Kimkim Trip Reviews for Nepal

We had an AMAZING trip with Sherpa Wangchhu and our porter, Nima, on the Tamang Heritage Trail. It was a true pleasure to stay with locals in towns like Tatopani and Gatlang, where they made us incredible meals, straight from their farms. We learned so much about the Tamang people and were inspired to see how much they've rebuilt since the earthquake. We had amazing views of the mountains and valley every day, and there was no shortage of cows, goats, and donkeys along the way. The trekking itself wasn't too challenging and with plenty of time, we could always take it slow if needed. Our favorite part was sipping milk tea at the end of a day of adventuring around the mountains. We highly recommend this trek and the amazing Kim Kim staff.!

My guide Pemba was amazing. We sat down every afternoon to worked through the following day. And When I was tired he helped me with my backpack, which was way too often.
Thanks ☺️

Activity Review

Trek from Kharikhola to Paiya (2770m).

Nepal

It was a really beautiful section of the walk

Quality of Experience

Very good coordination with Amanda prior the trip and the route were customized to what I am seeking. The guides and porter are very friendly and helpful. Although I have to abandon the rest of my trek due to lack of stamina and kneecaps pain, the company helped to arrange transport to the other hotels we have to rebooked. Appreciate the kind gesture and it is indeed a worry free trip. Thank you very much for the patience. Will definitely use the service again.

Amanda planned an amazing Itinerary, beautiful interesting lodgings and places full with historical sights yet comfortable. The first 3 night was excellent & I was looking forward to the rest of the stay but due to personal physical issue, we had to cancel the rest of the trip. Ms Kripa the coordinator in Kathmandu office was v helpful & arrange for daily transfers to our last few days and airport. Always checking if we need any assistance. Warm & great service. Will book again

The overall planning and booking experience with KimKim was excellent except the first appointment call. When I showed my interesting in KimKim trip, I was asked to book a 15min time slot to talk to a local (California) person. And I found this person has no value added. I asked many questions in the call and none was answered. I would have given a 5 stars if there is no such an annoy call.

The KimKim payment and communication system are very convenient. All the communications and attachment are well kept in the system and easy to read. The response from Ngima is incredibly fast and accurate. Nigma answered our questions with patient and with no nonsense. His expertise and knowledge provided me a trustworthy feeling.

KimKim assigned a local driver Lhakpa to us. Lhakpa has very fluent English. Lhakpa drove us to and from airport and also during our sightseeing tours in Kathmandu. He gave us a very nice overall introduction of Nepal and Kathmandu. He was also a good photographer and knew the "should not miss" photography spots.

The most important person in this trip is no doubt our Sherpa guide, Furba. I would like to show my deepest appreciation to him to make this trip safe and memorable. He is responsible, knowledgeable, and considerate. He spotted wild animals to us, for example Himalayan tahr. He pointed and named every peaks to us during the entire trip. Due to the unstable weather, he had to modify our itinerary from day to day to optimize the trip. He also tried his best to accommodate all our requests during the entire trip. For example, we requested to have single rooms for both of us. He told us in some remote village the availability is very limited and because of the high demand, a single supplement might not possible, but he will do his best. At the end, we had single supplement on every nights in our trip. Furba has done an excellent job.

The last person I would to mention is our porter, Lhakpa. He has taken good care of our luggage, especially during a few raining days.

The mountain scenery is the best in the world. The images of the peaks, Mt Everest, Lhotse, Ama Dablam, Cho Oyu, Cholatse, Tabuche, etc., are imprinted in my brain. However, the most critical part of this trip is the persons provided the service to you. Thank you again for the persons I mentioned above.

Activity Reviews

Acclimatization day in Namche Bazaar

Namche Bazaar

The hike from Namche to Hotel Everest View was very pleasure. It was very impressive of the Namche town viewed from above on the trail to Hotel Everest View. The close up views of Mt Everest, Lohtse, and Ama Dablam are unforgettable.

Trek from Dzongla to Gokyo (15,584 feet / 4750 m) via Cho La Pass

Gokyo

From the get go Ngima instilled confidence with his prompt replies to my questions during the initial planning stages. We had limited time and wanted to fit in as much as possible without having to worry about transport and transfers from one destination to the next. The Poon Hill trek was memorable, not least because our guide Dafuri and porter, Ngima had the best sense of humour and kept us going by gauging our ability perfectly and taking care to make sure that we were safe and comfortable at all times. We also spent the evenings teaching each other card games and we had a lot of fun. Our driver from Pokhara back to Kathmandu via Bandipur, drove with skill and patience through monsoon rain, landslides and festival traffic. We always felt safe despite some tricky conditions and were able to enjoy the amazing sights and scenery along the way. Everyone we met contributed to a memorable experience and knowing someone always had our backs meant we could just enjoy the trip and appreciate Nepal to the fullest.

