Renata Mederios Guglielmetti

From the beginning to the end the planning and execution of our trip exceeded expectations. Our local specialist Renata was responsive and very helpful. Our guide, Felipe, was very thoughtful and very knowledgeable. He took care of the smallest details (booster seat for a child) and personalized the tour with our interests in mind. He was very responsive and quickly changed plans after an unexpected schedule change. Our favorite stops - Samba School, Christ the Redeemer, and the Botanical Garden. We also enjoyed Little Africa and the Selaron steps.

All three guides (Luis in Rio, Lillian in The Pantanal, and Orico in Iguazu) were stunningly good.

Renata was great at providing various updates through the planning process, and dealing with some changing schedules.
But we ended up doing a lot of the work that we thought a travel agent would assist with. For example, we often found the better way to travel throughout the country and which flights to take instead of relying on her. Also in the past travel specialists have provided us with "must do" things or provided more guidance, and we were kind of left to do a lot of that ourselves.

Further, there were some things - like making sure water bottles were in the cars - were completely overlooked.

Hotel Reviews

Belmond Hotel das Cataratas

Foz do Iguaçu

Worth the extra money to be in the park. Sunset in the tower is a must do.

Juma Amazon Lodge

Autazes

It was fun staying in the tree lodges. But, there was no a/c.

Hotel Intercity Manaus

Manaus

It was fine, but nothing special. Good breakfast.

Activity Reviews

Iguaçu Falls Hike on the Argentina Side & Gran Aventura Boat Tour

Foz do Iguaçu

Amazing and our guide here was awesome.

Adventures in the Jungle Lodge (JL - Day 2)

Brazil

Some great activities. Wish there was a little more to do.

Transfer by hidroplane & immersion in the rainforest (JL - Day 1)

Brazil

We had a fantastic trip. Renata did an excellent job planning our Brazil trip which include visiting the Amazon, Iguazu Falls (both sides) and time in Rio. We loved our stay at Turtle Lodge in the Amazon and both our guides for Iguazu Falls and Rio were great. All our airport pick ups and drop offs went great as well. We hope to visit Brazil again. Thanks for a wonderful trip

Hotel Reviews

Arena Leme Hotel

Rio de Janeiro

Great views of the beach.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Sanma Hotel Foz do Iguaçu

Foz do Iguaçu

Nice hotel. Breakfast was great. Pool fantastic. Really close to the Falls. Room a bit small for King size bed and AC blew annoyingly in our face throughout the night.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Amazon Turtle Lodge

Great place to see Amazon. Staff were great our guide was super informative.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Hotel Intercity Manaus

Manaus

The front staff were great, both friendly and informative. Rooms were comfortable, but a little rough in spots, such as cabinets in bathroom coming undone or the multiple mysterious stains on white wall that look like had not been cleaned for awhile.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Closer to main square

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

See above

Activity Reviews

Adventures in the Jungle Lodge (Turtle Lodge - Day 5) and Transfer to Manaus International Airport (MAO), Departure

Brazil

Day Tour of Sugarloaf Mountain (walking trail) and Christ the Redeemer Statue

Rio de Janeiro

Edwin was a great tour guide. He took us all around Rio, while giving us both a history and culture lesson of Brazil.

Iguaçu Falls Hike on the Argentina Side & Gran Aventura Boat Tour

Foz do Iguaçu

Bike & Hike on the Brazilian Side of the Falls and visit to the Bird Park

Foz do Iguaçu

Our Guide Orico was amazing. He was informative, friendly and dedicated. Orico goes out of his way for his tourists.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Adventures in the Jungle Lodge (Turtle Lodge - Day 4 - 4NPackage)

Brazil

Adventures in the Jungle Lodge (Turtle Lodge - Day 3)

Brazil

Adventures in the Jungle Lodge (Turtle Lodge - Day 2)

Brazil

Food

Good, bit repetitive at times

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Transfer & immersion in the rainforest (Turtle Lodge - Day 1)

Brazil

We had an excellent time and will certainly my use KimKim again.
While initially we had to get aligned with Renata, she was great. Renata went out of her way to meet our needs before the trip and during the trip. Really appreciated her.
Our guide in Rio, Bruno was sensational. We loved having him. Would recommend him to anybody. Truly amazing.
The anavilhana lodge was truly beautiful. All the personnel there were excellent. Nothing but accolades.

Hotel Reviews

Arena Copacabana Hotel

Rio de Janeiro

Authenticity & Character

Location

Cleanliness & Comfort

Arena Ipanema

Rio de Janeiro

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Anavilhanas Jungle Lodge

Novo Airão

Absolutely amazing!!! Loved all the personnel especially the guides.. Kendrick, Ramon, etc Truly an amazing experience e

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Full Days at the Anavilhanas Jungle Lodge

The Amazon

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Half-Day Tour of Sitio Burle Marx, Rio de Janeiro

Rio de Janeiro

Simply amazing… truly awesome experience

Quality of Experience

Trip solid, but not perfect.
Renata was super helpful and very responsive. She was very good, and a pleasure to deal with in setting things up. A big thank you to her!!

The hotels were good, and very much inline with what I had asked for. That worked well. I am happy with the quality of the hotels given the quality/star level I requested. They fit the bill and were what I wanted and needed.

The logistics and information about contacting guides, and WhatsApp info was great, and very helpful in staying connected with guides.

The guides were all satisfactory to very good. It varied. Their English was all very good, and so there was no communication problem. Orico Soni Machado was fine to ok in Foz. He did was was needed, but he was busy preparing to leave on a personal trip the next day, and seemed distracted by that. He did though get me to the helicopter excursion, and that worked well; he clearly knew the area. His nephew helped to the final transfer to the airport, and helped me get boarding passes; he was responsive and communicative. Orico was fine, but I think he was ready for his personal trip the next day. The use of a group tour for the Argentine side worked very well, and the local guide, I've forgotten his name, did a fine if outstanding job keeping us moving and keeping track of us. This also kept costs down, and did not need to be a private trip. Good decision on that.

The best guide was Rocco Belletti. He also did both transfers to and from Paraty. He was very kind, and helped me understand Brazil, and gave me much information in general about his time as an immigrant to Brazil from Italy. He was top notch. He also gave me great recommendations on restaurants, and food to try and enjoy. He also went above and beyond and recommended a free Samba concert in Paraty. This ended up being one of the highlights of my entire trip because it was so nontouristic and filled with locals.

In Rio, Patricia was very professional, and did her absolute best to keep me safe and interested. She was very protective as I mentioned my concerns about safety. In my one free half day, things were fine, but I almost had my cell phone stolen from my shirt pocket on a street with people on it, during daylight. I only mention this to make you aware of this as Rio clearly remains a semi dangerous city. There is nothing Patricia could have done differently, and she was not on this half free day. It was after the group tour to Sugarloaf and Cristo the Redeemer. Again, it was a good decision to do those as group tours, and there would be no advantage to do those privately. The transfer to the airport was fine, on time and safe.

Overall, however, the private tours in both Paraty and Rio just seemed to lack something. They were only ok, and not terrifically interesting. In particular, the gold tour in Paraty just did not seem to have much of a point other than a short hike, the tasting at the end was rather perfunctory, and not super interesting. In addition, the Rio tours were ok, but I guess I did not learn too too much, but I did get good photos. Maybe I was expecting too much, but the private tours, though I did see what was advertised in the trip information I was given, just seemed uninspired. Not sure if I would not have been better off with more group, public tours to different areas rather than private tours in those two areas.

Lastly, the travel book info packet was very helpful having all the info in one place and in one document. It was very well organized and had all the info I needed in an organized fashion. Thank you Renata for that, and answering all my questions.

If any questions about my comments, feel free to contact me. I'm happy to elaborate.

Hotel Reviews

Windsor Martinique Copacabana

Copacabana, Rio de Janeiro

Authenticity & Character

Safe place

Location

Great location between Copacabana beach, with easy walk to Ipanema beach

Staff

Very courteous and helpful

Cleanliness & Comfort

I felt very safe in this hotel

Taroba Hotel

Foz do Iguacu

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Pousada do Principe

Paraty

Loved this hotel. Best on the trip.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Full-Day Group Tour Corcovado and Christ the Redeemer + Pão de Açúcar (Sugarloaf)

Rio de Janeiro

Group tour was best way to see the iconic sights where there is not much to add other than seeing the two landmarks.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Carioca Lifestyle and Carnival Culture (by Public Transport)

Rio de Janeiro

Not sure what we really were seeing, but just walked old part of the city and saw many churches. Did not really seem like we had a precise plan of what we were going to see. It was ok, but no real theme to it.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Gold Trail Tour

Paraty

Rocco was great, just the activity did not seem to have a lot of point to it other than a short hike outside of Paraty

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Walking Tour of Paraty

Paraty

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Exploring the Brazilian Falls & Bird Park

Foz do Iguaçu

I did the bird park on my own, and Orico was helpful during the Iguazu Falls portion of the half day.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Full-Day Group Tour Argentinean Side Falls

Foz do Iguaçu

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Andrea in São Paulo, Diana in Foz do Iguazu and Patricia in Rio. All the 3 of them with the drivers did an excellent job. They did their job above and beyond. I can recommend them to anybody especially to my family and friends. The entire trip was amazing. My hats off to Renata who did a wonderful planning, coordinating in smooth fashion. Thank you KimKim team!
Regina Estorninos

Hotel Reviews

Windsor Palace

Rio de Janeiro

Love the location most. Excellent service.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Nadai Confort Hotel

Foz do Iguacu

Excellent service, Great location

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Estanplaza Paulista Hotel

São Paulo

Excellent service

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Experience the Carioca Lifestyle

Rio de Janeiro

Just enjoyed everything

Quality of Experience

K

Transport

Day Tour of Sugarloaf Mountain (walking trail) and Christ the Redeemer Statue

Rio de Janeiro

Everywhere we went was incredible, amazing

Quality of Experience

Standing right at foot of Christ the Redeemer Statue. Was able to attend mass at 3:00 pm at Chapel of Our Lady of Aparecida at the the back pedestal of the statue. We met Fr. Raphael

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Welcome to Rio de Janeiro

Rio de Janeiro

All I can say, I love Rio, the place and people. I wanna go back one day.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Iguaçu Falls Hike on the Argentina Side

Foz do Iguaçu

Oh my God, tell me about it , the Garganta do Diablo is nothing comparison to the other falls I have seen. Just amazing

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Safe divers

Exploring the Brazilian Falls & Bird Park

Foz do Iguaçu

Another dream fulfilled visiting and seeing in my own eyes God’s amazing creation the Iguazu Fall. also discovered different kinds of birds and species that i have never seen before.

Quality of Experience

Full-Day Aparecida do Norte City Tour

São Paulo

So blessed, at least to fulfill my dreams to visit Our Lady of Aparecida. Brought my family and friends, everyone were amazed and touched by our Lady. It was the highlight of our pilgrimage. I can share my experiences to the world

Full-Day Catholic Tour

São Paulo

Love visiting religious site, places and learning history

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

The trip was seamless and easy as KimKIm Travel set all in motion based on all of our needs and desires. Guides awaited us at every leg of our journey. Renata planned a great trip. We absolutely adored Bruno, our guide in Rio. He was kind, caring of our needs, and surpassed any expectations we might have had. The Availhanas lodge in the Amazon was amazing. The staff, particularly Pedro and Kenrick (one of our guides) went over and above any of our expectations.....The iguazu falls were spectacular and then we ended with our last day back with Bruno. An overall perfect trip -

Hotel Reviews

Arena Copacabana Hotel

Rio de Janeiro

love the location - again just a place to spend a night - breakfast buffet as well great -

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Nadai Confort Hotel

Foz do Iguacu

just a place to spend the night - as always breakfast buffet great

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Anavilhanas Jungle Lodge

Novo Airão

an amazing experience from beginning to end - all the staff amazing - activities, meals, guides made everything seamless -

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Hotel Intercity Manaus

Manaus

only there for a night prior to our amazon trip but staff kind and breakfast buffet decent

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Arena Ipanema

Rio de Janeiro

food was not good at dinner - buffet breakfast fine

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Carioca Lifestyle and Carnival Culture (by Public Transport)

Rio de Janeiro

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Full Days at the Anavilhanas Jungle Lodge

The Amazon

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Iguaçu Falls Hike on the Argentina Side

Foz do Iguaçu

spectacular views

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Half-Day Tour of Sitio Burle Marx, Rio de Janeiro

Rio de Janeiro

this is a definite must see if you want to see the authenticity of the area outside of the big city -

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

We had an exceptional experience with Renata at KimKim as well as the local guides with Bravo Brazil. Everything went off without a hitch. Everyone was so professional and courteous. We would definitely book another trip with KimKim. Very impressed!

Hotel Review

Pousada Pequi

Aquidauana

This is an absolute gem of a place. It is so unique, the food is amazing, and the staff were really exceptional. The tours were so much fun and so interesting and we all had a good time from teenager to adult!

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Review

Hiking & Waterfalls at Boca da Onça farm

Bonito MS

This hike was absolutely gorgeous. Honestly, it blew all of us away. We felt like we were in a movie :-) The waterfalls are incredible! This was definitely a highlight of our trip!

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

We had an amazing trip. Everything was seamlessly taken care of for us. This is my first time not doing an organized group tour (I have done more than 40), and this was by far the better way to travel. Renata was able to find things that we never would have been able to do. Our locals guides were exceptional. Manuela, our Pantanal guide, was friendly, reliable, knowledgeable, and honestly really fun. Our stay at Barra Mansa was by far our favorite part of the trip. The folks there legitimately made us feel like we were at home. Manuela, also followed up to assist us in making bookings in Sao Paulo. She was fantastic.

Dai, our Bonito guide, was funny, had so many interesting stories, and was not afraid of jumping in and doing the adventure stuff alongside us. She made sure everything was taken care of for us.

Rocco, our Paraty guide, not only drove us all the way from Sao Paulo but also had extensive knowledge of the local history. He also recommended some places for our favorite meals on the entire trip. He went above and beyond to assist us in booking a last minute boat tour.

Bruno, our Sao Paulo guide, was extremely knowledgeable and able to read our group and pivot on a dime to make instant changes to our itinerary that suited us (MASP was amazing!). We all loved Sao Paulo by the end of the day.

Overall, it was an excellent trip. I can't say enough about how kind the people were, how delicious the food, and how beautiful the scenery. I would highly recommend using Kim Kim. We'll certainly be booking with them again.

As a minor detail, the GRU airport transfer and airport hotel we stayed at twice was the only negative experience we had the entire time. The GRU hotel van transfer was nearly impossible to figure out, especially after an overnight trip. We ended up getting a taxi, which was much quicker and more convenient. I wish we had just done that up front and saved us trekking all over the airport while exhausted only to not find the connection.

The airport hotel we stayed at in GRU was conveniently located and had a good breakfast but was otherwise somewhere I would not recommend to anyone. We ended up in the same room a week apart and it very clearly hadn't been cleaned other than the beds being remade. The bathroom was dirty and unhygienic, the table tops sticky, and something I had accidentally left 6 days earlier was still on the floor (which, I guess was lucky). It was also extremely loud and had an odd smell in the rooms.