Kimkim Trip Reviews for Vietnam

Hien was fantastic to work with. We had four or five iterations of our planned trip and she happily chopped and changed according to our budget and preferred itinerary.

We were in Pu Luong for three nights and our local guide was wonderful. She was from the area and so naturally had great local knowledge.

All our connections were organised which meant for a stress-free holiday. The drivers were all lovely and helpful and on time! It all helped make our holiday truly magical and memorable. Thanks.

Hotel Reviews

Gateway Inn Pu Luong

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Hanoi Allure Hotel

Great location. Friendly staff.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Lalita Boutique Hotel & Spa Ninh Binh

Authenticity & Character

Location

A bit out of town. But a nice view from the top floor with the pool

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Doris Cruise

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Pu Luong - Caving | Scenic Rice Fields

Pu Luong Nature Reserve

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Enchanting 19km Off-Road Trekking

Pu Luong Nature Reserve

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Village Life | Water Wheels | Rafting ( Day3)

Pu Luong Nature Reserve

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Onboarding - Lan Ha Bay – Ba Trai Dao/ Tra Bau (Doris Cruise)

Ha Long Bay

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Lan Ha Bay – Dark & Bright Cave – Disembark Cruise (Doris Cruise)

Ha Long Bay

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Overall the experience to Vietnam was fantastic. Dat & the Realistic Asia team made many things seamless and easy with little stress for our group.

One personal note for me - many of the tours felt typical, when initially I think I went through KimKim to look for some "off the beaten path" tours or trips. As an architect I mentioned initially that I was really interested in seeing spaces and buildings and I feel like I missed some of that, especially in Ho Chi Minh City. It partly may have been an expectation management which sometimes the tour descriptions aren't super clear about.

Also the larger group tours of 17+ were too much for me. I definitely preferred the smaller group (10 people or so) as it felt like we were waiting on other people less. The one tour we did with just our group was awesome and personalized. We also loved the Calista Cruise team and experience.

I usually plan my own trips so this was a first time for me using an agency. I'm glad we did, and now I have a better sense of how to plan for future trips! Dat was very reliable, quick to respond and very helpful in all areas. I highly recommend him and his team!

Activity Reviews

Daily tour sightseeing Halong Bay ( La Casta Daily cruise)

Hanoi

Duc and the team there were awesome. The food was good and the views are just stunning. The speed boat & kayak were fun!

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Hanoi Half Day City Tour

Hanoi

The personalized schedule, places selected and the guide were great.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Hanoi - Ninh Binh (Dinh Le Temple, Tam Coc, Mua Cave) Day Trip by Group Tour (B/L)

Hanoi

The place was wonderful, however the guide didn't give clear instructions, the group was too big and the food was terrible.

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Let's Cook Vietnam - Join in Rose Kitchen Cooking Class

Hanoi

Aroma was awesome. The size of class, organization and experience was wonderfully led by Aroma.

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

STRONG CUSTOMER SERVICE/ EXCELLENT COMMUNICATION

Hien helped us plan our Vietnam/Thailand trip from June 1 to 13. We packed a lot into this 2 week trip which Hien kept tweaking to our preference and satisfaction. Unbelievably organized compared to the last travel agent we used.
Throughout the whole trip, she kept checking on us and reminded us of driver/pick-up times (always punctual) and who our guide will be, etc.

When things didn't go according to original plan, she already had a quick back-up. For instance...Ha Long Bay Paradise Peak Cruise's air condition malfunctioned at last minute so she booked us on sister ship, Paradise Elegance. Although the room was smaller than our room on P.Peak's, she made it right by making sure our room had a large wrap around balcony and my husband got a free 60 minute massage. Additionally, we were supposed to have dinner cruise the following week on Manohra Cruise in Bangkok, but boat caught on fire. Hien was able to get us a refund pretty quickly since back-up dinner cruise ship could not accommodate us at a specific time.

