Kimkim Trip Reviews

Excellent planning! Amazing guides!

Very organized! Well planned

Our trip to Iceland was great! I had no idea that the landscape would vary so much in the different regions - it is amazing. I loved the fact that every day we would have different experiences - waterfalls, glaciers, geysers, geothermal pools, cliffs, beaches, whales, birds, horses, I could go on... We really enjoyed trying to find all the "hidden" nature baths too.

My only complaint was that a more detailed printed itinerary would have been useful (or at least a more detailed paper map in the booklet). Our GPS wasn't working properly so we ended up not using it. Since all of the stops were marked on the GPS, it was hard to plan our days without having to look up all of the sights listed briefly in the itinerary to see where they were on the map and how to get there (the detours etc). Otherwise, we had a splendid time bouncing along in our Defender ;-).

Everyone was terrific!

The arrangements were quite seamless through KimKim with a tour operator in the Azores.

Tiago and his team were really accommodating, friendly and knowledgeable. The guides gave us a much better look, and insight, to the Azores and Sao Miguel.

It is truly difficult to put into words how amazing our trip to Colombia was! When my friend and I initially decided to travel to Colombia, I did some research and found that there were SO MANY places that looked amazing, but some of them were a little off the beaten path and it seemed like going with a guide would be the best option. I had previously done a private tour with a local guide in India, and it was such an amazing experience that I was hoping to find something similar in Colombia. This is when I found Kimkim and was connected with Jules.

Jules, Tara, and their team really went above and beyond helping us plan the tour. They were very responsive to our questions (and there were a lot of them), and they worked with us for at least a month, going back and forth with different tour options until we had planned a trip that fit our budget and our desired itinerary. I'm sure I drove them a little crazy, but they were extremely kind, patient, and professional throughout the entire planning process. Jules was so enthusiastic about all of the places that we wanted to visit, and it was obvious that he was very genuine and excited for us to be experiencing a side of Colombia that a lot of tourists never see.

Since Jules had another obligation, he set us up with Nico, one of his teammates, as our tour guide for the majority of our tour. Nico was super laid back and fun (and funny!), and we had an amazing time touring with him to La Cienaga Grande/Nueva Valencia, Taironaka Reserve, La Guajira, and Medellin. He was very knowledgeable about all of the places we went, and he was also kind enough to share with us some personal stories about his life and about growing up in Medellin, a city I really never thought I would visit, but one that ended up being really vibrant and beautiful, and that I am so glad I was able to visit. During our 4 days with Nico, we visited a village on stilts in the middle of the swap, cooled off in a peaceful river after a very hot day and spent the night at an archaeological reserve, drove through La Guajira desert and interacted with the Wayuu people, swam in the Caribbean at the most insanely gorgeous beach (that we literally had to ourselves) in Cabo de la Vela, saw Flamingos in the wild, and toured a coffee plantation in Medellin! Every single place we went was incredible in its own way.

After we left Nico in Medellin, we lucky enough to go on a 2-day rafting trip on the Rio Verde, with our guides Mael and Lucho, who were also super cool guys, and who obviously love what they do. It is hard to pick my favorite part of the trip, but the rafting trip was definitely up there. The drive to the town of San Francisco was beautiful, and the 3-hour hike through the mountains down to the river was some of the most beautiful, lush green scenery that I have ever seen. We camped in the jungle that night, and saw fireflies, shooting stars, butterflies, birds, and even a monkey! The next day we rafted for about 3 or 4 hours, swam in a gorgeous waterfall, and just enjoyed the beauty that surrounded us.

This trip was truly unforgettable, thanks to Jules, Tara, Nico, Mael, and Lucho, and also the wonderful drivers that we had for different parts of the trip. I only wish I could have stayed longer! Thank you all SO much!! It truly was a magical experience that exceeded our expectations. There is really nothing better than swimming in the Caribbean on a beach that you have almost entirely to yourselves and seeing Flamingos in the wild.

Tara was very friendly, quick to respond to my messages, and also very helpful in tailoring our trip to make it fit our budget and desired itinerary. I really appreciate her help with adjusting our plans when one of our friends was unable to come on the trip due to work.

Thank you, Tara!

Thank you for connecting us with Inga. She planned every detail perfectly including the weather. The trekking was incredible!

Inga was patient, kind and very knowledgeable. And she was quite an inspiration to my daughter and niece. To top it all off the food was fantastic and exceeded all our expectations.

The trip was amazing! The people were wonderful, warm, kind and friendly, the island is incredibly beautiful, the activities were fantastic. We loved it!

What could have been better then? More detail in the information provided. After booking the trip, we received nothing to confirm and no more specific information than was provided in the initial trip plan description.

Why was this a problem? For example, on the afternoon we arrived in Ponta Delgada, we were scheduled to go whale watching, but no information was provided as to the time, location or meeting point for the activity. Before we left I thought to ask Cátia specifically about this and was told 1 pm, but I should have asked for more details. I guess I thought we would receive them on arrival, but we didn't. While it might have seemed obvious to them that we would meet at the boats in Ponta Delgada harbor, it was not obvious to us on the day of our arrival!

Similarly, the description provided for each activity was good for a general idea of the activity but fell short of giving enough specific information - duration, degree of difficulty, starting point, starting time, etc. For another example, the description of the "Route to Pristine" doesn't mention that it is a 14K hike with the first 3K uphill, never mind where you meet and what time, etc. The hike was fabulous and we loved it but it would have been good to know what we were getting into before we started on the journey.

Whenever we asked, the information was provided, and it was correct, but sometimes we didn't ask quite enough questions. Before traveling we asked Cátia to reserve a restaurant table only one night, at a small place where we heard reservations were necessary, which she kindly did. But we had to ask the date and time of the reservation (the day of), and were not told that the restaurant was cash only, which they say they tell you at the time the reservation is made, something we didn't find out until we had finished our meal. Fortunately, the owner seemed unfazed, we paid with all the Euros we had, but had to return by cab (the place was in another town) another day with enough cash to pay off the entire bill.

We figured most things out and they were expecting us at each step along the way, but it would have been good to provide us with a bit more specific of an agenda, at the latest upon arrival.

Please do not take this as a negative review! Overall, the activities were fantastic! We just would have liked a bit more detail in our itinerary.

Tiago and Cátia planned an incredible trip for us and we enjoyed it immensely. I'd like to thank all our drivers/guides/hiking companions - Luis, Luis, Mario, Philip and the Azores Fishing guys Eduardo and Diogo for being so wonderful, knowledgeable and kind, and showing us their beautiful home and all the great things there are to do there. Had we booked this trip without kimkim's help, we probably would have done less than half of what we did and certainly would not have tried canyoning, now my son's favorite new activity!

Overall, the experience with KimKim was quite good. Need to check the rules about the car rentals. We were shocked by the massive deposit required by Sixt Car Rental in Iceland. Nowhere on our paperwork did it denote that they wanted a $2000 hold on our card for 20 days. We were forced to buy added insurance to get the deposit down. Also, need to be careful about where you book people based on their 'lifestyle'. Our second stay was at a hostel which was very inappropriate for who we were. It was adequate but the beds were very uncomfortable.

A few more details on a couple of things and more appropriate accommodations would have helped.

Could have had better maps for the trail in Lipari and more options with boats from Lipari to other islands.

Antonella was above the call of duty. Answering so many questions, putting up with my friends (who then later didn't join the trip!), making changes at the last minute for me. She really knows her stuff.

Although we never saw Ngima during our journey, his staff was on top of all aspects of our trip and everything went smoothly (except for the traffic in Katmandu, but even that was part of the "experience").

Everything met and exceeded our expectations. The guide was flexible, knowledgeable and friendly. If we asked for a change, we were always accommodated. Our plans were worked out and we had many great surprises and not a single bad one. Thank you kimkim and see you soon.

Rania our guide was amazing and our coordinator Tala was kind understanding and very very helpful.

I have had the opportunity of planning travel with several established companies previously, ie Backroads, Vermont BicycleTours, Costa Rica Expeditions. The experience we had with Quechua Treks / Mayra was EXCEPTIONAL. She truly designed an itinerary specific for my family which was unique and certainly not the traditional Inca Trail/Machu Pichu visit. The opportunity to do the Lares Trek allowed us to see amazing countryside and visit with actual native folks. This was only possible because of Mayra's long history in this area and mastery of the Quechuan dialect. We did not see other tourists for 3 days! We found her crew (horsemen , cooks) to be professional, friendly and very punctual. The specialty guides arranged for us were very knowledgeable, truly bilingual and obviously proud to show us their country, not just going through the motions. This trip involved multiple lodging and transportation connections which all took place seamlessly. Accommodations were described accurately and there were no unexpected "surprises" either in quality of lodging, food or additional expenses. Most importantly Mayra was enthusiastic, knowledgeable and flexible with our desires. She is genuine and professional and an outstanding representative for KIMKIM.

Everyone we had contact with was friendly, professional and spoke excellent English. Small hick up with a driver who overslept, but Bianca was right on it. The person who took us on the Jeep trip was excellent and was very knowledgeable about the area. I would highly recommend him.

Blanca was easy to get hold of and very responsive when we needed to contact her.

Andy went through all the details prior to our visit, so when we arrived, the trip was tailored to exactly what we had asked. The organization, once we were in Vietnam, was excellent. Someone was always waiting to meet us, and the guides were all friendly and informative.

No effort was spared to make little tweaks and changes. Correspondence was friendly and made us feel very comfortable about trusting Andy with our trip.

Everything went according to plan, The drivers and the guide were all fantastic. Well done!

Wow, what a great trip. Bianca was a delight to work with, and everyone she introduced us to along the way was fantastic. Can't wait to get back there and adventure with these guys again!

Bianca is extremely well organized and very effective. Highly recommended.

Jules, Tara and the staff at Expedition Colombia helped us to plan an AMAZING itinerary, but once we began our active holiday, the places we went and sights we experienced were beyond anything I could've dreamed. The entire trip was truly extraordinary. I figured Colombia was a beautiful place, but everything far surpassed all of my expectations! A great big thanks to the team of wonderful and charming people at Expedition Colombia! The knowledgeable and charismatic guides for our adventures (Nicho, Mael and Lucho) and drivers made our experience that much better. I highly recommend an active holiday with Expedition Colombia for anyone who is looking for a truly memorable, once in a lifetime experience in Colombia. Thanks again for such an incredible time!!!!!

Tara was incredibly friendly, knowledgable, helpful and responsive while coordinating with her to plan our amazing itinerary in Colombia. She is an absolute pleasure to work with!

The Peru trip was amazing! It beat expectations and was a marvel on so many levels. Our guide, Aldo, was a huge bonus as he was an amazing person to spend two weeks with escorting us through his magical country.

Very easy and organized booking process.

She was incredibly helpful and always responsive to my questions and/or needs during the trip. Fantastic organization throughout, with a prompt and professional staff.

I do have some feedback, really for North Sailing, but wanted to share here too since they are a partner of KimKim. We went on a whale watching tour which departed from Husavik. The seas were rough on the day of our reservations. When we checked in, the person assisting noted this to us - I was not sure exactly what this meant. They had already canceled some of the other trips that day.

We were provided with the jumpers, raincoats, and gloves. The waves were about 10 feet high and a number of them broke partially over the bow of the boat. There was no rain. The boat seemed to rock side to side at roughly a 20-degree angle. My mom (70 yrs-old), who was for a short time next to the side about mid-way down, noted that the sea level was about 2 1/2 to 3 feet from the top of the boat railing. Our backpacks were placed on a bench in front of the captain's control room (bridge on larger ships) and with one of the tips went sliding off and hit the side of the boat where my mom was standing. My husband followed shortly thereafter. He was also seated on the same bench. He slammed into my mom and she sustained a knee injury - it still needs to be diagnosed but it is either a sprain or possibly a minor tear.

After that, one of the guides was very helpful in helping my mom (I was too sick to assist). She made sure she had a raincoat and gloves and brought her to a better location on the boat (top deck). I was sick nearly the whole time. I am susceptible to motion sickness so I knew this would be a possibility; however, over the course of the trip about 2/3 of the approximately 24 guests had thrown up at least once.

That all being said, we did see whales. My perspective is that the decision to go out was not a good call. The conditions I would say were unsafe - considering that it is not unfathomable that someone could have gone overboard which would be pretty terminal (the life ring would not do much in those kinds of seas) - and the majority of the guests were sick. In the cafe afterward, some of the guests appeared pretty stunned - starring into space. Please pass along to North Sailing.

Overall, we were very happy with Chris' work on the Iceland trip. He provided valuable input that really shaped the trip itinerary. We ended up going around the ring road which we would not have thought of if Chris had not suggested it. We are so glad we did! Having information on the sites was very helpful and of course having someone knowledgeable about lodging and booking the accommodations, car rental, and activities was super!

We enjoyed our activities. However, on two occasions our guide/driver arrived earlier than listed so they had to wait for us a bit. I hope they didn't mind! Also, the hotel for our beach excursion was not aware that we were to have access to a room for changing and leaving out items as described in our outline (so we were unable to do so). No big deal though.

Nathalie was very helpful and patient during the planning stages. She listed to what we wanted and was flexible with our requests. We enjoyed working with her!