Taylor Hook

Taylor and her team at Kimkim set up our family trip to Norway. We had an amazing time! They were always available to answer questions in order to plan the perfect trip for us and while traveling they would promptly respond to any questions we had. We felt well taken care of and every excursion, experience and transfer ran smoothly. And our fabulous guides were knowledgeable and went above and beyond to show us around and pivot when necessary.

Will definitely use Kimkim for future travel

Taylor and Coraima were very helpful explaining the itinerary details. I liked the Nobel Peace Center and the Munch Museum in Oslo. The Fisheries Museum in Alesund was fascinating. We ate a lot of salmon, herring and cod. The buffet breakfasts were very good. The fjord trips gave me a good way to see what glaciers could do. The Floibanen Funicular in Bergen was very interesting.

The itinerary provided in the app needed many clarifications to make it flow chronologically, and to make it parallel the actual legs of the trip. Also, I would have preferred that any messages from KimKim came to me directly in email, and not through the app, because my iPhone would not allow me to access the trip chat area in the app, no matter what I tried. I could only see messages in the evening of each day on my iPad, which I didn't carry around with me, and my desktop, which I obviously didn't take with me.

Taylor was as excited as we were about our visiting Norway-she had so many tips and hints that wouldn't be available anywhere else and she shared generously. Coraima and Chris really helped when we had questions about the app and other items. My favorite experience was the Nobel Peace Center in Oslo. The work being done there is critical to our future. Norway, of course, is best known for it's beautiful mountains, waterfalls, fjords and nature. I loved the train ride from Flam and the waterfall stop with the woman in red. The Fjord trips gave us the opportunity to really meet and learn about other global travelers as well as appreciate the farms and homes along the way. The culture and food walk was excellent-please tell the woman who led the tour (I did not catch her name) that she was a pleasure to spend time with. The Vikings are not to be missed-and the troll forest near the funicular was so special! Speaking of vikings, the dinner was OUTSTANDING! So much to share! Ronnye Schreiber

Hotel Review

Fretheim Hotel

Flåm

This hotel was located in the midst of everything we wanted to do. It is a bit run-down. Their breakfast was excellent. Something I noticed in most of the hotels that differs from the US. In the US, there are generally tissues in the bathrooms. Not so in our first few hotels. Also, could have used a night light to get around.

Authenticity & Character

Just a bit run-down.

Location

Centrally located to all activities.

Staff

I really did not interact with them to have much of an opinion.

Cleanliness & Comfort

Bathroom and bed was clean and comfortable.

Activity Reviews

Food & Culture Walk

Bergen

Worthwhile time spent with a very knowledgeable guide. We tasted foods at the new Fish Market, had sample of sausage from whale and other fish at the old fish market. Walked around Bryggen and visited a bar downstairs where local beer was offered. Stories of kings marrying commoners. Norway soup at another venue. Visited UNESCO site for artists. Lovely afternoon!

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

The guide really knew her stuff. I did not catch her name. If you can locate her, please tell her how pleased we were.

Geirangerfjord Cruise & Day Trip

Norway

The boat was new and very comfortable. We traveled 3 hours to Alesund, had 3 hours on land and then 3 hour return. I did enjoy the waterfalls and farms along the way. I downloaded the app on the boat and learned lots about the areas we passed-very useful and interesting. Lunch was at the Brasserie Posten where we had beet root, herring, and salad over toasted rye. Very traditional Norwegian food.

Quality of Experience

Fløibanen Funicular Ride

Bergen

What a quick trip up and down! I hardly noticed the ride- but at the top, we saw Troll Carvings (so much fun) in the dense forest. The cashmere goats were adorable. The view was inbetween raindrops, but that's Norway and to be expected.

Quality of Experience

A little less rain, Norway! LOL

Ægir Viking Meal Experience

Norway

They brought us to our seats upstairs right on time. The waiter was so helpful, especially when we had questions about the content of the food (I am lactose intolerant and was wary of the soup)-all was GREAT. And since we don't drink beer, he gave us a locally brewed hard cider-what luck!! The food was outstanding. And it was wonderful that the restaurant was night next to the hotel. After a long day of having fun, we were exhausted and the small distance made this easy.

Quality of Experience

Being with my husband of 53 years and enjoying ourselves sharing a new experience!

Njardarheimr Viking Village Day Trip with Nærøyfjord Cruise & Bus Transfer

Norway

The Viking Village was so much better than I expected. The docents, dressed in garb of the day, were excellent at explaining the history, closing, weaving, etc. The "fights" were fun to watch. The transportation to the village was easy and pleasant. One issue: we had a very hard time finding the Village after we got off the boat. There were competing directional signs and people that sent us in the wrong direction. Signage needs help.

Quality of Experience

Finding the viking village was a problem for us. The overall day was fun and interesting.

Guides, Drivers and Staff

They answered all questions and were generally kind.

Transport

We got there in one piece! LOL

Edvard Munch Museum in Oslo (Tickets not included)

Oslo

One of the reasons we went to Norway was to see the original "Scream"- Bucket list satisfied. The museum had fabulous art, not just by Munch, but other Norway artists.

had found KimKim while in the process of planning our honeymoon in Norway. A traditional travel agent wouldn't be able to provide what I was looking for but the scale of what I was trying to accomplish seemed massive and I knew I needed some help. A quick Google search led me to KimKim and it was exactly what I was looking for.

After a quick email exchange about where we wanted to travel too, we were put into contact with our local expert, Taylor. We started the dialog about where we wanted to go and things we wanted to do and she put together the first version of an itinerary for us. During the entire process she was very receptive to all modifications we wanted to make on top of giving meaningful feedback on our ideas since she has actually traveled in this area before. After some back and forth and a few versions of the itinerary, we had the blueprint for our perfect vacation. I should mention that up until this point we had not been charged for anything by KimKim and Taylor had been working hard on this for us for over a month. We paid the deposit after the itinerary was locked in and then Nick and Maria got to work booking all of our accommodations, excursions and transportation (airport transfers, etc.. KimKim does not book your flights).

Once everything was booked, the entire itinerary along with all confirmation numbers was conveniently put into an app and shared with us. I can't stress enough how awesome it was not having to sift through pages of emails looking for confirmation numbers and hotel addresses while abroad. I never had to do more than pull up the app to find any information I needed, and each location was linked to Google maps.

Our honeymoon went off without a hitch, and it was one of the best experiences I've had in my life. Not once did we run into a hiccup, every ride transfer was waiting for us when we needed them and if I had a question someone was prompt with a response. All in all the entire experience was a joy from start to finish and I would 100% book another trip with KimKim in the future.

Massive thanks to Taylor, Nick and Maria 🙌

Thanks Taylor and the Kimkim Team. Taylor planned a great trip for us, having spoken with us and heard our needs, likes and dislikes. Also to Nick and Maria who kept in touch when we were there. Communicated all the time, and made us feel really welcome and looked after. Luckily we didn't have any emergencies or need too much looking after, but it was great to know there were people there to call if needed. Anytime. Thank you.

Things we especially liked/that went well:
the app is great. Love having the details to hand, links to different transport we're using (flights, trains, ferries) and name and details of pickups and drivers. So obvious but not always provided by travel companies. Loved it.
The quality and location of the hotels was great. We're a bit spoilt and like the luxe end of the hotel market, but felt that KimKim got it right - the hotels were nice/better than nice AND extremely well places to schlepp ourselves and our bags across to a station, ferry port, etc. It made a huge difference, especially since it was raining a lot of the time.
Suggested activities and guides were great. Sven in Oslo and Sandra in Bergen were fab. Informative and easy to be with.
We loved the apple cider tasting in Balestrand, and the buffet at the Kviknes Hotel was the best buffet we've encountered for a very long time. We ate there both nights of our stay in Balestrand. Loved the oldy-worldy feel and it didn't feel overwhelmed by the large number of tour parties who were there too.
Oslo - two highlights - the Public Library is very special. It's a workspace for everyone, filled with books for everyone. Also the National Museum is fabulous. The feel, the curation of the exhbits - great. And you get a good taste for Munch from their smaller collection. (vs. a major feast (if it's to your taste) in the Munch Museum across the river.
The train to Flam on the Flam Railway was lovely. A bit of a tussle to get a window seat (which we didn't manage) - but still a fun, beautiful ride. The most surprising bit was a fabulous plate of fish and chips at the Flaam Bistro (Canteed). Don't miss it. Another couple we met said the Viking lunch at the PUB in Flaam was great too.

What was less great:
TBH, nothing.
We'd have liked it if it rained less, but it's Norway (and Bergen is renowned for rain :-)). And it didn't stop us doing anything.

The ferries were a bit of a bun fight - understandably as it's peak tourist season. If you are on a ferry - get there early. You won't be the first in the line but you'll get a decent seat and sit together. Ditto the Flaam Train. But if you go in peak season, you have to be chill and roll with it. There are a lot of people wanting to experience the beauty of Norway. It's so worth it.

Thank you Kimkim for creating a great trip. We had a lot of fun and got a real taste for Norway.
We'll be back to book another Kimkim adventure.

Noeleen & John