Choice of guides were also great! KC (Kim Cuong), our Hanoi guide, took us on street food tour which included (per our request) a hunt for reasonably priced Kopi Luwak coffee beans (from movie "The Bucket List") and a perfect seat to watch the train's approach on Hanoi's famous Old Train Street.
Tim (Tipparat), our Bangkok guide, also went the extra mile. She picked us up at BKK airport. During our 1 hour drive to our hotel, she helped us make reservation at Michelin Star restaurant, R-Haan. She also got us seating at the famous Jay Fai " street food" restaurant prior to our actual street food tour. Not sure how she did it because Jay Fai does not take reservations. There is usually a long queue.

We went on many excursions, such as a hike in SaPa's rice fields, a trip to Ninh Binh (Mua Cave, Tam Coc), and my favorite, Chai Lai Orchid Elephant Sanctuary. All perfectly planned.

Hotels--Hien will work with your budget. We chose to stay at mid-luxury hotels.

Hanoi: Peridot Boutique Hotel is located in Old Quarter. Great location...we were able to walk to Hoa Lo Prison, the Water Puppet Theatre, Chinatown area, and Train Street. Great breakfast buffet.

Sa Pa: Topas Ecolodge-- we just stayed in a Premium Executive Bungalow and it had a great view. Food at Topas...breakfast buffet and dinner surprised us...actually quite good.

Sa Pa: Hotel de la Coupole -M Gallery --beautiful hotel. Absinthe Bar (Afternoon Tea) offers sweet and savory treats paired with tea and coffee. Chic Restaurant had great breakfast buffet but limited choices for dinner.

Chiang Mai: Tamarind Village-- great location in Old City. The Sunday night market is pretty much right in front of hotel. You can walk to the temples. Breakfast buffet was great.

Bangkok: Anantara Riverside --we had a great room with river view. Restaurants are very mediocre --Trader Vic's, Brio, Benihana--all these restaurants are in the US. Drinks at the bar (alcoholic and non) are very expensive even by US standards. Breakfast and dinner buffet also mediocre. Expected more from a luxury ( or mid-luxury?) resort. At least just about a 10minute Grab (Uber in SE Asia) ride to Iconsiam where you can find "air conditioned street food stalls" at bottom level.

The booking experience on Kim Kim was overall easy, and made a big international trip like this for a foreigner very stress free. After going through different sample trips we were linked with Realistic Asia in Vietnam and Hien our main point of contact. After telling Hien what we were thinking she gave us a sample trip and made some recommendations which were great. We wanted to make some changes to day trips and hotels, which she was extremely responsive and attentive to which we appreciated. Throughout the trip Hien was never far from her phone which made the experience that much more comfortable. Everywhere we went we had a driver and english speaking guide, which made navigating every step in our itinerary very easy. The entire experience with Realistic Asia was turnkey

I want to give a shout out to some excellent guides we had throughout the trip: Huấn in Hoi Ann, Thiện in Hue, and Cuong in Hanoi.All went above and beyond during the tours and giving us tips along the way and we highly recommend using them.

Hotel Reviews

Moire Hoi An, Vignette Collection

This hotel is directly across from old town, and a very easy walk away from all major attractions. The pool is overlooking the river and a great spot to spend during the hottest parts off the day. The room was nice and great staff.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Silk Path Grand Hue

Everything about this hotel is great but it is a dated look and feel. I think the rooms need to be renovated at some point to keep up with other five star accommodations.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Grand Pioneers Cruise (Formerly Essence Grand Cruise)

This ship has great food service, and rooms. It is a practically brand new luxury yacht which is beautiful and comfortable. When the ship goes to its overnight docking location its not very far from land, and its in a cove with many other boats. I think we would have enjoyed more movement so we were able to see more of Ha Long Bay. The excursion we did ( kayaking) was boring and every boat in the area seemed like they were doing the same thing.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Overnight Anchoring Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Sofitel Legend Metropole Hanoi

Hanoi

Amazing Historical Hotel with great staff. We enjoyed our stay here. The vibe is definitely professional business and wealthy tourists but we still had a nice time.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Review

VIP Fast Track Service

Vietnam

A must do for coming into Saigon, made the trip so much easier.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Hien planned a wonderful trip for us. She was a good communicator and understood our needs and wants. The guides and drivers were the best-courteous and friendly. I recommend KimKim and Hien without any reservation.
When we had some trouble with the visa process she immediately offered her help.

