Odynovo Tours Co., Ltd

Sandy was a wonderful support for this bucket list trip! She was very responsive to our requests for modifications during the planning stages and very supportive while we were on the trip

Hotel Review

Hakoneyumoto Onsen Yaeikan

It was wonderful to experience a royken. The simplicity of the room was a bit of a surprise but it truly had everything we needed We won’t need to repeat sleeping on the floor!

Authenticity & Character

Private onsen authentic Japanese dinner and breakfast

Location

We expected to be able to take a taxi to hakone station That was not an option We walked to the local train station and took a train to hakone

Staff

Clearly state we would need to walk to local train station

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Gion Geisha Walking Tour

Kyoto

Did not like getting a presentation from a Norwegian immigrant who learned about geishas from her father in law Her views were tainted and not authentic

Quality of Experience

Discuss trip on a quiet street not a busy street corner

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Own way

A Hands-on Cooking Experience: Nigiri Sushi and More

Tokyo

Very patient and kind teachers

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Very patient

Transport

We went by ourselves

Chase Cherry Blossom with Tsukiji Outer Market in Tokyo

Tokyo

If cherry blossoms are not yet in bloom it would be good to exchange that experience to something more relevant

Quality of Experience

Great to visit the market

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Kimkim Travel / Odynovo Tours was an excellent company to work with and Christine Liu, my travel specialist, was very friendly, professional and helpful throughout all stages of my trip, from planning through return. She helped schedule changes and provided great tips as well. All the guides and drivers were very trustworthy, kind and professional. April Lee guided me in Seoul and was friendly and made great suggestions, including trying on Hanok style clothing at the Palace, which was fun and memorable. Joe guided me through Jeonju and Gyeongju and had a wealth of information about history and many facets of the areas we traveled in, he was a very friendly and trustworthy and professional guide. Ryan Lee guided me through Busan and showed me many areas of that great city, providing information only someone from the area would know; he was also friendly, professional and trustworthy. The drivers, Mr. Yoon, Mr. Shin and Mr. Kang were also excellent and professional and friendly. The trip was very enjoyable and I highly recommend kimkim travel / Odynovo Tours if you want to go to South Korea & Asia. One of my favorite excursions was to Yongin Dae Geum Park to see where some historical K dramas were filmed, and the guide, Anna Kim was also very friendly and helpful. How many ways can I say great and thank you!

Hotel Review

Lotte City Hotel Myeongdong

Seoul

Lotte City Hotel Myeongdong is centrally located and has very friendly and professional staff, with excellent food and a very pleasant atmosphere. I highly recommend it.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Review

Half Day Yongin Dae Jang Geum Park ( join in )

Seoul

This is a beautiful location and it's fun to personally visit a historical set where many K dramas are filmed. The guide, Anna Kim, was very friendly and helpful.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

The tour guides were excellent. They were sble to adjust to our needs and give us great information. We saw a great deal about the history of Korea and learned quite a bit,

Hotel Reviews

Hanok Hotel Daam Seoul

Odd concept hotel, made me think of a hostel.

Authenticity & Character

A bed in a walls, the shared room was ok but the men’s and women’s was a bed within 4 walls

Location

We were there on a Sunday night and could not find a restaurant to eat.

Staff

Very helpful to correct issues of separation of couple.

Cleanliness & Comfort

Very clean

L7 HAEUNDAE by LOTTE

Busan

Everything you come to expect from a modern hotel, the rooms were well equipped and very well set up.

Authenticity & Character

It is a modern hotel, not traditional Korean lodgings

Location

Everything was close by

Staff

Very nice

Cleanliness & Comfort

They took care of everything, even when my son got sick.

Hwangnamgwan Hanok Guesthouse

There is not 1 thing we could point to as being wrong, it was not really to our taste.

Authenticity & Character

It was like taking an old concept and wrapping it around new construction.

Location

There were food places just nothing open in the early morning.

Staff

Very nice

Cleanliness & Comfort

Simsanjae Boutique Hanok Stay

Seoul

Very nice room. Gave us the traditional experience,

Authenticity & Character

It seemed like we were staying at someone’s house while they were away.

Location

Many places to eat and explore

Staff

No staff or contact except through Kim kim

Cleanliness & Comfort

Clean and good

Activity Reviews

Half Day Seoul City Tour with Gyeongbokgung Palace and Bukchon Hanok Village

Seoul

Mary was a delight to visit with and she went through the areas we wanted very well.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Discover the Culture of Busan with Haedong Yonggungsa Temple

Busan

So informative, even though we do not have the religion it was amazing to learn about it.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Gamcheon Village, BIFF Square and Jagalchi Market

Busan

This was a lot of fun and we had fun shopping.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Half Day Bulguksa and Seokguram Grotto Tour

Gyeongju

The guide was excellent

Quality of Experience

K

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Half Day Gyeongju National Museum and Tumuli Park Tour with Night View

Gyeongju

We were able to see so much, our guide was wonderful,

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Full Day Korean DMZ and Hongdae Shopping Street Tour

Seoul

Was an excellent TIRING time, we were given a great deal of information.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

We just got back from our China trip and wanted to say thank you to Heidi from KimKim for putting everything together so well. Traveling across multiple cities can be complicated, but the whole itinerary flowed really smoothly and made the experience easy and enjoyable.

Each stop had something memorable. In Beijing, walking through the Forbidden City and visiting the Great Wall were real highlights — so much history, and you can really feel it when you’re there. Xi’an was another standout, especially the Terracotta Army. It’s one of those places that’s even more impressive in person than you expect.

Chengdu was a different kind of experience — visiting the pandas outside the city was a lot of fun and definitely worth it. And then Zhangjiajie… that was probably the biggest surprise for us. The scenery in the national park is just unreal. Photos don’t really do it justice.

Shanghai was a complete contrast — very modern, very energetic. The skyline and the scale of development there really stood out.

The hotel accommodations throughout the trip were great — comfortable, well-located, and made it easy to relax after long days. The logistics between cities (both trains and flights) were also very well handled. Every transfer was smooth, and what we really appreciated is that each guide stayed with us all the way through the train station or airport, right up to the security checkpoint, which made everything stress-free.

We also want to mention the guides, because they made a big difference. Candy in Beijing, Key in Xi’an, April in Chengdu, Ethan in Zhangjiajie, and Sophie in Shanghai (with help from Linda) were all excellent. Everyone was knowledgeable, helpful with translation, and always looking out for us.

On top of the planned itinerary, each guide gave great personal recommendations — places to eat and extra things to see that we wouldn’t have found on our own. Things like the Muslim Bazaar in Xi’an, the Tibetan street in Chengdu, Peking duck in Beijing, and even checking out silk-making in Shanghai added a lot to the trip.

Overall, we had a great time and really appreciated how everything was organized. Thanks again to KimKim for arranging such a memorable trip.