Kimkim Trip Reviews for Colombia

The trip was very well planned and all the guides met or exceeded our expectations. We especially enjoyed the mountain biking and the walk in Cocora Valley. All the drivers were on time, pleasant and professional.

Five days before flying to Colombia I found Kimkim online and was encouraged by the favourable reviews. I like that there was a form to decide if it was the best option for me within my budget. I was contacted by Natalia who made an itinerary with all the things I wanted to do; I’m grateful for them making my stay in Colombia AWESOME. I’m truly grateful for the itinerary, accomodation in fantastic locations and the BEST local guides.

My guide in Bogotá - Juan Carrillo gave me 3 wonderful days in Bogota; it really made all the difference. And the local touches crowned everything.

Lydia was great in Medellín with personalised touched in the tour; highlight of my trip was the transformative Communa 13 trip.

Last but not least, Carlos in Medellín - a most engaging and wonderful guide; I truly enjoyed our day together.

This is a long overdue review of our fabulous November 2019 trip to Colombia.
Despite a prolonged wait to clear customs, we were greeted by Lina who graciously made sure we were safely transported to our destination. For the next two days she provided an energetic and welcoming introduction to Bogota. In Villa de Leyva Mauricio was a delightful guide, providing a personal and entertaining opportunity to explore area. We really enjoyed his musical background and knowledge.
Natalia brought the Cocora Valley to life despite rain and mud! She is passionate about the flora and fauna and a great ambassador for nature lovers. We enjoyed Salento and Filandia with her and a very special stop at Finca Divisa de Don Juan (coffee farm)
Daniel was our special personality in Medellin. His walking tour and history lesson were amazing. We were appreciative of his attention during our visit to Penol Rock and Guatape making for two rewarding experiences.
Juan was our steady, patient and knowledgable guide in Tayrona Park. We very much enjoyed learning about the area as well as his family background. It was a strenuous excursion and he timed the pace and experiences beautifully to match our requests.
David helped us enjoy Los Pinos. His familiarity with the area diminished our concerns with the muddy, rutted roads to arrive safely at our destination. Again, this guide's love of the area made for a special day.
A highlight of the trip was a visit to Bazurto Market with Carolina. The market was incredibly interesting, and Carolina's presentation, interaction, and selections were memorable. Her class was extraordinary.
Ending our trip in Cartagena, we were entertained by Ingrid - an insightful and fun-loving personality that enriched our time there.
Chio and team were responsive and supportive throughout. We were especially appreciative of their flexibility when our departure coincided with national protests. They made sure our transport got us to the airport with time to spare.
Colombia is filled with beauty, architectural charm, intriguing history and welcoming nationalities.
Thank you for a trip that will not be forgotten!

First - we will definitely use Kimkim again for future travels! Thank you for a well-planned vacation.
Secondly - Chio was responsive and helpful - nice work! Our only complaint is that everyone knew that Tayrona National Park was closed in February - apparently it's an annual thing. If we had known this from the beginning, we might have altered our itinerary. We did not get informed until January. We really loved the place we stayed outside of Tayrona Park, but the River Don Diego excursion was underwhelming. (Although the guide Stephen was very helpful when my husband became sick with digestive issues.)
Big highlights for us were the birdwatching in Minca with Antonio Martin, the trip to the market in Cartagena with Carolina and the day trip to the Rosario Islands. This was supposed to be at the end of our stay, but was moved to the beginning because of when we arrived. We really think this worked better - we had a day of beach and relaxation right away which we desperately needed coming from our cold, snowy, busy lives:)
The hotels were good and we had a nice balance of scheduled vs. free time. In our information packet it said that there would be an English-speaking person on our long car trips to and from Cartagena. We did not - just Spanish-only drivers. That would have been a great opportunity (9 hours!) to ask questions about what we were seeing and find out more about Colombia. My husband especially was disappointed that there was no conversation on these transports.
Again - we are happy to have discovered Kimkim and are already looking forward to our next trip with you. I hope our feedback has been helpful.

