Krista Muuk

Memorable family Vacation to Norway

Krista, Fenne and the Emergency Support team services were great! The trip was planned to what we wanted i.e. to see Norway, experience the culture. The transportation arrangement was excellent. This definitely saved me a lot of time I would have spent in researching and booking myself.

Thank you team!

Many Thanks!
Kristin and Family

The trip to Norway is wonderful and unforgettable. We are four to go on 23 October 2024. We enjoy Bergen but I think too long to stay there. Bergen is a lovely city. We also love Flam , Bodo but Bodo stay 1 night is not enough. Most of all we love more Lofoten. The view there is beautiful. All the trip and activity were all managed well. Your local specialist Krista and Fenne and the 24 customer care is very helpfull. The respond is quick when we need help. Hotel all good and very near to ferry, train station, Unluckily our Aurora hunting was cancelled twice due to bad weather in Lofoten.
But luckily the last day in Bodo we got a very good local guide Mr. Ivar. He is very good, patient, very experience, high responsibility. Actually we already hopeless because the weather is very bad in Bodo. Is raining and snowing. But Mr. Ivar
convince us that we can still see the Northern Lights if we are willing to drive about 6 hours in return to the east. Then we told him we willing. He is very experience tour guide and also driver. AS he said finally we can see the very beautiful Northern Lights. He also help us to take many nice photos. Thanks very much to Kimkim and Mr.Ivar. The car also very nice car include drink and snack. Will introduce Kimkim to my friends

Activity Review

Northern Lights Tour

Bodø

Excellent. Your tour guide Is very good and experience. Without him we were impossible to se the Northern Lights. We thanks Mr. Ivar

Quality of Experience

private transfer, hotel, activity,

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Positives
Krista was very responsive.
Patrick, our guide for “Forest to Fjord” was very good. Please note, however, that our itinerary indicated this would be a two hour experience and it actually was about five hours (10 to 3). Also, we were not informed that we should pack a lunch for this day but managed to purchase food at a mountain cafe.
Particularly good: in Oslo on the island — outdoor Norway folklife, Kon Tiki and the Fram museums.

Negatives:
The Oslo Evening on the fjord dinner trip was too long and had no interpretation. Though a beautiful cruise you might inform clients it’s really a “party” and drinking scene.
The cancellation of our excursion trip to Fjareland was very disappointing—we still await a refund from you. This also led to a lot of spare time with nothing to do in Balestrand, as the weather turned cold.
The payment mix up at Sogndal Quality Hotel was irritating but did get worked out.
It would be helpful to alert future travelers to leaner offerings and closures when traveling so late in September to Norway.

Overall, the service provided by kimkim was very professional & very complete. Krista was very responsive to our inquiries & comments. When we needed assistance, Krista, Fenne, or a member of her team were right there for us.

The route that kimkim suggested for us was very nice and we enjoyed the variety of small towns & larger cities. We were able to follow the route with little or no problems. Our group had rented a van separately from kimkim, and drove ourselves around mostly Norway, although we started & ended in Copenhagen, Denmark.

The hotels kimkim arranged for us were for the most part very satisfactory. They were clean, comfortable and provided a nice breakfast. The Scandic byparken in Bergen didn't quite measure up & I have communicated directly about that with kimkim.

Next, I'll address the RIB tours. The first one we did at Geiranger with Fjord Guiding, which is a fairly large, smooth operation & the boat ride & tour were fantastic. Our guide & driver, Mario was, informative, clever and quite enjoyable. I couldn't have wanted anything more than what Mario provided.
The 2nd RIB tour was with Balestrand Adventure in Balestrand. While this Company is much smaller, they did an adequate job & provided a nice experience. Ole, our guide was informative, and provided a nice history of the area while showing us the beauty of the fjord.
The 3rd RIB tour was in Flom, with FjordSafari, also a fairly large operation. Our guide and driver Lucas was very easy to listen to, and he delivered his story with humor as he easily shared his knowledge of the region. This one was my personal favorite of the RIB tours, and included a stop at a village known for goat cheese.

We took two Gondola rides, and while the views at Andalsnes were obscured by fog at the top half of the mountain, the views at Loen were great. In general the gondola rides were a great experience.

We also took a ride on a Funicular in Bergen, which was a very nice experience. The views of Bergen, a large city, from the top of the mountain was beautiful.

While at Bergen, we took a partial-day trip on a ferry to Rosendal, just under a 2 hour ride each way. While the area near the dock at Rosendal is a nice area, I do think it would be more enjoyable during the summer, in that many shops and restaurants were closed for the season when we were there SEP 14. Apparently there is a larger business area a bit of a hike from the dock which we did not visit. The boat/ferry is very comfortable, but the whole experience does not warrant most of a day, at least not in the off-season.

We also participated in a sauna which was situated on a boat tied up to the dock in Flom. While the activity was fun & certainly different, the experience was somewhat marred by the attitude & actions of the person serving as an attendant. We received little instruction or cautions and he seemed more interested in seeing that we were done by a certain time so he could clean. Not a very welcoming attitude.

In summary, it was a great trip & I would use kimkim again if we were to travel in an area they serve.

Hotel Reviews

Fretheim Hotel

Flåm

The stay at Fretheim Hotel in Flåm was a wonderful experience. The beauty of the territory surrounding the hotel was stunning, and having a balcony added to the overall charm. The dining options both within the hotel and in the surrounding area were very pleasing.

Oset Fjellhotell

Gol

This is a very nice family-run hotel in the mountains above Gol. Great experience, although its a long way from anything else. That's ok, they have everything you need.

Authenticity & Character

family run, you deal with the family.

Location

middle of nowhere.

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Explore Rosendal

Rosendal

Exploring Rosendal during the off-season was a bit underwhelming. The journey took about two hours each way, and the views, though fjord-like, didn't have the same impact as other locations. Many shops and restaurants were closed, affecting our overall experience.

Private Floating Sauna Experience

Norway

The RIB Fjord Safari in Flåm was particularly enjoyable, especially the guide, who was very easy to listen to and made the experience enriching. The stunning scenery and the overall excitement of the RIB ride made it a highlight of the trip.

All of our guides (Oslo, Bergen, 3 in Copenhagen) were excellent. Hotel in Copenhagen (D'Angleterre) was fantastic, the best of the lot. We would have preferred a hotel like that in Oslo. Overall scheduling was really good.

Activity Reviews

Private Copenhagen Food Tour

Copenhagen

This was terrific. Our guide Vincci was great, very knowledgeable and passionate about the Copenhagen food scene and the cultural vibe of the city.

Northern Zealand Private Day Trip with Kronborg & Frederiksborg Castle Visit

Copenhagen

Castles were amazing and our guide was very good,

Private tour Copenhagen Walking Tour & Canal Cruise

Copenhagen

Our guide Joanne was fantastic. Very knowledgable and lots of enthusiasm for Copenhagen. Canal cruise was great.

Fjord Cruise & Seafood Dining Experince

Bergen

This was a lot of fun. The folks at the restaurant did a great job making it a fun evening

Fløibanen Funicular Experience

Bergen

Cultural Walk with a Local in Bergen

Bergen

Bergen is a beautiful city and the walk was nice. Probably a bit too long or perhaps a little far off the beaten path.

Day trip to Fjærland

Norway

Beautiful landscape and sites. Weather wasn't great so views were limited.

Oslofjord Evening Cruise with Prawn Buffet

Oslo

The trip around Oslo was beautiful. The food could have been a lot better.

Full-Day Private City Excursion

Oslo

Our guide was extremely knowledgeable.

Overall we enjoyed our trip very much. The location of the lodgings were all very good and the Farm Stay in Aurland was outstanding. The activities were for the most part good, adequately described and what my granddaughter enjoyed.

