Kimkim Trip Reviews for Iceland

Our trip to Iceland was magical thanks to kimkim and our specialist Terry. First, just having the stress of rental car and hotels taken off our plate was such a relief - and the hotels and car were so great! But the best part was Terry finding activities, scenic views along our journey, and beautiful local stops we would have never known about. Every single thing she suggested from Into The Glacier, to The Lava Tunnel, to Laugarvatn Fontana, to the major Golden Circle attractions, to more remote attractions were amazing! She balanced the needs of adults and kids and made sure the adventure was great for all ages! There was not one thing we did on the trip that we didn’t love. The itinerary allowed us to have packed days (which we did) but you could also relax and go at your own pace. Again, there is no way we would have seen as much and experienced as much if we tried to plan the trip alone (we had even been to Iceland in the past and still loved kimkim). We had a minor issue while in country (unrelated to kimkim) and emailed the kimkim team, who responded in less then an hour, called our hotel, and resolved the issue immediately. I have already suggested kimkim to many other travelers and will use them again for our next trip.

Hotel Reviews

Eyja Guldsmeden Hotel

Reykjavik

Beautiful rooms, exemplary breakfast! A little bit of a walk from shopping but worth it!

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Hótel Á

Reykholt

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Hotel Laugarvatn

Laugarvatn

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Hótel Klaustur

Kirkjubæjarklaustur

Incredible!

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Into the Glacier

Iceland

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Ace was the best tour guide!

Transport

Rye Bread tour (Geothermal bakery)

Iceland

Great for kids! But bread was also delicious for the adults.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Fontana Geothermal Baths

Iceland

Quality of Experience

Jokulsarlon glacier lagoon amphibian boat tour

Iceland

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Lava Tunnel Tour

Iceland

My son’s (5yo) favorite activity of the entire trip. The guide was the best guide of any tour we took in Iceland.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

We had a nice trip in Iceland. The country is beautiful and easy to navigate.
In regard to Kimkim we had a few hiccups in booking everything, but nothing that wasn't taken care of before we left. (for example; they booked the wrong month for our Sky Lagoon tour and if I hadn't caught the mistake we wouldn't have been able to get in)
I also wish the itinerary didn't look so cut/pasted. I get each person has several clients to work for, but we pay for it. Nice to have the maps and pics. Also, when I went to print out the itinerary is was going to be 38 pages for a 5day self drive trip! No one wants to lug around 38 pages of stuff! While all of it is useful, u can easily font down the print and take off the 3" heading at the top every single page! (You only need to put that information on the very first page.) I did exactly that and was bale to get it on 14 pages, which when printed front/back was only 7 pages. Much more manageable.
The hotels were just ok, although we paid for upgraded hotels. I guess this may be the best Iceland has to offer.
Will not use Kimkim again as I felt it was more work to go through the agent than if I would have booked it all myself. We travel extensively every year and I do all the planning. Thought I would try out having someone else do all the research, but found it isn't worth the extra $$.

I would like to explain why we are giving the trip a score of 2.5. The country of Iceland is such a great place to visit. The weather was cooperative and nice. We saw so many great sights everyday.

Unfortunately, some of the services provided by KimKim were fair to good. I have planned many trips in the US and Canada, some for up to 3 months. We never had so many issues as we did with KimKim's service. The reason we decided to use your services is due to the fact we were not familiar with the country, their culture and norms and we were looking for a hassle free trip. This certainly was not the case.

Problems started when we went to get our car rental. Avis charged us for the full rental. I was surprised but charged it to my credit card. I contacted Silvia with my concerns with the rental charge that evening. She said we should not have been charged. I also told her that we did not get the wifi due to the large unplanned charge on my card. She asked that we send her a copy of the bill. We did a few days later. I do not know why the confusion with the rental charge. Regardless, it was quite upsetting.

We then started our adventure and everything was going well until we arrived in Vik. The hotel did not have any reservations for us. They called Silvia who said she had been trying to contact us and had been unable. We had internet only when we were at our hotel, and Silvia had been made aware that the car did not have Wifi per our decision due to extra incurred costs. After over 1/2 hour we were told to go to a different hotel. Silvia had complimentary drinks for us at the other hotel which was a nice gesture. Silvia also told us to get Wifi on our son's phone and she would reimburse the cost, which she did.

In Seydisfjordur we arrived at our hotel and settled in. It was not a great hotel like we had had since our arrival but OK. After 1/2 hour several people arrived at our door and were trying to get the key for the rental. We did not open the door. A while later this man came knocking at our door and asked us to speak to his boss, Ingrid. She explained she had contacted Silvia re: the change in room which was not communicated to us. We had to repact everything and move to a different room. Silvia apologized for the mix up and lack of follow-up.

In Akureyri, the room and location were abysmal. We could not find out which room was ours as the front desk door is looked and unmanned. Luckily this very nice person let us borrow his cell phone so we could call Silvia. She said she forgot to send us the updated info to the rental. We finally got it and were able to get in only to find out that it was set up for 1 person. Texted Silvia and after several more texts we were told to go to the locked office which is unmanned and get some linens and towels and make our beds. Need I say more? At least we each had our towel for our shower..
The location was not good and the place was run down to say the least. Giving a score of 2 would be more than adequate. I would say it was a step above sleeping in the car... Silvia was made aware of the hotel conditions. She offered us complimentary drinks to compensate for the hick up.

My son texted Silvie after the next place as it also had the reservation for 1 person. We then had to wait in the lobby until it was set up for the third person. Silvia texted back and said she would notify the next places we were staying at. It was good for 2 nights then again, the agent at the desk had reservations for only 1 person. We again had to wait for the extra linens and beds to be made. Very inconvenient. Gave up notifying Silvia and it was towards the end of the trip.

On the positive side, the itinerary was great with strategically placed hotels with not excessively long driving distances so we could enjoy the day and do many on the spur of the moment things. All but 2 of the reservations were very good to excellent. Silvia was always very pleasant when we interacted with her.

I am very disappointed in the services that were provided and which we paid for. Not what we expected.
Renee S.

Amazing trip!!! So much to see and do and you all definitely made it a lot less stressful to plan!! I appreciate all your help and answering all my questions! There is no way I could have figured out where to stay, how far to drive each day, and book and time all our excursions accordingly! It was an amazing trip that we will never forget!

Hotel Reviews

Berjaya Hotel Mývatn

Mývatn

Great hotel! They had two spas/hot tubs. They also had a restaurant and a bar. The food in the restaurant was very good. The breakfast at the hotel was also extremely good! Lots to choose from!

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

ION Adventure Hotel

Nesjavellir

It is a beautiful hotel! There is a restaurant and a bar and they do have a spa (soaking hot tub). You need to make reservations for the restaurant for dinner. We were lucky that we arrived and they had a time available because there are no restaurants anywhere nearby.

Authenticity & Character

Location

It is out in the middle of nowhere, but it is pretty countryside

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Volcano Huts Þórsmörk

Thorsmork

We did not know that you had to reserve sheets, blankets, and towels ahead of time. We did not have any with this, so we just had to use jackets and stuff that we had. If you stay here, make sure you reserve sheets and blankets ahead of time. The showers did not have any hot water so if you’re up for a cold shower, then you can reserve a towel too. There is a restaurant on site, which is nice! It is the only place to eat anywhere remotely nearby

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Fosshotel Núpar

Kálfafell

Very nice hotel. There’s a bar and a restaurant. The food looks good at dinner but we didn’t try it because we ate before we got there. The breakfast was really really good! Probably one of the better breakfast that we had on our trip

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Seydisfjordur Guesthouse

Seydisfjordur

Cute little hotel. There is a kitchen there that you can use. There are a couple of restaurants in the town that were open as well. They do not serve breakfast, but there is a grocery store in town if you get there before it closes. They did have a washer and dryer that you could use, which was absolutely amazing! We were needing to do a load of laundry, so that worked out perfectly

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Hotel Hvammstangi

Hvammstangi

It was a good hotel. We did not spend a lot of time here because we got to the hotel late and left early. We did not stick around for breakfast as we needed to be somewhere early. The lady at the hotel did help us find a restaurant in town that was open, and the food was extremely good! Overall, it was a good stay

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Fosshotel Baron

Reykjavík

The hotel was fine. It is definitely older. I did not feel like it was real clean. I would probably pick a different hotel if I was going to stay in the area again.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Höfn Inn Guesthouse

780 Hornafirði

The hotel was clean, but I feel like we were staying in a hospital room that had been redone into a hotel. It was clean and it was fine to stay one night, but I would probably try to find someplace else to stay if we were to stay in the town again. I would not get the breakfast again. Your options were toast, a bowl of fish, or boiled eggs. We had to go find breakfast somewhere else. :(

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Hotel Skógá by EJ Hotels

This was a good hotel. It had a spa/hot tub. The room was very spacious, but the shower was kind of small. It was clean. They had a pretty decent breakfast. The restaurant at their main hotel down the street was really good! Highly recommend the lasagna!

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Hestheimar

Hella

It was a nice hotel. They had a spa/hot tub. They have a restaurant, but we didn’t get to eat there because you have to let them know ahead of time if you want dinner. There are not any restaurants nearby so plan accordingly. We did eat breakfast and it was very good! I would stay here again!

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Solheimajokull Glacier Hike

Iceland

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Blue Lagoon

Iceland

It is something that you have to do, but there are similar options in Iceland that you could do, so do your research.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Silfra Snorkeling

Iceland

Very cool experience! Highly recommend doing it!

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Katla Ice Cave Superjeep tour

Iceland

Very cool!! One of my favorite things we did!

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Absolutely beautiful trip. The detail and time put into our itinerary made our trip stress free. We will definitely suggest Kimkim and Emanuela to our friends if they plan a trip to Iceland.

Activity Reviews

Lava Cave Experience

Iceland

The lava cave was really awesome. The tour guide was very knowledgeable about how the lava tube was created and took the time to answer questions along the way. It was an amazing adventure and was very family friendly

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Ice cave tour under Katla glacier

Vík

The Ice cave was beautiful. It was so humbling to see how global warming has effected these stunning glaciers and caves. Our tour guide was super funny and really loved his job. It was by far one of the most amazing stops in our trip

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Arrival and Sky Lagoon

Reykjavík

The Sky lagoon was amazing. It was the perfect way to start off our trip after a long overnight flight. The facility was clean and everyone was very friendly. The view was stunning from the lagoon and the 7 step ritual was so relaxing.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Food Walking Tour

Reykjavík

The food tour was a wonderful way to learn about the history of Reykjavik and get to try so of their most popular dishes. Our guide was very kind and funny. We really wanted us to have a good time and enjoy ourselves

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Geothermal bakery

Golden Circle

Of all the rye bread we tried in Iceland this was by far the best. The people even gave us a recipe card and instructions to try and make it at home in the oven.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Whale watching tour in Hauganes

Akureyri

The guides were very knowledgeable about the whales usually in the harbor and explained to us the migration patterns of the three groups on whales. They tried to get us as close as possible to the whale so we could see the markings and get some pictures before they would deep dive again

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Rinolda planned a wonderful anniversary trip for us back to Iceland. She answered all of our questions and worked hard in a timely manner to book our full itinerary during a very busy time to visit Iceland. Plus, it was fabulous to meet Rinolda in person on our glacier boat tour. Rinolda is very knowledgeable and a pleasure to work with. I highly recommend her.

Smooth coordination and pleasant experience with Silvia and the drivers / guides who

Iceland was a spectacular trip. Janel gave us lots of good tips on places to see while in Iceland and mapped out everything great. There were a couple map points which were a little off but we figured it out. Everything was breathtaking. Our favorites were the Glacial Lagoon and Ice Cave Tour. Both highly recommended and not to be missed!!

Hotel Reviews

Gljufurbustadir Holiday Homes

Hveragerði

Was a little disappointed that we had to fill and empty the hot tub ourselves but otherwise was great. Nice location near the Viking Restaurant and a cute little town as well as places to hike. Comfy beds and plenty of room. Watched a great sunset from our porch.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Vík Apartments

Vik I Myrdal

Great location in the amazing town of vik. Beautiful view of the mountains and short walk to the black sand beach.

Authenticity & Character

Location

great great view.

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Vatnshellir lava cave tour

Iceland

Our guide was friendly, knowledgeable and helpful.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

The Secret Lagoon

Iceland

Hjalparfoss

Iceland

Stunning like all of the waterfalls we saw. Lots of cool rocks to climb around on to see from a different view.

Quality of Experience

Katla Ice Cave Superjeep tour

Iceland

Our guide Maria (from Greece) was amazing. Super helpful and fun. It rained when we went but it didn’t take away fro the magic at all. To walk in the glacier and see the enormity of it was breathtaking!!

Quality of Experience

Simply stunning. Well worth it.

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Maria was amazing!

Transport

Nice view on drive out.

Silvia and Halldor were really professional in planning our trip from start to end. We felt very assured by their friendly and fun demeanor, clearly knowing what are the experiences we were hoping to get. Silvia remained contactable throughout our trip and we could count on her to get all our queries met, even in urgent situations when I had required unexpected medical attention. They also shared top experiences and food options for us to consider, making our role in the trip as just living our wanderlust!

Awesome trip. Saw so much in 10 days and really appreciated having to plan so little!! Totally worth the cost and wil use kimkim in the future.

Hotel Reviews

Fosshotel Hellnar

Hellnar

Lovely location. Rooms basic and small but clean. Restaurant was excellent. Locks on room doors were REALLY hard to open with the keys. They really need to modernize the locks.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Great hike along the coast from the hotel. Views of the glacier.

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Fosshótel Reykholt

Reykholt

Much more modern than the first Fosshotel. We enjoyed the hot tub and spa here. The restaurant was also very good.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

The Greenhouse Hotel

Hveragerdi

Cool place in a great area. Rooms were small but nice. Food hall downstairs was great for late meals when everything else was closed.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Very helpful thank Ben we had a problem with a room lock.

Cleanliness & Comfort

Volcano Huts Þórsmörk

Thorsmork

We stayed in the Glamping tents. They were beautiful. My only complaint is that the tiny heater in tent number two did a pretty poor job of keeping us warm at night. Thank goodness for the heavy down comforters!

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Great at recommending hikes.

Cleanliness & Comfort

Better beat for tents. Showers were also cold unless you waited for the first one. Bathrooms were pretty nasty and need to be cleaned better.

Hotel Anna

Hvolsvollur

Pretty dated but very nice rooms. Their new hot tub was beautiful. The restaurant was excellent.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Hótel Klaustur

Kirkjubæjarklaustur

Lovely, modern hotel in a tiny town in South Iceland. The rooms were beautiful. The common spaces at the hotel are also beautiful. The breakfast was excellent.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Apótek Hotel by Keahotels

Reykjavík

Great location right in the heart of historic area. Rooms were small, but well appointed. The bathrooms are beautiful. I was a bit disappointed that the bar was so crazy but we happen to be there on the day of the pride parade so I’m guessing it’s not normally that crowded.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Efficient bit not terribly friendly.

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Blue Lagoon

Iceland

Magical first stop. It was not very crowded because we were there early. The kids loved it.

Quality of Experience

The dressing rooms need to be warmer, especially because they don’t give you robes unless you pay extra. Bigger towels would also be nice.

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Staff not very friendly.

Silfra Snorkeling

Iceland

Did this with her two teenage boys. It was very cool. It was a bit cold, but not intolerable. The staff was awesome.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Solheimajokull Glacier Hike

Iceland

I loved this experience. It was very informative and beautiful.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Jokulsarlon glacier lagoon Zodiac boat tour

Iceland

Our boat captain, Adam, was fantastic. He clearly loves his job and his country. This was my favorite experience of the whole trip.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Gummi did a superb job. I had scouted out places I wanted to see each day but his list was much more comprehensive and had many places I would never have known about. He was also a great help straightening out a couple snafus that were not his or our local agents fault. I highly recommend him!

Lisbet was phenomenal!!

Overall our trip was amazing. The Katla Ice Cave was a highlight and Maria from Troll Expeditions was great. Also, kayaking at the Glacier Lagoon and our whale watching excursion with Laki tours in Olafsvik were both fantastic.

Activity Reviews

Whale Watching Olafsvik

Iceland

I have wanted to go whale watching for years but am so glad I waited to do it in Iceland. Laki Tours was so well organized and we were fortunate to have perfect weather, calm water and amazing sightings!

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Very knowledgeable and personable

Transport

Jokulsarlon Glacier Kayaking Adventure

Iceland

Was such a great experience to kayak around the icebergs in the glacier lagoon. Very serene and beautiful.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Katla Ice Cave

Iceland

Really enjoyed the ice cave, such a unique experience.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Hanna was so helpful pointing out the best things to do and planning a terrific itinerary customized to what we were looking to do.

She was responsive and able to make changes during planning when requested. She understood what would work best for us and provided great tips in the itinerary.

Guides who were especially good were Johnathan for the Silfra snorkel and Pawel for the ice cave.

Iceland was an amazing experience! It was so lovely to have KimKim handle everything from hotels to excursion tickets to the rental car. We really didn't have to think about anything! Our trip plan included driving maps, so we knew how long we would drive each day and the sights we would encounter along the way. We had a couple of hiccups due to weather (including losing a day of our trip bc of flight cancellations), and KimKim responded very quickly to our issues and moved things around. Our favorite town was Stykkisholmur, and we loved the gorgeous landscapes we drove through to get there. The Folklore Tour was an amazing addition to our time in Reykjavik, and we really felt like we got a good feel for the South Coast and western Iceland. Terry did a wonderful job incorporating the sights we wanted to visit and keeping us within budget for the trip. She made sure we received relevant information about clothing and food in Iceland as well as the detailed itinerary for the trip in a timely manner. We would absolutely use KimKim again!

Hotel Review

CenterHotel Klopp

Reykjavík

The hotel was right in the middle of downtown which would normally be great, but it happened to be Pride Week, and the hotel was directly across from an Irish Pub. It was super loud until 4:30 am. However, we popped in our earplugs and managed.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Lava Tunnel Tour

Iceland

I had a great time on the Lava Tunnel Tour. It was really cool and informative. The guide took us through three different levels in the tunnel and gave us a history of how it was created by volcanoes. The guide also made sure to shine his light on different areas so that we could take pictures. It was fun, a bit damp, but nothing too crazy. I'm glad we were able to add this to our itinerary.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Reykjavík Classic Whale Watching

Reykjavík

The whale watching tour was relaxing. We got to see some dolphins and a whale. I found it nice to be on the water and see everything from a different viewpoint.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Folklore Walking Tour

Reykjavík

We went on a folklore walking tour in Reykjavik where we learned about elves, trolls, and zombies. It was fun and different!

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

My Client loved the trip and said that it was a complete success. He was very happy with all of the suggestions and said he would have missed so much without the planning of Guomundur Oli. I will be referring my clients to him and KimKIm!

The trip was planned exactly as we had asked. Emanuela was prompt and efficient at dealing with the minor issues that arose. Highly recommended!

Silvia planned an amazing trip for our family. After some challenges at the beginning of planning the trip with a bit of unresponsiveness by her partner, Silvia jumped in and made sure we were well taken care of, all of our questions were answered, and I felt much more confident with our upcoming trip details. Every aspect of the trip was perfect, and she was incredibly responsive via WhatsApp along the way while we were traveling. I highly recommend Silvia to work with in planning a trip to Iceland!

My trip to Iceland was absolutely incredible. From beginning until the end, Gummi (Guðmundur) provided the utmost care and dedication to make my trip worth it. I'd highly recommend going through him--please request for his suggestions when booking through Kimkim! I enjoy hiking and nature, and Gummi did a great job of suggesting beautiful stops along the ring road for me. Additionally, Gummi knew which activities are a must-do, and suggested those specific activities. He was also flexible in changing my itinerary when I requested for it, making the trip feel completely in my control without me doing any of the groundwork.

Lastly, Kimkim was also super helpful throughout the journey. They were quick to respond and resolve any hiccups (small hiccup when I was picking up the car and at one of the hotels that couldn't find the booking in my 10 day trip).

Activity Reviews

Katla Ice Cave

Iceland

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Glacier Hike & Ice Cave Visit

Iceland

It was super fun to learn about the glacier and see the surroundings. Climbing on the glacier was also fun!

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

My family of 5 ages 12-77 had an incredible 11-day trip to Iceland facilitated by Lisbet and Kim Kim. We especially enjoyed up close viewing of whales, puffins, and icebergs; every day's beautiful and varied scenery; and great food at almost every stop. Ending the trip at the Sky Lagoon was also a highlight. Thank you Lisbet, for designing a well-paced trip for our crew and for being extremely responsive and helpful all along the way.