Activity Review

Trek from Ghorepani to Tadapani (8,562 feet / 2,610 m), Sunrise at Poon Hill

Nepal

Definitely the highlight. The climb of the previous day was challenging and the extra trek uphill to see the sunrise seemed never ending but it was so worth it. The cup of coffee at the top probably one of the best ever and the views just breathtaking.

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

2 Star rating for response to bad weather in Lower Mustang

The 2-star rating applies to the entire team handling our trip.

The highlight of our trip to Nepal was supposed to be our mountain biking trip. Bad weather and poor anticipation and replanning made it an experience we rather forget quickly. We had planned to bike in the Lower Mustang region. While we did travel to Pokhara during rainy weather we never made it to Jomson as there were no flights and landslides blocked the roads. While the team is not responsible for the weather, the implication could and should have been anticipated. We pushed for a replan after an idle day in Pokhara. We ended up traveling to the Everest area where the weather was much better. We lost 3 days. Unfortunately, our guide wasn't very familiar with the trails. She wasn't prepared for the Everest area. We ended up going down two trails that were nothing short of dangerous and required a lot of walking with our bikes. Out of the 8 days of bike rental, I rode my bike 3 days (the bike broke down on the last day and I hiked the trail while my friend and out guide did the ride). The reason for given 2 stars instead of 1 is that the team was helpful, we had some nice experiences at the tea houses, changed plans to have a change to see Mt Everest (which worked out well), ... Again, it all started with bad weather, but the local team could have done a much better job preparing and triggering an alternative plan. We ended up spending about $500 / day (without bike rental) per person, for one hotel room (with double beds). That looks expensive given typical cost of a room ($10 - $20 / night, 1, 2 or 3 rooms as needed for driver and guide as well), meals ($4-$8, need to cover guide and driver), car and driver (on one of the days in KTM we got our own driver (not included in the kimkim fees) and paid $45 for car and driver for the day), guide, ... (we also paid over $200 in tips for guide, driver, ...).

A trip that definitely didn't meet expectations. Luckily the time we spent on our own gave us a chance to learn a lot about the country. And our guide showed us a wonderful monastery and helped us with a great morning experience seeing the Himalaya and Mt Everest (but that was really too little for $5k / 2 people).

I hope that our less than desirable experience will lead to some better back-up planning and makes a difference for future visitors who encounter similar weather conditions. Jan and I did enjoy the country and we look forward to another change to explore it (better).

Thanks for listening.

Niels

I want to say thanks to Kunchok and his team for a wonderful experience. My brother and I visited Kathmandu, Pokhara, and Nagarkot for a week long trip in October 2022. The trip was an adventure and we had the opportunity to trek, explore the towns, and go river rafting. Kunchok was an excellent host and made sure everything went smoothly. We had enough downtime to enjoy the experience and I highly recommend KimKim and Kunchok in particular.

Thank you Amanda, Kripa and Subash for the most amazing trip to Nepal!

Your excellent preparation, guidance, diligence and humour made every second of our trip so special.

The atmosphere in Nepal is best described as simply magical and it doesn't take long until it pulls you in completely. Thanks to the "all in" service attitude of the wonderful kimkim team, we had nothing to worry about or take care of, we could just concentrate on soaking up all images and vibes of this beautiful country with its lovely, friendly people all around.

Our trip itinerary was worked out, hotels booked, every car ride arranged, meeting times scheduled, all planes trips organized for us - all we had to do was kick back, enjoy and not worry about a single thing! It all worked out like clockwork.

Amanda did an excellent job figuring out what exactly we wanted to see way before our trip, had a great upbeat attitude that made planning the trip even more fun. She understood perfectly well what we wanted to experience and she put it all into a very carefully selected and planned out itinerary. One that could only be worked out by someone knowing the country very well!

Kripa thank you for taking such good care of us during our stay in Nepal. You were the anchor and support who was always there in the background pulling all the strings and making miracles happen. It also felt great to have you call in and ask if everything is going well and if we are doing great. We felt very pampered!

Subash, our wonderful and very attentive guide showed us corners and customs of Nepal that we otherwise would never have found by ourselves. He paid close attention to where our interests were when we first met and catered exactly to our needs with the sights he showed us and the information he provided about them. As my teenage daughter was travelling with her nosy Mum, this was sometimes a stretch, but he managed beautifully! He was very finely in tune with us to always make the experience comfortable and interesting at the same time for both of us.

We have since returned and still Nepal is lingering in our thoughts and our bodies. And as well as this experience will always stay in our hearts and lives forever, so will it be tied to the people who helped create it.

Thank you very deeply to all of you
Namaste!

The entire trip was well prepared. Ngima and his team did a great job. They answered every question very well and helped me to prepare the trip according to my needs.
I was warm welcomed in Nepal by Ngima and his team. My guide Ang was super polite, knowledgeable and was taking care of me throughout the trip.
Great Experience, can just recommend it to everybody.

Cheers, Alexander

My cousin and I did the Pikey Peak trek in 5 days, this was the perfect trek to do if you have only a few days of vacation to take in Nepal. You will see just about everything in a short amount of time including Everest if you are lucky and get a clear day up on Pikey Peak. Kunchock was fantastic in setting up our itinerary and really made sure we were safe the whole time. We even had some flight issues getting to Nepal but Kunchock made sure everything was adjusted to fit our schedule. Dolma was our tour guide for the trek and I could not have asked for a better one, she let us customize and do just about anything we wanted to during the trek and was extremely friendly and knowledgeable on the Pikey Peak area. Definitely going back the only thing I would say about my trip was I wish I personally had more time!

Hotel Reviews

Hotel Ambassador

Kathmandu

Very nice hotel I felt like I was in a hotel back home in the United States, the food was great at the restaurant upstairs and the staff was very friendly and helpful. Location is great as well since it is not to far from the market in case you wanted to buy any souvenirs.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Pema Boutique Hotel

Kathmandu

The hotel was great, the area it is in really makes you realize you are in Nepal the culture is very different and the restaurant downstairs has great authentic food.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Depart Kathmandu Nepal

Nepal

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Drive from Shivalaya to Kathmandu

Nepal

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Trek from Chaulakharka to Shivalaya (1770 m)

Nepal

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Trek from Pikey Peak Base Camp to Chaulakharka (1460 m) via Pikey Peak

Nepal

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Trek from Jhapre to Pikey Base Camp

Nepal

The first part of the trek was not to difficult and a perfect length for just getting done with a 6 hour car drive. You will see prayer flags, stupas and some animals on the way up to base camp

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Drive from Kathmandu to Dhap, Trek to Japre (2920 m)

Nepal

I must say although of course the trek and the peak was the highlight of the trip, my favorite part was just driving to the trek start location. It was about a 6 hour drive and I got to see so many different villages and farms that you pass through along the way. This was something I enjoyed since I could see many different parts of the country and lifestyles other then the city and the mountains.

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Amazing trip, the local guides for our hike and safari were absolutely incredible and made our holiday so easy. The whole trip was well organised and we felt very relaxed.

Bire the guide was great in Nepal. You should keep him on your team.
The hotel in Thamel was not great as it was next to an open air bar playing live music until late at night, hard to sleep.

Thank you for the experience! Our trip to Nepal was incredible, we loved both our sightseeing around Kathmandu and our trek to Gorephani. What made this experience such a good one, undoubtedly, was the help and support we got from the following people:
Ngima - helped organised the trip before it started)
Lakpa - drove us around Kathmandu, took care of our transfers, and helped with every challenge that came along the way
Ang Gelu Sherpa (trek guide) and Gyalbu Sherpa (porter) - who took care of us during the trek, made sure we were healthy and comfortable.
We knew we were travelling during a not ideal season (monsoon), but Kim Kim made it sure to plan the best possible options to make the most of our trip.
Thank you again for taking care of us.

Activity Review

Trek from Ghorepani to Tadapani (8,562 feet / 2,610 m), Sunrise at Poon Hill

Nepal

This was the highlight of the trip, Annapurna sight is mindblowing.

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

I had an wonderful time in Nepal thanks to the Kimkim team. Right from the beginning when I contacted them, Amanda kept me update and reply to my questions in a timely fashion.
Pratikshya is my guide in Nepal and she is very knowledgeable.
I really like Namo Buddha resort and wish I could stay one more night there.
I am planning to do the base camp trek and I would definitely have them to organize this trek for me.

Thanks to Ngima and his team for putting together an itinerary and experience that worked for my schedule and abilities. It was clear during the planning process that Ngima has great experience in the Everest region and working with clients to design a personalized trip. Once the trip began, Ngima's team was terrific in providing information and support to be sure I was ready to begin the trek. My guide and porter were wonderful, full of local knowledge and expertise that added to my overall experience. It was great learning from them and having them along for support, and after spending 17 days with them, it was hard to say goodbye. Thanks Ngima and team!

Activity Reviews

Trek from Gokyo to Marlung (17,585 feet / 5360 m) via Renjo La Pass

Marlung

Trek from Dzongla to Gokyo (15,584 feet / 4750 m) via Cho La Pass

Gokyo

Trek from Gorak Shep to Lobuche (16,207 feet / 4940 m), Sunrise from Kala Patthar (5644m)

Lobuche

Trek from Chukhung to Lobuche (16,210 feet / 4,940 m) via Kongma La Pass

Lobuche

We went to Nepal in May2022, two families with kids. We organized the trip with Sangita who made the best suggestions for our itinerary. We visited Kathmandu and Bhaktapur with Vipin, our guide. He was fabulous, knew a lot from Nepal: culture, history and people. After that we flew to Pokhara were we had a different guide. In this case we were dissapointed with his knowledge, however the driver we got was very talktive and nice. We also stayed one night in Astam, it was nice but we wouldn't recommend it, Pokhara is much nicer. Our driver then took us to Chitwan were we stayed in the best hotel of the trip, plus the kids enjoyed a lot the safaris. Finally back to Patan that it was also very nice. Vipin met us there again for dinner and last visits.

We would definetly recommend Sangita and her agency. They were very helpful, giving tips and suggestions, replying quickly to all of our mails and adapting to our requirements.
We hope to come back again!!!

We have nothing but praise for the team at Himalayan Trails and kimkim! This was our first fully guided trip, and our first trip with kimkim. I can definitely say that it won't be our last.

Our trip coordinators, Kripa and Erin, listened to our input and designed a perfect trip, combining cultural sights, light trekking and wonderful views of the Himalayas. They were very helpful before the trip with advice on preparation, packing, logistics, immigration, etc. During the trip, they checked in with us numerous times to make sure everything was going well. Everything was flawlessly coordinated. We always had someone picking us up at the airport or at our accommodation, and a driver was always waiting to take us to our next destination. This is quite a feat to pull off in post-Covid Nepal, which is just getting back into tourism after two long years of pandemic. The team is clearly well connected and has great relationships with the tourism industry in Nepal.

We had two guides during the trip - Pratikshya for the cultural sights, and Tendu for the trekking portion. Pratikshya was very attentive and knowledgeable about Nepali culture, history and tradition. Apart from the beautiful Durbar squares of Patan and Bhaktapur (a must visit when coming to Kathmandu), one of the highlights of the tour was seeing the awe-inspiring chariot in Patan. The chariot is constructed in May for a big religious celebration, and Pratikshya went out of her way to make sure that we saw it.

Tendu was a wonderful trekking guide! He is a Himalayan mountain tour expert and a very positive and friendly person. Our trek was very light for Nepal standards (our choice), but he kept it very fun and interesting. He pointed out all of the different mountains in the horizon (he knows them all very well), told us about other treks that we could experience in the future, and pointed out the local flora and fauna in the region. He also took us around some of the farms in the hills near Pokhara, where we interacted with local farmers. The tea houses were much nicer than we expected, and Tendu always made sure that we were comfortable and had everything we needed. The highlight of the trek was breakfast at the Basanta lodge in Dhampus, where the sky cleared up and we could see the Annapurna mountain range. We also want to give a special thank you to our wonderful porter, Lakpa, who is a legend in his own right, having summited Mt. Everest six times!

Overall, I can't recommend the team at Himalayan Trails enough! Thank you so much for all of your hard work and hospitality! Nepal is an incredible country with so much to see and experience, and we highly recommend Himalayan Trails for anyone wishing to experience Nepal!

Every aspect of our trip was fantastically good - it was a trip I had been dreaming about for many, many years and it surpassed every expectation. Delayed by Covid, Raj and his team were endlessly patient in planning and re-planning our trip, and I felt at every point he really listened to and understood what I wanted - and delivered it. Every activity - trekking, rafting, sightseeing and more - were well-organised and truly memorable. Every transfer (there were many!)worked seamlessly. Big shout-out to the legend that is Kumar, who guided us on our Mustang trek and who was generous in sharing his huge knowledge and expertise, meticulous in looking after us and with a great sense of humour too. If he is available, book him. Another big shout out to Bipin who took such great care of us in Nepal and made sure we always had what we needed and was again endlessly generous in sharing his knowledge with us. If you are thinking about traveling to Nepal, you would be in no better hands than this team - just go! We are already thinking about our next trip - as a destination, its highly addictive.

Smooth efficent process coupled withs mazibg trek and even better people. While the weather was uncooperative the trip was amazing. From the start of ommunicatuons with Ngima and his local treking company Nepal Myths and Mountain Trails, the process of my iteneray changes bd request were handled quickly and professionally. Greeted by Tashi, Ngima son, a young professional easy with a smile or laugh, at airport arrival gate and escorted through process to hotel and off to trek. Meet by Furba Tashi my guide with 4 Mt Everest Summits and Lagbar (sorry for misspelling) porter i was in capable hands. I was looked after the entirety of the trek. It was obvious that my saftey was most important followed by enjoyment of the environment (views and culture).
My arrival back at Kathmandu and depature onwar again were handled without issues and timely. It is my pleasure to recommend Kim Kim and more importantly Nepal Myths and Mountain Trail Tashi and Nigma.
Dhan'yavāda
Gavon