Kimkim Trip Reviews for England

We recently completed our SW England road trip and it was fantastic! This is our second trip organized through KimKim and we really find the level of assistance, coordination and guidance a boon to trip planning. In fact, Stephen, who prepared our itinerary was able to take a lot of the planning for us, out of the equation. There were great activities suggested throughout the trip. This was personalized for us; a small family of three with a 9 year old daughter. She had some great experiences as did my wife and I! We are grateful to Stephen for being available throughout the planning process and things couldn't have been easier.

The trip plan dossier was organized well and served as a quick daily reference for what the next days adventures will bring! Having many activities pre-booked with booking references available prior to departing was very efficient and made things easy.

This is a great way to generate ideas about an area you want to visit by getting local insight from people who know the area and can suggest activites that may not always be 'main stream' but also ensure a rich, full experience of the area.

We are extremely pleased with KimKim and feel that this is the only way we will plan future trips!!

Thank you Stephen!!!

Hotel Reviews

The Bloomsbury

London

Excellent service. The staff were very friendly and we enjoyed our stay here. If (when!) I am back in London - I will be coming to Bloomsbury!!

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Very friendly and personable!

Cleanliness & Comfort

Very comfortable bed (this is key!!)

The Pines Hotel

Swanage, Dorset

Overall, this was a great stay. The evening views at dinner time looking at the ocean cannot be beat. The staff very very friendly and accomodating.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

The room layout was good --- the mattresses unfortunately, were not comfortable

Bayards Cove Inn

Dartmouth

This is very, very, very nice inn. An old building with character. The staff are super friendly. We had a great time. My daughter LOVED the room we stayed inn -- it really brought out nautical and pirate themes to our dreams! The bathroom was quite newly renovated and nice. The staff was great and extremely friendly. This was a very memorable stay and I will say that I see myself coming to Dartmouth again in my life and I will stay at Bayards Cove Inn!!!

Authenticity & Character

Very charming building and the room we stayed in was unique!

Location

Staff

Great staff. Always smiling!

Cleanliness & Comfort

Bathroom was excellent

The Stag and Huntsman at Hambleden

Hambleden Village, Henley-on-Thames

We loved this cottage stay - unfortunately for us it was only for one night. It truly has motivated us to come back here for a longer stay. The cottage was exceptionally clean and spacious. The restaurant had excellent food and the village is charming!

Authenticity & Character

The village was small, quaint and beautifulF!

Location

Staff

Very nice staff. I thought they all were very friendly and provided wonderful service when we dined at the restaurant

Cleanliness & Comfort

Very clean cottage and very well equiped.

Activity Reviews

Entry to St Michael's Mount

England

It was a nice sunny day when we visited. The gardens are beautiful. The views are inspiring and the time we spent on St. Michael's mount was great!

Quality of Experience

Private Guided Tour of The British Museum with a Historian

London

After having this guided tour I feel this is the only way to visit a museum!! We met with Alan who is a PhD and has a keen interest and knowledge in early civilizations. The pace was good and we were all engaged the whole time. My 9-year old daughter had a great time and really felt that seeing and hearing the things she did complimented some of the things she has learnt about early civilizations. Truly a great experience!!

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Very efficiently done and the team checked in with us throughout the holiday to make sure everything was going ok

Now, that’s how you vacation!
Alex and the entire team were amazing to work with. In the past, my wife and I would research where to go, what to do every day and what/where to eat. Alex made it so easy to vacation.

We had an amazing journey perfectly planned through the cities of Oxford, Bath, and Cotswalds and ended in the big citiy of London. Marion did a wonderful job picking accomodations for my family of 4. She picked a variety of activities of relaxation and action days too. It was wonderful to see so many areas of the UK! We really appreciate all her hard work. The food tour in Bath was a huge favorite since we are foodies. We also loved the history in each city. The road book was awesome at suggestions. We would definitely look to use kimkim again for our next trip. Marion was also 2 steps ahead and made sure we knew what to expect and shared lots of great details. Summer 2023 to rememeber!

Sincerely,
Lesley Bush

How to arrange a seemingly impossible vacation with grandchildren?? Contact Kimkim to be sure. We wanted to travel to
The United Kingdom with a 12 and 15 year old , but were unsure how to make these arrangements. Stephen made the trip happen seamlessly. From pickup at the airport into our hotel in London, to travel from Bath to Oxford and return to Heathrow we had knowledgeable and most importantly, reliable guides. Stephen worked with us for several months to fine tune the overall trip to our particular interests, and kept in contact during our stay. Thanks so much.