I had 3 excellent guides: Maria Alejandro Nariño in Bogota, Juan David Martinez in Leticia, and Mauro Hernandez Aguinago in Medellin! The Lost City of Colombia Trek guides, Juan and Checo (sp) also did an excellent job!! I hope that the friendships I established with them will continue into the future:-)

The trip was Over expectations Everything was superb!
First of all with Chio he managed everything very well and was so patient with all questions i have asked.
In Bogota the driver Francisco and the guide Maria were very nice and they introduced me very well to the Bogota and also the whole country.
After that I went to Raquira and Villa de layva with a very good driver (but I’m sorry I forgot his name) .
Santa Marta driver Carlos was a very good driver and he did a very good job, big thanks to him .
In Cartagena i met a guide Santiago, he was superb and introduced me very well to the city.
In Medellin, I met a very good Driver Miguel , he was an excellent driver. And for the guide to Guatepe was Sebastian , he was an excellent guide he introduced me very well to the city.
At last, I loved Colombia and the people there were so friendly and nice , overall 10/10 thank you KimKim team.

We spent a wonderful week in Colombia with stops in Cartagena, Minca (El Dorado reserve), and Mucura (Punta Faro hotel). We highly recommend Bazurto Market and National Aviary. Walking the streets of Cartagena was a joy. The many murals, buildings, people, shops, street vendors, and restaurant’s were all wonderful. I would recommend spending 2 full days and 3 nights in El Dorado with a 1 full day in Minca. Mucura was a wonderful and relaxing island. Punta Faro was amazing. The staff was extremely friendly and helpful. The food was excellent and served buffet style. The beach was not huge but incredibly relaxing. It was not crowded and the water was great. We did the snorkel tour which was nice. Not the best we have ever done but still good. There was some interesting coral and fish. Well worth the price. We would also recommend the bioluminescence tour. I would recommend 3 nights here to get in all the activities but also be able to relax.

We enjoyed all the guides that KimKim provided with a special shout out to Leo in El Dorado. He did a great job with the birding and was very knowledgeable and personable. All the drivers we had were very prompt, courteous, and friendly. It was very nice not worrying about how, when, or if we were going to get where we needed.

Chio (KimKim) communicated very well with us and answered all our questions. It was nice to not worry about anything on our vacation and just relax and enjoy. Thank you!

Laura and the rest of the KimKim staff were incredible and easy to work with throughout the planning phase of our trip and the trip itself. They were flexible in planning as we wanted to spend less time in the large cities and more time in the countryside. Salento was the major highlight for our trip and our guide, Christian, was a pleasure to spend two days with. We highly recommend the Cocora Valley and the surrounding towns including Filandia. Our guide, Carlos, in Medellin was efficient and friendly in showing us the highlights as we only spent one afternoon there. While in Colombia, we were able to communicate with Laura and her colleagues through WhatsApp to make some last second changes to our itinerary. We highly recommend KimKim and will absolutely be using them for future travels.

We loved Isabella and Alexjandra as well as our driver. They worked hard to insure that we had a good experience.

Andrea helped us put together a fabulous trip! The big component that we were concerned about was transportation, and all of our transfers were on time and completely seamless. Andrea responded in a timely manner and was very flexible in making adjustments to our trip beforehand, and while we were in Cartagena. I’m so glad that she recommended Punta Faro because it was exactly what we were looking for and was a tropical paradise. We will definitely use kimkim again to help plan the logistics and get recommendations for future trips!

Natalia was very helpful, caring, and effective in working with us to plan this adventure the Colombian Andes. Even after the trip began, she maintained contact with us to ensure that we were having a great time and that things were running smoothly. She was quick to rectify a tiny glitch in scheduling. The tour guides she arranged for us were wonderful, especially the young man in Barichara.

I really enjoyed my trip to Colombia. It is now my favorite Latin American country. I was impressed with it's infrastructure, cleanliness and kindness of the people.
One of my favorite places I visited was Bogota and our guide Juan. The city was very clean and the graffiti murals were gorgeous. Going to the market and trying all the different fruits was a lot of fun. Juan was very knowledgeable and did a great job showing us around the city.
My favorite hotel was the Finca Barlovento-Maloka. It was pure paradise and I would go back in an instant.
My favorite cities were Penol and Guatape. This is another area I would go back to in an instant. Climbing The Rock was exhilarating and the view at the top was absolutely beautiful. The city of Guatape was very pretty also and I would love to go back and enjoy more of the water activities.
We ended our trip at the hotel Movich Buro 26 where the staff were the kindest and most professional. I would stay at that hotel the next time I visit Bogota and take a taxi into the city. The hotel is located very close to the airport and the rooms were extremely quiet.
One of the nicest perks of the trip was having all our transfers set up for us. Everywhere we went our driver(s) were there to greet us and take us to our destination. All the vehicles were very clean and the drivers very professional.

Cant say enough good things about this service or our interactions with Andrea. This was the first time we traveled with our adult children as a Christmas present. Lots of different personalities and interests. Andrea took time to interview me. Asked lots of questions and helped design a week with something for everyone.
We spent time in Cartagena and the Rosario Islands. Our accommodations were lovely and all our excursions well planned with terrific guides.
Thank you for all you did
Lea and Jon Austen. Charleston SC

I've worked with Chio from the agency and she has been really awesome.

My husband and I went to Colombia from 12/28 to 1/5/20. This was our very first time to South America and very first to Colombia. I was looking for tour guide and Kimkim.com came up in google search and I thought I'd like to try the agency. It was a such a good decision. After I contacted Kimkim, Chio got back to me within a day and she helped to plan our trip. I had very specific requirements for the types of the trips I'd like to take and Chio was very patient working with me to come up with different versions of the trip, unless the 3rd version, we've decided to go to: Medellin and Cartagena. I couldn't be happier with our trip.

In Medellin we had a very active itinerary: Comuna 13 graffiti tour, waterfall repelling, paragliding, Medellin city bike tour, and finally a trip to Gautape on the New Year's Day. Everything was awesome. The highlight of the trip for us would be the waterfall.

For Cartagena, it was more relaxed. We visited Bazurto market with our local guide Carolina and had the BEST breakfast at her restaurant Ohlala. Then we went to the The Rosario Islands, which was just soso as the resort we went to only had a very limited beach area. But the lunch was awesome! :)

Overall, we had a wonderful trip! I am already planning to work with KimKim for our next trip to Argentina and Peru to hike the Inca Trail!

Overall the trip was fantastic. There were a few things we probably would have done differently if we had more knowledge about the area. Here is our detailed review of the itinerary:

Day 1: Everything went well with the transportation from the airport to the hotel. The hotel was great. The only critique we have for the hotel is the lack of breakfast options. But the hotel was in a great location and we would stay there again.

Day 2: Awesome bike tour. We really liked our guide and all the stops he took us to. It was one of our favorite activities of the whole trip.

Day 3: Travel day went smoothly. The Hacienda was okay. Really nice service and accommodations. But the hotel was in the middle of nowhere which made it difficult to figure out what to do. Would have appreciated a hotel in a more central location (i.e. downtown Pereira). Would have also appreciated an activity planned for this day given that we got to the Hacienda so early in the day and organizing transportation ourselves for an activity that day was a process.

Day 4: The tour this day was amazing. We loved our tour guide Christian. He was very friendly and informative. The hike was amazing,. However, the hike was different than what we had thought we were doing. The initial itinerary said we would go through 6 suspension bridges and see a waterfall. The hike was changed we assume because we had to change the location of our hotel from the one in Salento to the Hacienda. We wished we would have gotten to do the longer hike and then the coffee farm the next day.

Day 5: We had no planned activities for this day. Oliver told us that there were no tours running on New Years Day. However, our tour guide Christian informed us that there were indeed lots of tours running and that most Colombians, especially in tourism, do not take the day off. We were disappointed that Oliver did not plan anything for us this day. We had to figure out what to do ourselves, including transportation which proved to be difficult for us. We ended up going to Los Termales, and it was wonderful. We don't know why Oliver did not suggest an activity like this for us, given that so many things were actually open.

