Leny Vergara

The trip to Japan was fantastic. Best of all was our local specialist Leny who was on top of every decision and need that we had. She remained in contact with us throughout the trip to make sure that things were running smoothly and to fix them if there was a glitch. She is absolutely great and anyone would be very lucky to have her as their specialist.
Our guides were all good on different levels. They were all enthusiastic and they all knew their stuff. One of them was hard to understand but the rest were fine. We would like to mention a couple of them (Ray who worked with Arigato Travel and took us on a food tour, Kazuyasu Hakata who took us to a beautiful waterfall, Aya who led us in Hiroshima, and Masa who drove us to Mt. Fuji). The hotels were all first rate except one (Candeo in Osaka) which was disappointing due to a surprising "we don't care" staff attitude. Candeo also had the smallest room, would not allow room charges, and had an overpriced restaurant. This was definitely an exception since everyone else in Japan and in every hotel was so nice. Two special events were the stay at the Japanese Inn (ryokan) and the Maiko dinner. Overall it was a terrific trip. Thanks, Leny.

Hotel Reviews

Matsuzakaya Honten

Kanagawa

The experience at this Inn is fantastic and well worth the out-of-the-way trip. We arrived late in the afternoon and would have enjoyed a few extra hours to enjoy the private insen (hot springs hot tub). They serve a wonderful, colorful, delicious dinner. Relax and enjoy the experience if you have the opportunity.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Definitely worth the visit

HOTEL GROOVE SHINJUKU, A PARKROYAL Hotel

Tokyo

Great location. In the center of a very busy and active part of central Tokyo. Lots of people out all the time. Not noisy since the hotel starts on the 17th floor and goes up from there. The staff is good but the room is small. As usual for Japan the space is well allocated. Fine place to stay. Good breakfast with large buffet.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

The Thousand Kyoto

Kyoto

Very nice room with excellent staff. Good buffet breakfast. If you order anything from the front desk, it is delivered to your room quickly and efficiently by a robot that rings your room bell, greets you, and leaves with "have a nice day." Worth the stay for the experience of the future.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Convenient at railway station.

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Sheraton Grand Hiroshima Hotel

Hiroshima

Very large room. Lots of modern conveniences. Great breakfast buffet. Really nice stay in every way.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Near railway station.

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Candeo Hotels Osaka The Tower

Osaka

Very disappointing. The only staff in Japan that was unfriendly and unhelpful. Hotel restaurant was very expensive and the staff there was not helpful. Would not even allow us to charge our meal to our room. Breakfast buffet was ok but not memorable. Also location is in the middle of a concrete jungle in Osaka--not much around the hotel.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Just large buildings in the area. Not convenient.

Staff

Had a "we don't care" attitude.

Cleanliness & Comfort

The Blossom Hibiya

Minato

The room was a bit small and the location is not central. The staff was very nice and friendly. Breakfast buffet was okay--not great but not bad.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Not much around the area.

Staff

Very helpful

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Best Of Shibuya Food Private Tour - Evening

Tokyo

We were not sure what to expect and we were surprised how great it was. The guide (Ray from Arigato Travel) took us to local restaurants in Tokyo that specialize in foods from other parts of Japan. Best sushi we had the whole trip. It was great fun and definitely recommend it.

Quality of Experience

Food was delicious and fun at the same time.

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Ray of Arigato Travel is a delight and enthusiastic.

Transport

on foot made it more fun as you see the neighborhood

Yanaka Historical Walking Tour in Tokyo's Old Town

Tokyo

Very old part of Tokyo is so different from the center of the city. Many quiet streets and also cemeteries. Very nice contrast and learned a lot. NIce guide.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

on foot but that is the only way to see the neighborhood

Full Day Kamakura & Yokohama Tour with English Speaking Guide (Private)

Tokyo

Quality of Experience

Worth seeing the Great Buddha statue

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Guide was very good.

Transport

Tokyo to Hakone Private Transfer: Mt. Fuji and Hakone Full-Day Tour with English-Speaking Driver

Japan

Spent several hours watching the clouds over Mt. Fuji. Relaxing, fun, and well worth the time.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Masa was the driver and it was delightful to spend the day with him.

Transport

Good driver and nice person.

Relaxing Evening: Private Onsen and Kaiseki Dinner

Hakone

Definitely a highlight of the entire trip. Beautiful Japanese Inn with private onsen and delicious and colorful private dinner (Kaiseki). Totally not to be missed.

Quality of Experience

Amazing is a good word for this experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Masa was driver--excellent English and nice person.

Transport

by car--hard to get there otherwise

Traditional Tea Ceremony at Tondaya Machiya

Kyoto

Delightful insight into old Japanese tradition. Loved the experience.

Quality of Experience

Dinner with Maiko in a Traditional Kyoto Style Restaurant Tour (Small Group)

Kyoto

Very special experience with Geisha (Geiko) who answered questions openly and gracefully. Another do not miss moment.

Quality of Experience

Sayonara Japan!

Japan

Ride to airport was efficient and uneventful. On time--no problem.

Full Day Hiroshima & Miyajima with English Guide (Private)

Hiroshima

An important visit certainly for Americans who share this historical moment with Japan. Moving and worthwhile. Miyajima is very pretty if a bit touristic.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Aya was a wonderful and thoughtful guide.

Welcome (Irrashaimase) to Tokyo!

