Sebastian Prino

We loved the bike ride in Aix. The guide and her intern on the guided hike in Antibes was amazing and knowledgeable. The - Mimosa Festival was great except it started seventy minutes late.
- Hotels - All three hotels had great service.
- The Winery Hotel and Tour didn't suit us. It seemed too early in their season for guests. If we had kids or grandkids it would have been spot on. We know it was a family-friendly venue. It seemed they were still in their "training phrase" with staff, and it showed.
- Nice Carnival - we wish we had been informed and were given information to purchase tickets for the amazing carnival that was centered six blocks from our hotel.
- The Citron Carnival was incredible!
- The guide for the Food Tour in Nice was the best. A visitor/guest could not ask for a better experience with a persoable and knowledable guide. She was just amazing!
- Rental Car - once we were in Nice, we did not need the rental car. It was much, much better and easier for us to Uber to locations or take the train, especially with the large events we attended.

Activity Reviews

Food tour Nice - Apero time

Nice

She was a well-known local and was extremely knowledgeable. She took us to a small local business that gave us information about food and wines. She told us about local traditions for food and shared pastries that were available only a this time of year.

Sunset Hike & Aperitif in the Esterel Massif

France

This wasn't the location were expecting to go to, however the guide was amazing. We were given incredible information about he region, as well as her personal climbing experience, knowledge about nature, and she shared snacks and told us about the seasonal traditions for food.

E-Bike Tour Along Cezanne's Route

Aix-en-Provence

This was a lot for a beginner biker, but our guide spent time with each of the riders in the group to know their capabilities. He as a great guide. We're pretty sure he owned the business. A great experience overall!

Visit and Wine Tasting at Château Saint Roux

France

The intern guide gave us the tour and wine tasting. He was amazing and knowledgeable. Unfortunately, he was also taking care of the counter. Many people came in and he was the only staff available to answer questions, so the time with us (the tour) was interrupted often. Our guide felt bad and apologized, then continued on professionally and graciously.

Enjoy the Chateau Saint-Roux

France

The hotel was terrific. We loved the two rooms. I would suggest you have more guest-friendly way to get bags to the rooms. Dragging our bags over the cobblestone walk was not fun and not good for the luggage wheels. I mentioned earlier that this seemed very early season as it was obvious there were staff still in training.

I really enjoyed all of the guides very much.
They were knowledgeable and friendly and made our tours very engaging and entertaining.
My favourite place and guide was Carcassonne (Natalie) as it felt like a lengthy conversation with great scenery 😊

Hotel Reviews

Aragon

Carcassonne

Off season requires more direction and help than what was provided by the front desk

Authenticity & Character

Location

Very close to the fortress

Staff

Offers to help find open places to eat during the day and for dinner. We were left to wander around

Cleanliness & Comfort

Hotel de Cambis

Avignon

Beautiful room in the centre of everything!

Authenticity & Character

Classy and comfortable

Location

On the main drag, so easy to find dining and attractions

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Hotel Florence Nice

Nice

Centrally located and a pillow menu!

Authenticity & Character

Focus on eco friendly solutions

Location

Not far from the sea, old town, dining

Staff

Front desk worked hard to ensure our comfort Breakfast area was very crowded, despite being there in the quiet season. Staff worked hard to keep the area clean and stocked

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Nice Evening Food Tour

France

Every stop allowed us to sample (and purchase if we wished)

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Leo was quiet but very friendly and knowledgeable

Transport

N/A foot tour

Guided tour of Carassonne

France

The site is incredible. I definitely recommend having a guide as there is so much to see and learn about

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Natalie was very informative and allowed us to ask questions nonstop

Transport

It was a foot tour (an N/A would have worked best here)

Châteauneuf du Pape wine tour

Avignon

The two wineries were so different! They both provided an interesting perspective on wine making in the region

Quality of Experience

Seeing the oldest winery was very interesting

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Emile’s family experience in the wine industry made this tour very informative

Transport

Safe comfortable travel

Full-day excursion to Monaco, Monte-Carlo & Eze

France

So many different experiences on this tour!

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

As a local resident he provided us with historical information as well as personal anecdotes. Very informative!

Transport

All of our excursions and guides were amazing. The hotels were well situated for the sites we were seeing. Having all the train tickets booked in advance was fantastic and their timings were great. The only negative on our trip was the night hotel staff at the Aragon hotel in Carcassonne. During our tour of the walled city we noticed that only a couple of stores / cafes were actually open even though the internet listed large numbers of restaurants as open. For this reason we asked the lady at the hotel reception desk if she could assist in calling some nearby restaurants to see if any were actually open for dinner. The lady declined to assist and said you’ll just need to go by yourself to see if they are open. Without phone service or transportation we couldn’t easily get to these places to see if they were actually open. This level of customer service sucks. Hotels being booked though Kim Kim should be prepared to assist travelers staying with them and have a list of open restaurants or make calls to verify if a place is actually open for dinner.

Hotel Reviews

Aragon

Carcassonne

Hotel was clean but night desk person was not helpful. She would not assist us in calling some restaurants to see if they were actually open given it was the off season. Instead she said you’ll need to go to them to see if they are open. The internet showed all restaurants as open but in reality very few actually were. Without phone service or transportation it was not possible to just go by places to see if they were open. In all of my travels this is the only hotel that I’ve been to where they wouldn’t assist us in finding a place to eat. Poor customer service!

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Hotel de Cambis

Avignon

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Hotel Florence Nice

Nice

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Guided tour of Carassonne

France

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Was a walking tour so no transport needed

Châteauneuf du Pape wine tour

Avignon

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Nice Evening Food Tour

France

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Foot tour no transport needed

Full-day excursion to Monaco, Monte-Carlo & Eze

France

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

I cannot say enough good about my experience planning and executing a once in a lifetime trip to Paris and neighboring locations with Kimkim (France Local) and our local specialist, Sebastian. Sebastian helped us plan a very workable itinerary that covered all the important locals in Paris, Chartres, Bayeux, Mont Saint-Michel, Normandy (Point du Hoc and Omaha Beach, Rheims, and Versailles - in a week and a half. He prepared a wonderful guided trip in a cute little car through Paris, and, our guide was VERY informative. We picked up a wonderful car in Amboise, and could drive ourselves through the French country side. We had lovely tours of the Chateaux de Chambord and Chenonceau. We drove to Chartres for a view of town and Cathedral. We then moved to Mont Saint Michel, where Sebastian arranged for us to stay in the wonderful L'Auberge de la Mere Poulard. We were SO happy, because friends had told us not to miss eating at their restaurant. I have had a lifelong wish to visit the Abbey, so, it was an amazing treat to climb all the way up there! Sebastian provided us with a wonderful guide for Point du Hoc and Omaha Beach. That guide timed our tour so that we could see the lowering of the U.S. flag on Omaha Beach. Very moving. Back in Paris, we visited Versailles, then set off to see the Reims Cathedral, and, of course, to sample Champagne.

All of our tickets were available, easy to organize, easy to print, and easy to use at the cite. Given the complexity of our arrangements, we lost no time, trying to make arrangements, or walking across town to pick up tickets or loosing time "fixing" arrangements during our trip.

However, the absolute most extraordinary thing about Sebastian's service, was that he was available to us during the trip. We had a couple instances where we misunderstood directions and couldn't find our guide. Especially, when we tried to meet our guide for the Normandy beach trip, we found ourselves waiting at the meeting point, with no guide. We notified Sebastian and he was at his desk, and, within a minute, he was in touch with our guide, who was waiting for us around the corner. If Sebastian had not been available and responsive at that very minute, we would have totally missed a very important part of our trip.

So, in sum, visiting Paris and environs has been a long-time wish of mine, and Sebastian made a busy and complicated schedule easy, doable, enjoyable, worry free - and wondrous. For that, I will be eternally grateful!

My only regret was not adding a few more days. ...

We started working with Sebastian back in October, telling him the must see places for a 10 day January trip in Paris and the surrounding areas. We basically told him the places we wanted to see-Chateau country, Chartres, Mont Saint-Michel, Bayeux , and Reims and he put together the itinerary which included trains, car, and truly lovely hotels, all perfectly placed to be close to the historical sites we wanted to see. La Maison Rabelais in Amboise, Le Boeuf Couronee in Chartres, and the Grand Hotel Luxembourg in Bayeux . In Paris, where we explored Notre Dame de Paris, Ste Chapelle, the entire Left Bank from Shakespeare and Company out to St. Germain de Pre, (didn't have time for the Invalides, Musee de Cluny, or the Rodin) the Central sites and we stayed with hotels from the Astotel Group, my personal favorite was the Astoria near the Pigalle area of Paris.

Speaking of guides, Veronique (Vero), our full day guide in Chateau country for Chambord and Chenonceau, was a walking professor of history, she knew not just events and dates, but all the fun stories that go behind the dates, as did Stephanie for le Mont Saint-Michel. Nico for Paris and Gwen for Normandy rounded out our local guides.

France By Locals/Sebastian was immediately responsive each and every time we had a question on this trip, like when we couldn't find a guide or forgot where to return something. All resolved swiftly.

Hotel Reviews

Hotel Astoria - Astotel

Paris

Has a great vibe which you can feel as soon as you walk through the front door, bright, cheerful, lots of French travelers, so the Petit Dejeuner breakfast room is always hopping. Comfortable rooms and main sitting room, close to Pigalle and Montmartre.

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

L'Auberge de la Mère Poulard

Le Mont-Saint-Michel

I loved it. Mere Poulard is right at the beginning of the main street of Mont Saint Michel in the walls of the city. so bring your overnight clothes in a backpack because you don't want to be rolling any kind of suitcase on the cobbles. From where we were located, you could walk up another set of stairs and have amazing views of the Ramparts and the city, which I did just before dawn and it was stupendous. The only thing I would say is there was a strong odor of cat, not in the room at all, but in the staircase going up to the room. If they could remove that, this would be a 10.

Authenticity & Character

built into the rock that is the base of the Abbey.

Location

Activity Review

Chateaux de Chambord et Chenonceau (winter version)

France

Veronique the guide was truly fabulous. knew everything about what we were seeing and answers to the most obscure questions.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

I want to give Sebastian a great thank you for the places we saw on this trip. The local guides were very helpful in raising both our knowledge and experience of Paris and the two wine regions we visited.

Sebastian had only a short time to create an itinerary for our trip and he did an amazing job. Each hotel was unique and comfortable and in a good location. The guides he booked were friendly and knowledgeable and helped us know more about French culture and history. The wine tours gave us new appreciation for French wines and opened a new avenue for us to grow in our knowledge of their unique style.
We believe Sebastian did remarkable work and we look to working with him again on our next journey to France.

Activity Reviews

Private Odyssey Wine Tour

Amboise

We enjoyed the opportunity to see the village of St. Emillion and to explore the Medoc region.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Friendly, filled with information and knowledge of the region

Transport

A Taste of Dordogne from Bordeaux - private

France

Rodolfo was a special guide. Warm and welcoming and funny. He made the day special. This was the best guided tour of our trip.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Cruise on a tradition boat and wine tasting in a vineyard (full-day)

France

Our guide had years of experience in the area and she did a wonderful job of talking about the unique nature of the Loire Valley. Having lunch and a wine tasting on a river boat was so relaxing and informative. This is an experience not to be missed!

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

I recently returned from a trip to France. Our local specialist, Sebastian, was quite helpful and understanding in planning our trip. He was sensitive to our interests and helped to maximize our days given what we wanted to see and do. His hotel recommendations were all centrally located providing easy access to walking and public transportation within the cities. The small group tours he chose were great and the local guides in each case were knowledgeable and made the experience that much better. This was the second time I have used KimKim and will definitely use them again.