Offbeat Travel

We had a great one week winter get-a-way to Puerto Rico. We knew we wanted to visit the islands of Culebra and Vieques but didn't know anything about either one. After just a brief conversation with our agent, Harry, at KimKim we knew we had the right person to create a memorable trip for us. Harry fully understood our travel preferences and delivered transportation, lodging, and excursion options that absolutely hit our sweet spots. Everything was great and the entire trip transpired very smoothly. Besides the excellent trip plan, we were very pleasantly surprised with how our travel team stayed in touch with us during the trip. They made themselves available to answer any questions we had. The trip went so smoothly that we didn't need much help, but it was nice to know they were always available. This was our second trip to Puerto Rico and we really enjoyed it. It is an easy place to travel, the Puerto Ricans are super friendly, and the scenery is beautiful. We really enjoyed Vieques. It has a super laid back vibe but with all the amenities and services you could need. The beaches were great and easy to access. And the snorkeling was good. We would definitely consider another vacation to Vieques. Thanks to the team of travel experts for putting our vacation together and for the excellence service they provided during our time in Puerto Rico.

Hotel Review

El Blok

Vieques,

El Blok is a very nice hotel in a great location in Esperanza on Vieques. We loved the vibe of Esperanza. The staff at El Blok were super friendly and helpful and could answer any questions we had about Vieques. We rented a 4-wheeler right across the street from the hotel and Banana's Restaurant just down the block was one of our favorites. There is a nice beach right across the street from the hotel and it is a perfect place to watch sunsets. Would definitely go back to El Blok.

Authenticity & Character

It seems like a newer hotel. It has a cool layout and very well maintained. Nice restaurant that was also open for morning coffee and breakfast.

Location

Right across the street from a nice beach and close to many restaurants and food trucks.

Staff

The front desk staff were all very personable and helpful and seemed like they liked their job. The make the hotel a very friendly place.

Cleanliness & Comfort

Seems like a new hotel. Super clean, great beds, the rooms were well appointed and everything was completely up to date.

Activity Review

Mosquito- Vieques Bio Bay

Vieques

The year before we visited a different bio-bay on the main island near Fajardo that we found absolutely amazing. So we were very excited about visiting the Vieques bio-bay. Although the bay itself was very cool, the overall experience was a little disappointing. First off, the long road in and out of this bio-bay is extremely rough. As in "what in the hell are you thinking" rough. Holy moly, smooth the road out! Also, I get the profit motive, but once at the bio-bay we felt like cattle being processed. The different venders were absolutely speeding people off the buses to the kayaks and then out of the kayaks back to the buses. The Fajardo bio-bay was a way more relaxed experience and in our opinion a much better experience. I would recommend the bio-bay but shame on the vendors for the crappy road and the rushed experience. But, I must also add that it was our anniversary the day we went. And somehow the KimKim team told the Bio-bay provider. So, a very sweet woman named Mayra (or maybe Maya?) who worked for the vendor actually made us a Wedding Anniversary cake and gave it to us on the excursion. That was amazing and delicious! So, thank you thank you thank you Mayra, you are an amazing baker. (Tell your boss to convince the powers that be to smooth the road into the bay)

Quality of Experience

Transport

Excellent trip and allowed for us a lot of flexibility. The hotel El Bock in Vieques was excellent and highly recommended for comfort, close to action ie beach and restaurants yet quiet and comfortable with a great spot to relax in the lobby area. Snorkeling was fun. Kim Kim staff were very responsive to questions though we didn’t have many since trip was smooth. The people of PR are ‘muy amable’. Now back in MN awaiting a winter storm.

My five days in the Dominican Republic were absolutely amazing, thanks to Isabel and Francis.

Isabel was incredibly patient and kind from the very beginning of the planning process. I changed my destination from Puerto Rico to the Dominican Republic, experienced a family emergency, and even switched from traveling with my significant other to traveling with a friend—and none of this ever seemed to bother her. She consistently checked in, showed genuine care by asking if everything was okay, and remained easygoing and supportive throughout.

Isabel truly listened to my interests, planned amazing activities, kept me busy in the best way, and was always responsive. A few days before my trip, she introduced me to Francis, who was just as kind, informative, and attentive. Francis contacted me daily to check in and to provide details about the next day’s activities. While I had a general outline, his communication added clarity and made everything feel seamless and stress-free.

I couldn’t have asked for better people to help plan my trip to the Dominican Republic. Because of them, I truly fell in love with the experience.

Hotel Review

Hodelpa Caribe Colonial

Santo Domingo

Good hotel. Excellent service and location. They are limited on towels.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Close to everything

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

El Limon Waterfall, Samana

Puerto Rico

Wow. Just wow. Guide was amazing. Food was incredible

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Los Haitises National Park

Puerto Rico

Beautiful and fun tour.

Food

Wasn’t great

Three eyes National Park

Santo Domingo

Gorgeous place. Guide was a sweetheart Never felt rushed. Great info

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

No

Transport

Santo Domingo Cultural Exploration

Santo Domingo

Our guide was polite and pleasant, and he did take us to all of the scheduled locations. However, we felt that the tour itself lacked information and engagement. Much of the walk was done in silence, and when we asked questions, the responses were often very brief or one-word answers. For example, when we asked about the population in Chinatown and about religion in the Dominican Republic, we were hoping for a bit more context or explanation. There were also a few moments that felt awkward for us, such as when the guide stopped to buy himself ice cream at the beginning of the tour and later sat down to eat soup in Chinatown while we waited. Additionally, there were times when he was on his phone, texting, or stopping to greet people he knew, which made the experience feel less focused

Quality of Experience

No

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

We had the best experience working with Isabel to plan our trip to Puerto Rico. As a busy working mom, the idea of researching, planning, and coordinating everything felt overwhelming—and Isabel made it completely effortless.

She really took the time to understand what we were looking for, from activities that would actually excite our teens to healthy dinner options and fun, memorable adventures. Every detail felt thoughtful and aligned with our family’s needs, and it allowed us to truly relax and enjoy the trip instead of stressing over logistics.

I can’t recommend Isabel enough—especially if you love to travel but feel overwhelmed by planning it all yourself. Using kimkim and working with Isabel made the entire process easy, personalized, and enjoyable. We’re so grateful for her help and would absolutely work with her again for future trips.

Thank you for all your help.
I would have loved to get a summary of places to be, with addresses, and the exact times to be there and how long the event would take. However, I understand that in large part because our trip was so last-minute, it was hard to accommodate.
I really appreciated the extra restaurant suggestions, and being available and responding to messages during off-hours and on holiday days!
Thank you for making it a memorable vacation.

The service that KimKim provided for us in the DR was great. They even helped us with a midnight airport pick-up even though we had not planned that ahead of time. Their drivers and guides are top-notch -if you get Jackson, you'll be really lucky!

Activity Reviews

Baiguate Waterfall

Jarabacoa

On this da we visited the coffee farm and really enjoyed the experience.

Discover Manabao

Jarabacoa

Fabulous hike through the forest.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

The guide spoke no English but he was great none the less.

Day Trip Constanza

the Dominican Republic

Learned a lot about the area - Francis is a good guide.

Food

The original restaurant selected was too crowded, so we ended up at another one that had limited selection.

Transport

Tila was a very safe driver.

Day Trip to Bayahibe from Santo Domingo

Santo Domingo

It was a nice visit to a beach area - unfortunately, the coral is not that pretty.

Quality of Experience

Food

Great choice of restaurant on the water.

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Three eyes National Park

Santo Domingo

Great visit with Jackson to Tres Ojos. It's a lovely park.

Quality of Experience

The area was very pretty

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Jackson is a great guide.

Transport

It was safe.

Guided Tour of Zona Colonial

Santo Domingo

Our KimKim guide connected us with a City Tour guide named Tony and it was not a great experience. We mentioned that we were not too interested in visiting the main cathedral, but we went anyway. We went to a tourist trap of a store and lunch was where all the other tourists ate. Overall it was a disappointing expereince.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Tony from the city tour agency was very low energy and didn't listen to us.

Transport

It was safe.