Day 6: Our flight to Medellin was scheduled midday, which made it difficult for us to fully take advantage of this day in either Pereira or Medellin. We wish we would have either had an early morning flight or a later flight. We made the best of it by going to Pereira early in the morning and walking around downtown, but we wish that we would have had an activity planned for this day. Given that the original activity Oliver had planned for this day (the tour of the coffee farm) was cancelled due to our hotel location, Oliver should have also changed the time of the flight because there was nothing to do near our hotel.

The hotel in Medellin was incredible. Perfect location. We could not have loved it more.

Day 7: We had a walking tour. The tour guide Carlos was not the best. He was nice, but was not effective at communicating the history of Medellin. We probably could have done without paying for this walking tour and instead gone on the free walking tour which we heard great things about. We ended up paying Carlos extra money to take us to Parque Arvi, but he unintentionally mislead us because when we got up there it turned out what we could not do anything without paying even more money (and Carlos failed to inform us of this). And Carlos also didn't let us know that if we went up to Parque Arvi, we wouldn't then have time to do any of the trails. So basically we had to spend 60,000 additional pesos for nothing.

Day 8: We loved our tour this day with Jessica. She was by far the most knowledge tour guide we had and told us so many interesting stories about the history of Colombia. Jessica also was very flexible because apparently the tour she was going to take us on overlapped with the tour we had the day before, so she changed the tour a bit to take us to places we hadn't seen yet. In hindsight, we should have just done this tour with Jessica instead of the tour with Carlos on Day 7 and then had another activity planned for Day 8. For instance, on Day 8, we could have had a specific tour of Parque Arvi or something like that. But Jessica was fantastic.

Day 9: This was our day trip to Guatape with Jessica. Again Jessica was great, but the traffic and lines were horrendous. Because of the large crowds, we probably should have gone to Guatape in the morning and then the flower farm in the afternoon.

Day 10: We arrived to Tayrona Park. Our flight was in the late morning. We wish Oliver would have booked us an early flight so that we could have done an activity in Tayrona Park that first day. We felt like the day was wasted because there was nothing to do once we got to our hotel. The hotel was fine. Lucile was very friendly. We would have preferred to stay in a nicer hotel, but did not want to spend the extra money so we got what we paid for.

Day 11: Very fun day in Tayrona Park. However, we did not need a guide for this hike (although Jose was very nice and gave us space). It was a very manageable hike and we could have done it ourselves. What we did appreciate was the transportation to the start of the hike and that our driver picked up our passes early in the morning so that we didn't have to wait in line. We also wished we had known that there were 2 hike options, each one starting from a different entrance. If we had known, we would have picked the longer/more adventurous hike option.

Day 12: Our driver made good time driving to Cartagena. We liked our hotel. Shortly after we arrived we had a walking tour. This was the worst walking tour either of us have ever been on. Our tour guide was awful. It was hard to understand her and she did not seem knowledgeable about the things she was showing us. She could not answer our questions and in many instances even ignored our questions and just moved on. She was more concerned with showing us where her friends had shops than educating us about Cartagena. The tour was also supposed to be 4 hours, but was just short of 2 hours. However, we were happy it was over sooner so that we could walk around ourselves without her. We are upset we had to pay money for this tour (especially because there were free walking tours that had great reviews--we passed some on our tour and listened to what those tour guides were saying about Cartagena, which sounded so much more informative and interesting than what our tour guide was saying). We would not recommend Oliver ever booking this tour again for other customers.

Day 13: The cooking class was great.

Day 14: We really loved the day trip to the island. The only thing about this trip was that we had to pay for all the activities we did on the island separately. We would have liked to have known beforehand that the activities (i.e. snorkeling, cannoeing, biking) were each separate charges.

Day 15: Smooth transportation to the airport.

We appreciate how smoothly everything went. No real issues came up for us. Everything (all the tour guides and transportation) was on time. One thing we would have liked to have known before the trip was how much to tip each driver and tour guide. If we had known how much we were paying for each activity, it would have been easier for us to figure out how much to tip. But we did not not have a breakdown of how much everything cost. A detailed breakdown of costs would have been helpful overall in the planning process.

Oliver,
First, let me say that we enjoyed our trip and have no regrets. Kimkim and you generally did an excellent job. The hotels were generally a pleasure, with a great deal of character. There were odds and ends they could do better, but we were quite happy with them. The pace we had worked out gradually before the trip was just about right. We had enough time to simply wander on our own, which we value. I think there is a tendency to try to pack in too much, and we were glad we had pushed back a little to ensure a more relaxing pace.
In terms of the tours, the fishing tour at Cartagena was the highlight, because it was so participatory, but the tour of Cartagena town was extremely well done too. The guide was really knowledgeable and enjoyed sharing his knowledge of Cartagena with us. The tour in Tayrona Park was fine, but I only managed two hours of the four-hour activity. The guide did a good job of substituting a route I could manage. On the tours, our one general comment is that it would be helpful to have a more detailed idea of what is involved ahead of time. I wonder if it would be possible for the tour provider to get on the phone with the customer the day before the tour to go over what is planned and answer any questions.
The only significant problems were on the Amazon part of the trip. We arrived in mid-afternoon and were met, though by people from a different organization than you had mentioned. There was an excellent translator, someone hired just for our visit. She provided the continuity for our trip but because she had not worked with the organization before, she was learning how they worked as we went along. We asked for an itinerary for the four days in the Amazon, but no one seemed to know the program beyond the broadest terms. We should have had the time to sit down with someone from the agency to discuss a detailed itinerary and should have spent that night in Leticia, repacking for the field. Instead, right off the plane, we were taken to their office and asked to repack for the trek, to don rubber boots to go to meet an indigenous leader that afternoon. We walked for an hour or two on muddy roads to a large traditional home to listen to a community leader hold forth on the traditional devotion to the environment and brotherly love. To be honest, it wasn’t worth the trek. We stayed that night in a local hotel that was basic but very well managed. We were told that the next day we would walk a half hour to an indigenous facility called Merisha on a lagoon near the Amazon, in Peru. From our earlier communications I gather you had been told it was not too ambitious a trek for me. I was told the same thing, that it would be a half-hour walk through the jungle.
I can only say that that assessment wildly off base. Much to the trip was wading through flooded jungle, through thick growth, water up to our knees, negotiating brambles and poor footing and tangled roots underwater. There were swarms of mosquitos and other biting insects. It was a very challenging trek even for my wife and because her boots were not high enough, the guide had to carry her on his back at several deeper places. He provided interesting insights as we went but it took us nearly three hours to complete the walk, without a stop. We arrived at Merisha absolutely exhausted.
Facilities in Merisha were rudimentary but of course we expected that. The lagoon and river there were magical and the guide was very competent, and inspired confidence. We never felt insecure, just exhausted tired and frustrated. Frustrated because on arrival at Merisha we found tourists arriving on day trips, having come by boat on a flooded road a stone’s throw from where we had embarked on our trek. We demanded to return from Merisha by boat and at first this was resisted. Later, it was agreed to if we paid extra (not much). It was an easy trip and took twenty to thirty minutes.
There seem to have been failures in communications between Kimkim and the local agency and between the local agency and the contractors they used. I think I made my condition clear before the trip and cannot imagine how anyone imagined I wanted to deal with an ordeal like the trip to Merisha.
In our earlier discussion you had stressed that it anything seemed to much, we could simply not to it. That seemed reasonable at the time. But it assumes an informed decision, and we were not always given enough information and sometimes given incorrect information. Plus, once you are a couple of miles into the jungle and you realize what you have gotten into, and the guide tells you it is just as far to go back as to go ahead, just dropping out is not an option.
The next day, back on the Amazon, we embarked on a mototboat trip involving several stops, interesting and not too tiring. Again, the translator was very helpful. The only downer was at a monkey island park where we were swarmed by tiny monkeys. One snatched my hat and another scratched (bit?) the top of my head badly enough for it to bleed. Fortunately, we and the translator had first aid supplies. I believe it was a scratch and not a bite but I will see my doctor tomorrow and get a rabies shot, just to be on the safe side.
When after the boat ride we returned to Leticia, we were taken to the office of the local agency to retrieve our suitcases and go to our hotel. The hotel was an older place, and at first seemed ok. But our room was an ugly share of green, and bare except for a couple of metal frame beds with matresses made up with sheets and pillows. It felt like a hostel room, just with fewer beds. There was a small unattractive bathroom and no hot water, indeed to water was icy. After three days in the jungle, dirty, our hair matted with sunscreen and insecticide, and bone tired, the hotel was an extremely disappointment. After I googled other hotels in Leticia, and found there were much better options, we asked to be moved. You declined to do so, saying that the local agent had made the arrangement and was the one who had to deal with it. After one quite unpleasant interview with a woman who had arranged the trip and was remarkably rude, the local agency’s logistics chief turned up and moved us to a better hotel, at their cost. We appreciated it very much. I did not appreciate your washing your hands of the situation.
I think you can see that the Amazon portion fell short of expectations. We would do it again but mistakes were made that should have been avoided, largely through failures to communicate expectations clearly, I suspect. I think all concerned had good intentions but I do hope that future travelers to the Amazon with KimKim can arrive with clearer expectations and find fewer surprises.
Best, John Bruce

