Once Upon a Trip

Our journey started with researching New Zealand and how to best travel the country. What to see, where to stay? We made an inquiry with KimKim. We were contacted right away and teamed up with Michelle. What we loved about Michelle is that she lives in New Zealand. We got on a call with her, she asked questions concerning what we wanted to do on the trip. Places that were important for us to visit, things we wanted to do and things we weren’t interested in doing as much. She built a 3 week itinerary for us. The itinerary included transportation, stay and excursions/tours. It was perfect! She was easy to contact and the app that we downloaded allowed us to have our itinerary at hand. Tickets and vouchers were on there as well. We just got back from the trip and it was wonderful!!!

Our trip to New Zealand was absolutely amazing, and Monika played a huge role in making it everything we hoped it would be. She worked closely with us to design a schedule that fit exactly what we wanted, and her local expertise helped make the trip feel smooth, thoughtful, and stress-free.

When weather created a need for some changes while we were already in country, Monika was incredibly helpful and responsive. She communicated clearly, helped adjust plans, and made things happen so we could continue enjoying the trip.

My husband, teen daughter, and I had a wonderful time and saw so many incredible things. This trip was especially meaningful because it was our 20th anniversary, and I had dreamed of visiting New Zealand for 30 years. The trip did not disappoint. We had some amazing experiences that we will remember forever.

We especially loved Queenstown and the helicopter tour where we landed on a glacier. We had a blast on the Shotover River boat trip, toured Lord of the Rings filming sites, spent Christmas Eve gazing at the stars from a hot springs pool during a night sky tour, and took a boat tour to see dolphins, penguins, and seals. The natural beauty of the South Island is breathtaking.

We also had the amazing experience of seeing a kiwi hatch at the hatchery, which looked like a scene from Jurassic Park. Hobbiton was a wonderful visit as well, especially for anyone who loves the movies. These are only a few highlights from an unforgettable trip.

We all agreed that we will use a travel agent for future international trips because this experience showed us how valuable it is to have someone knowledgeable, responsive, and supportive helping along the way. We would absolutely work with Monika again.

Wow, trip of a lifetime! Many thanks to KimKim (and to Kathrin specifically) for helping us have the visit we'd long dreamed of in New Zealand. Both the South and North Islands were wonderful, though very different. We did white water rafting, kayaking, boating near glaciers and icebergs, heli-hiking, had a Maori experience that was absolutely fantastic, visited several national parks, saw coastlines from the water and fijords from a boat we spent the night on. Can't possibly list everything we got to experience, and it could never have worked out so well without the help we got from Kathrin. Just can't say enough how much I recommend KimKim for travel planning. We had so many wonderful things arranged for us that any stress we might have had going it on our own just evaporated. I had so many questions, and Kathrin was endlessly patient and helpful!

Hotel Review

Queenstown Park Boutique Hotel

Queenstown

Beautiful accommodations, outstanding service, a wonderful included breakfast, and a great location are some of the reasons we loved this hotel. There was roadwork at the time that made it tricky to get to, but when we were close someone from the hotel saw us and came out to show us where to park then helped with our luggage. We were sorry to only have one night there, and highly recommend it as a home base when you are visiting Queenstown.

Location

Close enough to walk into town

Staff

They were very attentive and proactive in regards to our needs

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Te Pā Tū - Maori Cultural Experience

Rotorua

While this was one of the things I wanted to make sure I experienced on our trip to New Zealand (I was an anthropology major and loved studying about the Maori) I was a little suspicious that this might feel too "touristy". By the end of a delightful evening all fears were allayed. Actually meeting the extended family who operate Te Pa Tu, the variety of ways they showed you what life in one of their villages would have been like (with interactive events), listening to their fabulous singing and chants (oh my gosh what voices they have!), and sitting down to a feast with them scattered among the guests so you could learn more one on one - I mean, what more could you ask for?

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Explore Waiheke wineries with the Hop-On-Hop-Off bus

Waiheke Island

Loved the island but wouldn't do the Hop On Hop Off bus next time. We were there in the fall and maybe it's different during high season but the schedule had us waiting a lot, and we wasted a lot of time we could have spent exploring the island and the wineries.

When we finally decided to take our dream trip to New Zealand we knew we deeded help to make it perfect, and chose KimKim after an online search for the best agency. It couldn't have worked out better and we recommend KimKim to everyone who wants to hear about our trip. Kathrin began helping us last August (our trip began this April) and by the time we were ready to go she had made sure every detail was taken care of. Quizzing us first about what sort of vacation we were looking for (Lord of the Rings sites? Outdoor activities? Museums and galleries?), how long we had available, our general budget, etc. she came up with a fabulous list of ideas for us. The more we learned about our options the more she fine-tuned our selections, then she arranged our New Zealand flights and car rentals and boat rides. It ended up being the perfect mix of our ideas and her suggestions, with all the stress taken out of the trip. Her selection of companies for the activities we wanted to do was spot on - loved all the people we had contact with. Heck we even ran into another couple who had used Kathrin and KimKim - that was fun! New Zealand is one of the few places we would really love to go to again, and I'm certain having their guidance in planning our trip was a big part of that.

Hotel Reviews

M Social

Auckland

Loved having a great view, loved the location, loved the beds and bathroom, loved the very friendly staff!

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Tides Hotel Nelson

Nelson

What a funky, fun place! The crazy artwork everywhere was very cool - including, I might add, our painted toilet. Loved the location on the water and the fantastic food too. Cozy place, with the restaurant right around the corner from our room. Definitely would recommend.

Authenticity & Character

It is a totally unique environment!

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

The Hermitage Hotel

Mount Cook Village

Location is outrageously awesome, the staff is very attentive and friendly - we felt we were treated like VIPS. The buffet was really good as well. We must have spent 15 minutes just taking photos of the surrounding mountains.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Doubtful Sound Overnight Cruise (Real NZ) on Navigator or Wanderer

New Zealand

The cruise into Doubtful Sound was so very pretty - really glad we did an overnight trip. Also very glad we took our agent's advice and went here instead of the more popular (and crowded) Milford Sound, although on a return trip we might check that out too. Felt like we were the only people on the sound, and spending then night just felt magical. Our little kayak cruise was a fun treat as well. When they cut the engines on the return trip and we got to listen to the silence it was just spectacular.

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Starlight Gourmet Kayak Tour - Glowworm Caves

Rotorua

This was an unexpectedly amazing day/evening. The kayaking, while tiring, felt marvelous and it was really fun to then have a bbq and soak in the hot springs. Had wonderful conversations with the other people at the springs, including a other couple who had booked their vacation thru KimKim and Kathrin! We got back into our paddling gear at sunset and went the rest of the way to the glow worm cave with our guide and another couple (our whole group!). Sliding into the tiny cave and seeing the glow worms literally right over our heads was astonishing, and hearing both the ancient tales and the scientific explanation for them was very enlightening (pun intended). Paddled by the light of the full moon back to our starting point and slept very well indeed that night.

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Noemie was our trip planner and main point of contact. She totally attentive during our online meetings and very responsive to our written communications in the KimKim app and emails. She made good suggestions for activities and when we decided to cancel our helicopter ride over a weekend she and her support team worked together to make it happen. She and her team checked in with us periodically during our trip to make sure all was well. This was a very nice touch and a great comfort.