Odynovo Tours Co., Ltd

Everything Kimkim touched in preparation for our trip was flawlessly arranged and executed.
Our long standing hotel accommodations, transit connections, and air and rail tickets made for seamless enjoyment and ease of travel flow.
The availability of Shona to assist or answer questions was a given and much appreciated when we received her help managing a luggage transfer between hotels.
The four days of guided excursions were flawlessly executed and so easily accomplished thanks to the expert handling of the local guides and professional drivers. Even our day in Kyoto where we relied on mass transit to visit multiple locations on every side of the city were incredibly easy thanks to the excellent transportation infrastructure of the city, prefecture and country.
Shout out to Ayumi and Sochi for insight into both the history and current lifestyle of Japanese culture. Guide Ian’s perspectives provided a good contrast as a western expat living the dream in Japan.
Lastly, we arranged our ski portion of the trip mostly independently and it went really well thanks to the most excellent service provided by Hokkaido Nomad car rental in Sapporo. The camp car service was flawless. We had engine trouble on New Year’s Eve and Suzuki (our rental lead) delivered a brand new camp car to our location in less than an hour, ON NEW YEARS EVE. Amazing.

My Husband and I had a fantastic honeymoon in Japan, all thanks to our trip planner/agent Eleanor, our Tokyo guide Yoshi, our Osaka foodie tour guide Jimmy and Moika, and lastly our Kyoto guide Maasake. We especially enjoyed a Temple in Kyoto where we descended into a pitch black, dark area to make a wish on a stone, and come out the other side "rebirthed". It was such a different experience and we felt immersed in Japan's spiritual culture. The food was incredible. The foodie tour showed us unique foods that we had not had before and wouldn't have though about trying otherwise. They were great company too; it felt like going out on the town with a couple of local friends. Tokyo was our first destination and Yoshi was fantastic about teaching us how to use the public transport system and appropriate ways to enter Shrines. He answered all of our questions that mightve come off as "silly" or "ignorant" without judgement. This was our first trip ever to another country and it couldn't have gone better. Eleanor answered every single question cam and I came across, even during the trip. She always got back to me no matter what, and gave some good advice to avoid struggling a lot through some of the busiest areas of Japan. Thank you everyone and Kimkim for an unforgettable honeymoon.

The trip was great. We planned our trip to Japan during a very busy season of life when we didn't have time to do the research we'd normally like to do. Sandy connected us with all the important sites and was accommodating to our requests. She booked all our train reservations and knew what needed to be booked ahead of time in terms of trains and museums. Her suggestions about what to do in our free time were very helpful. Highlights were the Ghibli museum and Food tour in Tokyo and the bike tour in Kyoto. Our tour guides in every city were knowledgeable and kind. The hotels she chose for us were very nice, and all throughout the trip she shared updates of what was coming up next and info on using the transportation in that city. The only thing that was disappointing was finding out the Peace Museum was closed while we were there for the new year holiday. We would have scheduled our itinerary differently had we known that ahead of time and put Hiroshima earlier in the trip. So double check those types of details if you are traveling during the new year, or other major holiday. For a family of 5 it's also much easier to eat if you have a reservation, so plan ahead for that. Overall it was a fantastic trip and the experience with KimKim both before the trip, and while we were there, was very good.

Hotel Reviews

Asakusa View Hotel Annex Rokku

Tokyo

This hotel is clean and had rooms with 3 beds if you are traveling with kids/a group. The breakfast was good with a good coffee option in the morning. Location is near the Senso-Ji temple and markets around there. Nice friendly staff.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Good for visiting Senso-ji temple and markets but far from some other parts of town.

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Hakone Kowakien TEN-YU

Hakone

Fun to have bathtubs on balcony to have hot springs baths not in the onsen. Buffet was huge but got old after 2 days. Shuttle available to take you to the Open Air museum, but it doesn't pick you back up so need to acquaint yourself with public transportation. Staff was nice, had great massage at their spa.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

THE KNOT HIROSHIMA

Hiroshima

Loved having the bar area on the 14th floor to hang out with views of the city. Great proximity to the bus that takes you to the train station! Breakfast was decent.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Cross Hotel Kyoto

Kyoto

Great location, nice lobby, good breakfast.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Full Day Tokyo City Tour with Akihabara district

Tokyo

Good overview of the city. Our tour guide was flexible and accommodating to what we wanted to see. nice to have a driver to take us around on our first day in the country, helped us get our bearings!

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Asakusa Sumo Club: Sumo Show Admission with Chankonabe in Tokyo

Tokyo

This was campy fun. Glad we did it but felt very touristy! Food was pretty good.

Quality of Experience

Tokyo Night Foodie Tour in Shinjuku

Tokyo

One of our family's favorite things we did! Jun was our guide and he was fantastic and had great energy.

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Drive to Hakone with Mt. Fuji Tour

Japan

Had a great guide who shared a lot of history as we drove. We ended up with a freezing cold day which made it a little less comfortable than it would normally be!

