Valeria Arcangeli

It’s difficult to know where to begin , since we had nothing but one excellent experience after another. From the first planning sessions with our specialist, Valeria, to each and every local guide, driver, recommendation and suggestion on ways to make our trip a lifetime’s experience.

Barbara in Milan was our first local contact on the ground and set the tone for the 9 days that followed with a wonderful tour that exuded her love for her work. She was then our daily contact who checked on with us each evening to make sure all was going well and to review the following day’s itinerary.

The cooking class in the Tuscan countryside was incredible. Alesia in Venice was fun and shared her love of her home city. Florence was a dream and our driver, Nath, made it a perfect 2 days there. Not that our guide, Lucia, should go without special mention. She had an incredible knowledge of art and architecture in a city that is steeped in centuries of beauty. Jaw dropping insights were continuously shared with us by her.

We loved the small towns of Pienza and Montepulciano, the vineyards, cheese tastings and exposure to small family owned businesses could never have happened without Kimkim resources and expertise.

And then there was Rome- perhaps the culmination of why we appreciate using Kimkim for our trip. Our tour of the Vatican could never be duplicated unless, of course, we had Francesco as a guide again. When I show people photos they marvel at how we were able to navigate such a popular attraction and yet seem to have been alone among the vast, treasure filled halls and rooms of the Vatican Museum. Truly a lifetime experience.

And we were able to share a wonderful goodbye walk with our original tour specialist, Valeria, through local neighborhoods and eat where the Romans eat along the way.

The greatest compliment we can give is the conversation at the conclusion of a vacation that centers around planning our next trip with Kimkim.

Best,
Brian and Melissa

Activity Reviews

Private tour of Milan Highlights (3 hours) with La Scala theatre

Milan

The tour was absolutely phenomenal. Our guide was extremely knowledgeable about the city, and we learned so much in just three hours. The highlight was definitely the La Scala Theatre. Our guide was passionate about Milan and gave us some restaurant recommendations that turned out to be fantastic.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Private cooking class at Podere il Casale in Pienza

Italy

This was such a fun experience. The cooking class was a full five hours, but it flew by because we were having such a great time. It was hands-on, and we learned so much about Italian cuisine. The class was definitely one of the highlights of our trip.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Early morning private Vatican Tour

Rome

I can't tell you how impressive this tour was. Our guide, Francesco, was absolutely incredible. His knowledge about the Vatican was outstanding and he managed to guide us around the museum and the Sistine Chapel avoiding the crowd. His dedication and passion about his job and his hometown was palpable.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

We had the best time on this trip through Italy, largely due to the excellent planning and coordination provided by the team at Your Custom Journey. The planning with Valeria was fairly simple to do via KimKim. Honestly, the hardest parts were choosing between all of the great city destinations/excursions and committing to a budget. Luckily Valeria was very patient with me as I tried to get my group to come to a consensus.

Our in-country contact, Barbara was fantastic at keeping us in the loop with possible itinerary changes, reminders for the upcoming day, transportation, and checking to make sure we were enjoying everything as we'd hoped. She even was our tour guide a few times in Venice. The other guides were great as well, particularly Gianni, who led our tour of the Palace of Caserta and Valeria, who took us on a walking food tour of Rome. All of the guides were local to the regions we were touring, and most of them were born and raised in Italy, and I think that really made the difference. Not having a lot of familiarity with the Italian language ourselves (despite studying all spring and summer), it was a relief not to have to worry as much about the language barrier since all of our guides were fluent English speakers. Plus, at all of the church and palace tours we were able to skip the long lines.

The excursions were interesting and thoughtfully prepared. Highlights included a lunch and wine tasting at a hillside winery on the Amalfi Coast, the Venice walking tour that ended with the Doge Palace and San Marco Basilica, seeing Pompeii and the Vatican, and the stunning views in Sorrento. This trip was everything to me and my family, and I'm so glad I had the help to plan it as well as the local support so that I could enjoy it as much as everyone else did.

We stayed at Ocelle Thermae and Spa in Sirmione Italy. We had asked for a room on Lake Garda. What we got was a room that had a lake view but the lake was across a busy street and the view was small as it was between 2 houses. The rest of the trip itinerary was top notch.

Activity Reviews

Private Boat Tour of Lake Como - Explore Bellagio

Italy

Very good private boat guide

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Bernina train from Como

Italy

Bernina train is the best. Up close and personal to the alps.

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Bus needed to have a bathroom on board

Kim , Kim team was awesome. Martina, Deborah and Valeria made sure everything was on time and as expected. The scheduled drivers were always early for our destinations and were more than happy to communicate with the latest technology if the language barrier was an issue. The scheduled tours and coordination made our vacation truly effortless. We look forward to using them in the future. Thanks for the great memories! Betsy, Marilyn and Danny, Arizona U.S.A.

Our KIMKIM travel team was the finest choice I could have made for our 3-generation family's custom vacation to the Cinque Terre this August 2023. From the planning stage to our final day, the expertise of our Italy travel specialists Valeria and Deborah, personal concierge Roberta, private hiking guide Laura, boat skipper Tony, and Milan transfer drivers (with particular shout-out to Andrii who provided my evening transport due to my air travel arrival delay) were all fabulously fun, attentive and accommodating. Until we meet again, "Grazie mille! Carol

Hotel Review

Hotel Porto Roca

Monterosso

Hotel Porto Roca offered all the assets for our multi-generation family, from accommodations, full services, and awesome setting.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Hike the Villages of Cinque Terre

Italy

boat trip from Monterosso with lunch

Italy

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Daniela was amazing-so communicative and made us feel so comfortable in Italy with our two girls. Our trip was truly seamless-from pick up at the airport, to every train transfer or booked full day excursion, we were NEVER waiting for transportation. We had wonderful tour guides and just an overall stellar experience.

What a memorable trip. Valeria and Deborah pulled off a minor miracle in re-organizing almost our entire itinerary at the last minute (like the night before we were to leave the US). They salvaged what otherwise would have been a disaster for our family. Due to unforseen circumstances, dates, places, activities, tours, transportation, pretty much everything, had to be altered. What a relief and thrill it was for us to arrive at last in Rome to find new arrangements had been made.

Our local concierge Daniela was waiting for us at the airport and ushered to our air-conditioned, spacious, and comfortable van. Both she and our driver even helped with our bags. That set the tone for the rest of our incredibly well orchestrated trip. To a person, everyone involved from start to finish was professional, affable, knowledgeable, and eager to help. Can't remember every one's name but Lorenzo (The Colosseum and Forum), Vincenzo (got us to the train on time), Annaelise (Vatican City), Alyssa (Venice - unsure about spellings), Beatrice (Venice) and all of our drivers stand out.

Hotel Reviews

Hotel Della Conciliazione

Rome

Great location and very helpful and friendly staff.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Bonvecchiati Palace

Venice

Wonderful location. Great rooms. Good breakfast.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Private walking guided tour of Venice highlights and afternoon Bacaro food tour

Venice

Our guide was superb. So knowledgeable, fun, energetic. Really went extra to make it a great experience.

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Morning private Pizza Making lesson afternoon Small group tour ( max 6 people) of the Vatican Museums and Sistine chapel

Rome

Tony was amazing. He is an incredible teacher - a very patient. We had so much fun as a family making pizza (or at least trying to).

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Small Group tour of Colosseum underground, Palatine Hill, and Roman Forum ( max 6 people) with a private transfer from the hotel to the meeting point

Rome

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Venice Gondola Ride

Venice

Trip would not have been complete without this. Beautiful.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Valeria, Deborah and Daniela were amazing. Questions were answered immediately. It was very comforting to be met at the airport and given help boarding the train to Naples. All hotel reservations and bookings were seamless. No stress. Just enjoyment. Would recommend this team highly.

Hotel Reviews

47 Boutique Hotel

Rome

Excellent hotel. Centrally located. Friendly staff. We loved the daily breakfast.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Mediterraneo Hotel Sorrento

Sant Agnello

An incredible seaside resort. The views of the ocean were breathtaking. The Vista Sky Bar was exceptional. The daily breakfasts were perfect and the service unparalleled.

Activity Reviews

Small group tour of Colosseum with Arena access, Palatine Hill and Roman Forum

Rome

The guided tour was informative, but it felt long and a bit tiring, especially in the heat. If I were to do it again, I might opt for a shorter tour.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Small group tour of Vatican City , Sistine Chapel & saint Peter's Basilica

Rome

Again, the guided tour was good but felt a bit long. The quick walkthrough of the Sistine Chapel was pleasant.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Cooking Class @ Fattoria Terranova - Sorrento

Italy

The cooking class was a wonderful experience for the whole family. We enjoyed cooking various dishes and the farm-to-table concept added to the charm. The only downside was a bit of a wait for our driver afterwards

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Private golf cart tour

Rome

The private golf cart tour was a fantastic way to see the city. It was flexible and allowed us to see many sights in a short amount of time. In retrospect, this could have been a good alternative to the long tours.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

We had the most beautiful trip to North Italy. Valeria planned the perfect summer vacation for us to Venice, Florence, Cinque Terra, Lake Como and Milan. The hotels were very nice and conveniently located. The guides were knowledgeable in art, architecture, history and culture. Our concierge Alessia ensured we always knew where to be next. We felt like we got a chance to immerse ourselves in Italian culture and see a lot! We enjoyed every minute of the trip.

Activity Review

Wanna be Italiano - Florence cooking class and market tour

Italy