We had a super time and felt very supported. Chio was there for every little question I had! All the drivers, hotels and tour people were on-time and extra nice. I'm so pleased.

Our 10 day trip to Colombia was a very memorable one. We weren't sure what to expect, but were pleasantly surprised. Beautiful country and people. Natalia was extremely helpful and responsive to all our questions, queries and concerns. she was connected via whats app and available for any questions during our trip. Since our trip was in December, she was even working on the 25th addressing our needs. From putting the itinerary together and catering to our specific requirements; Natalia was awesome. we had 8 versions of the plan and she patiently helped us with tips and recommendations. The two of the tour guides she arranged were excellent; Claudio who was our guide in the Amazon and Carlos Valencia in Medellin.
This was our first trip via KimKim and very happy.

My husband and I travelled in Colombia with our four children (ages 11-15) and overall we very satisfied with the kimkim experience. The planning stage was fantastic-- I spoke with an agent in the US and also an agent in Colombia-- and it was very easy to come up with a specific itinerary to fit the needs and wants of my family. Our local specialist (Chio) was very responsive to my questions and requests and always responded in a timely manner.

For the most part, everyone involved in tourism who was recommended by kimkim (the drivers and guides for example) was excellent-- very professional and always on time. When we had drivers that did not speak English they let us know in advance and we always knew the specific itinerary for each day. The trip, in general, ran VERY smoothly. Over fourteen days there was only one mistake--- when we arrived at a certain hotel it turns out they had mistakenly booked us at a hotel with a similar name (which was not as nice as the one we were supposed to be in). As soon as we called her, Chio (and her supervisor Jules) immediately tried to rectify the situation-- we did have to spend one night at the wrong hotel but the next day they had us moved to a much nicer hotel and took the extra step of arranging for us a new itinerary for a "day at leisure" including a driver, lunch, and two excellent activities. They (Chio and Jules) kept in constant contact with us making sure we were happy with the new arrangements. (And I felt like they were truly sorry for the mix-up).

All in all I would definitely recommend kimkim-- it was VERY user friendly and our itinerary was excellent.

(If you are planning on going to colombia-- we particularly loved our Hacienda Santa Clara in the coffee region and our tour of Don Juan coffee farm, horseback riding in the cocora valley, EVERYTHING in Medallin, the beach and tubing in Palamino (outside Santa Marta), and our incredible hotel (the hyatt) in Cartagena.

Excellent. We really enjoyed all parts of our trip. The tour guides were excellent and the trip was well planned and very enjoyable.