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Kyoto: Guided E-Bike Tour

Kyoto

Our family of 5 (2 teens + a 20 year old, plus parents) loved this. Our guide Philippe took us to off-the-beaten-path locations in east Kyoto which was great after having seen all the crowded main sites. Our kids ranked this high on the list. We had electric bikes so it was easy!

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Full Day Miyajima Island and Memorial Park Tour

Hiroshima

Our guide Mayumi was excellent, telling us a lot of history about Hiroshima and the impact of the bomb there. She took us somewhere yummy for lunch, then onto Miyajima. It was a great day.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Full Day Hakone and Lake Ashi Tour with Hakone Tozan Railway

Japan

Tour guide was great but this just wasn't our favorite part of the trip. The hike we did on our own, Mt. Kintoki, was wonderful. A little steep so a bit of a challenge but we were rewarded with amazing views of Mt. Fuji!

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Overall, we found the experience to be very good. While the itinerary was somewhat fast-paced, it was ultimately very satisfying and offered a nice balance between cultural activities and experiences specifically enjoyable for the girls. We truly appreciated the effort and care that went into designing the program.

That said, we would like to share a few recommendations that we believe could help strengthen future trips:

First, in some cities we arrived in the late afternoon and were directed to places that were already closed or about to close. This happened in Kanazawa, where despite rushing, we were unable to access the gardens, which closed at 5:00 pm. It might be helpful to adjust recommendations or arrival times in these cases.

Second, several of the guides did not speak English well. While we fully understand that the general population is not expected to speak English, we were told that we would have support from guides with at least an intermediate level of English. Unfortunately, this was not always the case. We prefer not to mention names, as we feel that would be inappropriate, but we believe this is an important point to take into account.

Third, the last day in Osaka felt too short. It may have been more beneficial to spend less time in another city in order to make time for Osaka or possibly skip Osaka altogether.

Finally, we suggest taking into account the situation we shared regarding the museum in Hiroshima, in order to be especially careful with schedules during public holidays.

We share these comments with appreciation and in a constructive spirit, as we truly value the experience and the work behind it.

A big hug and congratulations on such a well-organized trip.

Warm regards,

We just returned from our two week trip to Korea and had an amazing time! We traveled as a group of seven, including three teenagers and my 81 yr old mom. All the hotels we stayed in were comfortable and well located and all our drivers were experienced and knowledgeable and kind. Jessica was great to work with from day one when we started planning the trip and was always quick to respond to any changes to our itinerary or issues that arise during our trip. Our trip was tricky because we had to make everyone happy, and she listened to my concerns and accommodated everyone's requests. We would highly recommend kimkim and our travel agent Jessica for anyone traveling to South Korea!

Christine went above and beyond in helping us plan an amazing trip to Korea. She balanced guided tours and free time to visit relatives. We started with a day long tour of Seoul highlights, and she included a beautiful tea ceremony with a local tea expert. We also did a DMZ tour, took a train to Busan, where we did another fantastic city highlights tour, and a day trip from there to Gyeongju to see the Bulguksa Temple and explore the history of the Shilla dynasty. Our guides in Seoul and Busan/Gyeongju were incredibly knowledgeable, kind, and led us to amazing food! All our train rides and transportation were perfectly on time and smooth. Christine, our agent, even surprised us by sending a birthday gift to my child at the hotel. She was the best travel agent and it was the best trip!

Hotel Review

BrownSuites Busan Station

Our apartment-style suite was stylish, spacious, clean, and had an amazing view and our own laundry. But it lacked a front desk, a dedicated hotel restaurant, and daily housekeeping services. The self check-in was a little bit confusing because there were multiple entrances to the two towers. Any questions/issues during our stay were very quickly answered via WhatsApp, but if you prefer a place with standard hotel service and a breakfast buffet, this may not be the best choice.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Quick walk to Busan train station. A bit far from the Haeundae Beach area.

Staff

Service via WhatsApp was quick and friendly but wish there was more in-person opportunity.

Cleanliness & Comfort

The room was clean and beautiful but there was no housekeeping service included.

Activity Reviews

Full Day Korean DMZ Tour

Seoul

Explore Seoul Highlights

Seoul

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Our guide, Wookie, was knowledgeable, energetic, and friendly. One of the best guides we’ve ever had.

Transport

We rode in a spacious and comfortable van for our family.

Full Day Busan Highlights Tour with Jagalchi Fishery Market

Busan

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Mimi, our guide, was super friendly, accommodating, and knowledgeable. She was able adjust to our needs flexibly because we arrived in Busan in the early afternoon and couldn’t quite last the full 8 hours out of exhaustion and jet lag. But we still saw the highlights we wanted to see and got back to our hotel exactly when we wanted.

Transport

Full Day Gyeongju Tour with National Museum and Bulguksa Temple

Busan

I’m so glad we took this day trip from Busan. Gyeongju was such a different experience from the big cities of Seoul and Busan. It had more of a village feel with traditional architecture. The Bulguksa Temple was incredible. We enjoyed the museum on Shilla history. And our very knowledgeable guide and driver, Mimi, led us to an incredible local soon tofu restaurant.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport