Trip Reviews for South Africa

We started planning our trip several months before coming to South Africa. Carla was extremely responsive, she worked with us on itinerary to accommodate our interests. She worked through small issues and we had a wonderful informative tour with our guide Mark. Highly recommend.

This is an incredible service, and I can’t express how much I appreciate being able to visit a new place — new cultures, new languages, contested histories — and feel like I left it with something more than a superficial layer of tourist-appropriate experience.

Deborah (with help from Tara - of Elgin Africa) provided us with an incredibly thoughtful and perfectly paced itinerary for our 22-day holiday. Deborah’s understanding of us — she really listened to us — and of the options before... read more

This is an incredible service, and I can’t express how much I appreciate being able to visit a new place — new cultures, new languages, contested histories — and feel like I left it with something more than a superficial layer of tourist-appropriate experience.

Deborah (with help from Tara - of Elgin Africa) provided us with an incredibly thoughtful and perfectly paced itinerary for our 22-day holiday. Deborah’s understanding of us — she really listened to us — and of the options before us, given our interests and length of stay allowed her to guide us to choices we wouldn’t have considered or known about. The process of working with Deborah was easy — we emailed several times, and spoke on the phone once — and each ‘visit’ with her left us more and more excited about our trip.

Deborah has worked in tourism for many years, and not only knows places and people, but has an encyclopedic knowledge of how businesses are run, what their values are, and how accommodations, tours, and even key local people will suit her clients.

We loved (LOVED) this trip. We would trust KimKim with any future travel based on our experience with Deborah. She heard our desire to travel according to our values, even though it might mean risking new experiences with accommodation, local tour guides, or wildlife (!). We asked for a non-Disney version of South Africa, and that’s exactly what we got. We’ve been home for two weeks, and already we’re saving for our next holiday (with Deborah at the helm).

My husband’s primary interest was in tracing the lives and contributions of Nelson Mandela and Archbishop Desmond Tutu. Deborah ensured that we visited each significant location in that ‘Long Walk to Freedom’ — including the various branches of the Apartheid Museum. More than that, Deborah identified several contacts for us over the course of our holiday who we would meet and speak with to help us understand personal stories of activism during the struggle for a Democratic South Africa.

In Johannesburg, we stayed in the arts district Maboneng, and toured the city with “King,” a Soweto-born tour guide whose vibrancy and realistic portrait of the city challenged the ‘victory’ narrative. It was wonderful to have a more complex portrait of the country immediately — and with personal experiences and explanations to make that portrait more concerning.

In Qunu, the place of Mandela’s birth, Deborah paired us with an incredible local guide we’re still talking about. His activism during the struggle to end apartheid forced him out of university and into prison. Still an activist, and finished with his formal education, “Zim” allowed us to question him about his current work (defining and re-defining masculinity, and leading groups of people to experience their own power). Deborah had arranged for us to have lunch at his home, where we met his wife and ate a beautiful meal prepared with fresh vegetables grow in their garden. This sort of encounter is simply not possible without current connections and deep interest in one’s work. Wow, Deborah!

Deborah’s care throughout the trip created opportunities and connections like this for us. In Cape Town, for example, tickets to Robben Island were scarce because of ferry trouble and unforeseen closures of the museum. Deborah to the rescue. Robben Island may sound like a trip only for tourists, but I found it to be remarkably organized, insightful, and deeply moving. Need I mention that our tour of the prison/museum was led by a former political prisoner?

My primary interest in the trip was to see and experience the vast expanse of South Africa — its open skies, its languages, its people, and expressions of its cultures. Deborah consistently steered us toward places and encounters we wouldn’t have been able to have on our own. The range of people she put us in touch with ranged from shops selling the work of local people (sometimes co-owned and operated by those people), or informal locations where she was sure we would encounter local artisans selling their work. Our accommodations provided us with not just a white South African holiday. (On our flight home, we noticed that the cosmopolitan artsy 12 Decades Hotel in Johannesburg was written up as a ‘must-go’ location in the in-flight magazine!) Even before we left home, Deborah’s itinerary for us included descriptions of accommodations like this one, describing a beautifully designed backpacker lodge: “Hopefully you’ll meet one of the owners, Sal, who basically grew up at the lodge and is very knowledgeable about all the community projects in the area.” Intersperced with backpacker accommodations, Deborah planned luxurious nights for us. In another part of the itinerary she writes: “It’s 5-star accommodation at 4-star rates and includes breakfast.” She failed to mention that the staff at Falcon’s View Manor (“high above the town of Knysna”) would wash our car (!) while it was parked overnight in their covered carport. At this hotel, we got to our room and discovered that Deborah, who had passed through the area days before, left a beautiful bottle of wine for us. (Need I mention that the adjustment to routine life at home has been difficult!?)

Deborah arranged for several game drives during our holiday, including photographic safaris in Chobe National Park in Botswana. She had personally experienced these safaris, and although such an excursion wasn’t on our radar, our stay at Pangolin Lodge and experiences with drivers and our photography ‘teacher’ couldn’t have been better.

Our trip covered a true range of natural environments, cultural locations, and physical activities. Everywhere we were safe and cared for with attention to detail. Deborah put us in the path of people and encounters that moved us and enlarged our personal and political worldviews. This is the best of travel.

Deborah’s deep knowledge of her client’s desires (we wanted to support family-owned and community-supportive businesses), coupled with her vast knowledge of opportunities for tourism in South Africa, and even Zambia and Botswana, made this a trip our friends simply can’t believe we were able to take. Deborah’s itinerary for us included details about the businesses we patronized, what we should expect for food, even what to pack for day hikes in specific regions... I can’t tell you how grateful I am for her knowledge. Impressed, and grateful.

I can’t thank you enough for referring us to Deborah and to her collegue Tara at Elgin Africa. Although we’ll need to save for a bit before we travel again, I’d reach out to Deborah without hesitation. KimKim was a terrific way to get us started. I’m grateful for your expertise and for the thoughtfulness of your method in pairing travelers with local experts like Deborah.

Cheers!

The trip was amazing from start to finish! I had an amazing time. Carla and my tour guide, Julian were superb! Thank you.

OH MY GOD, Deborah is Awesome, so nice ,patient and always answer when i call on her , sometimes 12 am . She is GREAT and the best i have ever known my whole Life . Indeed she is a Specialist. I recommend anyone going to South Africa and booking with KimKim should Chose Deborah . God this lady is Amazing , her timing , planning and service is amazing , she will make you feel like a Royal away from Home . I have decided to come go to cape town every year because of her. She is the best i have... read more

OH MY GOD, Deborah is Awesome, so nice ,patient and always answer when i call on her , sometimes 12 am . She is GREAT and the best i have ever known my whole Life . Indeed she is a Specialist. I recommend anyone going to South Africa and booking with KimKim should Chose Deborah . God this lady is Amazing , her timing , planning and service is amazing , she will make you feel like a Royal away from Home . I have decided to come go to cape town every year because of her. She is the best i have ever seen in the whole wide world . Deborah thumps up. Be proud of yourself , Thank you for the wonderful service , God bless you ..

Hello,
I found the experience to be good overall. I especially enjoyed the Tremisana lodge in South America and the folks at Marc's treehouse were very accommodating. They had not received my requirement or did not accurately record my requirement for an ensuite but they switched rooms without any problems.
It happened to be a low season and the switch perhaps could not have been possible during the high season.
Initially I found Carla, my kimkim travel agent to be hard to get a hold of... read more

Hello,
I found the experience to be good overall. I especially enjoyed the Tremisana lodge in South America and the folks at Marc's treehouse were very accommodating. They had not received my requirement or did not accurately record my requirement for an ensuite but they switched rooms without any problems.
It happened to be a low season and the switch perhaps could not have been possible during the high season.
Initially I found Carla, my kimkim travel agent to be hard to get a hold of but she explained that she had been out of reach because she was at a conference. I found her colleague (who took over from Carla on the day to day details of my trip) to be very responsive and helpful.
Regards,
Vinita

great day trips to both cape point and the safari!!

Every part of my trip went like clockwork exactly according to plan. Both of the lodges that I went to were very good although Settlers Drift was the best. The rangers and wild life was also excellent.
All my car transfers wore on time with good drivers and my Avis hire car was good and as planned

Thanks Carla for your guide through emails. Everything was perfect, on time and the price is reasonable. The driver also cooperative and give us lots of information about cape town. Will definitely recommend this tour.

We have just returned from a quite superb trip to South Africa and will most definitely be going again! We made our way from Cape Town to the Eastern Cape ending with a Safari at Amakhala, where our amazingly knowledgeable and funny guide made every minute fascinating...it was surprisingly cold in the early mornings and evenings though (mid November), so make sure you take long sleeves and plenty of layers...they do have fleece blankets (which we used every day) but I wish I had more... read more

We have just returned from a quite superb trip to South Africa and will most definitely be going again! We made our way from Cape Town to the Eastern Cape ending with a Safari at Amakhala, where our amazingly knowledgeable and funny guide made every minute fascinating...it was surprisingly cold in the early mornings and evenings though (mid November), so make sure you take long sleeves and plenty of layers...they do have fleece blankets (which we used every day) but I wish I had more clothes!

The trip down the Garden Route was wonderful - empty roads, happy people, low prices and great wines! We particularly loved The Sands in St Francis Bay...pricy, but very special indeed.

Thanks for organising a great trip!

Didn't really have much contact with Howard, mostly done with Lize Enderstein, who always responded to our emails quickly and efficiently.

Maybe more could be done initially to ascertain client's preferences in terms of types of hotels and budget, and maybe more questions regarding client's likes and dislikes, but overall Lize chose very good Hotels and we were very happy with Paradise Tours in Cape Town.

A little more fine details information would have been good, e.g. good idea to... read more

Didn't really have much contact with Howard, mostly done with Lize Enderstein, who always responded to our emails quickly and efficiently.

Maybe more could be done initially to ascertain client's preferences in terms of types of hotels and budget, and maybe more questions regarding client's likes and dislikes, but overall Lize chose very good Hotels and we were very happy with Paradise Tours in Cape Town.

A little more fine details information would have been good, e.g. good idea to book tickets online for Table Mountain and Cango Caves to avoid waiting in long queues. Also more information about the Amakahala itinerary would have been helpful as we didn't realise that we would get lunch and a safari drive on Day 1, and nearly missed this.

Overall very happy and will be back!

First time we've booked on the internet. It couldn't have been easier. Great communication.

Howard was very helpful and knowledgeable. Didn't tire of answering even the daftest of my questions. Also very helpful during the holiday, not just before it.

We had a tight budget and were exploring different options to see what best fit our interests and budget for our Cape Town & Kruger Park Safari. Howard was extremely patient and helpful with suitable recommendations. Overall, it was a generally fuss free and enjoyable process.

I was very impressed with the excursion and hotel bookings. As well as it Guide Ian, with Paradise Touring. He as extremely helpful and knowledgeable about our trip. I would highly recommend Kimkim and Ian for anyone I know traveling to South Africa. Thank you!!

Very easy to work with, and accommodating no matter how many times we asked him to revise our itnerary.