Tokyo

The group that was supposed to pick us up went to the wrong terminal and we waited over an hour. That was not fun after the long flight from the U.S.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Half-Day Osaka Tour with English-Speaking Guide (Private)

Japan

Osaka Castle is nice to see but the Meiji era museum was the best part of the day.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Leny /KimKim delivered an exceptional A 1 travel experience. I rate their company 5 stars.
Leny and team were my travel partners.
They designed a unique dream adventure to Japan and Korea.
There were so many bonus excursions and surprises!
The biggest surprise was a birthday cake presented by a Maiko.
I am forever grateful.
AD

Since I was taking kids and parents (3 generations) to Japan for the first time and wanted to explore all over, having an expert help with the route and planning was perfect! Leny was great and nailed it with a good blend of guided tours, experiences, and self-exploration days. Loved having all the tickets and reminders communicated in WeChat. Everything was well organized. We can’t wait to return to Japan!

The entire team was very supportive both before and during our trip. We were very pleased.

Our 1/2 day guide of Tokyo, Tatsuki, was extremely accommodating, full of information, and we appreciated the time we spent with him.

Our other guides, one for the Shibuya crossing food tour and the other, Yuki, for our Tsukiji Fish Market tour were great as well.

We will definitely recommend KimKim to others and will use you again for future travels.

Hotel Review

Karaksa hotel grande Shin-Osaka Tower

Osaka

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Welcome to Osaka

Japan

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Welcome (Irrashaimase) to Tokyo!

Tokyo

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Half Day Tokyo Tour with a Multilingual Guide by Public Transportation (Private)

Tokyo

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Best Of Shibuya Food Private Tour - Evening

Tokyo

The restaurants and food choices were great, but there was too much food! We would have enjoyed sampling food more than full meals at each stop. We were so full that by the 3 stop that we could hardly finish!!!

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Tokyo Tsukiji Fish Market Food Walking Tour

Tokyo

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Our travel specialist Leny was awesome! This was a bucket list trip for my friend and I and we really had no idea how to get the most out of our time in Japan. That was were Leny was able to step in and help forge together a great plan to see as much of the country as possible in 9 days. She helped us with all of the details and had great suggestions throughout the planning and even during our trip to help everything go smoothly. We can NOT say enough positive things about the whole experience. Just a big THANK YOU!!!

Leny was very helpful to customize and make MANY changes to our trip based on our requests.
Her team was also there during the actual trip to check up on us and help with any last minute needs.
I highly recommend her!

Hotel Reviews

Hotel Vista Tokyo Tsukiji

Good location Rooms are quite small.

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Shizutetsu Hotel Prezio Kyoto-Shijo

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

hotel MONday Premium Ueno Okachimachi

Tokyo

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Half Day Tokyo Tour with English Speaking Guide (Private)

Tokyo

Very nice and knowledgeable guide, but his accent in English made it a bit hard to understand him sometime

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Sushi Making Experience: Craft Authentic Sushi

Kyoto

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

We had an amazing family trip to Japan. Leny and her team were wonderful to work with from beginning to end. We asked for her to cut the original cost in half, which she managed to do and still secure us a very nice itinerary and accommodations.

All of our planned activities as well as our self guided day suggestions were a great fit for our family. It was the best vacation we have ever had with our two teenagers, who are not always an easy age to travel with or keep engaged.

The night at the ryokan in Hokone was an unforgettable traditional Japanese experience. We also loved Hotel Brighton in Kyoto as we were able to rent bicycles from the hotel and enjoy Kyoto on bike.
We especially loved all of the animals we got to encounter while in Japan. The deer in Nara, the Monkeys at Arashiyama (Kyoto) and the Otters/owls/kapibara/meerkat at the “Cute otter cafe” in Tokyo. We also really enjoyed our ramen making class in Osaka as a family and our visit to TeamLabs in Tokyo.
A couple of items that weren’t on the itinerary that we loved was going to a Giants game in Tokyo, the Kyoto Railroad Museum, and visiting the Aquarium in Osaka.
Truly a trip of a lifetime. We will certainly be using KimKim and Leny’s services for traveling again in the future. It was our first time using a service like this and I can’t even begin to thank Leny and her team enough. They made our 2 weeks in Japan together go so smoothly. They were regularly checking in and reminding us of any updates and itinerary items. All of our documents were arranged and ready for us ahead of time and all worked as expected. This experience has changed how I will travel from now on.

We are so grateful to Leny for planning an absolutely extraordinary journey through Japan. Every moment—from the vibrant cities to the peaceful countryside—was filled with wonder, discovery, and joy. The itinerary was beautifully paced and thoughtfully curated, allowing us to experience both iconic highlights and more intimate, local treasures.

What truly made the trip exceptional were the incredible guides and experiences Leny arranged for us. Each guide brought Japan to life in their own unique way, sharing not only knowledge but heart. We felt connected, engaged, and constantly inspired.

There were a couple of small details around room types that could have used a bit more attention, but they were far outweighed by the richness and depth of the overall experience.

Thank you, Leny, for giving us a trip we will remember forever—with full hearts and deep gratitude.

I was a little nervous initially booking through the platform, but I could not be happier. Leny made the process so easy suggesting best itinerary for our family trip to Japan. I was given options with an easy feedback process to finalise our trip. Once the trip started Leny ensured daily updates and reminders through WhatsApp which was extremely helpful. Each tour guide we had also reached out two days prior to meeting to double check I had the meeting information and go over the plan. We had great tour guides, amazing experiences and a truly unforgettable trip! Thank you for making it all so easy!