Kimkim Trip Reviews for Peru

Liz at Andean Travel constructed a perfect itinerary for us.
Particular high points were the Amazon rainforests (Corto Maltes) where our guide, Franklin, was outstanding.
Naturally the Sacred Valley & Machu Picchu was also a big highlight. Our guide for the day at Machu Picchu, Xavier, was excellent - he provided the right level of detail and gave us time to explore on our own when appropriate.
Huge credit also to Lisbeth at Andean Travel who was on hand to ensure that the packed itinerary went smoothly every step of the way.

Hotel Review

Corto Maltes Amazon Lodge

Puerto Maldonado

The perfect combination of solitude and comfort conveniently positioned on the Madre de Dios river in the Amazonian rainforest. We spent 3 days at Corto Maltes and enjoyed 2-3 expertly guided treks into the jungle each day.

Authenticity & Character

Great level of comfort without detracting from the authenticity of the jungle/rainforest location.

Location

Madre de Dios river. Arrival and departure by boat.

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Review

Corto Maltes Lodge 2/3 (Sandoval Lake Program)

Puerto Maldonado

The highlight (alongside Machu Picchu) of our Peru trip. Our guide, Franklin, was outstanding.

Quality of Experience

Food

Food was excellent in light of the rainforest location (and I’m a veggie which can raise a challenge where there are limitations on the options available).

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

I knew nothing about Peru before I went, but Lupe, Natty, Yuri, and everyone on the Aspiring Adventures team that kimkim connected us to were great. We learned a ton about Peru's culture, cuisine and wildlife and I'd absolutely recommend Peru, Aspiring Adventures, and kimkim for anyone who buys a cheap flight to Peru knowing nothing and wants to come out with an amazing experience and a new appreciation for every kind of potato and pisco.

Everything worked out fine except something I had asked for and never heard back or taken care during the trip. Some of the girls celebrated their 40th bday and I had requested for a lighter to Johanna first. I was told the team is already planning something. I also talked to the local guide about it a day prior and she said it will be taken care. Yet there was nothing planned or ever communicated to me. If I was told there was nothing planned by them, I would have planned something for the girls at Machu Pichchu. Disappointed. Also, the driver was not willing to turn on AC for most of the time in the van for whatsoever reason even requesting for it multiple times.

The Lares Trek was awesome! Our team was very friendly, knowledgeable and professional. Our guide carried us all the way through to Machu Pichu!

The Amazon adventure was Awesome as well. Our guide was also very knowledgeable and professional.

Same with Rainbow Mountain with Jesus!

Very disappointed with the Xima hotel. Not a 4 star hotel. The room was dirty and bath room floor had feces on it! We would like our money back for the Xima hotel stay

Johanna and Kristy helped us organize the trip of a lifetime. They were very responsive during the trip itself, and quickly solved a logistical issue that popped up. Thank you!

Francesca did a great job getting things in place for a smooth trip. All of our guides were very knowledgeable, friendly and helpful. There was a small glitch with our last hotel but the team quickly fixed it.

Activity Reviews

Lima Food Tour - (PM Tour)

Peru

The food was delicious. I would have liked to have more local, downhome type experience rather than "fancy" places.

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Cusco City and San Pedro Market Tour

Cusco

Emelia was an amazing guide and very attentative.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Pachamanca Lunch at El Albergue Farm in Ollantaytambo

Peru

Amazing experience. Would higly recommend.

Food

Lunch at Mountainview

Peru

Amazing food. A fun time with the animals. Views were outstanding.

Sacred Valley Via Ferrata & Zip Line

Peru

Just wow. Our guide for the climb and zipline was incredibly patient and kind.

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Puno to Colca Canyon

Peru

Jesus was a pleasure to work with.

Short Inca Trail Day 1: Hiking to Machu Picchu via Chachabamba and Wiñay Wayna

Peru

It was great. I felt really supported by the team. Our guides Dennis and Roger were really knowledgeable and friendly. Paul checked in with us to make sure we were okay when our flight was delayed without being prompted. I've never used a travel service before but this was a pleasant experience.

Fran crafted the perfect 2 week trip for me and my wife, and along with Kristy (also on the Kimkim team) made sure that everything went seamlessly.
They checked in regularly, and when things went sideways (as they can when traveling, or in our case when an airplane loses an engine shortly after takeoff resulting in [thank goodness only] missed connections) they jumped in to ensure we were looked after.
We also can not say enough good things about our guide and host through the Sacred Valley, Cusco, and Machu Picchu, our friend Valerio. Travel with him if you can!
Our driver in Luma, Jean Carlos, was wonderful too. Please tell him I said to say, "I love you" again!
We will certainly book our next trip with Kimkim.

Hotel Reviews

Casa Andina Premium Miraflores

Lima

Could not be more central, and a short walk from countless fun places and great restaurants.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Casa Andina Premium Valle Sagrado

Urubamba

We stayed at three different locations of the Casa Andina family of hotels during our trip to Lima, and they were all GREAT. But this was the best. The grounds were exquisite. The rooms were unique. Best of all, the staff were AMAZING! Gracious and helpful, and most knew our names without an introduction. There's not a ton to do / see by walking off the hotel grounds, but you're in the Sacred Valley: you didn't come here to see the hotel - use this as your home base for your adventures. Stay here if you can.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

The entire team were wonderful!

Cleanliness & Comfort

El Mapi by Inkaterra

Cusco

Aguas Calientes is a tourist town, but this location felt like a pleasant retreat from the buzz going on outside. It's central to everything, and the rooms and staff were all great.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Casa Andina Premium Cusco

Cusco

This hotel positively nails the authentic and character qualifications, plus it has a good location, and all sorts of amenities both in the hotel and right in the neighborhood. There was some kind of misunderstanding when we checked in about a deposit/pre-payment, but that was also quickly resolved. We greatly enjoyed our stay here.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Tambopata Research Center

Tambopata

This is named the Tambopata Research Center for a reason: it's in the middle of untouched rainforest. If you can't live without a blow dryer, don't stay here. If the thought of a bat flying past you is probably, don't stay here. And yes, there will be bugs, and rain, and heat. But if you want to stay in lovely, clean rooms, and eat delicious food, and experience the rainforest, then this is for you. The staff are great, and there are activities for all tastes. We'd go back again in a heartbeat!

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Review

Lunch at Mountainview

Peru

Aptly named for its location, this spot nails the sweet spot for a cool vibe, great food, and a modern but very authentic feel.

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Our trip to Peru was amazing and unforgettable! Firstly, a huge applause for Johanna Fabian, our Trip Planner. She was with me beginning to end. She helped plan our trip in detail and customised it in every way that I wanted. She responded promptly to all my mails and queries, and it is because of her attitude, experience and promptness, that I felt confident in proceeding with Kimkim! Even after we landed in Lima, she was following up with me about the trip! A very big thank you to Johanna!
The transfers were very good and there were Kimkim representatives on time, in every place where we needed to be received!
The handling was smooth as silk with every arrangement in place completely in sync with the trip plan!
The hotels were superb!Especially wonderful was the Antigua Sans Blas in Cusco!Ours was a 4 star trip but the AC Hotel by Marriott in Lima and GHL Hotel in Puno were 5 star!
Guides Carlos ( Lima Gourmet), Flor in Cusco, Sacred Valley, Manchu Picchu and Marcia in Titicaca were wonderful and well-informed,! Flor is an excellent photographer too! Kristy and Johanna , of course, we’re excellent planners!

Our once -in- a - lifetime holiday to Peru was as magical and unforgettable as it was, thanks to Kimkim! We will definitely recommend your services to friends and family and plan to travel to South America again with you!

