver take us to Porto where we stayed Pestana Vintage Porto Hotel. It was in a great location next to the Douro River, in the historic section, with an outstanding breakfast. The following day it was very stormy, but Celia, our tour guide, was ready to go and so were we. She took us all around the historic section of UNESCO World Heritage to admire the Romanesque, Gothic, Neo classic monuments and Baroque to mention a few. The Lello bookshop was worth visiting, but tickets should be purchased ahead of time, to avoid the lines. After being soaked to the bones, we had a reservation for a wine tasting that evening and got to try different port, which we enjoyed. Next Day we headed off to wine tasting, in the Douro Valley to a privately owned winery. It was very relaxing sitting talking, with the owner, of the vineyard , tasting the Porto and pairing it with food, which was cooked on site. The following day we then flew to Sevilla, and had tickets for a Flamenco show that evening. We did have a little trouble finding the correct venue, as we didn't realize that there were more than one place to go,. However, we found it and glad we got to see the performance. Next day, Andres took us on a walking tour around the Sevilla Cathedral a 15th century Roman Catholic Church the home to the tomb of Christopher Columbus. Then we walked to the orange tree filled Santa Cruz neighborhood known, as the Jewish quarters with its narrow streets. We visited the Alcazar a monument included in the UNESCO World Heritage site. Following day we took a day trip to Cordoba and meet up with Isabel, for a walking tour, she was great. She took us to the breath taken Mezquita ( Mosque Cathedral of Cordoba) a pagan temple that was converted into a green mosque of the Ummayad caliphate, which later was converted into a Catholic Church. It was well worth the train ride, as it was magnificant to see. Again, walked around winding streets of the Jewish Quarters. In the historic neighborhood of the Cordoba Synagogue. Off again, onto the train, to our final destination Barcelona. Once there, we were on own, as everything was within walking distance. First, we went to Guell Park and is well worth visiting. We debated about buying tickets, for Casa Batillo, but at last minute we did and we were very glad, it was a very different experience and enjoyed every minute of it. Finally our last day of our trip, we had tickets ahead of time, for the Sagrada Familia. We spent most of the day there as it was amazing, something worth seeing. Our last hotel was in a great location, very good breakfast, but was bare bones, not like all the other hotels. However, we really enjoyed our trip and appreciate all the help Marina, Marta and the KimKim team provided. I would use KimKim again for my next trip. Sharon

Hotel Reviews

PortoBay Marquês

Lisbon

Great location and an amazing breakfast. The front desk staff was extremely helpful. I would stay there again the next time.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Very helpful and friendly

Cleanliness & Comfort

Andante Hotel

Barcelona

Location was great, breakfast very good, however the night staff not so friendly or helpful

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

H10 Casa de la Plata

Sevilla

Great location, breakfast good

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Pestana Vintage Porto Hotel & World Heritage Site

Porto

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Evening of Fado

Lisbon

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Get to Know Lisbon with a Local

Lisbon

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Private Day Excursion to Sintra, Cascais & Estoril

Spain

Paulo was Great! We really enjoyed being with him! I would recommend him anyday1

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Very personal took time for us to make sure we enjoyed our day

Transport

Private Transfer {{start_location}} to {{end_location}} via Coimbra

Portugal

Not any fault of the driver, but the car company picked someone that has never been to Coimbra. He had no idea where to go. He did call back to his colllegaue to get some info, so he dropped us off at the University. Communication was a little troubling, but we managed. He dropped us off and we asked that he wait for us, as we just wanted to look around maybe take a few pictures and we would be right back. However, we could't find him anywhere, so had to make a few calls. We never got to see anything in Coimbra, so disappointing. I do not blame the driver as he was doing his job of driving us.

Quality of Experience

Driver should have some idea where to drop off people to walk around.

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Privately Guided Visit of Porto

Porto

Celia was very good guide. Would recommend her again.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Day Excursion to Douro Valley, Wine Tasting & River Cruise

Porto

Gustavo was an excellent guide. We loved the views of the Vineyards from up above. He was patience when we wanted to stop for pictures. Again, would us chime again

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Flamenco Experience

Spain

We loved seeing the show

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Guided Visit of Seville

Seville

Andreas was great answered all of our questions.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Day trip to Córdoba

Seville

Isabel was great! So knowledgeable for suck a young lady. We would use her again.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

We just completed a Spain/Portugal tour planned by Kimkim. What seemed like a sparse itinerary at first turned out to be one of the best trips we have taken. We had no issues with any of the arrangements, transportation, hotels and tours.

Our idea of a tour is not the types where the company picks you up in the morning and takes you to all the tourist spots and returns you to the hotel at the end of the day.

This tour felt like we were on our own and yet able to experience the locales and really learn about each. Place. The guides they use had great knowledge and enthusiasm. It felt like we were in a friend’s hometown who was showing us their favorite spots.

Marina was on point, efficient and responsive and the reason we chose Kimkim. Now that we have completed the tour, wow just wow. We will definitely use Kimkim again in future trips.

Steve and Amelia

Hotel Reviews

Hotel Astoria

Barcelona

Good location, close to many good restaurants.

Authenticity & Character

A we

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

One Shot Tabakalera House

San Sebastian

We actually stayed at the hotel Zenit Convento. Marina switched the hotels due to construction in the area for the original hotel. Only issue we had was with the room keys which were very spotty when trying to open the door. Amazing breakfast, best on the trip I. Terms of quality and selection.

Authenticity & Character

Modern clean design.

Location

Good location within walking distance of restaurants and shopping areas.

Staff

Very service oriented and friendly

Cleanliness & Comfort

Hesperia Bilbao

Bilbao

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Exe Almada Porto

Porto

Great staff, very helpful and friendly

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Lisboa Prata Boutique Hotel

Lisboa

Quirky, charming hotel

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Tapas Culinary Experience

Barcelona

Boris our guide was great, funny and charming.

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Guided Visit of Barcelona

Barcelona

Leona was great, her personality was genuine we connected well with her.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Day Trip to Montserrat & Penedès Region Wine Tasting

Barcelona

The tour was great and the one thing that detracted was the fog we experienced in Monserrat. Did not expect too much from the cava tour but that was fantastic!

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Day Excursion to the Basque Countryside: Meet the Traditions

San Sebastián

Diego was one of the best guides on the tour, we meshed really well, can honestly say that we have a new friend in Spain.

Quality of Experience

Got to see things you just don’t get to see on a regular tour. The sheep farm/cheese tour was amazing!

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Foodie Experience in Porto

Porto

Marianne was great, we got to experience many of the foods on our wish list in a serving size that was not overwhelming, perfect.

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Privately Guided Visit of Porto

Porto

Manuel has great local knowledge, this walking tour with the things he pointed out made the experience so much better than us aimlessly walking around.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Douro Valley Excursion with Wine & Olive Oil Tastings & River Cruise

Porto

Great way to se the Douro valley area with a mix of activities including a boat ride! We visited two wineries, I would have skipped the second large winery. The first smaller one was way better, we felt a little rushed and the owner who was so interesting and engaging had more to offer.

Quality of Experience

Food

Great local Portuguese fare , our type of food while traveling

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Miguel was great! Even gave a “free” tour to those who within earshot on the boat ride portion.

Transport

Get to Know Lisbon with a Local

Lisbon

Our guide’s Steve knowledge level is off the hook, with a delivery method that was more story telling than history.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Private Day Excursion to Sintra, Cascais & Estoril

Spain

Paulo or guide was another we meshed with really well and now we have a friend in Portugal!

Quality of Experience

Got to see some real local spots, restaurant we went to is as local as it gets, just what we wanted.

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

The walking tours with Filipa and Celia were informative and fun. They both helped us see the numerous areas through a local and historical eyes. The day trip to Sintra etc.. with Nuno was wonderful. His personality made the trip very enjoyable. His knowledge of the area made each stop fascinating. The day trip with Paulo was again phenomenal. His personality and knowledge made the day so much fun. The trip with Rui to the Douro valley also was lovely. These driver/ tour guides have such a beautiful personality that makes the drives fly by and we learned so much about the history and importance of each place we visited.
The stop at the winery in Douro, WOW. Rafael brought the vineyard to life. His love of the vineyard and what he does was seen throughout the day. The food and wine was delicious and amazing, but again it was such a lovely experience due to Raphael,
As far as Marina, she was extremely professional. When there was a hiccup , the group made sure it was rectified quickly. The app was a wonderful way to communicate in a quick manner.

We (me, my husband and our 25 year old twins had a fabulous week in Spain, starting in Barcelona and finishing in San Sebastian. Highlights from our time in Barcelona were: 1) the half day Bike tour (by Born Bikes). Cristina was a tremendous guide and customized the tour to focus on things we hadn't seen. 2) Sagrada Familia guided tour - FABULOUS! We saw the cathedral in late afternoon, and the lighting was amazing. and 3) Montserrat - the church itself is spectacular and the funicular up to the top of the mountain is not to be missed. We stopped in Laguardia (Rioja region) for a full day wine tour, and our guide (Fito) was wonderful - he curated the wineries we visited (3) and also had a wonderful lunch in a local restaurant. Highlights in San Sebastian for us were the pintxos tour and a full day excursion to a cheese farm (exceeded our expectations) and a hike along the El Camino de Santiago, hosted by our guide Amaia. All of our hotels were wonderful - we especially enjoyed our stays at the Hospederia Los Parajes in Laguardia and the Zinema 7 in San Sebastian.

Hotel Reviews

Hotel España Ramblas

Barcelona

The location of Hotel Espana is wonderful - a block off the Rambas, and easy to walk to many neighborhoods. The architecture is also beautiful - all of the common areas are stunning. We had several little "misses" with service that were all handled very professionally when brought up, but became recurring issues in the 3 days we were there that moved my rating to a 3 star. I had paid to have a room ready on arrival for my son, who arrived at 10 am on Saturday (eg. I reservered a room on Friday so he could get to the hotel, check in and sleep. The room wasn't ready upon arrival & he had to wait an hour before he could check in. We also had breakfast included in our reservation, which did not show up in th hotels system. Even after our travel agency called and confirmed with the hotel, we had to work with the front desk every morning to secure breakfast.

Authenticity & Character

the architecture was stunning

Location

Very easy walking to several of the key neighborhoods

Staff

The staff was always helpful when I raised issues noted above

Cleanliness & Comfort

Pamplona Catedral HOTEL

Pamplona

The hotel is in a great location in the old part of Pamplona. It was a little bit of an adventure to find it via GPS (one of the streets you need to take shows 'bus only', so we had to circle a few times before we figured it out. That said, the hotel is lovely and the staff was very helpful.

Authenticity & Character

The views

Location

Located on the edge of the old city, near the cathedral. May be helpful to contact the hotel if you are driving to secure the best dirctions.

Staff

Very friendly and knowledgeable

Cleanliness & Comfort

The rooms were pristine

Hospederia de los Parajes

Laguardia

This hotel is oozing character. Each room had a different theme/style and felt very cozy. The bathrooms were particularly luxurious.

Authenticity & Character

Each room had different furnishings, includin a sofa/loveseat. The showers were very large, and the bathrooms were spacious as well.

Location

Located within the walls of the city. May want to contact the hotel to determine where to park if you are driving.

Staff

We arrived at 10 am, dropped off our luggage and then went for a full day tour. Upon returning to the hotel, checkin was very fast and our luggage was already in our rooms. The breakfast room was also very cozy and the staff tremendous.

Cleanliness & Comfort

Zinema7

San Sebastian (Guipuzcoa)

This was our favorite hotel of the trip. The staff was incredibly helpful, the rooms large and modern. Located ~20 minute walk to the Old Town, it was also quiet at night.

Authenticity & Character

The hotel was clean and modern.

Location

Nice balance of accesibility and quiet at night.

Staff

All of the staff were friendly, particularly one gentleman at the front desk who helped us secure reservations, cabs and directions to return our car rental.

Cleanliness & Comfort

all of the amenities are well thought out. We had some laundry done and it was delivered on a tray:). My husband also stayed in the room on our first day, so we "missed" maid service during normal hours. However, they still cleaned the room when we went out to dinner - a nice surprise when we returned:)

Activity Reviews

Tapas Culinary Experience

Barcelona

The tour was a great way to get us out on our first night in Barcelona. We visited 5 places in total, and our guide was very helpful.

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Private La Rioja Wine Day Trip

Spain

Everything about this trip was tremendous. Our guide (Fito) was from the area and clearly very knowledgeable about the wineries and the region. Each winery we visited had a unique story and great wines. We also really enjoyed the lunch at the end.

Quality of Experience

All 3 wineries had distinct stories and the people sharing with us were very genuine.

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Fito was clearly known everywhere we went. He was very personable and took the time to modify the tour based on our needs.

Transport

the van was comfortable.

Guided Visit of Barcelona by Bike

Barcelona

This was a highlight for us in Barcelona. It was a great way to see a much larger section of the city in a short amount of time. Our guide Cristina was incredibly knowledgeable and modified the tour based on what we had already seen.

Quality of Experience

We loved going through Born and the gardens.

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Cristina was a true professional - always checking in on us.

Transport

Cab directions provided were spot on

Half-Day Excursion to Montserrat

Barcelona

The church and surrounding area is absolutely stunning. Our guide Ramon was also incredibly knowledgable and very friendly.

Quality of Experience

Set the right expectations on what you are getting: 1) We were on a tour that had English and Spanish speakers, which resulted in a fair amount of time waiting for the next thing. If possible, keep the tour to focus on one language (that's what we assumed we would have) . 2. This was not a half day tour - we were picked up at 8:00 am and didn't get back to our hotel until 3:30. I would include estimated travel time more overtly.

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Ramon was a wonderful guide - he is clearly very knowledgeable and passionate about Montserrat and all things Catalonia. He also took the time to get to know each of us.

Transport

Be more upfront about the pick up/travel times. It took us an hour to pick up all of the guests in the group and then another 90 minutes to get to Montserrat (we hit several traffic jams on the way).

San Sebastian Pintxo Experience

San Sebastián

This was a great way to discover the Old Town in San Sebastian, and learn the way to order pintxos without being overwhelmed. Each Pintxo bar was tremendous, and Ester was very personable.

Quality of Experience

The food was spectacular - we had the specialties of each bar and everything was great.

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Ester was very personable

Transport

Directions to the meeting area very clear.

Visit a Cheese Farm and Hike the St. James Way

San Sebastián

This was a day that really gave us a flavor of the region. The cheese farm is something that we really enjoyed as a family. Michel and his wife clearly enjoy what they do and it shows in the quality of the product. The hike was also beautiful - lovely views of the coastline and we really enjoyed seeing the old roman bridges along the way.

Quality of Experience

The cheese farm was tremendous - loved that it was a small working farm and that we got to see everything.

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Amaia was very knowledgeable and clearly an experienced hiker.

Transport