What needs improvement:
1. I had to open an internet browser on my phone to get to the itinerary multiple times every day. The links to tickets sent me to a pdf that I could not open. When I was in Portugal through KimKim I had an easy to use app that allowed me to access everything.
2. The details about transitions could have been better. For example information about how to get to our farmstay from Aurland. And clearer instructions about where to find scheduled buses and shuttles, trains etc.
3. I didn't like that I couldn't change train and bus tickets. Flexibility is key when I travel and I was told that I couldn't change a train ticket or a bus ticket several times, so just lost money on that booking and had to rebook myself. For example we were late arriving, the airline delayed our luggage by two days so I had to change our train ticket to Geillo and pay for it. Then once there we we had to get a taxi because we missed our connection. Lots of extra expense because of the inflexibility. This happened several times.
4. We didn't know the Farmstead in Aurland prepared gourmet meals at night as part of the booking. While this was a nice surprise, we would have missed one of the dinners due to a late booking for the Rib Boat tour. Luckily the Farmstay agreed to delay our dinner until we returned. Also luckily they had bikes we could ride back and forth to Aurland-which KimKim did not mention.
5. Had to get a taxi to and from the horseback riding and figure that out ourselves.
6. We enjoyed the rib boat ride, the horseback riding, and the whitewater rafting. The zip lining was a disappointment and didn't seem very safe, and the mountain biking was likewise less than safe. My daughter who is a good bike rider fell and injured her knee and hand.

Absolutely wonderful trip thanks to kimkim’s assistance. Krista was wonderful, very accommodating and patiently answered hundreds of questions for weeks. She assisted with w everything from driving directions to detailed hotel preferences to restaurant suggestions and touristy highlights. We printed her daily itinerary, confirmation numbers, reservations and driving directions as back up in case we couldn’t get online. It was so helpful we ended up using it daily as reference.

Everything went very smoothly without any problems. We received assistance during a minor emergency in the middle of the night.

Thank you Krista and Kimkim. Will definitely use again and highly recommended.

The whole team at Kimkim was amazing. Krista, Fenne and Olivia worked with us at the planning stage, and David and Rufo helped us out while in Norway. All interactions with all of the members were very helpful. All the planned activities were excellent, and so were the private guides. The car transfers between airport and hotels were on time and very good. We had a plane cancelation during the last leg of our trip, but we got immediate help and reassurance on what to do and expect from the Norway airlines.
We will use Kimkim again for our future trips.

Hotel Reviews

Scandic Oslo Airport

Gardermoen

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Scandic Svolvær

Svolvær

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Hotel Brosundet

Ålesund

A very nice boutique hotel! Great breakfast! Excellent a la carte restaurant within the hotel

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Very friendly

Cleanliness & Comfort

Scandic Neptun

Bergen

We had a renovated room which made it good, but not a good view. The hotel was a bit too big for our liking.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Heimly Pensjonat

Flåm

Good and friendly service. Good breakfast and dinner

Authenticity & Character

Location

Fabulous view. A bit away from the main street which was good for us

Staff

Friendly staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Kviknes Hotel

Balestrand

Friendly service, great rooms, great views, great location Both buffet and a la carte dinner available

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Scandic Oslo City

Oslo

Friendly staff, great location for taking earlier trains, a little noisy Great breakfast

Authenticity & Character

Location

close to the train station

Staff

Very helpful and friendly.

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Trollfjord Cruise by Electric Boat

Svolvær

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Geirangerfjord Cruise & Day Trip

Norway

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Fløibanen Funicular Experience

Bergen

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Very modern funicular

Explore Bergen with a local

Bergen

Despite the rain and cold, we had a great experience. Synnøve, the guide was so friendly and knowledgeable

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Synnøve was great!

Cider Tasting with Food Pairing

Balestrand

Really enjoyed this activity - Great hosts

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Oslofjord Sightseeing Cruise

Oslo

A must for any visitor to Oslo

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Oslo private tour

Oslo

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport