Elisa Sciabica

Our trip was amazing in every way. Each person that we dealt with was professional, friendly, on time and very knowledgeable. Our accommodations were well located and very comfortable.

A special shout out to Marco who gave us a spectacular experience on our hike of the Valley of the Mills. Alfonso who guided us on the wine tasting in Amalfi Coast was very knowledgeable. The lunch was fantastic.

Our guide Ivan in Pompeii was also very knowledgeable and was a great guide. Christian who gave us a Wine tour in the Tuscan countryside was very friendly and knowledgeable.

We enjoyed our walking tour of Rome with Fiona who gave us lots of history and made the tour very interesting. Paola who guided us on a walking tour of Siena was very knowledgeable and explained in great detail the communities of walled city and its traditions including the annual horse races.

Montalcino Tours Chirra our driver and Giovanni our on-foot guide provided us with a most memorable day hiking 10K through the vineyards and ending with a delicious and much deserved lunch with the best wine.

I cannot recommend this company enough. We had the most seamless experience visiting both Rome and the Amalfi coast this July. Our planners Gabriele and Elisa paid attention to every detail, ordering cars, train tickets, and ferries, and also planning excursions that fit our goals for our trip. The communication and teamwork was excellent to make our trip as perfect as possible. Our transfer service via private car arrived early for us every time and always got us where we needed to go with complimentary water bottles ready for us. We felt like we got to see and experience almost all of the most beautiful things in both Rome and the Amalfi coast. Our planners were extremely flexible when trying to make adjustments that fit our budget, so don’t be afraid to ask for edits when they send you ideas for your trip.

Highlights from our trip and things we would recommend are: A vespa tour around Rome (you have a driver and it’s so fun and quick to see the city this way), cooking class in Rome, seeing the Colosseum (we didn’t go in, but still amazing) and St. Peter’s Basilica (free entry, go early for a short line). In Amalfi coast we loved staying in our slow, family friendly town of Maiori, touring Pompeii, and taking the ferry to other cities on the coast. They made everything so easy. Definitely plan your trip with KimKim!

Hotel Reviews

Hotel Panorama

Maiori

Hotel panorama was a cute hotel in the middle of a family friendly town. We loved the quietness and we thought that the hotel was comfortable. The rooms are cute, very minimal decoration and our window wasn’t able to open because we overlooked the roof. The lighting could be a little bit better in there and the TV was a standard one with channels only in Italian. It was a very nice location to the beach, but you do have to pay to get an umbrella and chairs. The pool area had a few sets of chairs in the pool is small and shallow. The workers were so friendly and helpful and all the food we had in the area was amazing. We loved playing cards on the rooftop terrace and grabbing a drink while looking out at the view.

Authenticity & Character

Cute hotel, kind workers

Location

Easy walk to everything

Staff

Everyone was very helpful

Cleanliness & Comfort

Hotel Modigliani

Roma

We enjoyed our stay at hotel Modigliani. The location was central to walk to everything, we did not buy a single taxi when in Rome. It was nice that it was tucked away in a quiet street away from the hustle and bustle. The beds were a little hard and our shower door was missing, The breakfast was pretty small with not a lot of selection. Otherwise, the front desk was always available and helpful.

Authenticity & Character

Cute and chic vibes

Location

Quiet, away from the business, but still central

Staff

Front desk people were kind & available

Cleanliness & Comfort

Very clean. Beds & pillow could be a little better

Activity Reviews

Arrivederci, Italy!

Italy

Our drivers were amazing our whole time in Italy. Spend the extra money to get private transfers.

Private guided tour of Pompeii

Italy

Pompei was a very good experience with a very experienced and kind tour guide. It was beautiful and we would recommend viewing it with an in person tour guide such as Ivan who was so kind rather than with the headphones.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Market Tour & Cooking Class

Rome

This was a super fun experience. We did the five hour tour where we got to go to the market and pick up food for the meals and then we got to cook a five course meal. But the food quality was amazing and we learned a lot! They even send you all the recipes to take home with you!

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Vespa Tour with Food Tasting

Rome

This is our favorite experience throughout our time in Italy. Our two guides were so kind and intentional. We got to drink wine and eat cheese in a cave, which was a super cool experience. It was the best way to see the city, hands-down. We got to see so many things and a beautiful view of the entire city. We felt safe the entire time which was initially a worry for us. They ask where you have and haven’t been and made us a list of places to go on a Rome map. So kind! It was so fun and we’d highly recommend.

Quality of Experience

Best experience we did in Rome hands down.

Guides, Drivers and Staff

So kind and helpful and take feedback

Transport

So fun, quick and safe. Best way to see the city.

Guided Walking Tour of Rome

Rome

Mauricio made this tour so fun and intentional. We were pretty tired from a long day of travel, but he met us where we were at. He took us to get gelato and showed us the pantheon Trevi fountain, Piazza Navona, and the Spanish steps. He also took pictures for us and gave us a history of each spot

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Limoncello Experience & Tasting

Italy

Quality of Experience

Kind of felt a little rushed. Didn’t get to do a lot, just watched and tasted.

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Kind, cared about his product.

Transport

So many stairs. It said this activity was walkable, but this was a whole workout.

Everything went effortlessly. All the ride transitions from the airport to the train station to the hotel to the tours were scheduled for us and arrived on time and were great companies. The hotel choices made by the team at kimkim were perfect and in ideal locations. The tour was excellent. There were no issues on the whole trip everything went according to the plan and was better than I could have hoped for.

Hotel Reviews

Hotel Scalinata di Spagna

Rome

Great location at the top of the Spanish steps. Many sites within 10 minutes walk. And other attractions like the Colosseum are a 10 minute taxi ride. Beautiful rooms with your own terrace. Friendly helpful staff.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Walking distance to many historical sites and short drive from the Colosseum.

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Hotel Palazzo Guadagni

Florence

Great location. Authentic feel. Beautiful rooftop bar. Awesome views from the room. Service was impeccable.

Authenticity & Character

Quaint and charming.

Location

Everything is within a 5-10 minute walk.

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Review

Day trip in the Tuscan countryside, wine tour, lunch and guided visit to San Gimignano

Italy

I wasn't originally in favor of doing tours but this ended up being one of the highlights of the trip. The tour takes you to several locations and gives you an authentic experience.

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Very knowledgeable and professional guides and drivers.

Transport

This was our 2nd time using kimkim; it's unlikely there will be a 3rd time.

We made clear when we planned this trip we wanted 4 rooms in Florence and 3 rooms in Rome (we were a group of 6 for 6 nights, and 5 for 3 nights). Kimkim only booked us 3 rooms in Florence, and we had to pay extra, at the last minute, for a fourth room which we were only able to secure for 2 of 4 nights in Florence. In Rome, we learned just before departing for Italy that kimkim had booked us only one room; thus, at the last minute, we had to pay way too much just to get a 2nd tiny room that three grown women had to share. This was a major error by kimkim.

In each Italian location, we had to pay an additional amount for "city taxes" about which kimkim never told us; they absolutely should have told us about this ahead of time.

Kimkim booked us on several tours. Some were very good, but too many of the booked tours were unsatisfactory because the guide was poor, the tour itself was just bad, or the audio quality was quite poor. There were instances where kimkim didn't provide detail where to go for the tour, told us incorrect start times, or provided incorrect travel times to get to the tour.

Given the money we paid, we didn't expect to take any tours with other people, but in two instances we were provided poor quality tours with at least 15 additional people. A tour of the Vatican was promoted as a 3 hour tour, but was only 2 hours, and we felt VERY rushed. Moreover, the guide failed to take us to St. Peter's Basilica, which we believe should be the highlight of any Vatican tour.

The driver Kimkim scheduled to take us to the Rome airport at 6:30 am failed to show up, causing us to scramble and squeeze into a tiny taxi. Multiple times during the trip, including when we attempted to figure out why the driver didn't show up, kimkim failed to answer its own after-hours "emergency line", which was absolutely inexcusable.

Bottom line ... for the substantial amount we paid, we expected a dramatically better experience.

We used KimKim for a trip to Croatia two years ago and had a wonderful experience. To the extent we had any issues, our Croatian kimkim travel agent gave us her phone number so that if/when we had issues, we had instant contact with her. Kimkim Italy did not provide us with similar information causing us much stress when we had issues.

Kimkim should be highly embarrassed about our experience. To make up for its errors, kimkim ultimately gave us about a 3% refund of the amount we paid ... ridiculously inadequate.

My trip to Italy was my first experience abroad, and I had a great time! Elisa at KimKim was exceptional in her organization and exhibited high service excellence. A couple of minor issues were quickly and uneventfully resolved, and Elisa showed empathy and interest in our experience. The itineraries were terrific, and I learned a lot each day. Elisa responded to questions in a timely manner and I felt well cared-for from her end.

I have never used a travel agent before, and this was a wonderful experience. I am already thinking about a return trip to Italy, and I will consult with Elisa again!

Truly the trip of a lifetime! Elisa was incredible. She listened to what we wanted, took care to plan every detail and was super responsive with any questions both before and during our trip.

Planning for 11 people across 3 families is a challenge, but Elisa and the KimKim team made it look easy!

Activity Reviews

Milano Aperitivo Street Food Tour

Milan

Our tour guide genuinely went above and beyond!

Quality of Experience

Rialto Market & Cicchetti Food Tour

Venice

The food was spectacular and our guide Frederico was amazing! He had great stories, knew so much about the area and treated us to some of the most amazing dishes.

Quality of Experience