High Point Holidays and Randonnees Outre-Manche

My daughter and I wanted to plan a trip to Scotland. We generally knew what we wanted to see but felt we needed some local expertise to help us plan and make sure we weren’t missing anything. Jane Davey through Kimkim was an absolute delight to work with. Her personal knowledge of Scotland and genuine interest in creating a memorable and personalized experience for us made for an outstanding mother/daughter adventure. Despite the online Kimkim model - there was a lot of personal interaction with Jane - including video calls with us to go over the details of our itinerary. She and her team built an online road book with every detail of our itinerary included that we were able to reference throughout the trip. Plus - she and her team were available by phone 24/7 to help with any questions.

We loved every aspect of our trip. Scotland is magical and her people are warm and welcoming. We especially enjoyed the historic city of Edinburgh and visiting the Isle of Skye and Lewis/Harris in the Hebrides. We saw gorgeous landscapes, hauntingly beautiful castle ruins, ancient landmarks and charming towns. We did a fair bit of driving - which was an adventure in itself since we weren’t used to left-side driving. We loved it all!

Recently retired and wanting to travel to Scotland, but where to start? Hearing about KimKim from my sister-in-law we contacted them and them and Pauline was our personal agent and advocate! We had appointments regularly so she could glean what were our goals and desires. She listened, then researched and advised. She was SPOT ON! We wanted to experience as much as we could in the 10 day trip and looking back I would not have changed a thing!
Pauline and the team at KimKim made sure to book our hotels close to the train connections and local travel options. My husband and I along with his sister and husband traveled with ease knowing we were backed by the whole group. It made us feel more at ease when questions arose.
We were picked up at the airport and delivered to our first hotel in London for a couple of days starting with the Tower of London and a on a whim the Winston Churchill War Room exhibits. Both were AMAZING! The following day we took infamous Westminster Chapel, which left us breathless.
Off to Edinburgh by train to see the country in comfort! One of our goals was to learn about my husband's Scottish heritage. KimKim connected us to a guide who was such a gem, Alister, who gave a a driving tour of Edinburgh first and then to the family town and castle! Although the castle was in ruins, it was truly remarkable. Alister headed our wish to visits the less busy parts of Scotland and our day along the coastal towns and local cafe's made it all the more memorable.
Then Inverness the trip would not be complete without the castle tours, historical sites with fantastic guides and stories told with their delightful accent! A 12 hour bus tour to the Isle of Skye with photo stops and entertaining and historical stories from our guide, Carin, made the trip a real winner.
The last stop in the quaint town of Sterling staying in a truly landmark hotel, the Golden Lion, and the Sterling castle (which is a MUST see).
KimKim had a driver deliver us to the airport, (another Alister) who was the kindest gentleman, who navigated morning traffic through the backroads with ease to deliver us to the airport.
ALL the details matter and Pauline and her crew hit it out of the park. We are so grateful to have had them in our back pocket!

Activity Reviews

Tower of London Timed Entry Tickets

London

Easy to tour on your own, they have personal audio players so you can spend as little or as much time as you like.

Tickets to Westminster Abbey

London

Truly breath taking. Majestic, solemn, and facsinating. I need a full day!

Quality of Experience

Private day dedicated to the Lumsden Clan

Inverness

Honestly I cannot say enough about our guide, Alister. He was thorough and oh so thoughtful. His research on our family heritage and then driving us to the specific locations was so valuable. We were able to see, walk, read and touch where our family lived hundreds of years ago. We have memories that will be with us forever. Thank you Alistor and KimKim!

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Edinburgh Castle Tickets

Edinburgh

Such a treat to experience REAL history.

Quality of Experience

The Isle of Skye & Eilean Donan Castle

Inverness

Stirling Castle Tickets

Scotland

This was the castle to see! Where Scotland has so much history.

Quality of Experience

Pauline was wonderful! She was very detailed and organized with our plans. She was very attentive to my needs as a disabled traveler. There were some hiccups on the trip but none of them had anything to do with Pauline or Kimkim and anything we approached her with pertaining to those problems she went above and beyond to help rectify. When we travel abroad again we will be using Kimkim!!

We had an absolutely fabulous time. Claire listened to our wants and wishes and fulfilled them well. From the first day we arrived in Dublin, to the last day in Dublin we enjoyed every minute.
We rented a car (best idea) and went counterclockwise around Ireland. We were traveling for 2 weeks.
Pros - The hotels, with the exception of one(in cons):
Iveagh Gardens Hotel - Dublin - Beautifully decorated, great buffet breakfast with lots choices, rooms were a good size, nothing too fancy but very comfortable.
Ten Square Hotel - Belfast - Very comfortable, good location to visit Belfast
Lough Eske Castle - Donegal Town - Beautiful rooms, wonderful staff, great bartender! - definitely worth the stay
Victorian Hotel -Killarney - Lovely hotel. Very cozy, meals were order only(but delish) with a wait staff to be commended.
Sites:
Belfast - Black Taxi Tour - outstanding tour of Belfast and the N. Irelands troubled times. We felt like we were in a history class only with wit and lots of wisdom. I believe our driver's name was Justin and he was wonderful. He picked us up at our hotel and we were off. We thought 3 hours was going to be too long, but we could have continued for another 2 and been very happy.
Kylemore Abbey (Clifden)- an active real abbey - just beautiful, the dining room was majestic, with plates set the table of famous visitors from many years.
The Cliffs of Mohr - There are no words to really describe the Cliffs of Mohr from the ocean. It transports you to another world -imagining everything that has happened to Ireland and how it was naturally protected in many ways.
Rock of Cashel - stunning building, lots of history, very interesting. Great stop between Killarney and Dublin
Book of Kells/Long library - A must for every person who visits Dublin. the book itself is unbelievably beautiful. the long library is under renovations but still a wonder to see. Normally ~ 200K books but down to ~17k. Our guide was earning his masters in history at the college(Trinity) and extremely knowledgeable. It was a wonderful day
Teeling distillery - great tour and great whiskey - what else can I say
Our trip went smoothly, exactly as planned - no problems or issues with reservations, or tours. KimKim gave us a perfect itinerary, complete with directions, sites to see (other that what we had planned), and suggestions on where to eat. I highly recommend Kim Kim and especially Claire, our main contact.
Cons
the only real con we have is the Galmont Hotel ( Galway) - it was a great location for the shopping district and getting in and out of the city. However, it was not cozy, the bathtub was inconvenient for older people, and the room were difficult to get to. I would not recommend this hotel.

We did rent a car and it was great. It gave us the freedom to go where and when we wanted to go. Most of the roads were wide and easy driving but when we took the narrow roads we saw parts of Ireland we would not have seen. We only got lost once and lucked in to seeing cows filling the road, being driven to another field. We were also privy to seeing free range sheep, eating grass outside the fence and a sheep do, corralling sheep in an open field, not on a tour.

Again - we had a flawless trip with the exception of storm Amy, which prevented us from seeing The Giants Causeway, but that was of not fault of KimKim.

Hotel Reviews

Iveagh Gardens Hotel

Dublin

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Ten Square Hotel

Belfast

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Lough Eske Castle Hotel

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

The Galmont Hotel & Spa

Galway

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

The Victoria Hotel

Killarney

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Belfast Political Taxi Tour

Belfast

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Rock of Cashel

Ireland

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Trinity Trails & Book of Kells Guided Tour

Dublin

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Welcome to Donegal!

Ireland

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Kylemore Abbey

Ireland

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Aran Island and Cliffs of Moher cruise from Galway

Galway

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Aillwee Burren Experience ( Cave Tour, Birds of Prey, Cheese Tasting)

Ballyvaughan

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Falconry Adventures

Killarney

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Visit and taste at Teeling Distillery

Dublin

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

This was a dream trip for us to get a good look at the Scottish Highlands, Orkney Islands, the Outer Hebredes (Lewis and Harris) and Skye as well as a caste of the Fringe in Edinburgh and a chance to discover Glasgow. Jane and Marine-Heloise were very adaptable in their planning and set it up for a smooth experience. Well, except for driving on the opposite side of the road, which was both exciting and terrifying.
We were able to enjoy some of the Fringe activities in Edinburgh once we figured out how it all worked. Then drove north thru the Highlands for Scotch whiskey, historical sites and geologic wonders. All the while staying at a variety of lodging and enjoying the fabulous weather (clouds, rain, sun and rainbows). They really put together a great trip.

Hotel Review

Harbour House

Ullapool

This was a spectacular location on the water in a separate cottage. It was my wife's absolute favorite of the trip. It was an easy walk into town, had plenty of parking and breakfast was great. The unit was recently built and very modern inside but the view from the front patio (and large windows) was wonderful. We hope to stay there again.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Three Isles Tour – Mull, Iona & Staffa

Oban

Beautiful trip out of Oban. We enjoyed the ferry crossing and bus trip across Mull - great scenery from the upper level! The ride out to visit Fingal's Cave was pretty choppy and the wave action was too strong for us to put ashore and walk to the cave. But staying safe was the first priority. Visiting Iona was the best part of the trip. Walking out and exploring the Abbey then stopping for a hand pie at St. Columba Larder was an unexpected treat. Finished with a glass of wine looking out over the water to Mull on a sunny afternoon. Here's another location we will plan for visiting again.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Great bus driver!

Transport

Welcome to the Orkney Islands

Scotland

Head immediately out for the Stenness Stone Circle and the Barnhouse Settlement, then head to the Ring of Brodgar. You will want to see them multiple times: in morning light and late afternoon to sunset. Also the village at Skara Brae. In Stromness, we ate at the Ferry Inn twice, good food, nice staff and good conversation. If you get to Kirkwall, eat at Lucano. Best Italian food on our trip and a good wine selection. Next trip we are likely to head on to the Shetland Islands for more exploring.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Breakfast/service at Stromness Hotel was only OK

Transport

Ferries were great, we were driving a rental car.

Our trip to Scotland to drive the North Coast 500 was a journey filled with stunning landscapes, quaint villages, ancient castles, historic landmarks, pubs, distilleries, friendly people and terrific accommodations.

Shout out experiences: the Croft Cafe and the Highland Cows, The Royal Yacht Britannia, Culloden