The Hanoi program could have been made better. We booked a day trip for the second day via TripAdvisor, which cost us some money. KimKim should have planned a trip to some of the neighboring villages. Also, the day tour that you organized in Hanoi on the third day was very boring, we went for a lunch with the tour guide that day, which was the best part of the tour. It was just 3 hours of tour max.

Ha Long Bay was well done.

The hotel at Hoi An was very good, and the overall experience in Hoi An was good.

Both hotel staff were very nice, polite and served us very well.

Hotel Reviews

Hong Ngoc Dynastie Hotel & Spa

Hanoi

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Swan Cruise

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Qualia De Hôtel Hoi An

Hoi An

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Visit Hoi An Ancient Town

Hoi An

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Hanoi Sightseeing & Street Food Tour

Hanoi

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Hanoi - Halong Bay, Overnight on Cruise

Vietnam

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Halong Bay - Hanoi - Flight to Danang - Hoi An

Ha Long Bay

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Hoi An - Cam Thanh Water Coconut Village - Tra Que Vegetable Village

Hoi An

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Ashley kept us very informed and planned a great trip. Guide KC was amazing. Friendly, knowledgeable. Our driver was very safe. Had an amazing trip.

Our trip to Vietnam was very close to what we wanted, the guides were excellent, the food was delicious, and we all had a lot of fun!

Thank you Hien for arranging.

Grant F Shimizu

Ashley was a fantastic local specialist! Ahead of the trip her planning and suggestions were very helpful and when things popped up during the trip, as they always do, she was quick and responsive in helping us adjust. I really appreciate all her work on this trip.

The trip itself was wonderful! A great mix of time spent in Ho Chi Minh and Hanoi with day trips outside the cities and a few getaways in Hoi An and Ha Long Bay. Knowledgeable guides throughout provided insights that we would have missed traveling on our own. All in all, it was a great time, and Ashley/Kimkim were very helpful in making it happen.

We had a wonderful holiday throughout Vietnam & Cambodia. Huyen organised an ideal family itinerary visiting many sights & we met such lovely & funny tour guides who made the holiday memorable. We highly recommend the KimKim team who were always available to answer messages & requests at anytime. Thanks again!

Activity Reviews

Hanoi - Halong Bay Cruise - Overnight on boat

Ha Long Bay

Wonderful service, delicious food & memorable sights.

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Saigon By Night Food Tour - Experience Vietnam on Two Wheels (Small Group tour)

Ho Chi Minh City

Such a fun tour in Saigon, my favourite night of our 2 wk holiday. Thanks to the lovely ladies who drove us around the city & gave us a great insight into the culture of the Vietnamese people.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

We had an excellent trip. Lucy was always helpful and prompt in her support, changing and improving things for us in the planning stage. When we got here everything ran smoothly. Our guides were also excellent. Andy was very knowledgeable and keen to work with us. We especially loved our guide Bau in Sapa . She was very easy to talk to about life in northern Vietnam and even though our second scenic route was not very scenic because of mist she made it a pleasure to be walking with her.

The boat trip in Ha Long Bay also had many plus points. Our room was lovely and the food amazing. We were a bit disappointed that we didn’t get to see much of the bay being mostly in one spot rather than cruising. The swimming and kayaking were very strictly controlled- we didn’t get a second kayaking choice on the cave visit. These were the slight hiccups at the end of our trip.
We loved La Siesta Hotel in Hanoi. The staff were helpful and kind , the Skybar was amazing and the breakfast wonderful. We also loved Le Clos du Fil - a quieter and calmer hotel with a lovely pool and a perfect place to draw breath in our busy trip. Perhaps the hotel in Sapa was not quite up to the standard of the rest? It had great views but it was a bit tired looking in places.

These are small things which I hope you can use in future bookings. We did have an amazing time and we are very grateful to Lucy for putting this in place for us. We hope to be planning our next Kim Kim trip soon!