Hotel Reviews

AC Hotel by Marriott Lima Miraflores

Lima

Excellent service! Amazing delectable breakfast spread! Location couldn’t get better - in Miraflores, right at the Larcomar and Malecon!

Authenticity & Character

Location

In Miraflores, right on the Larcomar and Malecon, overlooking the Pacific!

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Breakfast was super

Inkaterra Reserva Amazonica

Puerto Maldonado

Absolutely fabulous arrangements in the middle of the Amazon forest! The food is unbelievably good, including the service by Antonio and team! However, there are power cuts from 10:30 pm till 5 am and from 3:30 pm till 5:30 pm. The afternoon cuts are unbearably hot , the nights are still tolerable because it gets cool, if you’re lucky! There could be extra fans just above the bed and some extra light points.

Authenticity & Character

Very stylish cabanas!

Location

Staff

Excellent service

Cleanliness & Comfort

Very clean and stylish but extremely hot during the power cuts. Must provide a ceiling fan above the bed or at least a stand fan. There should be a light in the shower and bathroom, too creepy just to use the lantern for light.

Antigua Casona San Blas

Cusco

Beautiful hotel, absolutely marvellous staff! Such prompt and polite service. The breakfast is amazing! The 24/7 coca tea and mint tea, served with a smile in the room and the hot water bags tucked into the bed at dusk were so so nice!

Authenticity & Character

Beautiful property

Location

Walking distance to the plaza / centre

Staff

So efficient, polite , prompt and helpful!

Cleanliness & Comfort

Full marks for comfort , cleanliness and care!

El Albergue Ollantaytambo Boutique Hotel

Cusco

Simple and sweet! Interesting location right on the railway platform!!

Authenticity & Character

Nice views, large organic garden

Location

Walking distance from car park, hence you can wheel your luggage on your own to the hotel. Since it’s on the rail platform, it’s very easy to hop on to the train!

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

El Mapi by Inkaterra

Cusco

Authenticity & Character

Location

Located in a noisy street. Reception staff very efficient but dining room staff too busy, unwelcoming, unhelpful. Clearly overworked! This hotel is more like a 3 star , rather than a 4 star property

Staff

Dining room staff are poorly trained, clearly overworked, unwilling, unhelpful with orders ( language barrier)

Cleanliness & Comfort

GHL Hotel Lago Titicaca Puno

Lago Titicaca, Puno

Beautiful location right on Lake Titicaca! Couldn’t ask for more! Prompt service, efficient receptionist especially Lucienne. Vast breakfast selection, very good service by Johann! We were allowed a late checkout at 2 pm since our flight was in the early evening, much appreciated!

Authenticity & Character

Location

Right on Lake Titicaca, rooms with lake views, a gorgeous lookout point !

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Morning visit to Ollantaytambo and train to AC

Peru

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

The Perurail Viatadome from Ollyantaytambo to Aquas Calentes is an unforgettable experience, do not miss it!

Inkaterra Reserva Amazonica Jungle Excursions

Puerto Maldonado

Quality of Experience

Food

Unbelievable food - choices, preparation and service , in the middle of the Amazon! A big thanks to Antonio and team!

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Rico was good

Transport

Nice boat

Inkaterra Reserva Amazonica Jungle Excursions

Puerto Maldonado

We couldn’t do the Gamitana Creek tour because the boat was not available. Should ideally have better planning of schedules so that all trips are possible

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Cusco Tour

Peru

Flor, our guide, was exceptional! Very well informed, articulate and patient!

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Into the Amazon: Inkaterra Reserva Amazonica

Puerto Maldonado

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Ideally keep at least 1.5 hours to get from your Lima hotel to Lima airport. The traffic is heavy. The airport is busy and chaotic! And most of the staff do not speak English. So have a lot of time in hand to avoid all these stresses!

Transport

Depart Puerto Maldonado to Cusco

Peru

The transport from the reserve by water and then to the airport, along with our “stored” luggage was extremely smooth and efficient. A big thanks to Jordan, who handled the transport and checkin / check out!

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Fly from Puno to Lima, Depart Peru

Puno

The hotel was very kind to allow a late check out. So our departure was very relaxed!

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Please keep 1.5 hours from Puno to Juliaca airport, it is far. 1 hour isn’t really enough! Thankfully the airport is small and not too busy.

Transport

Sacred Valley Tour: Cusco - Pisac - Maras - Moray

Peru

Detailed visit to all these places. Flor was very good!

Quality of Experience

Food

Amazing food, beautifully plated at Mountain View, with views of mountains , glaciers and llamas! Fantastic experience!

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Excellent big car to ourselves! Very food driver Alex!

Machu Picchu Excursion (Circuit 1, 2, 3, or 4)

Peru

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Welcome to Puno: Free day

Puno

Unforgettable journey on the Perurail Titicaca! Do not miss this! Speak to your planner accordingly since it’s not available daily! Truly premium!

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Lake Titicaca Tour: Uros Floating Islands & Taquile Island

Puno

Beautiful experience! Our guide Marcia was good and friendly!

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Lima Food Tour

Peru

Brilliant tour! So much to learn, eat, drink! Highly recommended! Carlos, our guide, was excellent!

Quality of Experience

The food places chosen were top notch! Hadn’t expected such a premium experience!

Food

Excellent food choices! Great Pisco Sour at Limana Bar!

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Carlos was well informed, very nice and articulate!

Transport

Trip was amazing. Very well planned by Liz.

Activity Reviews

Private tour to Moray, Maras & Shared Pachamanca Lunch farm Tour

Sacred Valley

Quality of Experience

Food was so delicious

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Explore Machu Picchu & Return to Cusco (Private Guided tour in Machu Picchu) SV HTL (Belmond AC)

Peru

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Private Cusco City Tour & San Pedro Market

Cusco

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Private Palcoyo Rainbow Mountain Trek

Cusco

Very glad we selected to visit rainbow mountain. Recommend to all must visit Rainbow mountain

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Briefing about your future tour/trek

Peru

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Titicaca Train from {{start_location}} to {{end_location}}

Peru

Excellent trip on Train Very different had very good time during 10 hours trip

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Private Taquile & Uros Reed Islands Tour

Puno

WOW , who can imagine such island exists had very good tone understanding how they created island and their daily life .

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Shared Lima Dining Experience: Culture, Flavor & Style (PM)

Lima

Had really good time and enjoyed food at all 4 restaurants

Quality of Experience

All services, Peruvian people and food was amazing

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Private Lima City Tour & San Francisco Catacombs

Lima

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Flight from {{start_location}} to Cusco & Private tour to The Sacred Valley

Peru

Quality of Experience

9

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Thank you for such a lovely trip. Our guide was not only knowledgable, but able to communicate well. She explained the culture past and present, architecture, flora and answered our numerous questions. Our trip was unforgettable.

We really enjoyed our time and sad that it had to end. We were taken great care of especially in Cusco where we spent most of our time. We had safe drivers mostly by Sr. Carlos and our superhuman tour guide Sr. Valerio who was very knowledgeable and patient with our slow pacing trying to get acclimated while hiking and trekking. They were accommodating of our time because we wanted to start early and they were punctual. Not a second was wasted. We are very appreciative of the entire team!

Our first South American trip was amazing and another win with KimKim. Liz Karen provided great service in working through any questions/issues that arose with local vendors. The Short Inca Trail was amazing and our guide Claudio was great - can't recommend enough. We likely spent one too many days in Cusco for our liking and wish we had optimized our travel time to Ollantaytambo for a day tour and just went to Machu Picchu instead of returning to Cusco and making another trip to the train station later in the week. The cooking class in Cusco was fun and we enjoyed the walking tour as well.

Hotel Reviews

Tierra Viva Miraflores Centro

Miraflores

Great location, comfy beds and good breakfast.

Casa Biru Hotel Boutique

Cusco

Loved the location and the little courtyard. Pillows were a little hard for liking but was clean and staff was very friendly.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Susanna Inn

Aguas Calientes, Machu Picchu

It's at the very end of a street once you get off the busy. Many restaurants/stores along the way. Was clean and the beds were comfy by amenities were sparse. A little bar of soap and package of shampoo were provided (we had just brought backpacks so were expecting shampoo/conditioner and a hair dryer.) Breakfast was also pretty sparse as well. Staff was friendly but could have used a little more comfort after our hiking.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Shared Cooking Classes Ivanna Lescano (18:00 - 19:30) w/assistance

Cusco

Private Mystic Experience & Culture Immersion at San Pedro Local Market

Cusco

Tour guide was nice but very different. He had a lot to share on the spiritual side but once we were ready to move on and not focus on that he did not pick up the hint. Great way to see the city but the beginning of the tour could have been sped up. Seeing the city from high up and then walking parts of the Inca Trail were very cool. The market was also worth visiting.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Shared Short Inca Trail Trek 1/2

Peru

Shared tour to Pisac, Ollantaytambo & Chinchero tour

Cusco

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Shared Short Inca Trail trek 2/2: Machu Picchu

Peru

Private Lima City Tour and Larco Museum

Lima

Guide was knowledgeable. Would have loved to have lunch at the restaurant next to the museum, it was beautiful.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

We had an amazing trip in Peru, planned by Martina with Kimkim. All our local guides were great, and we enjoyed all the places we visited. We booked a private tour and our guides were very flexible with timing and such. We started the tours each morning, and were back to the hotel late afternoon everyday and it felt like a nice mix between guided tour and free time for ourselves each day. Some thing that could have done better -
1. We arrived in Lima late in the evening and were supposed to have a free half day to tour Lima ourselves the next day, before we flight to Cusco in the afternoon(we asked for an afternoon flight so we could have the free half day in Lima). That's why we chose to stay in a hotel in Miraflores(45mins from the airport) instead of right by the airport. However, the pick up time to the airport was 9am for our 1pm flight. We ended up staying in a hotel far from the airport for no reason, wasting our whole morning, just waiting at the airport for the flight.
2. Our return flight from Lima was around midnight so we had a full long day. The tour planned originally was to go to Caral archaeological site, which is 4.5 hours each way. That's 9 hours of car time plus we had to fly home that night. So instead, we decided to do a Lima city tour instead(since again we couldn't do it ourselves earlier). The tour was good, but it did feel like it was dragged long because we had so much time to fill. The local guides were very flexible though, changing our plans from Caral to Lima city tour with short notice.
Overall, we still had a great experience with Kimkim and would go with them again.

We had a great time! The guides and drivers we had in all of the places we went (Paracas/Ica, Cusco, Machu Picchu, Lima) were all great people, and we got to a few of them more personally. Everything went pretty much according to plan, and there was only one planned activity that we were unable to do (wine-tasting). Our guide in Cusco and Machu Picchu (Emilia) and driver in Lima (Jean Carlos) were especially friendly and helpful! We were also fortunate to have great weather the whole trip.
Thank you, Kim-Kim! We will remember this trip for a long time!

Hotel Reviews

Antigua Casona San Blas

Cusco

Wonderful hotel! The staff were friendly and helpful, and the atmosphere and decor of the hotel were fantastic! The restaurant breakfasts were great, and the hotel room was clean and comfortable. We would definitely stay there again and would happily recommend this hotel to anyone visiting Cusco!

Authenticity & Character

Charming decor, nice atmosphere.

Location

Very central, close to restaurants and Plaza De Armas.

Staff

Very friendly and helpful.

Cleanliness & Comfort

Very comfortable

El Albergue Ollantaytambo Boutique Hotel

Cusco

Unfortunately, this hotel did not meet our expectations. We arrived late in the day and were tired. The room was sizable and clean, but the beds were too small and the mattresses too hard. They were uncomfortable to sleep in. Their hotel restaurant was okay, but felt a bit small and tight. It didn’t really have any charm. The one redeeming feature is that it is located in the Ollantaytambo train station, so it was very easy for us to catch out train the next morning to Machu Picchu and to arrange to have the hotel keep some of our things until we returned from there.

Authenticity & Character

Restaurant was rather boring

Location

Close to the train station

Staff

They were friendly and courteous

Cleanliness & Comfort

Uncomfortable beds - too small and too hard

Iberostar Selection Miraflores

Lima

Nice hotel! Centrally located in Miraflores within walking distance of the shopping district and waterfront. Nice view from the room. The swimming pool on the rooftop was very nice and relaxing to be in! The room was clean, spacious and comfortable.

Authenticity & Character

Very nice, rooftop pool is great!

Location

Centrally located

Staff

Friendly and courteous

Cleanliness & Comfort

Clean, spacious and comfortable

Activity Reviews

Arrival to Lima: Free Day to Explore

Lima

Arrived very late at night (early morning) due to a flight delay. Bug we were met by the driver and taken to our hotel quickly.

Quality of Experience

Late night arrival

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Friendly, helpful

Transport

Comfortable

Bus transfer from Lima to Paracas & Classic Nazca Lines from Pisco Airport

Peru

It was great! The trip down on the bus was a bit long , but we were able to rest and sleep a bit. We were met by the guide/driver (Luis) and he was very helpful. We were hungry and he kindly took us to a nearby restaurant to eat something. He also arranged for us to look around Paracas, which was nice. The flight to Nazca and the lines was fine, but viewing the lines was sometimes challenging to see, and I got motion sick during part of the flight. We were happy to get the experience of going there and seeing the lines!

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Very friendly, helpful

Transport

Very comfortable

Tour and Tasting at the Tacama Winery

Peru

The estate is beautiful, and the meal we had there was great! The tour was interesting, the guide knowledgeable and spoke English well, but we had been hoping to visit a winery and because of poor planning, we weren’t able to visit the winery but instead a Pisco distillery. It was okay, but not the same as if we had visited the winery.

Quality of Experience

We wanted to visit a WINERY, not distillery

Food

Tasty

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Friendly and courteous

Transport

comfortable

Fly to Cusco, and Sacred Valley Expedition: Exploring Chinchero and Ollantaytambo

Peru

Great experiences - visiting a community textile factory in Chinchero, great lunch and scenic trip to Ollantaytambo, visited Inca ruins in Ollantaytambo. The only problem was that the beds in the hotel room were not comfortable.

Quality of Experience

Food

Tasty (especially the buffet in Urubamba).

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Friendly and courteous

Transport

Comfortable

Train from Urubamba, then Explore Machu Picchu

Peru

Excellent weather, a great guide, fascinating ruins. It was a great experience. Even the train trip there and back was a lot of fun!

Quality of Experience

Just a great trip to these amazing ruins!

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Very friendly and helpful

Transport

Comfortable

Cusco Tour

Peru

It was great! Emilia was a great guide and really helped us to understand what we were seeing.

Quality of Experience

Overall, a great experience!

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Friendly and helpful

Transport

Comfortable

Fly from Cusco to Lima

Peru

A good flight. No problems at all.

Quality of Experience

Comfortable

Transport

Comfortable

Historic Center & Larco Museum

Peru

It was interesting! We saw many things and the bus guide was helpful. The bus was a bit hot and we should have brought more water with us.

Quality of Experience

Interesting, informative

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Friendly and helpful

Transport

A little hot on the bus

I had never booked a trip with a travel agency before and after this experience I will definitely do it again! kimkim and the Andean Travel team took care of all of our needs from the planning to execution of our Peru experience.

From the beginning Ruth and Liz helped me to choose adventures that suited our family. They also gave me options for saving money along with way. But most of all, the work that they did behind the scenes - the work that we only saw the outcomes of - was incredible! All of our transportation and flights and hotels and guides we so well coordinated.

Everyone that we met was wonderful and we will keep in touch with many of these people!
Our guides:
Eloy for Cusco - has wonderful calming energy that helped us to connect to our experience, environment and the remarkable history of the area on a more spiritual level.
Juan Franco for Machu Picchu - was a wealth of information and a fabulous photographer! He told us the story of Machu Picchu like a puzzle, adding new pieces at every stop.
Luce for Palcoyo Rainbow mountain - was always looking out for our safety and making sure that we adjusted well to the altitude of our climb. She also helped us to give thanks for our experience with a mountaintop ceremony.
And finally Francisco at Muyuna Lodge went out of his way to ensure that we got the best Amazon experience in the short time that we had available.

Lizbeth, who was our contact via WhatsApp during our trip was always available to help, offer suggestions and ensure that we had everything that we needed when we needed it from entrance tickets to boarding passes.

Each driver along the way impressed us with their ability to navigate Peruvian roadways - which in itself was no small feat!

I can’t wait to book my next trip with KimKim!

Hotel Reviews

Chakana Boutique Hotel

Machu Picchu, Cusco

We enjoyed our very short stay at Chakana. We had a quick overnight stay on our way to Machu Picchu. Our departure was very early the following morning and the kitchen staff graciously packed us a fulsome and delicious breakfast to take with us. They also stored all of our belongings for us until our tour was over. The strange thing was that the window in our room opened into the elevator shaft and if our curtain had a gap at the corner, anyone on our floor could peek into our bedroom. Good thing we were too tired to do anything but sleep!

Authenticity & Character

There are hand painted murals on every floor. Very artsy and fun!

Location

An easy walk to everything Aguas Calientes has to offer.

Staff

Everyone was wonderful and helpful.

Cleanliness & Comfort

Hotel Britania

Lima

Very nice hotel, close to everything that we were interested in seeing. This hotel was our first introduction to Peru. The hotel was clean and comfortable, the staff was helpful and the location was great for walkers like us!

Authenticity & Character

Location

An easy walk all over Miraflores

Staff

Very helpful staff packed us a bagged breakfast when our departure time was earlier than their breakfast hours.

Cleanliness & Comfort

Sol Natura Hotel

Ollantaytambo

Beautiful hotel, close to everything Ollantaytambo has to offer. Kind and helpful staff. Delicious breakfast options. Great views from the room. Beautiful, greenhouse-like courtyard with games and tea.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Close to everything in the beautiful town of Ollantaytambo

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Muyuna Lodge

Iquitos

Amazing experience! The connection of this lodge to the people of Yanayaku make this experience one to remember. The staff feel like family because they are, by blood, by village or by love of the biodiversity of the Amazon Rainforest.

Authenticity & Character

Such a cool environment. Expect to sweat. Embrace it!

Location

The remoteness of the location means that there is so much biodiversity in the region. Even just sitting in the hammock on our porch we saw Lizards, monkeys, geckos, frogs, and remarkable flora.

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Review

Private Mystic Walking Tour to The Temple of the Moon & Cusco City

Cusco

Our guide Eloy was fantastic! His tour put us in the mindset of the ancestors who once walked through the streets and temples of Cusco. He shared rituals and offerings with us as a way to help us understand the design of the temples that we visited. Our walk into Cusco followed part of the Inka trail and as we progressed the city unfolded before our eyes! We wandered from old to new, along cobbled roads learning about the different stone work and the transition from the ancient to the modern city that it is now. We ended at the San Pedro market where Eloy helped us navigate the isles, learn about the many offerings of the market and enjoy fresh fruit juices and bread.

