Kimkim Trip Reviews for Costa Rica

Brittany made great suggestions on hotels and activities, was quick to make the changes we asked for, guided us through decisions, and went above and beyond to find alternatives when things were already booked due to a very busy travel season. Highlights were the zip line in Monteverde and the nighttime turtle experience with a licensed guide.

Hotel Review

The Coast Beachfront Hotel

Tamarindo, Guanacaste Province

A lovely and serene hotel off a busy beach, very attentive staff. A highlight was breakfast delivered to the rooms.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Review

TreeTram, Hanging Bridges & Zipline Adventure

Monteverde

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

KimKim , via Charlotte Tornquist and Nancy, planned and carried out a very special and smooth operating vacation plan for the 3 of us in Costa Rica in 2022. We visited Sarapiqui, Siquirres / Pacuare, La Fortuna / Arenal, San Jose and the OSA peninsula over 21 days. Absolutely no travel hiccups or problems as all of the connections, transfers and pick ups worked flawlessly throughout. Pricewise KimKim bested other agents, as well as my attempts at a self directed trip - and assured a local connection of all of the involved entities. That was reassuring and made the trip problem free. I've traveled most of the world and have used many different agencies in doing so. I can say that KimKim rates right at the top for service, pricing, diversity, communication, congeniality and skill. You'll enjoy booking your special vacation with KimKim and leave your worries behind.

Hotel Review

Pacuare Lodge by Böëna

Pacuare

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Review

Enjoy the Adventures and Surroundings at Pacuare Lodge

Costa Rica

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

My wife and I truly had a special experience made possible by our excellent guide Chris. Chris made our cycling adventure unique and exciting throughout our journey. Chris was always available to handle all our needs and expectations. Chris ensured our safety and the perfect guide for the beautiful Costa Rican coast line. We are ready to go back and Chris will be the perfect guide again. Really a quality trip. Highly recommend your services and of course Chris made it possible. Cheers, Brian

Hotel Review

Hotel Boutique Lagarta Lodge

Nosara

Best view and quality room and hospitality!

Tips for future travelers

plan ahead and book activities in the surrounding areas.

Authenticity & Character

Activity Review

Bike Ride Playa Hermosa to Playa Grande

Costa Rica

KimKim and Adriana were easy to work with, responsive and helped us create a fun trip. All transportation was on time. Our drivers were very nice. Some of them were even able to provide information along the way of what we were seeing. Hotels were nice and well situated for what we wanted to see and do. Our travels were to Monteverde, La Fortuna, Puerto Viejo and BriBri.

Hotel Review

Studio Hotel

San José

Best place to see a lot of diverse art work without going to a museum or art gallery. It was nice to have a full restaurant and bar in the hotel but also check out the taco place just down the street.

Tips for future travelers

You have to pay for coffee in your room. But staff was nice enough to let me bring coffee up from the restaurant.

Authenticity & Character

The art work and comfortable rooms.

Staff

Very accommodating even if we struggled through some communications.

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Review

Bribri Indigenous One Day Experience

Puerto Viejo de Talamanca

First of all, getting there is an experience in itself. Quite exciting! It was a privilege to share the indigenous culture. The people, the meal, the archery, the roof making and to hear their story (a bit of a challenge with the language barrier). We felt welcomed.

Quality of Experience

The family/community feeling.

Food

It all was great and the banana flatbread before lunch was out of this world.

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Smiling faces

Transport

The boat ride was a hoot!

Kimkim was an easy way to customize a group visit to Costa Rica, focusing on desired types of activities on specific dates while staying withing budget. Kimkim removed the responsibility of doing research and legwork to execute a fun filled activity trip. I will use it again when appropriate.

Hotel Review

Hotel Los Lagos Spa & Resort

La Fortuna

Nice

Tips for future travelers

Do it.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Breakfast

Activity Review

Biking & Kayaking Around the Arenal Lake

Arenal/La Fortuna

The kayaking was a mazing. The biking was bad. It was a the least favorite activity on the trip for the whole group. The level of difficulty was simply too much for the average person, unlike the rest of the activities. 25 KM in (bad) bikes over unpaved roads/hills was too much. Should be half the distance in the future for average folks like us.

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

We booked an incredible 7-day Costa Rican vacation inclusive of daily private excursions with Tachiz Travel, through KimKim. It was truly by far one of the easiest and most professional travel agencies we have had the pleasure to work with over many years traveling across the world. From first contact to our final farewell, Alex and Francisco went above and beyond to ensure our adventures in Costa Rica were well organized and memorable utilizing the best tour operators in country.

Due to our last-minute decision to travel to Costa Rica for vacation, the accommodations we had selected were unfortunately not available for our entire stay. Therefore, Francisco recommended The Springs Resort & Spa overlooking the Arenal Volcano; what a fabulous resort! It is centrally located to the many activities available in the area including hiking, rafting, ziplining, bird watching, horseback riding, ATV excursions, or just relaxing in the hot springs. The Springs staff was not just accommodating but very friendly and happy to share incredible stories of their beautiful country and make sure our needs were met every step of the way. The resort has several onsite restaurants that are world class. Specifically, La Ventana restaurant, was phenomenal with an incredible chef (Jason Roja), sommelier, and staff. Maikol and Armando went out of their way each day to make our dining experiences special. The menu was extraordinary, creative, and diverse to meet anyone’s palate. We enjoyed every meal and experienced many customary dishes.

Francisco, Tachiz Travel, really listened and understood our interests and goals for the trip. He and Alex developed the perfect itinerary personally design for us. Every excursion guide and driver were exceptionally knowledgeable and spent quality time explaining the local history, customs, culture, and significant landmarks. The guides were true subject matter experts sharing their knowledge and showing us amazing birds, wildlife, and topography. It was one of the best vacations we have ever had. World-class trip.

We are planning on returning to Costa Rica soon and will leave the planning once again to the incredible team Tachiz Travel Team.

Booking this trip was the right choice. The specialist were patient and helpful with any questions we had. It was the perfect way to celebrate a birthday. The schedule kept us busy but there were a few moments where we were able to explore on our own. Most of the guides spoke some english and most drove carefully. Only once was I ever concerned about being in the cars or transportation. Kimkim made it easy to enjoy the experience without the worry. Our lodging was great but not luxury, it fit our needs. Costa Rica was a great experience and I would definitely recommend to others.

Hotel Reviews

Sleep Inn Hotel Paseo Las Damas

San José

The location of this hotel was perfect. Right in the middle of downtown, we were able to visit museums and take in some local life. The rooms were a bit dated and the beds hard but the staff was always nice and helpful. The second time we stayed on our way back the room was nicer and had a city view. Good experience overall

Tips for future travelers

Keep in mind that it is a 2 star. Its perfectly nice and clean but there is some dated and older fixtures there.

Authenticity & Character

good location

Location

its in the middle of everything

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

hard mattresses but clean overall. Older carpets and bathroom fixtures.

Arenal Country Inn

La Fortuna

The welcome was great. The hostess and the rest of the staff were helpful and suggested ways to get around and places to eat. You get your own little villa with AC, tv, and a safe. The pool and dining hall areas were well kept and they were very environmentally focused. The mattresses were very hard.

Tips for future travelers

Take lots of pictures and enjoy your time. The place is lovely and homey.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Review

Arenal Volcano Hiking Tour & Tabacon Hot Springs

Arenal/La Fortuna

Very well planned day. The tour was very knowledgeable despite the trails being a little longer than expected. We saw many cool animals and even learn about costa rica conservation and history of Arena/Fortuna. Going to the hot springs after was a great plan as we were tired after the hiking. We got to the hot springs when it was dark so I do wish that we could have enjoyed some of it during the day light. They had well-lit paths and the pools were lovely. The resort was so well kept and felt very luxe.

Quality of Experience

Food

Good food but it is a set menu

Guides, Drivers and Staff

very knowledgeable and local

Transport

guides suggest local places to eat

We had a wonderful trip organized by Olman, who was always there to answer any question. Olman organized beautiful hotels and great activities for us to discover the country. The highlights of our trip were our transfer to Tortugueros with Jonathan, who stopped to show us a sloth on an electric pole, and told us about the banana plantations - I'll never look at a banana the same way! White water rafting with Orlando was amazing. I recommend doing a night walk as well, you get to see sleeping and nocturnal animals, for example a scorpion that shines in black light. In Manuel Antonio, we saw a mother and baby humpback whale on the catamaran tour. The fresh tropical fruit is so tasty! It was a wonderful trip, I highly recommend booking here!

Diego did an amazing job arranging a babymoon vacation to Costa Rica for us. Everything went seamlessly and all transfers/tours were on time. Would recommend highly!!

Olman went beyond the scope of his duties to help us have the best trip possible. Also, so responsive and friendly. You can tell that he really enjoys helping people and wants the best for you. He also checked in on us during the trip which I've never experienced with any other agency.

Hotel Review

Ti-fakara Boutique Hotel

La Fortuna

We loved everything about this place, especially Fernando and Daniella and the kitchen staff. It was quaint, clean, had a lovely little night tour where we saw a ton of frogs (including the poison dart frog), nice breakfast, outdoor shower which was covered so no debris was in there. Saw birds and monkeys outside our room. Walked up the street to the waterfall attraction. Our favorite spot out of the 4 places we stayed in and would definitely go back.

Tips for future travelers

Don't think twice about this place. It's a must-stay kinda place.

Authenticity & Character

Authentic food, local decor, locals working there.

Location

Walking distance to waterfall. Free night time tour on premises.

Staff

The sweetest staff we met over our 2 weeks in the country.

Cleanliness & Comfort

Felt like new

Activity Review

El Silencio Hike & Visit to Ecotermales Hot Springs

Arenal/La Fortuna

On time, friendly tour guide.

Quality of Experience

Ease, accomodating tourguide - we wanted to leave earlier and they made arrangements,

Food

Buffet

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Friendly

Transport

Flexible to our schedule

We had a *wonderful* time in Costa Rica- many thanks to Yenyi!

Yenyi helped us curate an itinerary that fit our travel style, adventure level, and budget. We felt supported and equipped with all the necessary resources every step of the way (confidence in every transfer ride, guidance on tipping expectations, a clear list of country entry requirements- nothing was missed!).

We loved our self-guided tour of La Fortuna Waterfall alongside our own independent exploration of downtown La Fortuna. Our tour guides on the Sloth Tour, Hanging Bridges Tour, and Volcano Tour were wonderfully passionate and knowledgeable. And even though it was a small group, we really enjoyed getting to know the culinary instructor and one other tourist who joined the local cooking class. But our favorite had to be the evening pass and dinner reservation at Tabacon Thermal Resort!

Can't wait to come back! Thank you, Yenyi!

Hotel Review

Arenal Paraíso Resort, Spa & Hot Springs

La Fortuna

This hotel has an unbeatable view of the volcano and a few nice pools to lounge in on lazy days. Staff was incredibly friendly and accommodating. And the breakfast buffet will fill you up for a day of activity. The location is also great- no more than a 15 minute drive from most activities. Room quality, food and drink quality, and poolside amenities do not have quite the same level of "wow" factor. So this hotel is a great "home base" for travelers hoping to get out and explore every day, but perhaps might not be a top choice for a resort-only stay.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Review

Arenal Volcano Hike & Tabacón Hot Springs with Meal

Arenal/La Fortuna

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

My husband and I enjoyed our trip to Costa Rica very much! We originally scheduled the trip pre-covid and were able to reschedule the trip with Olman when we were ready. Olman was kind, patience and accommodating. His guidance and recommendations were exactly what we were looking for. Thanks Olman! When we plan on another trip to Costa Rica, we will definitely be working with Olman again.

Hotel Review

Tabacón Thermal Resort & Spa

Fortuna

The Tabacon resort and spa was the perfect escape for my husband and I. We enjoyed our luxurious suite, spa and thermal hot springs.

Tips for future travelers

No

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Review

Zip Lining - Hanging Bridges & Aerial Tram

Arenal/La Fortuna

This was such an amazing experience. We had Ray as our guide and he was such a cool guy with an eye and ear for all things in the jungle. He showed us a lot of wild life and made the hike interesting and fun. The hanging bridges were really cool and the zip lining adventure was a heart-racing, memorable experience. My favorite one was the second to the last zip line which was 1/2 a mile long with beautiful views of the landscape and lake. Highly recommend!

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Adriana was there for my family whenever we needed advise or a change in our schedule. We had a great time

Our Costa Rica experience was amazing and I thank Kimkim in assisting us with our journey. The transportation was great with wonderful drivers. The accommodations were very nice and comfortable. We did have bad experience with one hotel. I'm not totally faulting Kimkim. It was a mis communication between parties. We didn't stay at our arranged hotel and found another one on our own. The main thing I would like to see in the future is a breakdown of the expenses. Didn't see one even after requesting it. Even with the issue we would use Kimkim again.

Hotel Review

Hotel Heliconia

Monteverde

Excellent friendly comfortable great views!

Authenticity & Character

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Monteverde - Hanging Bridges Guided Hike & Zip-lining tour

Monteverde

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Monteverde - Hanging Bridges Guided Hike & Zip-lining tour

Monteverde

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Our driver Roy was outstanding, knowledgeable about the areas visited, very good driver, spoke English and Spanish well, and friendly. One of the big things that stood out for me was how friendly the people of Costa Rica are. All of hotels that we stayed at were unique and very nice. The hotels that really stood out were Jardin del Eden Boutique Hotel in Tamarindo, Hotel Arenal Springs Resort and Spa in Arenal/Fortuna, and El Establo Mountain Hotel in Monteverde. All of the excursions were great. Our favorite areas visited were Tamarindo, Arenal/La Fortuna and Monteverde.

We enjoyed the entire trip and will return again soon.

Loved it! The whole experience was so seamless from the planning and booking stage to actually being there. All the tour guides were wonderful too.

Brittany helped us to plan a great trip to Costa Rica! My friend lives there, but we wanted to make the trip extra special by going on some tours together. We were particularly impressed with our green turtle nesting tour and riverboat and rum experience. The guide (I didn't catch his name) for our turtle nesting tour was very knowledgeable and helped us to spot over 10 turtles! He also helped us to arrange a taxi after the tour.

Our Riverboat and Rum Experience at Hacienda Viejo was extraordinary. Brittany was able to get us last-minute transportation to the hacienda when something came up which was very helpful! Our guide, Minor picked us up and drove us to the Hacienda. Along the way, he pointed out various flora and fauna, and talked about the pura vida way of life. He was not only very knowledgeable but personable as well. It ended up being a private tour and we got to know Minor very well. The grounds of the Hacienda were well kept and all the staff were friendly. After a quick stop for fresh juice and fruit, we made our way to the river. This again was private and there was only one other boat on the river at the same time. We saw various types of birds, monkeys, bats, and crocodiles with the help of Minor.

We then went back to the Hacienda for a delicious and traditional Costa Rican lunch. After it was time for our Rum experience with Roberto, the Rummelier. He was very knowledgeable about the distillery process, and we got to sample sugar cane juice as well as rum. At the end, you can infuse your own rum with a variety of spices or fruits. If you like your infusion, you can infuse a bottle and buy it to bring home. They even create a special label for your bottle to include a name and the date, a nice personal touch.

Overall we were very impressed by our trip and Brittany's responsiveness. We definitely would recommend Minor as your guide for the river cruise. Can't wait to go back!

Activity Reviews

Wetlands Boat Ride & Rum Tasting at Hacienda El Viejo

Costa Rica

This was our favorite experience of our trip. Our guide Minor was amazing, very knowledgeable as well as personable. He was able to point out all the wildlife and give us information about the ecosystem and interactions of the flora and fauna. The food at Hacienda was fresh and delicious. Before going to the river you can stop for fruit, coffee or juice. The lunch was great as well. All the staff was friendly. The rum experience was also great with Roberto. He was very knowledgeable and friendly. You get to see the process from the sugarcane, to the barrel. You can then infuse your own rum with a variety of spices and fruits. If you like your infusion you can even buy a small bottle to bring home with a personalized label. The Hacienda grounds were clean and beautiful.

Quality of Experience

Beautiful grounds, great guides, and staff, able to see wildlife, private, luxurious

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Our guide Minor was the best! So knowledgeable, kind, and funny. He went out of his way to make our time great!

Transport

Air-conditioned, comfortable van, No issues with picking us up.

Nighttime Pacific Green Turtle Nesting Experience

Costa Rica

Our guide was very knowledgeable and friendly. He helped us to find a taxi for the way back which was really great. We saw lots of turtles!

Quality of Experience

Seeing the turtles!

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Our guide was knowledgeable!

Transport

Air Conditioned

Overall this was a very good trip. Two of the three hotels were extraordinary with excellent meals and service. Costa Rican people are very friendly and helpful. Our only disappointment was that wildlife viewing was very difficult to get good photos. We took several nature tours and all offered much of the same with little chance of capturing good photographs. Tour guides were very knowledgeable and group size was small. There were many good restaurants in every place we visited. We had no interaction with our local specialist Olman during the week. The schedule he planned for us went very smoothly and almost all the local contacts and transportation services were punctual.

Hotel Review

Tabacón Thermal Resort & Spa

Fortuna

Location

Too far from La Fortuna

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Review

Guided Hike in Arenal Volcano Park 1968

Arenal/La Fortuna

Great views of volcano and interesting geology. Slightly difficult hike but very enjoyable. Guide was very knowledgeable and attentive.

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Amazing Costa Rican Trip!

Adriana helps us setup a perfect trip for us! Adventure/Travel/Relaxation

Thank you!!

Originally we booked a trip to Peru to visit Machu Picchu and do some other excursions while there that he would enjoy. Joanna put together an amazing trip plan for us! Unfortunately about 5 days prior to departure Johanna notified us that the town below Machu Picchu suffered a horrible mud slide which closed it down. We shopped other travel coordinators and no one could beat the prices. Johanna was great but unfortunately we had to pivot quickly. Costa Rica here we come...got in contact with Charlotte who helped us outline an amazing trip to Costa Rica. Charlotte was so attentive to our needs and timing. She put together a great trip and found a fabulous local private driver. La Fortuna is such an beautiful place to visit and Charlotte booked some great adventures for us including Private ATV trip, Zip Line, Spa visit with a hot spring right off of the active volcano Arenal and a hike along the base of Arenal with a very knowledgeable guide. Great service and follow up. We will use them again and again especially when visiting new destinations! Costa Rica is now one of our new favorite places to visit.