Exotic Voyages

Our best trip! Elena really put together an incredible itinerary. Great connections with real people, hotels were superb, guides were excellent, food was outstanding, logistics were perfect (highly recommend the fast track through customs and the airport and the guides were extremely helpful here too). The Monk Chat was life changing. Highly recommend.

Hotel Reviews

The Sukhothai Bangkok

A bit high end corporate, but executed well. The pool was the best for jet lag -- swimming at dawn with the birds is a great way to start a trip! Layout of the hotel took a couple days to understand because of the multiple buildings, but great quality and service overall.

Authenticity & Character

The pool and the food.

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Satri House

Possibly my favorite hotel in the world. The colonial feel with the modern updates create a great sense of place. Service, the pool, the breakfast and dinner by the pond were all memorable.

Authenticity & Character

The gardens, the layout of the walkways, the common rooms, the pools.

Location

Just outside of the tourist area and night market make it easily walkable.

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Bed was great.

Cross Chiang Mai Riverside

Chiang Mai

Food was fantastic -- the breakfast was always an event and even a light dinner was special. The modern design was not exactly Chiang Mai, but it was on the other side of the river and away from the traffic. The pool was nice and bedroom was large.

Authenticity & Character

Modern, but well thought out.

Location

Quiet, but not walkable into the city. Use Grab and you will be fine.

Staff

Alway pleasant coming and going and helped us out for one special request.

Cleanliness & Comfort

Apricot Hotel

Hanoi

We had a great suite overlooking the lake. A great sense of old time French interiors and a nice roof deck.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Right in the middle of the best part of Hanoi. Easily walkable to many of the most interesting parts of the city.

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Devasom Khao Lak Beach Resort & Villas

Phang Nga

The food and the pool were excellent. Breakfast was especially good and the special dinner event was fun.

Authenticity & Character

The pool and the bear and grill seemed to be the center of the hotel and well worth hanging out.

Location

A bit of a drive from Phuket but also way far away from noise and the crazy.

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Progressive Dinner - The Luang Prabang Culinary Tapestry

Luang Prabang

A great sampling of Laotian cuisine mixed with some modern mixed drinks and emerging restaurant trends.

Quality of Experience

Food

The mixed drinks and appetizers were the best.

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Visit to the Buddhist Archives

Luang Prabang

Interesting glimpse into Laos history and great for any student of culture and Buddhism.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Discover Hanoi by Morning Vespa: An Insider’s Perspective

Hanoi

This was out third time taking the vespa ride though Hanoi. Exhilarating and unique look at the city.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

They even stopped to pick up my camera lens cap when it fell out of my pocket.

Afternoon Encounter with the Elephants at Mandalao

Luang Prabang

The experience of feeding the elephants and then walking through the jungle with them was totally worth it. The road to get there from LP was a disaster though -- slow and painful. Hopefully they can address this in the near future. Just be sure to get picked up on time to get there when the event starts.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Driver and car were great but Lao infrastructure needs some attention.

Half-day Meditation at Wat Suan Dok (Private)

Chiang Mai

The Monk Chat was life changing. We are advanced meditators and were able to get 1:1 time with the head monk for about an hour. The rest of the group went into an intro class in another room. The time and patience KayKay took with us was priceless.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Similan Island Snorkeling Joining Tour by Speedboat

Khao Lak

This was the only disappointment of the trip. It was over touristed and the fish were not that interesting. There were so many people on the island that there was barely a bit of sand to sit on before we could go home. A long way to go in a jolting speedboat to end up with 10 other boats filled with people. They need to figure this out before they destroy such a beautiful spot. People and food were great, but they need to ramp back the number of boats allowed at one time.

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Sunrise Doi Suthep & alms giving

Chiang Mai

A bit early to get up, but it was ideal to skip the long lines of tourists. Quiet and beautiful, it was lovely to have a guide to explain everything.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Where Tradition Meets Creativity

Chiang Mai

It was great to see all the crafts up close and try our hand at lacquerware. We bought a few small things to remind us of the trip

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Lanna Lifestyle & Cooking Experience with A Local Family with dinner

Chiang Mai

A bit far outside Chiang Mai at rush hour, but worth it once you get there. A lovely location to get educated about growing the ingredients, Thai food and culture. Cooking was fun and the food was delicious -- they have this one down.

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Driver was great, traffic was not.

Footsteps Through Lanna Time

Chiang Mai

The guided trip through all the historical sites was definitely worth it.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Culinary Evolution of Thai Food

Bangkok

The food was fantastic and served in unique locations.

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Thonburi with A Heritage Conservationist

Bangkok

The insight and journey through the hidden parts of Bangkok was fascinating.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Doi Inthanon National Park - A Nature Walk and Culture

Chiang Mai

Waterfalls and lunch were epic

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Backstreet Alleys: A Nostalgic Tour of Hanoi with dinner

Hanoi

Great insider look at the back alleys of Hanoi. It was a great cultural experience and a fascinating walk.

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

We had 3 days in Bangkok with our awesome guide, Fahrah. We were expedited through the airport and quickly taken to our hotel which was much appreciated after our long travel day. We enjoyed touring temples, floating markets, and the Grand Palace with Fahrah. We learned so much about Thai culture from her. We then spent 2 days in Chiang Mai with our guide, Ying. We toured the Old City with a TukTuk tour and tried lots of foods she recommended at the market. Our hotel was wonderful! We also enjoyed a day at an elephant sanctuary. From there, we traveled to Koh Lanta and had 3 beautiful days at our resort and touring the phi phi islands. We even had a romantic dinner prepared on the beach to celebrate our 30th wedding anniversary. We then traveled to Krabi where we explored the Hong Islands and enjoyed a day at the Wareek Day Spa where we experienced a Thai massage and soaks in the hot springs. Our guide, Charlotte, taught us Thai phrases as she whisked us around to all our excursions. We had a wonderful trip and can't wait to go back to Thailand!

Hotel Reviews

Mode Sathorn Hotel Bangkok

Bangkok

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Cross Chiang Mai Riverside

Chiang Mai

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Rawi Warin Resort & Spa

Chiang Mai

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

The ShellSea Krabi I Luxury Beach Resort & Pool Villas

Krabi

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Hyatt Regency Bangkok Suvarnabhumi Airport

Samut Prakan

Activity Reviews

James Bond Island & Koh Hong Discovery by Speedboat Join-in Activity

Krabi

A must do! We had a great day exploring the islands. Our guides made it very fun!

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Phi Phi island by Joining Speedboat

Thailand

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Bangkok Symbolic Temples

Bangkok

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Fahrah explained the meaning behind the temples and shared info about Buddhism that we found interesting.

Transport

Kinnaree Long Song Full-day Spa Program - Wareerak Hot Spring & Wellness

Krabi

We really enjoyed our Thai massage and soaking in the hot springs.

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Unique Railway market & Damnoen Saduak Floating Market with Local Food Tasting

Bangkok

A must do for a first time traveler to Thailand!

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Romantic Manohra Dinner Cruise

Bangkok

We loved this dinner cruise. Highly recommend for a romantic evening. The food was amazing!

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Explore Chiang Mai by tuk tuk

Chiang Mai

Quality of Experience

Our guide, Ying, was so interesting and we enjoyed touring the city with her.

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Baan Chang Elephant Park - Half day joining tour

Chiang Mai

We really enjoyed our time with the elephants. You will get wet if bathing the elephants in the water, but that was part of. the fun!

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

A memorable Romantic Dinner on the Beach (Arranged by the resort)

Thailand

Amazing food and memorable dinner on the beach with a beautiful sunset. Couldn't have asked for more!

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Hoa was amazing at putting things together and was very prompt with everything. We did not provide much time to plan and had a great trip. One thing I would change would be the Thailand party if the trip. It would've been good to spend more time in Bangkok and only a few hours exploring the temples in Ayutthaya before heading through to Khao Yi. This was more our personal preference but realised we didn't provide much when we signed up. But my cousin and I agreed how great Hoa did with everything and we were very happy

My wife and I had an amazing two weeks in Thailand! Huge thanks to Hoa for putting together a smooth, well-balanced itinerary that made everything effortless. Pom, our Bangkok guide, was fantastic — energetic, knowledgeable, and really helped us get the most out of the city. Bammie, our Chiang Mai guide, was also excellent — friendly, attentive, and made the experience feel special. We also had a great time in Ko Yao Noi and Phuket; the beaches were incredible. Overall this was one of the best trips we’ve ever taken, and we highly recommend this team for anyone planning a Thailand trip.

We booked our honeymoon through KimKim to Thailand and had an amazing experience every step of the way. First we went to Chiang Mai and met our tour guide Bam. Our hotel Bella Nara was a fantastic stay with an absolutely delicious breakfast (Our favorite of the entire trip). We had a fantastic time going to the Araksa Tea Garden and getting a tour of the Silver Temple. She also brought us to the silver smith and we got to learn to engrave some aluminum keychains. We also went to the Elephant Jungle sanctuary and got to work with the elephants there.

Next we went to Bangkok and met our tour guide Mr. Tawee. Our favorite part was the Hidden Local Beliefs tour led by Scotty. He taught us all about Buddhism from a very personal level and took us to some amazing temples both on and off the beaten path. TIngly cooking school and the night street food tour were both amazing adventures as well.

After that we flew to Cambodia, specifically to Siem Reap. Seeing the beautiful countryside as well as the ancient temples was breathtaking. The floating village and sunset boat tour on Tonle Sap lake was a fantastic end to our day. Sorphorn was extremely knowledgeable and helpful with recommending places to eat.

Finally our travels brought us to Phuket. We went on the John Gray's sea canoe trip and got to see some amazing islands and lagoons, as well as going into the caves and seeing bio-luminescent plankton. The crew on the Phi Phi Sunrise and Maya Bay by Simba tour were fantastic as well. It was a little hard for a first time snorkeler, but someone more experienced would have a great time.

Overall our planning with KimKim made the entire trip a breeze, and their execution was nearly flawless. Kien was with us every step of the way, and listened to all of our wants and needs. We highly recommend the service, and will be planning with them again.

Activity Reviews

Araksa Tea Experience & Adventure at Sri Lanna National Park

Chiang Mai

We had an incredible time picking and learning about tea. Tasting the teas was delicious and the guides were very informative. The national park was gorgeous and we had an amazing time at the waterfall.

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Finding The Lost Angkor Temples - Lunch at Srah Srang Village House

Siem Reap

Absolutely stunning experience.

Quality of Experience

Food

We loved the place they took us for lunch. Getting to eat a traditional Cambodian meal in the home restaurant was amazing.

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Elephant Jungle Sanctuary (Morning session)

Chiang Mai

Possibly the favorite part of the trip. Kind of wish we could've spent the whole day with the elephants.

Chiang Mai Culture & Arts

Chiang Mai

Bam gave us a personal experience of the city and we had a great time on this tour. We loved making the aluminum engravings and learning about the traditions and history of Chiang Mai.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Night Street Food Tour After Dark by Tuk Tuk

Bangkok

Tried lots of delicious foods, including soy sauce ice cream!

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Countryside Adventure by Quad Biking

Siem Reap

We were able to see the beautiful landscape and countryside of Siem Reap. Our guide was personable and informative.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Hidden Local Beliefs

Bangkok

Scotty was an incredible guide. Highly recommend him! We loved getting to learn about the practice of Buddhism and local beliefs.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

The whole trip was great! Hoa did a FANTASTIC job putting together great activities and lodgings!
We especially loved the local feel on our tour to Koh Klang.
Will definitley use & recommend Kimkim in the future!

We had a wonderful experience booking through Kimkim -- here are the highlights of the key people that we interacted with:

1) Kien -- he is based out of Vietnam but was our key contact person throughout the planning phase as well as the trip. He was always attentive to our needs, helped us every step of the way, was polite and understood what we wanted to get out of the trip. I will highly recommend him.

2) The local guides: Mr. Taiwah, Ms. Pookie, Ms. Lisa, Ms. Yun were all very helpful and responsive.

We will look forward to booking our next trip via Kimkim.

From beginning to end our travel experience was incredible thanks to Hoa and our guides and drivers in Thailand. From our arrival in Chiang Mai to dropping off our son at Semester at Sea at the end of our trip in Bangkok every detail was accounted for and every accommodation made for our unique circumstance. We encountered delays at the beginning of our trip because of weather in San Francisco forcing us to miss our connection and delaying our arrival in Thailand one full day. Within hours of receiving our news, Hoa had rearranged our itinerary to ensure we missed not a single moment we had planned, including changing our in country flight from Bangkok to Chiang Mai. I just cannot overstate the level of detail and consideration that was put into our travel plan by Hoa and the team. Ying, our guide in Chiang Mai, was knowledgeable and just such a joy to spend time with. It was fun getting to know her city, her cultural and even her personally. Each hotel in Chiang Mai, Krabi, Bangkok and Kanchanaburi captured the vibe of the place we were in and added to our overall experience. Hoa really heard us when we expressed our interests and values and aligned our itinerary perfectly. Our guide in Bangkok, Toto, was so much fun! He just has this infectious energy that added great vibes to our overall experience. When my daughter and I started to plan this trip we tried to do it on our own but became quickly overwhelmed. Finding KimKim and working with Hoa were the key to an incredible experience we will never forget!

Hotel Reviews

De Chai The Colonial Hotel & Spa

Chiang Mai

Great location and really nice rooms.

Authenticity & Character

Location and room decor

Location

Staff

Very helpful

Cleanliness & Comfort

Varana Krabi Hotel

Great location and amenities. Very peaceful. Food is a little pricey on site (per Thailand standards) but a great experience overall.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Nysa Hotel Bangkok Sukhumvit 11

Bangkok

Location was in an area that was maybe not as family friendly. We did like the atmosphere of the hotel itself and staff were excellent. Also in walking distance to shopping and public transit.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

River Kwai Resotel

Kanchanaburi

Very cool setting but staff was super helpful.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Loved taking the water taxi to and from

Staff

Language proficiency and attitude -- people were not super friendly

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Explore Chiang Mai by tuk tuk

Chiang Mai

Ying was super knowledgeable about Buddhism and Thai customs.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Araksa Tea Experience & Adventure at Sri Lanna National Park

Chiang Mai

Such a serene and peaceful place. Loved picking the tea and learning the process.

Quality of Experience

Food

Loved the homemade rice cakes

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Bangkok Symbolic Temples

Bangkok

Toto went above and beyond to make sure we visited all the temples and got the best views and pictures!

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Railway Market & Floating Market - Travel to Kanchanaburi

Thailand

Both markets are so unique and special. Toto gave us great hints on where to shop for the best deals.

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

The local lead guides in each location were amazing. They took lead in everything from the moment we arrived and recommended additional things to do, restaurants and went out of their way to be readily available for any questions we had. The best was when each of them walked us into the airport for our transfer flights and helped us navigate through the check in process, which saved us a lot of messy chaos and lost time.

The itinerary was perfect and the transportation between locations was perfect and the communication with Elena from Kim Kim was excellent!!!

We will definitely return to Kim Kim on our future travels

Hotel Review

Anjali by Syphon

What a beautiful and unique hotel! The service was amazing, the food was beautiful and tasty and the staff so kind and accommodating. I will be recommending this hotel to everyone I know traveling to Siem Reap

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Review

Lanna Lifestyle & Cooking Experience with A Local Family with dinner

Chiang Mai

This was a lovely and authentic experience as you were invited into the home of a family. The introduction of the culture and the food we made was amazing!

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport