Authentic Ecuador

The trip that Paola put together for me and my two kids (ages 16, 13) was great! The trip was exactly as promised, and yet also exceeded my expectations. Paola was easy to communicate with, efficient and responsive. She listened and we had productive exchanges during planning and in the lead up to the holiday. She even visited our hotel in Quito to introduce herself.

We spent a week in Quito, Banos and Cotopaxi. Paola arranged for Jose from Authentic Ecuador to be our guide for the week and he was fantastic! He is knowledgeable about all things Ecuador, from where to eat to how many meters tall rise each volcano (I tested him for fun at one point and he was accurate within 10m for every volcano!) and he could identify flora and fauna. He was on time, friendly and we felt completely cared for. When we had a hiccup (e.g. morning canyoning postponed from rain), Jose seamlessly helped to pivot our day. Thank you!

Our days were long, but had only a week - old town tour/chocolate tasting/cooking class in Quito, hiking/biking/canyoning in Banos, and hiking/riding horses in Cotopaxi. I will absolutely use this service again, and I will be recommending Paola and Jose to all my friends.

Hotel Reviews

Samari Spa Hotel

Baños

The grounds are beautiful, and the pool was great. Our room was comfortable - it was not modern, but we weren't expecting that. But, the hotel was a 5-minute drive from downtown Banos on a busy road - next time, I would prefer lodging downtown because it's a walkable place. The restaurant was not great. The food was okay, at best. Also, the entire restaurant staff was wearing clear plastic masks - I appreciate the effort to by hygienic, but those clear masks get wet from breath/spit and it's unattractive to look at. Also, since they only cover the mouth they aren't actually preventing the spread of germs.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Holiday Inn Quito Airport, an IHG Hotel

Tababela

This hotel is fine. It's clean and newish, and is what I would expect from a hotel by the airport. It served its purpose well (a place to stay before catching a flight). They also had an airport shuttle, which was appreciated.

Authenticity & Character

Location

A 5-minute shuttle ride to the airport. (It's about 40 minutes from downtown Quito)

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Go Quito Hotel

Quito

Stunning hotel, very modern and clean. The restaurant has views of the city, and the breakfast spread was fantastic!

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Hacienda El Porvenir

Machachi

We stayed here one night and it was not enough. Everything about this place was wonderful! Our room was cozy and well-appointed. There were fires being tended in every room, the staff was incredibly friendly and the food was delicious. I went on one of the self-guided walks and it took my breath away (I don't mean the altitude). The paths are easy to follow and the views are stunning. I absolutely loved everything about Hacienda El Porvenir.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Just outside Cotopaxi National Park, which was also my favorite destination of our trip.

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Biking to Pailón del Diablo

Baños

The biking was great insofar as I was sick of being in a car, but we were on the rode with the cars on a busy highway so it was a bit uncomfortable at times. My kids (16, 13) didn't love this.

Quito City Tour - Middle of the World

Quito

Jose took us around the city and it was nonstop fun the whole day. I appreciated Jose's vast knowledge - from the town's history to which vendors we should buy from. He brought his brother to drive the car so that we didn't waste any time looking for parking.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Quito Cooking Class

Ecuador

This was very fun, but it may have been a bit much for us after a very long day of sightseeing (I was with my 2 kids, ages 16, 13). But the food and conversation was nice. I could have used a glass of wine with dinner but was told I couldn't have one - otherwise, all good!

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Visit the Pailón del Diablo Waterfall, Explore Baños

Baños

Fantastic! This place was great. As advertised. My two teens also loved it.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Canyoning in Baños

Baños

This was very fun, for me and my two teens (16, 13). There wasn't a lot of detail provided going into it, but we felt safe and ready for what was to come. The final descent was INCREDIBLE. Highly recommend.

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Horseback Riding at Cotopaxi National Park

Ecuador

This was amazing! They let us gallop, and lent us ponchos and chaps, which greatly improved the experience. Our photos from this activity are amazing - kids and I on horses w/ a view of Cotopaxi in the background.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Cotopaxi National Park

Ecuador

The hike on the volcano was amazing. We did not make it all the way to the Refuge b/c it was a very cold and windy day and we were suffering the altitude, but it was SO BEAUTIFUL! I want to go back already. Not to miss.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Our guides (Sebastian & Edwin) were absolute ROCKSTARS! We are so grateful for the time that they spent with us. Tamer, once again, helped to create and organize another spectacular experience in Ecuador & The Galápagos Islands. Thank you!

We booked our Galapagos trip with Paola through KimKim. Itinerary was amazing! All of our guides, and naturalists were full of knowledge and went above and beyond to make sure we had the best time.
Danny greeted us at the airport in Quito and guided us through the city. He knew exactly what we wanted to see and do.
In Santa Cruz our naturalist guide was full of knowledge on the history of the island, the turtles and the volcanic tunnels. We visited the Charles Darwin Centre and again he could answer any question we asked.
Next we travelled to Isabella Island-Diego, Julio and all the guides again were amazing. I highly recommend using KimKim and definitely will for my next adventure!!

Hotel Reviews

Ikala Quito Hotel

Quito

We felt very safe at this hotel. They created us at the door and escorted us to our room. Everything was fantastic.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Hotel Fiesta

Puerto Ayora

The pool and Hot Tub were amazing. Nice to come back from a day in the heat and cool off! Have a drink and unwind. The bar staff made yummy drinks!

Authenticity & Character

Beautiful entrance, pool and hot tub area. The flowers and trees where beautiful!

Location

Was within walking distance to downtown, yet in a quiet location far enough away.

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Albemarle

Puerto Villamil

The view was amazing. You could hear the waves rolling in and watch the sunset right from your room.

Authenticity & Character

Nice lobby and beautiful pool with flowers surround it. A nice rooftop sitting area and wonderful staff

Location

Right on the beech in downtown Isabella island.

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Excursion to an uninhabited island

Galapagos Islands

At first, we were worrying about the length of this trip and the fact that it said 80% on land and 20% in water. But this was one of the most memorable excursions we did. Our guide Diego had years of experience doing this excursion. It was nice to snorkel at your own pace and someone always had an eye on us to ensure our safety.

Quality of Experience

Food

All of it. The appetizers amazing!!

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Nice boat. Santa Fe and the crew made us feel special!

Quito City Tour - Middle of the World

Quito

Danny was amazing. Everything was perfect.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Snorkel at Los Túneles

Galapagos Islands

Our guide had a wealth of knowledge and treated all on board equally. He made sure to spend time with everyone individually which was nice. He explained things and shared his pictures with the group.

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

So knowledgeable and really took care of us all.

Transport

The driver of the boat knew exactly how to ride the waves to get into the area safely.

Visit to the Charles Darwin Research Station

Puerto Ayora

Unfortunately it was raining when we visited here but our guide didn’t let that change the plans. We still have a full tour.

Quality of Experience

Adding fresh cold water when picked up at the boat would have been nice.

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Kayaking at Garrapatero Beach

Galapagos Islands

Although we couldn’t kayak. Our guide took us to a coffee, sugar and alcohol plantation which was great

Quality of Experience

P

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Snorkeling at Las Tintoreras

Galapagos Islands

Great experience. Saw lots in the snorkelling adventure. Including sharks, penguins, turtles, and lots of colorful fish.

Quality of Experience

OP

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

The small group size.

Transfer to Quito Airport, Arrival to Galapagos & Highlands of Santa Cruz

Galapagos Islands

Danny made sure all our travels were worry free. Escorted us throught he airport and sent us on our way. To the next adventure.

Quality of Experience

Food

The table and VIP service!

Guides, Drivers and Staff

A great experience!! The knowledge of our guide was impressive! He could answer any questions we asked.

Transport

Our trip to Quito and The Galapagos was terrific. The guides were all terrific, Jose is Quito was pleasant, efficient, informative and very helpful. The traffic in Quito is quite challenging, we were glad Jose was driving. We needed a stop at a pharmacy and Jose bilingual skills were a great help. We loved the interactive experiences at The Center of the World, seeing the gold leaf churches with the native animal gargoyles and the chocolate shop. Salome met us at Baltra, ferrying us to our driver. We visited the Highlands, Tortoise Ranch, Lava Tunnel and Darwin's Research Center. All was very interesting. Salome took extra time to tell us the story of Lonesome George and we were impressed with the Tortoise nursery. At the Tortoise ranch we were surprised by how active the tortoises were, but it was mating season. We met Diego later who immediately helped my husband find medical care for a gash he got after a fall, (transitioning from bright sunlight to dark wearing sunglasses is not the best idea). Our visits to uninhabited islands and snorkling were very interesting and fun. We were very happy with the accommodations on the day cruiser, Ricardo our guide, the crew and a delicious lunch. on our day off we enjoyed a walk to Tortuga Bay and took the ferry back. We loved Santa Cruz. Next stop was Isabela which we also loved. The speed ferry over was great but the harbor is frenetic and we were running late. Our guide, Julio kept us on track. In hindsight we could have skipped the kayaking, however, we did see a tiger shark. The tour on Las Tintoreras was interesting. The snorkel at Los Tuneles was a favorite. Our guide was skilled and personable and knew how to shepherd us. He photographed our experiences and interactions with the sea life we encountered and allowed us to download to our phones. Brilliant! We did rent bikes and went out to The Wall of Tears. It was a long ride and of course it was always hot. We were glad to have done it. San Cristobal was next, Julio was very helpful at the airport. Javier (Pico) made sure we were ready for Kicker Rock which was over the top. The scuba divers saw the Hammerhead sharks, but the snorkelers saw lots of fish, sea turtles and white tip sharks. The brought everyone to a bay first to assess skills then we were off the Kicker rock. The guides on the boat were TERRIFIC. The seas were rough and we had many different skill levels. The guides were professional, kind and safety conscience above all. Our last day we were able to fit in a walk to La Loberia and Barranco which was harder than expected. Pico was very good getting us there and back before a rain storm hit. Off to Quito and a final meeting with Jose picking us up then dropping us off at the airport. It was a very active trip which we enjoyed immensely, the guides made everything run smoothly in a very relaxed way.

Tamer and Ariel helped plan what we wanted to do on this trip. We were able to specify what kind of activities we were interested in, what animals we wanted to see etc. The recommended itinerary met our requirements very well. It was easy to communicate with them. They responded promptly to our queries.
Liz Arboleda was in charge of the logistics locally. She met us and gave us her number and responded promptly to our queries. When we were going to Isabela, she personally got our boarding passes for the boat trip and held our spot in the queue. We requested a change in the itinerary (we wanted to return from Isabela in the afternoon rather than morning) and she accommodated our request.
Astrid Friere was our guide to see the tortoises and the Darwin Center as well as kayaking another day. She was a pleasure to be around and was extremely well informed about what we were seeing.
Marcelo Friere was our driver for the transfers. Always on time, courteous and efficient.
Rodolfo was our guide on the highlight of the trip, the visit to Los Tuneles in Isabela. We were extremely inexpert snorkelers and he ended up having to tow us around in order not to delay the other snorkelers. He showed us Blue Footed Boobies, including their courtship dances, sea turtles, sting and eagle rays, sea horses. Just an awesome experience.

Great Trip! Lots of fun and very interesting. We had a wonderful time in the Galapagos. Our guides Vivienne and Ricardo were very nice and informative. Our guide for the snorkeling trip was very good as well but I can't remember his name. We saw lots of wildlife both on land and sea. Our accommodations at Blu Galapagos were perfect. This is my 2nd trip through Kim Kim and it is really been a pleasure having the trips tailored to what you want. Paul was a great local specialist, very responsive and answered all of my questions in a timely fashion.

I found the guides to be extremely educated in-the history and culture of their country and specific area they are guiding they are excellent drivers and their social skills are at a higher level Actually I found the people of Ecuador to be friendly and inviting I found myself in awe of this countries beauty and magistryI feel like I left a friend and I want to return Ecuador is a country I could easily call home I've gained abetter sense of who I am for spending just 2weeks there my spirit has been rebooted

Hotel Review

Hostería Paraíso Vilcabamba

Vilcabamba

Very relaxing don't forget your swimsuit

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Kindness that comes from the heart

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Cuenca to Vilcabamba

Ecuador

The drive through the country was breathtaking

Quality of Experience

Feeling embraced by a culture Paola is an exceptional coordinator and host can't thank her enough

Food

Everything

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Visit to the Saraguro Community & Transfer to Cuenca

Ecuador

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport