Kimkim Trip Reviews for Colombia

A great planning experience and an amazing trip. Thank you True Colombian Travel. The entire team was professional and personal and went beyond the extra mile to plan us the perfect Colombian adventure. They are there and touring you around. They are the perfect trip planners and guides. I can’t recommend them more. Responsive and flexible. We felt completely taken care of. Thank you.

This was an incredibly well planned trip that was so enjoyable and excellent. Our guides were so knowledgeable and went at our own pace. Never rushed and each one was early every morning so no stress! Tatiana took us to the gold museum in bogota and her in depth knowledge made the next days trip to guaatavita very meaningful. We also went with her to la calenderlaria and the botero museum. The salt cathedral and guatavita are a must see. A highlight was the days we spent with David in the Corcora valley. We had an intimate coffee experience and amazing hike in the unique Corcora wax palm valley. David is so warm and enthused about his country and made the experience very personal with a coffee experience in pihao with a local farmer. In Cartagena the two best tours was a day trip to the sport baru hotel in the Rosario islands and the fishing with locals in la boquilla. Nathalie checked in on us was very responsive and definitely partnered with first class locals for the tours. It exceeded our expectations in every way!

I had a great time in Colombia. Angel was a remarkable guide who was able to cater to our group in an expert way. Each driver was skilled and they were fun to talk with. The Sierra Nevada in Santa Marta was beautiful and all of the hotels that Juan recommended were great.

Planning Notes

1. Final itinerary should come out to the group sooner. There was little to no time to consider changes for the group (example, we would have liked starting an hour later each day)

Transportation Notes

1. Our Bogota to Santa Marta flight was a complete mess! We didn't have confirmed seats and couldn't pre book them due to bad wifi connection speeds in Bogota. Because of this we almost didn't get to go on our flight and needed to wait while the airline asked 7 volunteers to take a later flight. Even when we finally got seats they were all dispersed and it took additional changes to ensure the children could be with someone from our group.

2. Transportation to the fishing village and final transportation to the Cartagena airport for the last transfer were super tight! This was strange considering that for our other trips the vehicle was sufficiently large enough.

Bogota Notes

1. Walking tour was cut short due to rain. Is there anyway to have a more concrete back up plan if weather intervenes?

2. Adding a souvenir destination in some of the market areas of Bogota to the walking tour would be great to explore some of the handmade/cultural items available.

3. Ingrid, our Bogota guide, was kind, helpful, and friendly. Would definitely recommend her to other groups.

4. Hotel (Casa Deco) was in a good location and the staff were all helpful and friendly. Though the construction on that road made it difficult for our transportation to get in and out of the area.

5. Monserrate portion of trip was awesome. Great views, easy to access, & shopping available. Plenty of time to spend at our own pace.

Santa Marta Notes

1. Hotel was in a central location and staff was friendly & helpful.

2. However, hotel (Casa Ferol) nickeled & dimed everything we needed - extra charge for drinks during breakfast, charging for a bucket of ice without previously telling us it would cost us extra, etc.

3. Tayrona Park guides (Angel & Jorge) were great. Friendly, knowledgable, and attentive to the group. They did everything - helping kids and older adults with the hike and helping with ordering of lunch.

4. Tayrona hike is NOT for all fitness levels. Older adults and young children struggled with the heat, length of the hike, and large uneven steps in the hiking areas. Some of the adults with back and knee problems struggled with the hike as well.

5. Large waterfall of Marinka was awesome. High hammock and swimming was very nice.

6. Hummingbird stop was something we really enjoyed

7. Pozo Azul was a long, somewhat treacherous hike (wet rocks that we had to scale) for a small payoff compared to what we saw in the morning. Probably our least favorite stop on our trip.

8. Coffee plantation stop was boring. Nothing was actually happening (none of the equipment was running or being used) so following the guides words was difficult without seeing it in action. Also explanations given to the group were too detailed and made it super hard to follow.

9. A warning about how bumpy and windy the roads in Minca would have been appreciated. Several people in our party felt ill from all the bouncing (especially the children).

10. The driver in and around Santa Marta (and who also drove us to Cartagena) was EXCELLENT.

11. We loved the authenticity of the Minca restaurant on the slide of the cliff.

Cartagena Notes

1. Sergio (our tour gudie) was excellent. Presented things well about the history of Colombia.

2. The Emerald museum stop of our city tour by bus felt forced and more like a ploy to get a purchase of emeralds than an informational stop about Colombia's culture.

3. Rosario Island was a great stop. Snorkeling was fun and this stop was our most relaxing of our entire trip.

4. While walking tour was excellent, again, we would have appreciated a more planned opportunity for souvenir shopping.

5. Canoe trip thru mangroves was a bit too long. Crouched over for a whole hour was a bit rough on our backs and knees (especially for the older adults).

6. Our guide (believe it was Enrique) was awesome. He was open, friendly, and made it a point to learn our names. He also tried to relate to our children to make them more comfortable. He communicated things well and felt like a member of our group versus someone who was hired to guide us. Would definitely recommend him to others.

I am really glad I went with KimKim to book our trip in Colombia. Gael, our trip specialist, took care of all the little trip-planning details that would have taken me days of research and indecision to figure out. We ended up going to the Coffee Region, and our itinerary included staying at a coffee finca with great amenities, hiking in the Cocora valley, visiting charming towns along the way, eating farm-to-table, and of course drinking amazing coffee with our local guides Sebastian and Santiago. We also floated lazily down a river in a bamboo raft for an afternoon. The landscape just seems untouched out there, it was really a treat! I was feeling a bit ill from the altitude on one of the days, and the local guides took really good care of me.

Our trip to Colombia was excellent. We had a wonderful time in the coffee region and the trip organized by Gael and Tucaya was a lot of fun and seamless. We had a few minor snags while booking the trip, as we were originally booked on a return flight that did not leave enough time to catch our connecting international flight, but we were able to switch our flights after bringing this up with Gael. Gael was very helpful with suggesting activities and excursions for us, all of which proved very enjoyable.

Once in Colombia, we corresponded with Nicholas at Tucaya via WhatsApp and he was very helpful. He promptly responded to any inquiry and made sure to check in with us in the mornings and evenings to recap the day and preview the next day's activities. On the ground in the coffee region, everything worked very smoothly. We had driver's and tour guides waiting for us at the appointed times without issues, the hotel (Finca Bosque del Saman) was beautifully picturesque, and our activities were great.

One day, we to Filandia, Salento, and the Cocora Valley with our tour guide Sebastian. Not only were these areas beautiful, but Sebastian is an amazing and thoughtful guide who took us both to the main tourist attractions but also took us off the beaten path to local coffee shops and restaurants. Cafe Jesus Martin in Salento and restaurant Helena Adentro in Filandia were highlights. We can't recommend Sebastian enough.

Another day, we visited Finca Casa Vieja, a coffee plantation run by a local family. Santiago, one of the owners, gave us a wonderful tour of the farm (which grows many types of fruits and flowers in addition to coffee), as well as a look inside the coffee making process. After a delicious lunch prepared by Santiago's aunt (using produce from the farm), we visited the family's coffee shop in Quimbaya, Cafe de Altura, where we sampled many different preparations of coffee as well as some baked goods prepared by Alejandra, Santiago's sister. Sebastian, our tour guide from the day before, also joined us for coffee, which was a pleasure. To cap the afternoon, we took a bamboo raft down Rio de la Vieja, which offered great views and some fun swimming opportunities.

The main downside to this trip was that we were only in the coffee region for a few days. We certainly plan to visit Colombia again and would be happy to book through Gael and Kim Kim again, as we had a great trip that went seamlessly after we got everything booked properly.

This was an exceptional trip! Colombia is a beautiful country; a hidden gem. Floriane was as invested as I was in making this trip a wonderful and unforgettable experience. Every driver and every guide was pleasant, professional, knowledgeable and fun. Everywhere we went, the locals welcomed our guides as family and extended the same warmth to us.

Our 8-day trip included Medellin, Guatape, Armenia, Salento, Santa Marta and Bogota. My daughter are already planning our return trip.

A million thanks to Floraine and to all of our guides and drivers.

Maria

Dear KimKim,

Please update the rating scale. Only having five stars from poor to great does not allow me to rate how I genuinely want to. And my words do not provide justice to my overall experience in planning and booking my trip with the services I received from my local specialist.

In the past few years, I faced many tragedies. The first one was dealing with my oldest brother's suicide. Then I encountered looking after my grandfather for six years and witnessing him die with his battle with cancer. After that, I lost the relationship with my mother and two youngest brothers. And finally, I endured a breakup with my ex-partner.

Traveling has become therapy for me. Each time that I have gone outside of the United States, I flew with others who knew how to communicate fluently in Spanish. And going to Columbia by myself and barely knowing and able to speak Spanish, I knew was going to be a challenge.

On May 11, 2018, I contacted KimKim to plan a trip to Medellín, Columbia. My travel dates were May 17, 2018, to May 24, 2018. No one responded to me, and I urgently reached out to KimKim again, on May 14, 2018. Finally, later on, that same day, Juan Ortiz, my local specialist responded.

Juan organized this last minute trip and assisted me 24/7. He was honest, polite, and upfront with me. ATTENTION KimKim, Juan deserves a trip on the house for going over and beyond serving and making me a fulfilled and happy customer.

My four-day adventure started on Friday when I went on the Pablo Escobar tour. I was mind blown by Carlos, who is one of the two remaining officers that served during the years that Pablo was alive. Saturday, I met my main and magnificent tour guide, Marcelo. That day I went on an Innovation tour of Medellín. Medellín has so many environmental and collected community organizing that I want to create in my hometown, Bethlehem, also known as the Lehigh Valley, in Pennsylvania. Sunday, I went to the Rio Claro Reserve. The Rio Claro Reserve brought me up and also down. It brought me up because it is an environment where I can see myself losing myself and escape from the madness of the world. Rio Claro brought me down because there is a need for new zoning laws to be reinforced. It will be devasting for Rio Claro to be taken over by the industrial invasion. I did not finish my tour small. I completed my journey with a big bang, on Monday and going to Guatapé. Guatapé was breathtaking, and no one has lived until they visit this beautiful "peace on earth." The last two days I was left to explore and have some me time.

KimKim, if there is a way to update your rating scale with all of the stars in the universe it will be a tremendous help. Then the range would be more accurate. Visiting Medellín, Columbia, alone was nerve wrecking. Notably, having uninformed people plant negative seeds into my head about going alone and the dangers that I might encounter. Everyone that I met including the Conquest 33 Hotel representatives treated me like family. Thus far, this has been the most memorable trip I have experienced. On June 1, 2020, please be my travel agency to plan my trip to South Africa.

Greatly appreciative and humbled,

Dèjour

While we really enjoyed our trip overall, I would not book with Kimkim again without there being more transparency on the costs. We spent nearly $6800 with Kimkim for only about 9 days of services including one internal flight for 2 people.

Jules did a pretty good job communicating with us but he did say the following about providing us with some tips on packing but he did not provide this detail, even after we followed up with him inquiring about this. He later apologized saying he was on a trek in the Amazon but if he's unable to properly respond to people he should make sure someone else is monitoring his emails to do so. From Jules: "I will get in touch with you 15 days prior to the trip with the last details and a checklist for the things we recomend you bring on the trip (nothing too special, but like this you have a good idea on how to pack ! )."

Our Guides:
Nicholas was fantastic. We really loved him. 5 stars
Diana was also very good. We enjoyed the time we spent with her. 4 stars.
Qapac was okay. He spent too much time talking about politics and religion. He made assumptions about food that we would like. For example we went to a restaurant after a hike and he ordered us plates of spaghetti without consulting with us. I don't want spaghetti when I'm in South America. 3 stars.

Pedro Salazar was an excellent tour guide to have. He was very knowledgeable about the city of Cartagena and helpful with lots of information.

Will Osolinsky was extremely helpful setting me up with information for my trip.

Speaking no Spanish we found that we could not communicate with our drivers. We could confirm where we were going but that was it. Sometimes it would have been good to know a little about where we were on the road, if there was interesting facts about the area and if there were any good view points to take photos along the way. However, the drivers were always punctual and many times our plane or bus was late but the drivers were always there.
Floriane was constantly in contact with me to check everything was going well which was very comforting.
Marine who originally helped with our itinerary was excellent. However, when it was given to Floriane to take over all the information given already had to be redone which became quite frustrating. Whereas everything was written down and if Flor had read the conversation she would not have had to ask everything again.

Our trip in Columbia was wonderful. great country, very safe. We had exceptional experience with Aventura Columbia. The organization of the trip was impeccable.
The only bad part was flying with Avianca. All flight we took in Columbia were delayed.

Our family of two teen boys + Mom & Dad had the best time on our trip to Cartagena and the Caribbean coast. Our guide Nicholas was amazing. Flexible enough to change things on the fly, but also got to every place on the itinerary. Jules and Nicholas put together a terrific itinerary based on our looking for a mix of city and country. We wanted some off the beaten path and we got it in spades! Colombia is a big country and we look forward to exploring more next time.

Sidrah - was amazing as our tour coordinator. She worked with us and accommodated our requests for changes as we had some last minute scheduled business meetings. She was really on the ball- and proactive in checking with us and making sure we were ok with all arrangements. She was wonderful to work with and very responsive and prompt. The only problem we had was with the arrangement of the islands tour in Cartagena- we had planned to have a English speaking guide, however that request was lost in communication with Sidrah. As a result of this- we cut short our trip as we were unable to understand the captains of our boat and were not able to learn/ enjoy our trip with them.

Bogota guide- Tatiana- We rated her 6 out of 10- as her English and the accent was hard for us to understand. She was really polite and flexible,however lacked the organization and knowledge that we were looking for. For example- she did not budget enough time for lunch and we almost missed our Graffitti tour. Otherwise- she was really flexible and helped us with things ourtside of the tour as well.

Coffee region Guide- Juan David- 7/10- Was really knowledgeable and great to have around

Cartagena Guide- Densy- 9/10- Her knowledge of the city and history was amazing. She was passionate and really knowledgeable. The only negative about her was her English accent as the children had a hard time understanding her.

I would 100% recommend KimKim. Our local specialist Nathalie was quick to respond and answer our questions. She put together an amazing trip for myself and friend. She took care of arranging our tours, hotels and flights. Nathalie stayed in touched with us while in Colombia and ensured our trip was going as planned.

All of the services were provided just as promised.

The boat ride from Taganga to Playa Cristal was quite unpleasant. (The return trip was OK.) The sea was quite rough. My wife and I felt like we were being tossed around in a clothes dryer for close to an hour. We were bounced very hard on wooden benches with no cushions. I felt very sore for several days after the boat ride. You should warn people about how unpleasant the journey can be.

The drive between Cartagena and Santa Marta was also a bit scary at times, as the drivers tried to pass trucks.

Colombia is one of the most beautiful, diverse places I have ever visited. I would highly recommend it to anyone who would like to experience city life, nature life, and island life all in one place!! Our trip started in Bogota - a huge city, thankfully our guide Tatiana showed us the way, and helped make lasting memories hiking up the Monserrate pathway! Would highly recommend the graffiti bike tour as well! Next stop - the coffee reason, the most stunning place with beautiful mountains and a jungle feel! The people are very kind, although I would recommend knowing some Spanish! We tried the best coffee in a Salento village!! We had the most wonderful guide to show us the way through Cocora Valley - a once in a lifetime hike!! Additionally our guide David, showed us the quainte Quindio villages, another unique beautiful area of Colombia. To end our trip we stopped in Cartagena, and the Rosario Islands - this place is magical! The town of Cartagena has great vibes and friendly people, and the islands have their own feel of a tropical paradise!! Every hotel we stayed in was well kept, clean and absolutely amazing! I would highly recommend using KimKim to help you plan your next adventure!!

Nathalia was awsome. Very responsive to my particular requests, available for issues, great suggestions, knowledgeable about Colombia, and planned a trip that was very easy.

My Guide in Bogota, Tatiana, my guide in the coffee region, Alejandro, my guide in Medellin,Joachim, were all fantastic. The guides in Cartagena,were Old School, Boring and not cool.-dont remember their names. All hotels were excellent Opera,Diez,Bantu, except the Hacienda in the coffee region.Bosques del Saman-the food was really mediocre and the front desk guy didnt speak English well and didnt communicate well. I was freezing at night and had to walk thru a big field to get to my room. The swimming pool area was not great. It was really a 3-31/2 star place- not 4-41/2 as requested. Setting was pretty.

All the drivers were great.
The cooking class and salsa classes were fun.
I went on a trip on my own -with a group to Guatape- from Medellin- that should be a must do-which was fantastic.
I hired a guide to take me out at night in Medellin to dance clubs - that was really fun.

I probably travelled a bit too much-for the period of time- next time I would cut out one place- but that was my request.

You need to emphasis to bring clothing for cold and rain- it rained everywhere except Cartagena.

On the whole I loved Colombia- the people, the country side and the cities so well organized and beautiful. I will definitely be back!!

We've just returned from a wonderful four week trip to Colombia, and were extremely pleased with our local specialist, Marine, who was helpful during our detailed planning process and who was always in touch with us during our trip to make certain that everything went smoothly.

All of our guides, Remy, Guillermo, et al, were excellent - well informed and a pleasure to have on our adventure. We covered a great range of places in Colombia, from the beginning of the Amazon region in the south to the mountain town of Minca in the north. All of our drivers were excellent and always right on time, and we felt confident and comfortable throughout the trip.

In planning our trip, we emphasized that we were interested in archeological sites like San Agustín and Tierradentro, as well as doing some hiking and visiting some of the culturally important cities of Colombia, like Cartagena and Medellin. From swimming/floating down the Sarabando River to the hike in Las Nubes (the clouds), each day was filled with very pleasurable activities. Because we spoke Spanish, it was also fun to have Spanish speaking guides and go to less visited areas of Colombia.

Thanks, Marine, for helping us to organize such a terrific experience.

Bernard and Ann Rubenstein, Santa Fe, New Mexico