Janice and Alex

Hien was great and created an amazing trip! the home bases were well chosen. Hanoi with local guide KC was awesome. Loved everything we did and the places he chose for the food tour!
The DuLong cruise was awesome!
Hoi An; the city tour and guide were well done. Loved the cooking class!

Hotel Reviews

Soleil Hanoi Boutique Hotel

Hanoi

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Orchid Trendy Cruise

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Laluna Hoi An Riverside Hotel & Spa

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Aira Hotel Bangkok

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Had to ask for our luggage. Service in dining area slow; servers and egg chef often gone

Cleanliness & Comfort

Panan Krabi Resort

Krabi

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Ms. Vy’s Cooking class - Holiday Master Class - Joint in tour

Hoi An

Enjoyed the market tour, demonstrations and actual cooking!

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Visit Viet Hai Village & Ba Trai Dao (Orchid Cruise)

Ha Long Bay

The 2 nights were perfect!

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Day trip to Ayutthaya & tuk tuk tour (KT)

Bangkok

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Hanoi Street food walking tour (S)

Hanoi

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Exploring Hoa Lu - Tam Coc Boat riding - Mua Cave Full Day

Vietnam

An appropriate alteration was made to part of the trip needing stair climbing that was greatly appreciated

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Hanoi Sightseeing Full Day Tour

Hanoi

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Onboarding Cruise To Lan Ha Bay (Orchid Cruise)

Ha Long Bay

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Half Day at The Elephant Sanctuary Krabi

Krabi

Would have liked to have known more about the specifics, especially the mud and pool activity with the elephants so as to have had appropriate clothes. But would do it again!

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Kayaking in Ao Ech Area - Disembark Cruise (Orchid Cruise)

Ha Long Bay

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Hoi An Half-Day Sightseeing

Hoi An

tea taste, refreshing drink and dance exhibit were perfect!

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Bangkok evening street food tour

Bangkok

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Half day combined Grand Palace Temples city tour

Bangkok

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Hien helped to coordinate, manage and plan an excellent custom trip to Vietnam for my group of eight people. The pace suited my group with lots of varied activities, bicycling, walking, Vespa riding, cruising; and visiting numerous regions with varied landscapes, rural, city, villages, mountains, caves. We explored so much in two weeks and saw so many sites! She was excellent and helpful and her recommendations were well-suited for everyone in the group.

Hotel Review

Pu Luong Eco Garden

Great location with beautiful view and serene surroundings. The pool was peaceful at sundown and provided a nice way to cool down and end the day.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Review

Evening Street Food Tour With Vespa Wanderers

Ho Chi Minh City

So much fun riding on the back of Vespas. The food tour was particularly good with tastings of Banh Mi, Grilled Chicken and Rice, and a visit to a Jazz Bar to cap off the evening!

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

I wanted to express my heartfelt gratitude and thankfulness to Long for planning, coordinating, advice and support to make my trip truly amazing! His attention to detail, constant communication with myself and the drivers, hotels and tour operators was remarkable and made my trip smooth, seamless and stress free so I could just relax and enjoy every moment. I will absolutely be seeking Long’s guidance in planning my next trip to Asia! Thank you Long! 💜

Hotel Reviews

Coco River Resort & Spa

Quang Nam

The Coco River Resort & Spa in Hoi An was wonderful. The hotel's landscaping and setup were stunning. The rooms were very nice, and it was an enjoyable stay.

Royal Crown Hotel & Spa

The Royal Crown Hotel & Spa in Siem Reap, Cambodia, was a great place to stay. I truly loved this hotel, and it stood out as one of my favorites on the trip.

Activity Reviews

Hoi An Sightseeing & Food Tour - Joint in tour

Hoi An

The Hoi An City Sightseeing & Food Tour was just fantastic. The tour was a great way to explore the city while indulging in delicious food and I highly recommend it to anyone visiting Hoi An.

Private Jeep Tour Saigon by Night: Foodie & City tour

Ho Chi Minh City

The Private Jeep Tour Saigon by Night: Foodie & City tour was great. Riding around in a military jeep while sampling different foods was a unique way to experience the city.

Cu Chi Tunnels Half Day Tour - Joint in tour

Ho Chi Minh City

The Cu Chi Tunnels Half Day Tour was really neat. It offered a glimpse into Vietnam's war history, and if you're interested in that aspect, it's a must-do.

Tien Win and Nam were the most amazing guides we ever had! We felt their warmth and pride for their country. We enjoyed every second of our trip and discovered the beauty of Vietnam thru the Kimkim perfect operation .
Minh has been the main player of this trip as I will never been able to pull it off on my own . Thank you Minh for your expertise and promptness in setting up our trip . It was perfect and I will use your services again for our next trip to Japan!

The planning was good and easy and accommodated my asks and adjustments.

Some hotels were not as good as others but all in all they were good. Our favourite was the Bespoke Trendy hotel in Hanoi and our least favourite was the DeLaSoi in Sapa for various reason.

I would also call out that the tour guides wanted to take us to factory tours even when we asked not to go to factory tours.

Hotel Reviews

Paragon Saigon Hotel

Hotel was ok and in a good area with easy walking to sites and places. The staff were very helpful and always available.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

The Saga Hotel Hoi An

Hoi An

Good hotel but if your room is street facing then it could be noisy. Only feedback was that they have a shuttle to the old town but last shuttle stops 5:30 but night market starts 7PM so not easy to go into the old town after 5:30.

Authenticity & Character

The staff were great and very helpful

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

White Lotus Hue Hotel

Hue

Not a great location and not very modern

Authenticity & Character

more a business hotel. Not a great pool or breakfast area.

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Bespoke Trendy Hotel Hanoi

Cant say enough about this hotel. I have NEVER stayed in a hotel that went that far out of their way to accommodate us. They were the best

Authenticity & Character

REally unique and really felt like a bespoke hotel

Location

Great location and in the heart of the city

Staff

They made the visit a pleasure. Helped with everything and were the best. They arranged so much for us and gave us so many tips on where to go and what to do

Cleanliness & Comfort

Chapa Express Train

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

What you would expect on a train

DeLaSol Phat Linh Sapa Hotel

Breakfast was not good. Did not even offer breakfast tea and when we asked for tea nobody could speak English. No staff spoke English so hard to communicate. Food was left open and had fly's on it. very bad breakfast.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Doris Cruise

Very large boat and did not really sail into some of the areas because of the size. It was full to capacity and not very personalized. Felt like over commercialized and were we herded around like cattle. I would not recommend this tour option. They packed the guest into a smaller boat and then picked up other guests form other boats for any off-boat tours (group as large as 40 people on side tours) They were too commercial and were more interested in scale and taking large groups around. Nothing was personalized Meals were not very good, Buffet but very standard and plane and very set (had 45 min each meal to finish and move out)

Authenticity & Character

very commercial

Location

The large boat never really sallied anywhere and we had to get on a smaller board to go anywhere which was a shared boat with all the large boats in the area

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Ho Chi Minh City Highlights

Ho Chi Minh City

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

The Original Taste of Hoi An

Hoi An

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Cycling At Viet Hai Village – Kayaking – Swimming (Doris Cruise 3D2N)

Ha Long Bay

Boat was very commercialized and full capacity (40 people). Teh boat was too large to go into the smaller areas and basicalyl jsut went up and down for 30min cruise. Any acticvyties were off boat at the boat was too large. They then put you into a smaller boat with people from other boats to go swimming or cylcing. Very impersonal and mass tourist with no real engaement.

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

boat does pickup from 4 other boats so waist a lot of time just picking people up and dropping off

Lan Ha Bay – Dark & Bright Cave – Disembark Cruise (Doris Cruise)

Ha Long Bay

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Explore the Cu Chi Tunnels

Ho Chi Minh City

Interesting but a little outdated. The video shown was from 1980 and quality was bad

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Day Trip to the Mekong Delta (Ben Tre)

Ho Chi Minh City

It was a good experience and glad we added

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Hoi An Walking Tour

Hoi An

Tour was good and we enjoyed the foot tasting part. Only part we have a issue with was that theatre show. It was rubbish and there was 100% agreement from the audience that it was a tourist trap. Not worth doing at all

Quality of Experience

remove the theatre show

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Touch the History of Former Imperial Capital - Hue Full Day Sightseeing (S)

Hue

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

A Wonderful Day Experience At Van Lang Fishing Village

Vietnam

Quality of Experience

Food

Food was just ok

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Hanoi Fullday City Tour with Train Track Coffee Enjoying

Hanoi

Have to see it but very tourist trap. Teh old town cycle was ok but guy cycling us around just wanted more money for a tip

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Cyclist complained while cycling us around old town. Went so slow people were going past us and then he asked for double tip

Trek Along the Rice Terraces in Muong Hoa Valley - Visit Lao Chai and Ta Van Villages

Sapa

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Visit Black Hmong Villages of Sa Xeng & Sau Chua

Sapa

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Onboarding - Lan Ha Bay – Ba Trai Dao/ Tra Bau (Doris Cruise)

Ha Long Bay

Very busy and full of tourists.

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Overall this was a good experience. Lucy set everything up for us and all of the transfers were seamless. Our guides and drivers all met us in the hotel lobbies and were very easy to find. This dramatically reduced any travel-related stress. Most of our guides were wonderful and very hospitable. However, I do think there is some room for improvement. I think we felt underprepared for some of the excursions/tours. For example, it was almost 100°F during our walking tour of the rice terraces and our guide spoke little English. While beautiful, this was maybe not the best choice of a tour for this weather. Additionally, we did a tour involving river boats where it wasn’t clear to us ahead of time whether we’d be getting wet and needing swimming gear. In hindsight, I think we also would have reduced the Ha Long Bay trip to maybe just a day visit or gone to Cat Ba instead. In general I think it would have been nice to know what other tour options there were, as we met others along the way that took motorbikes to a waterfall in Pu Luong or saw some folks doing a seaplane tour in Ha Long Bay.

The service provided by our local specialist, Lucy, was superb. Her communication was fantastic and all the plans worked seamlessly. She organised several informative and fun guides, and good transport - and the accommodation was terrific. Have never used kimkim (and not typically used travel agents), so this was a new experience for us - we were delighted with how it went. Found the whole kimkim process very easy to use and the outcome terrific. Thank you so much, Lucy!
Best wishes, Liz (Darwin Australia)

Hotel Reviews

De Syloia Hotel

hanoi

We spent several nights here and thought it fantastic - lovely rooms, friendly and helpful team and a great location.

Authenticity & Character

Beautifully appointed rooms - ours had cool views!

Location

Easy walking distance to lots of fun things (eg Old Quarter and Hoan Kiem Lake), with lots of great food and coffee close by.

Staff

All staff were super friendly and helpful.

Cleanliness & Comfort

Le Clos Du Fil Hotel

Ninh Binh

Found this hotel very charming - loved the embroidery (part of the owner's background); room really comfortable with a view of the sunset over the skyline; also a nice pool.

Authenticity & Character

Cute embroidery featured throughout.

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Gateway Inn Pu Luong

Loved this place! The views were breathtaking, team was lovely, and room was cute with a gorgeous view from the balcony.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Stunning views.

Staff

All staff were lovely.

Cleanliness & Comfort

Signature Cruise

Hanoi

Room was lovely, food spectacular and team extremely friendly.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Very welcoming and helpful throughout. Andy was a great manager, the food was brilliant and drinks on deck very fun!

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Hanoi Evening Walking Street Food Tour with Jazz Music

Hanoi

Our guide, Tim (Trung) was absolutely superb - really entertaining and knowledgeable with a great sense of humour. Also had brilliant communication. Could not have enjoyed our time with him more!

Quality of Experience

Food

Street food experiences were fab!

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Our guide Tim (Trung) was fantastic - great with communication and ideas for what we'd do as well as full of great information and insights. Enjoyed his company immensely.

Jeep Tour The Inside Hanoi - Morning Tour

Hanoi

Food

Had one of my best bowls of pho of the trip!

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Exploring The Natural Beauty of Ninh Binh (Tam Coc - Hang Mua - Bich Dong) (Maximum Personal Experience)

Vietnam

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Very interesting and knowledgeable guide.

Transport

Pu Luong Explore Village Life Water Wheels & Rafting (Excursions)

Vietnam

Beautiful scenery and a very knowledgeable, interesting and friendly local freelance guide.

Quality of Experience

Gorgeous scenery.

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Our guide was lovely and had a lifetime of local insights to share.

Explore Pu Luong Iconic Rice Terrace & Local Brocade (Excursions)

Vietnam

Stunning scenery with a very friendly and insightful local guide.

Quality of Experience

Breathtaking scenery.

Guides, Drivers and Staff

We had a really lovely guide with a lifetime of local insights.

I was very impressed with Realistic Asia’s service. Hien was a fantastic guide, she made the whole end to end process so easy, allowing us to relax and enjoy our trip, from planning our trip to budget, the easy to follow comprehensive itinerary through to the WhatsApp prompts and reminders about timings and drivers.
I really recommend Realistic Asia for a stress free trip!

Hotel Reviews

Hanoi Allure Hotel

Big rooms, nice welcome, attentive staff, friendly and helpful for a late check out and other services when our flight was delayed.

Authenticity & Character

Great decor, it has 2 wings

Location

So central in the old quarter of Hanoi, close to the action!

Staff

attentive staff, friendly and helpful for a late check out and other services when our flight was delayed.

Cleanliness & Comfort

Nice big rooms, quiet air conditioning.

Gateway Inn Pu Luong

A good location, fabulous views with friendly staff.

Authenticity & Character

Furnishings a little bit tired but clean and comfortable

Location

Fantastic views

Staff

So friendly, engaging and happy to help

Cleanliness & Comfort

Would only let us have 1 extra pillow between us but likely because of availability of spares

Lalita Boutique Hotel & Spa Ninh Binh

Sleek hotel with helpful staff.

Authenticity & Character

It has a great rooftop pool and little bar

Location

I couldn’t be sure if they had access to a driver to take us the short way into town, but likely had bikes if we wanted to use as they are on the outskirts

Staff

The receptionist was happy to help us plan the day and organise a driver, had some great tips, thanks!

Cleanliness & Comfort

Pool looked like it could be cleaned a bit more frequently but it wasn’t too bad and I used it without issue, otherwise all good!

Doris Cruise

A quaint little cruise ship with some surprises!

Authenticity & Character

It had a great sized bedroom and bathroom with a huge bath!

Location

Visiting Lan Ha bay which was quieter was a great scoop. It offered some fun activities.

Staff

Very friendly and helpful, when I thought I had lost something they were quick to check it hadn’t been handed in

Cleanliness & Comfort

The toilet flush did stop working and the balcony door was tough to open but nothing major and we had no other concerns.

Activity Reviews

Pu Luong - Caving | Scenic Rice Fields

Pu Luong Nature Reserve

Beautiful countryside, the cave is a little past its best (not many bats live here anymore) but it’s still worth a visit and was welcome way to cool down after the hot trek down and before the hotter trek back up!

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

So great to have a local guide for our 3 trips to share her local knowledge and was also keen to learn about Australia, I hope she visits soon!

Enchanting 19km Off-Road Trekking

Vietnam

Quality of Experience

It was out of season so the waterfall wasn’t as breathtaking as it could have been but a welcome cool off experience.

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

So great to have a local guide Tuyen for our 3 trips to share her local knowledge and she was also keen to learn about Australia, I hope she visits soon! We were blessed and grateful to be invited into Tuyen’s home for some respite on this big trek as it was a hot day. She checked often to ensure we didn’t need a rest. Thanks Tuyen!

Transport

Village Life | Water Wheels | Rafting ( Day3)

Pu Luong Nature Reserve

Lovely to see the working water wheels and experience more village life.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

So great to have a local guide Tuyen for our 3 trips to share her local knowledge and was also keen to learn about Australia, I hope she visits soon!

Transport

Our trip was very well arranged and all the guides and drivers and vehicles were excellent..we ran into rainy weather in Sapa, but entire trip was very enjoyable.