Hotel Reviews

Cleveland Hotel

London

Within easy walking distance of several underground stations. No breakfast, but many convenience stores nearby also. Kitchenette provided all necessities. Wonderfully divided room for adults with children.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

No.15 by GuestHouse, Bath

Bath

Great location within easy walking distance of central Bath. Wonderful amenities.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Courtyard by Marriott Oxford City Centre

Oxford

Easy walk to central business district. Great breakfast.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Private transfer to your accommodation. Then check-in or bag-drop

London

Let us know of his arrival by text.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Entry tickets to The Churchill War Rooms

London

We loved this experience

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Tower of London Early Access Tour with Beefeater

London

Tour was listed for 8:30, but due to an underground closure we missed by 10 minutes. We also were perplexed trying to find the meeting point. Allow lots of extra time for travel in the city. Our guide never contacted us.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Hop-on, Hop-off Bus

London

Don't do it. We were stuck in traffic and the audio for the bus was worse than terrible. They played irritating music between narration which was in our case 90 5 of the time.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Very crowded and impersonal

Transport

Better audio

London Eye timed entry tickets

London

Able to board quickly and individual cars were roomy

Quality of Experience

Guided tour of V & A museum

London

Wonderful guide Luciana took us through the museum pointing out many interesting things that we surely would have missed.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Luciana made this a great experience

Bath - A Hawk Walk you say?

Bath

The grandkids were able to have a hawk land and feed about 30 times. Wonderful energetic guide, Alice.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Cab driver was very prompt when summoned

Tour of Stonehenge from Bath

Bath

It is surely a must do when in the UK

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Private driver/guide

England

Mike Rowland was a wonderful guide stopping at a tiny Cotswold village and providing lots of history and information.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Historical Walking Tour of downtown Bath (not much distance covered!)

Bath

Our guide, Andy took us for a wonderful 2 hour stroll through the town. He is an excellent guide.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Audio guides allowed us to take our time and enjoy.

Oxford: Harry Potter Tour with Divinity School Entry

Oxford

Our guide's accent was so strong that we could hardly understand what she said. She did call to say she was running late, which was good, but then she was another 15 minutes late for our appointed time. We had trouble keeping up when she walked and the things she showed us did not impress. Stood beside the ice cream stand rather than strolling the courtyard. We ended the tour in a market looking at Alice in Wonderland balloons!

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Walking was entirely too fast.

Punting in Oxford

Oxford

This was a wonderfully relaxing way to end our whirlwind visit to England. Wonderful boxed lunch was included with our tour so it was even better.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Comfortable cushions in the boats

We wanted to see as much of the UK as possible, on our time of roughly 11 days in country and our budget. Stephen, primarily, and the High Point team did a great job planning. Thanks to you all.
One observation on the timing. On day 2 driving to Bath, Tintern Abbey and eventually, Cardiff, we really didn't have enough time to see Bath. By the time we parked near the city center in Bath, it was time to go to Tintern. I drove the speed limits for the most part. Bath was a suggestion anyway and we don't think not touring around town detracted from the overall trip. We especially liked the accomodations selected. VRBO-like places to the small hotels, we liked them all. Favorites were Juniper Cabins, Gwynfryn, and Six Brunton in Edinburgh.

We went on a five night trip to Oxford, the Cotswolds, Stratford upon Avon, and Bath. We had a wonderful time in each place, and realized we could go back and spend more time in Oxford and Bath, in particular. My very favorite memory of our whole trip was sitting on the balcony of our room at The Old Bank Hotel, at eye level with some amazing architecture (University Church of St. Mary the Virgin), drinking a glass of wine and listening to the bells chime. Rapturous!

The planning of the trip was really well done - good communication with the team, primarily with our #1 guide, Jane.
After looking back at all of the itinerary suggestions made by Jane, I actually wish we had followed her original advice at the very beginning. She definitely knew better than we did what should have been our priorities. :)

Jane was also a fantastic guide while we were actually on the trip. It was very much a comfort to be able to ask her a question via text whenever we needed to, about anything. She even rang us a couple of times, just for absolute clarity.

We had a few troubles with delayed or cancelled train trips and Jane was easily contacted and kindly supportive throughout.

If there is any suggestion I could make for better service, it would be to have someone on the team confirm the train schedule for the travelers on the day and then send a text to say “All is well” or “Things have changed”, so we could have planned accordingly.

Overall, we are very happy with our experience with KimKim and will be looking into working with them again on a future trip to Australia.

Owen and Emily did an excellent job planning our trip to Liverpool, which they had to plan twice since the soccer game we had planned to attend was cancelled. Everything ran smoothly and the guides and hotel were excellent. So happy I went with kimkim instead of planning on my own.

Hotel Review

Hope Street Hotel

Liked the location and choice of restaurants. Enjoyed the free buffet breakfast and the Spa. Would have like to have utilized more of the spa services but they were totally booked before we arrived,

Authenticity & Character

not sure what this means but was a modern high end hotel.

