Samantha Slais

We really enjoyed our trip to Australia. Thank you for helping us schedule it.
Here is some feedback for you:

The Brady Hotel Jones Lane was OK. Not as nice or as spacious a room as the one that we had at the Park Hyatt (which is a super nice hotel0. The Brady Jones Hotel was conveniently located and the front desk people were really pleasant but the room was small and the TV never worked (despite several people coming up from the staff to confirm that it was broken...lol). This was a problem only because my husband was trying to watch his team play a March Madness basketball game.

The private trip to Mornington Peninsula was great! We loved our driver/guide Nicci from Epicurean, She took us to a diverse group of wineries and to a wonderful lunch. 10/10 Perfect day!

The car rental from Sixt was a thrash initially because they didn't have the type of car we rented. Lovely people working there but the system was so disorganized. We were not only group that ended up waiting for over an hour to get our car. Eventually they gave us a bigger car for the same price and allowed us to return it without a full tank without charging for the difference in the amount of gas (gas is super pricey there due to the war in Iran). Otherwise no problems with the car and the return was easy.

The trip along the Great Ocean Road was amazing!! We drove about 4 hours each day I think. There are lots of signs warning motorists to watch out for kangaroos crossing the road and they are not kidding since I almost hit one when driving to Robe in the dusk. I will attach photos from Apollo Bay at sunset and the Twelve Apostles if I can.
The cottage at Anchors Port Campbell was wonderful. Spacious with huge windows overlooking the lovely surrounding countryside. Tanya was a gracious hostess and provided us with coffee, cereal, milk, and even a bottle of wine. Lovely place and well situated near the Twelve Apostles so that it was easy to beat the rush of tourists coming from Melbourne in the morning

The Vibe Hotel in Adelaide was nice and in a good location for walking everywhere; the room size was decent and the staff pleasant. The breakfast was good.
We really enjoyed our trip to the Barossa Valley with Chris from Small Batch Tours. He was great and took us to some wonderful wineries and scheduled an excellent lunch for us. The tour ended up being a private one which was a bonus for us. Another 10/10.

Apparently Good Friday is a national holiday in Australia. Almost everything was closed! We did end up scheduling a city walking tour with a lovely young woman (Katina from Flamboyance Tours) which was very good despite the multiple closures. In the afternoon we toured the beautiful Botanical Gardens in Adelaide and got hand pies at the Bakery on O'Connell Street (on Katina's recommendations). In the evening we went to see an Australian football game in Adelaide that evening (which was super fun).

All in all a great trip!

Hotel Reviews

Brady Hotels Jones Lane

Melbourne

The Brady Hotel Jones Lane was OK. Not as nice or as spacious a room as the one that we had at the Park Hyatt (which is a super nice hotel0. The Brady Jones Hotel was conveniently located and the front desk people were really pleasant but the room was small and the TV never worked (despite several people coming up from the staff to confirm that it was broken...lol). This was a problem only because my husband was trying to watch his team play a March Madness basketball game.

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Anchors Port Campbell

Port Campbell

The cottage at Anchors Port Campbell was wonderful. Spacious with huge windows overlooking the lovely surrounding countryside. Tanya was a gracious hostess and provided us with coffee, cereal, milk, and even a bottle of wine. Lovely place and well situated near the Twelve Apostles so that it was easy to beat the rush of tourists coming from Melbourne in the morning.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Vibe Hotel Adelaide

Adelaide

The Vibe Hotel in Adelaide was nice and in a good location for walking everywhere; the room size was decent and the staff pleasant. The breakfast was good.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Review

Private Mornington Peninsula Day Trip with Lunch & Wine Tasting

Melbourne

The private trip to Mornington Peninsula was great! We loved our driver/guide Nicci from Epicurean, She took us to a diverse group of wineries and to a wonderful lunch. 10/10 Perfect day!

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

5 stars for an Australian vacation amazingly planned by Samantha, Alejandra, and Lea!

Quick back story, our son decided last minute to study abroad in Sydney. As the saying goes, “fruit doesn’t fall from the tree”, so we too decided last minute to visit. I began researching and quickly became overwhelmed. As a referral from a friend, we tried kimkim. I went online, set a budget and filled out a questionnaire. The actual next day, I had a call with Samantha. Soon after, we had an itinerary including airport transports, hotels, activities, flights, rental cars- you name it.

Once we arrived in Sydney, we were randomly selected for customs and were running behind- I had a missed call (had my phone on silent) and message from Alejandra that our driver was waiting for us. Because we went to Australia right after the busy season, a couple tours we had booked were canceled. Alejandra immediately had solutions and took care of the details for us. This service and care is priceless!

We toured Sydney, climbed the harbor bridge and had a delightful sunset cruise. The itinerary had built in time to meet up with our kids and see what life as a student in Sydney looks like.

My husband and I flew to Cairns, transferred to Port Douglas to snorkel the Great Barrier Reef and visit the Daintree rainforest. The tours Samantha and Alejandra set up for us were out of this world and so memorable.

After Cairns, we flew to Brisbane and drove to Byron Bay to meet up with our kids for some much needed beaching (cocktails and wondering too).

If you are on the fence or overwhelmed like I was, reach out to kimkim. They will tailor your trip to you and will handle all of the little glitches that come along with great adventures. 5 stars- absolutely recommend!

Things that were amazing:
Hotels and flights were awesome. We appreciate the bump from economy on the flights and the hotels were very good.
The intimate tours of 8 or less on the tours are invaluable. Well done. The Golden Sands stay was exceptionally pleasant. A must for Cairns guests.
We found that 2 days in Ayers Rock (Uluru) would be sufficient. A must see, but with a trade off. The flies can be rather annoying and you can see the majority of what needs to be experienced in 2 days.
The Cableway and Train Ride are a must in Cairns.
Things that were not amazing:
Transfers/Transportation were not to our liking. Honestly as easy and wonderful that Uber/Lift are, I wouldn't put the time in to arrange them. (Unless you have guests unfamiliar or unwilling).
Sheila and I REALLY appreciate your business model and couldn't be happier with the experience.
Feel free to use this correspondence for reviews or advertising.
Ps my Facebook page is attached. You can view my posts and see all of our wonderful memories and adventures.
https://www.facebook.com/share/14fd5ksTU5i/

Hotel Reviews

Mrs Banks Boutique Hotel

Paddington

Very nice place in Paddington area.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Very helpful.

Cleanliness & Comfort

Desert Gardens Hotel

Yulara

One of the nicer places in the resort.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Excellent

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Golden Sands Beachfront Apartment Resort

Yorkeys Knob

Best stay in Australia. Steps from the beach and the most amazing restaurant on site. Carl and Mandy were very nice and friendly.

Authenticity & Character

Great location

Location

Awesome

Staff

A+

Cleanliness & Comfort

A+

Activity Reviews

Sydney Opera House Visit

Sydney

Sydney Icons & Hideaways Lunch Cruise

Sydney

Very well done 👏

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Wetlands, Waterfalls & Cableway Day Trip

Australia

Must do

We had a fantastic experience with KimKim Travel planning our trip to Australia, including Melbourne and the Great Barrier Reef. The KimKim team was incredibly responsive and well organized, the collaboration between the client engagement and operations teams felt seamless from start to finish.

KimKim planned all our hotels, transports, and tours. They even booked our flight from Melbourne to Cairns. Their website was easy to use and very effective. It was so simple to make a change to the itinerary. I could do it on their site from my phone wether I was sitting in my seats at the Australian Open or in the Daintree Rainforest The whole process was smooth and stress-free—highly recommend! Shout out to the KimKim team Samantha, Lea, & Chinh....