Vicky Steinhardt

Vicky helped my husband and I (and our 23 and 19 year old daughters) plan an incredible, once in a lifetime vacation! Not a single detail was overlooked. Every booking was confirmed and we had no hassles. And when we were delayed getting to Australia by 24 hours due to flight issues, Vicky helped rebook all plans we had for our missed day to a day we were able to add onto the end of our trip. This trip was perfection, thanks to Vicky!
We traveled to Sydney, Uluru, and Palm Cove, before heading back to Sydney. Our favorite days were exploring the Blue Mountains with Ben, staying at Longitude 131 with McKayla as our guide, and snorkeling the Great Barrier Reef. We finished our vacation touring Sydney, again with Ben as our guide!
Thanks again for helping us plan our luxury vacation Vicky! It was exactly what we dreamed of!

Hotel Review

Longitude 131˚

Yulara

Luxury at its finest - we will never forget our nights spent in the Dune Pavilion at Longitude 131! We loved every minute of it!

Authenticity & Character

Location

Such a unique way to experience The Outback!

Staff

McKayla was an incredible tour guide to Ayers Rock - she was so much fun! Edward was excellent with suggestions for the rest of our vacation!

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Review

Blue Mountains Full Day - Private Tour

Sydney

If you can have Ben as a tour guide, you will have the best time! Such beautiful scenery and a fun trip to a local zoo on the way there! Our first full day in Australia was so much fun!

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Great Trip with no complaints. Really appreciated the hotel selection as well as the smaller more intimate tours. Especially enjoyed the Blue Mountains tour with the hike. The Go West tours out of Melbourne were also well led and fun. Would recommend the foodie tour of Melbourne too.

Everything was very well organized and took the hassles logistics out of your lap.

Would do again

Hotel Review

Crystalbrook Bailey

Cairns

Activity Reviews

Blue Mountains Wildlife Full-Day Sights and Hiking from Sydney

Sydney

Foodie Discovery Walking Tour

Melbourne

Great Ocean Road Scenic Tour

Melbourne

Kata Tjuta Sunrise and Valley of the Winds Half-Day Trip

Uluru

Guides, Drivers and Staff

My husband and I spent about 18 days in Australia, our first trip to this beautiful land. I feel I was so lucky to find Kimkim online and worked with Vicky who helped me planned everything, hotel, airfare, tours and suggestions of restaurants. From the time I was connected with Vicky to the end of our trip, Vicky was with us every step even though she's not with us physically. At the planning stage, she replied to my inquiries promptly; during the trip, she followed up to ensure our tours/check ins were smoothly. The day we left for Sydney to fly back to LA, she sent a farewell message. Other than being courteous and professional, what Vicky really impressed me is her ability of knowing customer's need by simply asking a few questions. I only told her our preference of activities and gave her the cities we would like to visit, Vicky designed a perfect itinerary within 24 hours. Everything she arranged for us, e.g. the hotels, the flight time btw places, the tour groups, seems to be exactly what we wanted. This is one of the best travel experience we had and I've got to give full credit to Vicky. Without her help, our trip would not be as memorable as it is. Thank you, Vicky!

Hotel Reviews

Hamilton Island Beach Club

Hamilton Island

This is one of the best hotels we've stayed. We have been pampered from the moment we landed at the Hamilton Island, the hotel staff greeted us at the airport and a porter (how amazing) picked up our luggage. We were served Champagne and a cold towel when we arrived in the lobby while the staff gave us a brief introduction of the hotel. Our room is upstairs with breathtaking ocean view. The infinity pool is right below our balcony but very quite. The room is well decorated, roomy, well equipped and clean. Bathroom has a nice modern tub and sizable shower room. Food in the hotel restaurant is surprisingly good, comparable to the fine dining restaurants we've been to. We had the breakfast delivered to our room two days in a row so we could enjoy the beautiful sunrise and serenity in the morning. Staff is very attentive. Shuttle service is very convenient to get around the island. We were in heaven.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Very close to the One Tree Hill for amazing sunset, marina for tours and water activities. The hotel has its own beach which is very nice.

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Adina Apartment Hotel Brisbane

Brisbane

Right in the heart of Brisbane downtown, walk to all the nice restaurants, shops, South Bank, and shops. The apartment hotel is well equipped with washer/dryer, laundry detergent and full kitchen. Room is a bit of small but it's adequate.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Very helpful on giving us directions to wheresabout.

Cleanliness & Comfort

Vibe Hotel

Melbourne

Nicely located in the heart of CBD.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Staff is professional and very friendly. We asked the staff to heat up some leftovers and they did for us happily. Breakfast is fresh in good quality.

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Whitehaven Beach and Hill Inlet Chill and Grill

Australia

It is pure paradise. The lunch provided in White Haven is very good. Tour guide is knowledgeable. Boat transfers was efficient.

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Whitsunday Islands and Heart Reef Scenic Flight - 70 minutes

Australia

Smooth ride to see the crown jewel of Great Barrier Reef, the heart shaped reef. It's about 1 hr heliride.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Tamborine Rainforest Skywalk + Hop on Hop off Shuttle

Australia

A bit underwhelmed. May be because of the winter, the mountain is not as green and waterfalls are ok. I would suggest to go to the Gold Coast instead.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary and Brisbane River Cruise

Brisbane

This is the best animal sanctuary among all the sanctuaries we visited in Sydney and Melbourne. Most of the Koala are awake!!!

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Phillip Island Penguin Parade Small Group Eco Tour

Melbourne

This is the highlight of our entire trip. Those precious penguins are soooo cute. The coastline of the island is spectacular!

Quality of Experience

The Moonlit Sanctury is in no comparison to Lone Pine, Brisbane. I feel this visit is just to kill time for the penguin parade at night.

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Bus was a bit tight but it's ok.

Luxe Bus Great Ocean Road with Wildlife Wonders

Melbourne

Truly luxury bus tour. The Benz Sprinter has phone charger!

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Highly recommend an Australia/New Zealand trip planned by Vicky. It was our first time using kimkim and we experienced a 49-hour travel delay. Vicky was able to adapt our trip to fit in as much as possible with the delay and she had such a good attitude about it. Highlights included the Great Barrier Reef, Milford Sound in Queenstown, and all of the accommodations + transfers. We did not have ANY issues with anything Vicky planned and it was flawless! Thanks to Vicky, we will absolutely use kimkim again.

We had a fantastic trip to Cairns and Sydney. Vicky helped us set up a diving trip to Upolu Reef on Ocean Freedom which was fantastic. She also recommended other things to do in Cairns and we had fun exploring it on our own. Hartley’s Crocodile Park was another highlight. I was surprised by how much we learned! After Cairns we went to Sydney and I fell in love with this city! I highly recommend climbing the Harbour Bridge, though it is pretty pricey. The bike tour was also a great way to see the city. Our trip was great and the pace of it felt right too. I highly recommend Vicki to help you plan a fantastic trip to Australia!

Hotel Reviews

Pullman Quay Grand Sydney Harbour

Sydney

Wow wow wow-loved this hotel. The location was perfect and the service was spectacular. The staff were so friendly and helpful and the views from our balcony were unbeatable!

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Crystalbrook Riley

Cairns

Crystalbrook Riley was perfect for us. It was a high quality hotel that was close to the Esplanade, but not in the middle of all the action. It was nice to walk 5 minutes down the road away from the noise and chaos of the tourist area to have a more peaceful place to stay. The breakfast was fantastic and the pool was so fun with the white sand beach. I would definitely stay here again!

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Sydney Bridge Climb Summit

Sydney

This is a must-do in my book for Sydney. The views were spectacular and our guide taught us so much. My only complaint is that for the exorbitant price they charge, they should give you the photos they take. Instead, they charge an extra $65 at the end. You aren’t allowed to bring your own camera or phone (which makes sense) so you are forced to pay the extra price at the end if you want a photo.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Ocean Freedom - Cruise to Outer Edge of Upolu Reef and Upolu Cay Reef (Departs from Cairns)

Australia

Great trip to to Upolu Reef. The staff aboard the boat was top notch and the diving/snorkeling was great.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Moore Reef and Fitzroy Island Full Day Tour

Cairns

We ended up having a full day at Fitzroy Island since they cancelled the Moore Reef part of our trip. It was a nice day but I think a half day would have been enough. We climbed to the summit of Fitzroy which was a nice way to get a good view. It took about 40 min to climb to the top, walking nonstop uphill. The snorkeling wasn’t great due to high winds and choppy waters, but that was just our luck for the day.

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Breakfast with the Koalas at Hartley's Crocodile Park

Australia

Our trip to Hartley’s Crocodile Park was very good. We learned a lot about crocs and the other animals and got to pet a koala and a wallaby and a snake. I’m not sure the breakfast with koalas was worth missing our awesome hotel breakfast for, but it was nice to pet a koala and ask questions from the naturalist who was there.

Bike Tour - Sydney Highlights

Sydney

Loved our bike trip through Sydney. Our guide Dylan was so knowledgeable and gave us great tips on what to see/do the following day when we had a free day to explore on our own. The biking is not strenuous at all and you stop often to learn about various sights.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Cairns Lagoon

Cairns

The Cairns Lagoon was closed for repairs for all of July so we didn’t get to experience it.

Amazing 5-star service for a complicated and ever-changing itinerary. My wife and I have traveled throughout our 50-year+ marriage on all continents, and this was the best service ever. All of the suggested tours were exactly what we wanted, and the ample free time allowed for shopping and local experiences. Highlights of the trip were Blue Mountain tour and going to the opera in Sydney, evening barbecue and astronomy talk at Ayers Rock, and at Cairns, Kuranda tour, Sunlovers reef experience, Bayleaf Balinese restaurant, walks by moonlight on the Esplanade, best pub food ever at Paronella Park. Thank you for making our family trip the experience of a lifetime!

A few notes for future reference:

(1) The Harbour Rocks hotel in Sydney was ideally located for our activities, but the three-story venue had no elevator, and our rooms were on the third floor which presented a challenge for the elderly in our group.
(2) The Crystalbrook Flynn in Cairns was similarly a good location, and we loved the breakfast included, but unfortunately, we had an incident with bugs (roaches) in our bathroom which was never addressed. The room service was a little off at times, but addressed promptly when we notified staff.
(3) The Daintree tour was good, but we spent a long time on the bus picking up and returning passengers to their various hotels in Cairns and Port Arthur. If we had to do it again, we would opt for a private tour just for our family.
(4) The several cancellations of the local tours which required rescheduling was a little unnerving (we realize not kimkim's fault). We really did want to do those tours after they were presented and did not want to cancel them entirely. This resulted in stacking the tours together on a single day. This pretty much worked out except for the Sunrise and Sundown tours to Ayers Rock on the same day, which were originally scheduled on different days. Even the kids complained about that one. The evening tour was one of the highlights of our trip. We probably could have skipped the early morning tour.

Hotel Reviews

Harbour Rocks Hotel

Sydney

Great location, but no elevator for a 3-story hotel. The stair challenged should secure a room on the first floor.

Location

In the middle of all the tourist activity.

Sails In The Desert

Yulara

Top class hotel with great food and shopping.

Location

In the middle of the tourist activity.

Crystalbrook Flynn

Cairns

In great location near Esplanade, great free breakfast included, however insect problem in bathroom was not addressed.

Location

Near Esplanade and all tourist attractions

Staff

Room service was spotty (getting 3 floor mats instead of hand towels), but corrected when asked

Cleanliness & Comfort

Exterminator should be called.

Pullman Sydney Airport

Great hotel close to airport and free breakfast included.

Location

Close to airport

Cleanliness & Comfort

Expected cleanliness for upscale hotel.

Activity Reviews

Halfday Sydney Private City Tour

Sydney

Great overall view of the city.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Knowledge of the city's history and inciteful remarks

Transport

Plenty of room

Blue Mountains Full Day - Private Tour

Sydney

Great tour of this area.

Quality of Experience

Flexible options - we really liked shopping in the village

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Driver was flexible for our schedule.

Transport

Plenty of room

Sydney Harbor All inclusive Dinner Cruise

Sydney

Viewing and food was great.

Quality of Experience

overall trip satisfaction

Food

excellent quality

Guides, Drivers and Staff

very friendly and helpful

Transport

harbour views

Uluru Sunrise (Ayers Rock) and Kata Tjuta Half Day Trip

Uluru

Good experience, but early morning with cold and wind. The gorge walk is challenging mainly due to the loose rubble you have to walk over - a barrier to some folks (us). The slope and distance would be no problem with a smoother route.

Uluru (Ayers Rock) Sunset + Outback Barbecue Dinner & Star Talk

Uluru

One of the highlights of our entire Australia trip.

Quality of Experience

Close up views and extended narratives about Ayers Rock. Note to staff at barbecue: you need more than two heaters for this time of year.

Food

Many choices and plenty.

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Very friendly and helpful staff

Transport

Rides in and out worked fine.

Cairns Aquarium by Twilight Tour

Australia

Loved this visit with knowledgeable guide.

Quality of Experience

Lots of information about reef life

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Knowledgeable and enthusiastic guide

Classic Kuranda

Cairns

One of the highlights of our trip

Quality of Experience

Liked all the animals and different activities

Guides, Drivers and Staff

staff at site were knowledgeable and helpful

Transport

variety of transport modes added interest to the tour

Sunlover Reef Cruises Cairns Great Barrier Reef Experience (departs Cairns)

Australia

If you are in Cairns, you have to actually go to the reef. Liked all the various activities you could do from the pontoon.

Quality of Experience

Being up close and personal with the Reef

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Were helpful at all times

Transport

Not just a transport, but food and drink available

Free Day in Cairns

Cairns

Shopped around tourist area, visited Armour Museum, Cairns Museum, Rusty's Markets, had amazing dinner at Bay Leaf Balinese restaurant, moonlight walk on Esplanade

Quality of Experience

Loved all the shops and eating venues

Premium Daintree & Cape Tribulation Day Tour

Australia

Liked all the various activities on this tour but spent a lot of time on the bus picking up and letting off passengers.

Quality of Experience

We liked all the activities, especially the river tour looking for crocs

Food

Lunch had only three choices, chicken choice was not good

Guides, Drivers and Staff

all the staff professional and helpful

Transport

too much time on bus

Afternoon & Evening Tour of Paronella Park (departing Cairns)

Australia

Very interesting story of Paronella Park - glad we did it.

Quality of Experience

Loved the story of the founders of the park.

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Our driver, Man, was great and made the experience more enjoyable

Transport

Driver was knowledgeable and communicated well

Vicki , local specialist was great. We worked with her to plan a trip best for us. Vicki was easy to reach and very responsive We had some last minute changes and Vicki was right on to of it. The day trips that the local specialist found were perfect. We had 3 flights 3 cars and all went flawlessly. Could not have easily arranged without Local specialist. Especially the local specialist knew the distances so we were confident in logistics.

Fun accommodations. Manager was extremely helpful in our whitsunday accomodation. But highlight was last four days at Mai tai resort. Port douglas area. Andre owner was a delight. Lovely healthy breakfast. Great views. Impeccable as to cleanliness!!
Day trips with Nichols’s to Daintree forest and snorkel sail on Sailaway was exceptional