Location

walkable, plenty of restaurants, beautiful churches

Staff

responsive, supplied refrigerator when requested

Cleanliness & Comfort

everything immaculate

Activity Reviews

Welcome to Manchester

England

Tour guide Neil extremely knowledgeable and accommodating.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Neil was an excellent guide

Transport

comfortable ride,

Liverpool FC Stadium Tour

Liverpool

enjoyed stadium tour

Quality of Experience

got to see pitch, did not get to see actual dressing rooms as we had been told

Guides, Drivers and Staff

tour guide personable and knowledgeable. Driver excellent

Transport

Enjoyed riding with Adrian (sp?) gave us an interesting perspective of liverpool

Liverpool Football Hospitality

Liverpool

Enjoyed the hospitality suite but would probably book in the Kop next time for a more real soccer experience

Quality of Experience

food was not great

Guides, Drivers and Staff

staff very helpful at stadium

Transport

Adrian was on time, very personable

Our guide, William Berry, from Black Cab Heritage Tours, was fantastic!!! His knowledge of London and beyond is unbelievable! He went above and beyond to make us happy. He worked many long days educating us about your beautiful country! He was funny, kind, caring and considerate. So worried about our well being at all times. Whatever you pay this gentleman, you should pay him twice that amount! :)

Hotel Reviews

ibis Styles London Gloucester Road

London

Very nice hotel. Staff was warm and welcoming. The Continental breakfast was top notch. My only complaint was the room was so very small. Hard to move around in.

Authenticity & Character

An old historic place

Location

Right downtown London

Staff

They were very warm and welcoming and willing to help us in any way.

Cleanliness & Comfort

Cleanliness was perfect but the rooms were very cramped.

Duke of Cornwall Hotel

Plymouth

This hotel is lovely!! It was built in 1863 and it retains the charm of that time period. Really clean and friendly staff. The restaurant was good, too.

Authenticity & Character

Authentic Victorian in every way!

Location

Right downtown so easy to walk the city

Staff

So friendly and helpful :)

Cleanliness & Comfort

No complaints!

Arches B&B

St Austell

It's a very quaint house. The rooms are up a steep flight of stairs so this will not suit everyone. The rooms are decorated beautifully, very cozy and clean.

Authenticity & Character

The rooms, and the owner was very personable.

Location

It's set back off of a busy road with no where to walk to for food or sightseeing.

Staff

The owner was very accommodating and kind.

Cleanliness & Comfort

The rooms were great. Just he steep stairs were difficult to navigate with luggage.

Activity Reviews

Private transfer to your accommodation. Then check-in or bag-drop

London

Both trips were fast and the service was great

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Hop-on, Hop-off Bus

London

We got there too late the first day to really use this service. The second day we used it some. Not sure I'd bother with it ever again. The town shuts down at 6 pm so it can't be used at night.

Quality of Experience

Historical Pub Walking Tour of London

London

This was so informative and fun!

Quality of Experience

The guide was knowledgeable and fun

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Everything

Private day trip to Windsor Castle

England

An amazing historical day! To actually experience what we learn in history books was fabulous!

Quality of Experience

Awe inspiring

Guides, Drivers and Staff

William Berry is fantastic!

Transport

William Berry got us there safely and back home safely :)

Black Taxi Beatles Private Tour - Explore Abbey Road

London

So fun to actually see where the Beatles recorded their music and the places in the city where they lived or performed

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

William Berry was great

Transport

William pointing out Beatles sites as we drove around

Full-Day Tudor Tour to Hampton Court Palace and Hever Castle

London

There are not enough superlatives to describe this place!

Quality of Experience

Everything was presented so very well

Guides, Drivers and Staff

William Berry is the best, and the staff guides were so helpful

Transport

William Berry and Black Cab Heritage Tours are the best!

Downton Abbey, Cotswolds and Highclere Castle Private Tour from London

London

It was ok. A very long drive to get there and it was a bit disappointing, actually.

Quality of Experience

Nothing. Just a long drive for not much to see

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Our driver, William was fantastic. So patient with us! :)

Transport

Everything! Bill is the best!

Our trip to the UK was seamless from beginning to end! Drivers were on time and transportation to/from airports, trains and hotels was super easy. The hotels were all amazing. The Bloomsbury in London was perfect. The hotel staff knew us by name. The hotel bars were lovely and just what we needed after full days of sightseeing. Stephen also arranged breakfasts to be included with our stays which proved to be very helpful in starting our days. Day one we saw the Tower of London and Tower Bridge. We ate at Skye Garden for lunch which has breathtaking views of London. From there we walked across the London Bridge to Borough Market for dessert. Day two we saw Buckingham Palace, Big Ben and toured Westminister Abbey. We had high tea at The Savoy which is a must-do! Later that evening we went to a club called Ballie Ballerson which was so much fun, perfect for those with children over the age of 18. Day three we went to Covet Gardens and shopped and also hit Harrod’s, which is a site to see! Mr. Foggs in Covet Gardens is a darling pub with the best fish and chips I’ve ever had! Day four we had a private driver take us from London to Oxford for a day trip. Definitely a highlight of the trip. The University is so beautiful and incredibly interesting with lots of history and stories based on it. Our tour guide was full of great stories. Definitely stop at The Turf Tavern for lunch! Day four was a much needed day of rest in the Cotswolds. The Wild Rabbit Inn in the Cotswolds stole my heart! Everywhere you looked was Instagram worthy! We stayed in a two bedroom cottage that was the coziest place we’ve ever rented. The inn and pub were steps from our front door and the pub served great traditional English food and drinks. We spent hours in the pub sitting by the fire playing card games. Daylesford Farms is a must see and perfection everywhere you look. We did the walk from the inn to the farm which was really pretty although very muddy. Day six we had a private driver take us on a tour of the villages in the Cotswolds. Each village is equally beautiful and quaint, but there is not a lot to get out and do. Many of the shops have closed. This was our least favorite day. Then we took the sleeper train to Edinburgh which was a really fun experience! It was a lot nicer than I thought it would be and I actually slept very well. My husband, who is 6’3” would probably not agree with me. In Edinburgh, day 7, we stayed at the Balmoral, another exquisite hotel. Edinburgh is walkable and you can see a lot in just one afternoon. Probably my least favorite city, but it was my 18 year old son’s favorite. He loved hearing the history and the old buildings and we toured the underground tunnels and graveyards complete with ghost stories to go along. Day 8 another private driver to the fishing villages of Fife and St. Andrews. This was a perfect day trip and end to our holiday. The villages are quaint and a lovely drive and St. Andrews was very cool to see both the University and the golf course. Don’t for get to stop for a pint at the Jigger Inn!

Hotel Reviews

The Bloomsbury

London

Loved this hotel! Loved the smallish size and personal attention received. The hotel staff knew us by name. The Coral Room bar was the perfect place to relax after a full day of touring. The downstairs bar with live music was also pretty great. Beds were very comfortable. And the bathroom! The bathroom was amazing from top to bottom! Even came with a Dyson hairdryer!

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Wild Rabbit Inn

Kingham

My favorite! The comfiest coziest cottage ever! Perfection everywhere you looked. Perfect place to build a fire, sip some tea and read a book. The inn was darling and a great place to settle into for hours playing games and sipping pints!

Authenticity & Character

Location

Loved the tiny village of Kingham. Perfect for a couple nights to unwind.

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

The comfiest coziest cottage ever!

Caledonian Sleeper

London

A fun experience.

Authenticity & Character

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

The Balmoral Hotel

Edinburgh

Beautiful room and bathroom. Great service for such a large hotel. The staff was amazing!

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Private transfer to your accommodation. Then check-in or bag-drop

London

Loved the black cab experience! Very knowledgeable driver.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Driver/guide

Oxford

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Full day in the Cotswolds with small group and driver/guide

England

The driver was great. The villages are all beautiful. Just not a lot to get out and do.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Overnight Caledonian Sleeper Train between Scotland & London

London

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Fishing Villages of Fife & St Andrews from Edinburgh

Edinburgh

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

We had an excellent time in London. The house was exactly as advertised with plenty of space. We met with Ann on our first day and enjoyed excellent weather with our walking tour. Ann was kind and very flexible as we did cut the tour a bit short due to exhaustion.
Each day we used the Tube as there were suspensions of other services and frankly the tube was swift and easy to use.
We went to Trafalgar Square and the National Gallery on the second day before enjoying our Chelsea game. They even played our American player!
The following day we traveled to Westminster. Our tickets were excellent and we were able to quickly enter. It was crowded but beautiful. We walked the rest of the day - over to Seven dials to get lunch and onto St. Paul's. We LOVED climbing the the top. After, we through the financial district (my eldest son's dream location due to his university interests). We then walked along the river to see the Tower Bridge light up. We walked around the Tower of London which had beautiful lighting and, then across the Tower Bridge. We ended up returning home via the Tube and had to change trains at Kings Cross, so of course, we went into the train station to see 9 3/4. Boys were bored and sitting in the corner and my daughter was gleeful!
On our free day the boys slept. Joe and Lizzie went to the British Museum and met up later with the boys for the Harry Potter Tour. Kate spent hours in the William Morris museum and then walked the Walthamstow Wetlands. It was beautiful.
Our tour of Stonehenge and Bath was lovely. It was nice to get out the the city and Lawrence was delightful. It was a comfortable ride, we found food (essentials for the boys) and the weather was cooperative (enough - just a bit of rain). Long day at the end as Bath was far from London and traffic was awful, but this was not unexpected.
The following day, Joe, Lizzie and Patrick went to the Tower. Kate and Dominic went to the Science Museum to the gallery of mathematics - this was Dominic's favorite as he studies this at university. We met later to travel to the Shard.
We stayed in New Year's Eve. We had no idea that there would be so many fireworks. Fireworks are common in the USA in the summer at July 4, but not at New Years.
On our last day, we slept and traveled early to the Tottenham game. Kate was so excited. The food was excellent and the stadium was beautiful - now if only Tottenham would have played better :(
Many thanks to Eleanor for planning our dream vacation.

Hotel Review

Victorian Sunbeam

London

This house was spacious (for London). The photos are accurate and the owners left good instructions. They cleared out generous space for food in the fridge and the temperature was very comfortable. Beds were large and comfortable and having 2.5 bathrooms was excellent (and the main reason that we selected the house). Being from the USA, we were completely clueless on how to work the microwave and the washing machine. Many thanks to YouTube for assistance. Directions would have been helpful. I'm not sure we ever really understood the washing machine. Special Note: The house is clearly owned by artists who enjoyed modern and avant garde art. There were artistic drawings and photos of semi-nude women in the house. They were beautiful but a bit shocking and my sons informed me where each drawing/photo was as they wandered the house. Younger kids would likely not notice and adults may appreciate them, but teenage boys are likely not the audience for these photos. We were not offended but I know many a USA family who would be unappreciative of these decorations.

Authenticity & Character

I wasn't really looking for character, just space, but I'm 5 starring this one.

Location

About 7 minute walk to the Victoria Line of the tube. Grocery store on the way. Very end of Victoria line so it takes a bit of time to get to many city central sites.

Staff

Nice notes and directions from owners

Cleanliness & Comfort

House was very clean. Towels were laid out. Easy places to put shoes and coats. Space in fridge and easy to use kitchen.

Activity Reviews

Shard Viewing Platform

London

This would be great, if the weather would cooperate. My kids liked the view but it was considerably cloudy, so buying tickets ahead of time is a gamble. We have done it once, so don't need to repeat this experience.

Tottenham Hotspur v Aston Villa - Kick-Off 2pm

London

Wonderful stadium and food. Lovely atmosphere but our tickets were DIRECTLY in front of opposing team fans which was an odd experience. Now if only Tottenham had played well. Since Villa won the game there was much taunting by these fans directed towards Tottenham fans. My kids thought that this was amusing and not typical of the USA.

Quality of Experience

Private Walking Tour of London

London

Our guide was Ann. She was knowledgeable and flexible, adapting to what we wanted to see. It was a lovely day and a great experience.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Chelsea v Bournemouth - Kick-Off 5.30pm

London

Great food and lovely seats. A bit high up, but good view of the field. You can arrive early and also stay after the game.

Quality of Experience

Discover Bath & Stonehenge - Full Day Tour

London

This was an excellent day but a long drive home afterwards. I wish we had done Bath first and then Stonehenge (or just skipped Bath and found some closer place.) The museum at Stonehenge is interesting and the walk around the stones was lovely. Our entire family really enjoyed Lawrence and he was a helpful and responsive guide. I highly recommend him for future tours. His car was comfortable and he had a lovely personality.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Westminster Abbey

London

This was a lovely place although we attended at peak tourist season, so a bit crowded.

Quality of Experience

St Paul's Cathedral

London

This is a lovely church. We thoroughly enjoyed climbing to the top and enjoying the views. All three teenage kids really liked that experience.

Quality of Experience

We had a great trip to England during a very unprecedented time of the Queens passing. Owen literally took care of every detail of our trip from the time we stepped off the plane until the time we stepped back on. It was such a relief to be able to have someone handle all the details and for us to just be able to enjoy our short time there. I would recommend Owen and his team over and over and I would not hesitate to use him again when I return.

We had a 30 day trip so it involved quite a few hotels. We loved the variety of places that were selected and really enjoyed all the locations. Our guide in the Caingorms Steve Beddick was excellent. He had great knowledge of the history and the wildlife in the area. Our guide Chris on the Isle of Lewis was equally as exceptional and provided an excellent tour. Our accommodations in Lewis the Broad Bay House was one of our favorite locations. The Inn keepers were very skilled and provided a relaxing stay. The activities that were scheduled for us were all interesting and enjoyable. I wouldn’t have left any of them out. There were a few hiccups but someone was available to put things right cheerfully and in good order. You provided what we hoped for, a trip of a lifetime and we made many memories that we will cherish.

Eleanor did a fantastic job developing the perfect trip for us Using her and Routescape i
Are a real asset to KimKim.
Our trip was to take my grandson to a football academy in Milton Keynes where he will be for at least 4 months. After our goodbyes Kim and I started our tour in London, Broadway (Cotswolds), Bath and Windsor. All of our hotels were excellent and easy walk to many sights and restaurants. Of course the Lydon Arms was a treasure but Hotel DeTour,Georgian House, the Bird and Hilton were very interesting and very nice. We were treated very well by exceptional staff at each of them.
Our arranged tours and cabs were friendly and knowledgeable—great people to spend time with. Debbie and Richard of Ace Taxi were a great welcome and goodbye to the Cotswolds. Robin from Cotswolds Tours and travel made it a very special day for us as he brought history to life. We felt like we were traveling with a very knowledgeable friend. Spending time with
Laurence Davies of Avebury Landscapes and Monuments tours was great He was so willing to share with us it is obvious that he loves this area. Also fun to be with
Yogi of Davids of London Chauffeurs was not an official tour guide but was great to be with and very willing to share his knowledge of the area with us. He was very accommodating on a very hot day
My review is rather long but you can see what a great time we had and especially appreciated not being part of a “herd”. Having local travel agents makes a real difference. Thank you KimKim

Hotel Reviews

Hotel La Tour

Milton Keynes

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Very modern with great gym

Georgian House Hotel

Pimlico

Perfect place to start London adventure Room was like stepping back in time

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Atmosphere

Lygon Arms

Broadway

You know you are in a place a great history. Everything is done with such care and yet very much friendliness

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

The Bird, Bath

Bath

Beautiful place with great mix of old and new Very helpful staff especially helping with luggage to third floor

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Hilton London Heathrow Airport

Hounslow

Extremely helpful staff especially Alicia when we checked in. Nice to be close to airport for morning flight

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Exploring London on a Hop On Hop Off Bus

London

Great way for quick overview of London. Boat trip was outstanding

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Helpful and friendly

Transport

Day Tour of Stratford-upon-Avon & The Cotswolds

Broadway

Fantastic experience. Robin made sure we saw the best of Stratford-upon-Avon and made the history of the Cotswolds and beautiful country side an unforgettable day

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Great guide

Transport

The Roman Baths

Bath

Audio tour was very well done

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Discover Avebury

Bath

Our guide Laurence was amazing. His knowledge and love of the area made it special

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Windsor Castle & Windsor by Train

England

Seeing history and current events in the history of monarchy was very interesting Buildings were amazing Audio program at times confusing. Headphone became uncomfortable

Quality of Experience

To William , Stephen and all the KimKim team. Ron and I want to thank you for all the work you put into planning our trip. We enjoyed out tip through England to Scotland and back to England. All of the choices for our accommodations were wonderful. One of our favorite places to stay was The Upper Largo Hotel. The pub and restaurant there was so nice. The food was wonderful. Also, our accommodations in Port Isaac , The Slipway was so ver nice. All the Bed And Breakfast and Hotels were extremely nice. We would stay at all of them again.
The excursions, punting , Tea at Blenheim palace, The tour of Manchester stadium and one of our favorites was the walking eating tour. The guide was fun and so nice and very informative and all the places we stopped to taste food were awesome. Definitely anyone who wants to visit in Manchester I recommend that eating tour with our guide. From there we go to bath . Accommodations at the Abbey hotel were wonderful. Circus Restaurant was beautiful inside and the food was so delicious. We also toured the Roman Bath. We would recommend everything to anyone asking about our trip. Port Isaac was a wonderful way to end our vacation. Very beautiful village . Restaurants were all delicious. We never had a bad meal the whole trip. We are big fans of the British TV show Doc Martin and the setting for the show is filmed in Port Isaac. How fortunate were we to actually be there when they were filming the last episode of the series. From our balcony at the bed-and-breakfast we were staying in we could literally watch the actors and the filming happening.
Thank you so much for everything. Thank you for dealing with my phone calls I made through out the trip. There is not one bad thing to say about our trip. It was wonderful.

Ron and Gloria Beavers

Hotel Reviews

The Head of the River

Oxford, Oxfordshire

Beautiful setting. Food is delicious.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Setting, location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Very clean

Dakota Manchester

Manchester

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Lionsgate Guest House

Bicester

Absolutely wonderful place to stay. Very very clean. Great location to walking. Staff was wonderful. Will definitely stay here again

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

The Upper Largo Hotel

4 Main St

Absolutely awesome. Love this hotel the staff was so friendly and helpful. The restaurant was so clean and the food was out of this world delicious.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Love the charm. The setting and all the stuff

The Slipway

Port Isaac

Couldn’t ask for a better place to stay. Great view from our balcony. Such a charming village. Food was awesome at all the restaurants we try. All around definitely want to go back

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

The Eton Mess Boutique Hotel

Eton, Berkshire

Very nice place to stay. The staff were very accommodating and helpful. Set an a perfect location for touring.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Hard Days Night Hotel

Liverpool

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Punting in Oxford

Oxford

Great experience very relaxing. The picnic lunch was out of this world. Way more than we expected. Loved it

Quality of Experience

Everything

Guides, Drivers and Staff

We were so lucky to have a seasoned guide. He made it a great experience and he was very knowledgeable

Transport

We were so lucky to have a seasoned guide. He made it a great experience and he was very knowledgeable

Liverpool by The Beatles - Classical tour

Liverpool

Old Trafford Stadium Tour

Manchester

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Eat the City Tour

Manchester

This was very enjoyable. Our guide was awesome and made the experience even more fun with his knowledge of the city. Everywhere he took us to eat was absolutely delicious. Just a lot of fun and would definitely recommend this to anyone wanted to do something in Manchester.

Quality of Experience

Everything

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Awesome. really friendly guide.

Transport

Everything

Cornwall Private Horse and Carriage Tour

Padstow

So fun and relaxing. Great getting to see the countryside from the horse and carriage

Quality of Experience

So fun and relaxing. Great getting to see the countryside from the horse and carriage

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Or guys were so friendly and very informative. Had a lot of fun with these guys

Transport

Or guys were so friendly and very informative. Had a lot of fun with these guys

Port Isaac Walking Tour

Padstow

Very very informative. Our guy was so knowledgeable and the village is absolutely adorable and had just so much fun on the tour

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Our trip to England was absolutely phenomenal. From the beginning of planning the trip to the moment we got home everything was fun & easy. Stephen was fully accessible at all times when it came to planning the perfect trip. He went back & forth with me several times planning & making changes to make sure we were able to have the exact kind of trip we were wanting. All of our tour guides were very informative and interactive! While we were in England anytime we needed to contact one of the KimKim members we received feedback from them instantly. Any issues we had were quickly corrected and fixed. I only have the best things to report on Stephen, William and the entire KimKim team who helped plan this once in a lifetime trip to England for the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee! Thanks again for everything guys! Will definitely be using KimKim again in my future travels.

Hotel Reviews

Graduate Cambridge

Cambridge

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Hampton by Hilton Bath City

Bath

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Trebovir Hotel

Kensington, London

Rooms extremelyyyy small. At least one tube stop away from any sight seeing for tourists. And they lock the outside doors at a certain time, which is great for safety, but when you’re out enjoying the night life in London it makes it difficult to get back to your room. The breakfast was included & very filling, and the staff was always nice.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Tower of London Early Access Tour with Beefeater

London

We went on this tour after the black cab tour so we weren’t able to really get to have the time in the tower that we would have liked. We were somewhat rushed but we did get in to see the Crown Jewels. I’m not sure what the “early access” means for this tour because our entrance time for the tour was 4pm and the tower closed at 5pm. We were unable to do the true beefeater tour. I’d recommend to other travelers if you want to visit the Tower of London and truly get the full experience go at the beginning of the day so you have all the time you want in the Tower to see everything. There’s so much history & interesting facts to learn about while there!

Quality of Experience

A better entrance time to get to have the full experience

Transport

Simply Windsor Castle - Afternoon Tour with transport

London

Loved loved LOVEDDDD this trip!!! Anyone who goes make sure you get a map and the audio recording guide. Make SURE to go inside the chapel in the Windsor grounds too. One of my favorite parts of the entire tour, so many historically famous Kings & Queens burial sites are in the cathedral.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Black Cab Tour of London

London

One of our favorite tours of the entire trip. Our tour guide was phenomenal and very informative! It was so fun to zip around London in the black cab and see the main hotspot sites as well as other ones we wouldn’t have otherwise known about. Such fun & definitely recommend!

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

High tea at the Savoy Hotel

London

We went to the Savoy for high tea after the Trooping of the Colours celebrating the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee. It was the perfect place for tea after such a fun & celebratory day! Beautiful setting & lovely live music. The food was delicious & the staff was very welcoming and friendly.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Hampton Court Palace - private tour.

London

Tour guide was very informative & interactive. The tour actually turned out to be more of an architectural tour which we weren’t aware of ahead of time. We were expecting more of a historical tour specifically about the Tudors (Henry VIII). I told our tour guide this and she was very well informed on this part of history about Hampton Court Palace as well so it wasn’t really an issue, we were still able to get the experience we were wanting. I’d be specific and clear about what your tour guide will be including in the tour before booking.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Literary tour of Bath

Bath

This was a wonderful way to walk around & see all of Bath! The most BEAUTIFUL town, probably my favorite one of the entire trip. This tour gives you all the Jane Austen deets, as well as lots of sights for Bridgerton fans (which I am!). However, it doesn’t give as much background on the Roman Baths and Romans in general if that is something you’re looking for. Our tour guide Dianne was SO informative on all of the Jane Austen time period information. She was a lovely guide and we had a wonderful time with her.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Cambridge by the flow of the Cam river

Cambridge

This was without a doubt in our top two favorite things we did on this trip (The first being seeing the Queen & Royal Family during the Trooping of the Colour celebrating the Jubilee!) Punting down the canals of Cambridge was so peaceful & relaxing. Beautiful scenery & lovely punting guide who made for great conversation! Take a bottle of champagne or two & some plastic cups with you ahead of time to enjoy during the tour!

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Our family had an amazing time both in London and Paris. It was all very well arranged and communication was on point. Thank you for assisting us and making sure we had wonderful memories. :)

Overall, we had a wonderful time in London and Paris. While Kimkim got a lot right, such as hooking us up with great tour guides and finding good accomodations in nice locations, there were some glitches which would prevent me from using them again. The main issue was with timing; there were many instances where there simply wasn't enough time to get from one place to another, resulting in us missing some of our paid activities. For example, we had premium Big Bus tickets and a boat tour on the Thames as part of the package, but were unable to use them but for a brief 30 minute bus ride on day 2 (it was at the end of the bus route). Once we arrived in London, the Big Bus tour had shut down, so it wasn't an option on that day. The next day we had plans to go to the Warner Brothers Studio (Harry Potter) early in the morning, despite my request for no early morning activities. We then had to rush (literally had to run) to catch a bus to take us to the Tower of London; we arrived late and missed many of the attractions there, since it was near closing time.
Since the Big Bus tours closed at 6:30 we were only able to ride for about 30 minutes on day 2.
We never were able to use our boat tickets (which I presume we paid for) or take full advantage of the Big Bus tour, which would have been a nice introduction to London.

On the plus side, we thoroughly enjoyed our private Jane Austen walking tour in Bath and the Stonehenge tour. Our final day in London we were scheduled to visit Westminster Abbey after a Changing of the Guard tour. We did not have sufficient time scheduled to see the Abbey; however, since we needed to catch the Eurorail to go to Paris the same day. We ended up rushing our visit to the Abbey and were unable to see much of it.

There were several discrepancies and inconsistencies in the printed information we received from Kimkim. For example, on day 2 in Paris, our itinerary noted that we were to go to the Louvre for a tour. We showed up to the tour only to realize that the tickets themselves were for a later date. That discrepancy in printed information caused us to miss out on other plans. It should be noted however, that when we went back to the Louve two days later, the tour was wonderful. The worst issue came the last day - our itinerary stated that our driver would be at our hotel to take us to the airport 3-3.5 hours before our flight. Unfortunately, our driver had received different information and left us at the hotel 3.5 hours before our flight. There was a taxi strike happening that day so we had to scramble to figure out how to get to the airport and make our flight. I called Stephan (William was not the contact during the trip - my rating above is for Stephan) from High Point Holidays who said he found another driver but it would cost me over $300. I was shocked that he took no responsibility for this mix-up and expected me to pay to make it right. He later called saying he found another driver for less money, but again made no offer to compensate me. We ended up taking the bus to the airport. It was very stressful, and we would have missed our flight, but luckily, it had been delayed. Finally, in both London and Bath, we arrived at our hotels to find that our rooms had not been paid for. This was awkward and time-consuming to remedy (I had to call Stephen both times). Also, at the Black Fox hotel in Bath, we had a room with one double bed, although I had requested separate (twin) beds for the entire trip. The hotel told me they weren't informed of my request and had no other rooms available. I had to share a bed with my teenage daughter which was something I had hoped to avoid (she kicks!). I brought this to Stephen's attention at the time, but he said nothing about it.

I love Kimkim's concept but the poor timing issues took their toll on us. I brought all these issues to Stephen's attention during the trip and asked for a partial refund to offset our costs for the Big Bus tours we couldn't take, but I never got any response.

We had the pleasure of booking our trip with KimKim/Alex for our recent 10 day trip to England. She was very helpful and patient with all my questions and helped organize our trip in such a short notice. Everything was so easy, from pickups to tours to last day drop off at the airport.

Hotel Reviews

Georgian House Hotel

Pimlico

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Park Plaza London Riverbank

London

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Airport Transfer

London

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Broadway to Bath, via Cotswold Villages

England

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Day Trip to Bath and Stonehenge

England

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Warner Bros Studio Tour with Coach Transfer

London

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Exploring London on a Hop On Hop Off Bus

London

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Westminster Abbey

London

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

St Paul's Cathedral

London

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Kudos and more to William and Stephen! What a fabulous 2 week trip they put together for us in April. We started in London, travelled to Swanage and Lyme Regis, experienced Bath and the Cotswalds before returning to London. Our accomodations were charming and all prearranged tours were the best. It was so nice to have all of this plus transportation arranged in advance, as it allowed us to focus on the incredible sights and scenes and not stress about the details. All of the guides we met with were so informative and passionate about their specialties. These included a tour guide for the Albert and Victoria museum; a fossil expert at the Jurassic Coast; a Jane Austin devotee and Daniel, a local guide from Bath, who took us to probably my favorite spot, Castle Combe.
A final note: I don't know how they did it, but somehow William and Stephen arranged for 2 weeks of incredible weather, with not a drop of rain!!

Hotel Review

Eight

Bath

The staff here was so accomodating and pleasant. The breakfasts were 5 star and the rooms clean and updated. While there wasn't a lift, help with getting luggage in and out was provided. The little square our rooms looked out on had activity until @ 10pm, but earplugs were provided just in case.

Tips for future travelers

My only thought would be that guests be able to navigate the stairs without access to a lift. This wasn't a problem for us, and we're all in our late 60's.

Authenticity & Character

Location

So centrally located. The train station was within walking distance, and cabs were available at the top of the street

Staff

The best and so helpful.

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Review

Private transfer to your accommodation. Then check-in or bag-drop

London

The drivers were on time and the vehicles spotless.

Quality of Experience

Transport