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

This trip was absolutely fabulous. The timing and transport were planned seamlessly to avoid any travel hiccups, which was much appreciated. All the tour guides were so flexible and knowledgeable, willing to tailor their tours to the interests of the group. The Moray archaeological site and the salt mines were so unique, and Machu Picchu was breathtaking! For all the activities we were able to do and the sites we were able to see, this trip was a bargain. Also, a huge thank you to you Liz for your quick, helpful responses on Whatsapp and assistance planning our free days in Cusco.

This was my first trip using Kimkim. I was unsure of how to book a successful trip to Peru from Los Angeles. I was very quickly contacted by Jessica who worked with me for a couple of months to hammer out a wonderful itinerary. This included several changes to dates and travelers but there were never any problems with updating the arrangements.

I would like to be clear that this trip was absolutely amazing. Everything Jessica booked for us was wonderful. We had great accommodations and knowledgible and fun tour guides throughout the trip with all of our transfers and driving handled. (We did need to book our own air travel but Jessica was very up front about that so it was no problem).

We even had some problems come up (a strike in Peru that would limit road travel) and Kimkim hopped on it to make sure our days in Sacred Valley and Machu Picchu went well. This was Kristy who jumped in and got us moved to a hotel that would not disrupt our trip. Even better, that day we took a fairly exclusive alternate tour which was still super fun and interesting. Kimkim's communication and initiative made that possible and we are very appreciative.

I would recommend this group again and again. It made for a fun and painless trip that was truly memorable.

I should begin off by mentioning that I was really skeptical and paranoid about using kimkim for my dream trip to South America as it was my first time using it and I did not have any one i know that could vouch for it, but am now a convert and would use kimkim for my future plans as well.

Alvaro (Planner for my trip) was very patient and prompt in making sure that all my interests are captured well in the plan. The itinerary was put together with careful consideration to what I wanted. However personally, I expected no less in terms of the planning but the thing I appreciated the most was the fact that Alvaro was very patient in dealing with my questions and constant paranoia. I have in the past dealt with other services( not kimkim) who want you to finalize a plan quickly and push you to do so, so that they can get the commission and move on however Alvaro encouraged me to take time to make sure things are good.

The trip in itself was wonderful . Experience in Peruvian Amazon was nothing less than extraordinary.. Being in the lap of nature literally in the lungs of the world was experience of a lifetime. Luckily for us the weather was good and it did not rain(I am used to humidity from India so that did not bother me much) so was able to make full use of the time there. Our decision o visit North Chile as well was probably a little unorthodox but something I absolutely loved. From the Amazon to Atacama was a transition that was worth the money and time. Words and pictures cant do justice to the landscapes that we saw. The quality of the service throughout was excellent.

Hotels chosen were all based on our budget and good, while the guides and local services were on most trips awesome. Likewise for airport pick ups and drops (which I took because i dont know Spanish and wanted to avoid dealing with local taxi) were always on time.

People may be skeptical about the cost, as it would definitely be higher than if you would plan your own backpacking tour or use a local vendor, but if you are looking for a relaxing family tour where someone plans out your entire end to end tour without you having to worry about anything, then the cost is more than worth it. If you know the country and exactly what you are looking for then maybe you can go ahead an look for local vendors to save on money but otherwise if you dont know the country well, would encourage you to give kimkim a try!

Areas of Improvement -
The trip in itself went without any hiccup but one suggestion would be for Kimkim to ask the local vendors to contact the clients a day before without fail and have them share the plan for the next 3-4 days on day 1. For Peru that was the case with me, but for Atacama, Chile I was contacted for each tour separately (in advance of that particular tour). Like I said it went without any issue but did leave me anxious a couple of times waiting for a message from the local vendor.

All in all a 5 start experience for me!

Kristy was the best. Our trip was 10/10 amazing and it wa sos challenging to plan. Every trabsfer, train ride, taxi, hotel and excursion that Kristy planned for us was excellent. So hard to accomplish with a family of 4 and yet she remained consistent and contactable the whole time. We love Kristy and would recommend her to any of our friends.

Jordan and Molly Safirstein