My daughter's Sweet 16 trip was amazing!
South Korea
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Oct 29 - Nov 2, 2026
My daughter's Sweet 16 trip was amazing thanks to KimKim.
First off, I did not expect all that received. Our driver picking us up in a luxury van and made us feel like queens. He was helpful, kind, and polite. A great first impression.
I was pleasantly surprised when our tour guide, Christina arrived and purchased a cake for my daughter as a gift from KimKim. That was such a beautiful surprise and we were so appreciative.
I have so much to say about our tour guide, but I will try to keep it brief. Christine and her husband, Young were truly the best. Christine not only showed us around, and planned a perfect tour, but also educated us so well. We were not sure we wanted to the Hanbok dress up, but Christine suggested we both do it, and we were so happy she did. Not only did she guide us around the area, but the amount of details she knew about Korean and other Asian history was beyond impressive.
I try to make sure my daughter learns during her experiences, but we both learned so much from Christine in that two days. Not just about history, but about trends, cultural norms, and we even discussed places we all attended in the U.S.
Christine and Young made sure we were able to do everything we wanted, and more. She gave us appropriate time alone, as well. It was perfectly balanced.
Honestly, I was disappointed with the kpop dance experience. I don't see that as a fault on KimKim. I see it as a fault on the dance company. They had reached out to me months before my trip and asked which song we wanted to dance to, I told them one of my daughter's favorite k-pop songs. They never responded. Then when we arrived, they somehow had no clue we were coming. They started late, and of course ended on time. Luckily, Christine and Young did handle the situation and kept reassuring us throughout this terrible experience. And while the instructor was very sweet, I was so upset that it was clearly just thrown together. And of all the amazing kpop songs and groups, they chose a song/group my daughter dislikes instead of the song I requested. This was the one disappointment, but it was a big one as my daughter knows so many kpop dances so this was to be a highlight of her trip, but it was a major failure.
But back to KimKim. This was such a seamless experience outside of the dance studio making it less than stellar. My daughter now wants to study abroad in Seoul thanks to the amazing experience this agency put together. I must also give special thanks to the others who provided assistance including the driver that took us to the airport. And last, but not least, Jessica, my local specialist. Jessica communicated so well. She was so flexible during this entire process. And everyone I have communicated with at KimKim provided customer service very timely. Thank you so much!
Hotel Review
The hotel was so clean and the staff was so nice. They greeted us whenever we walked by. They were so helpful. At checkin, they gave us each boxes of treats to celebrate my daughter's birthday. As someone that only speaks English, I had no problem communicating with the staff. They were so helpful whenever I needed them. The included breakfast was great. There were so many options for us. The wifi was a good speed. I had no issues connecting. Since I am a status member of the hotel, they did allow me late checkout which was perfect timing to keep my room later before heading back to the airport. I am beyond happy with my stay.
Activity Reviews
My daughter and I felt like princesses! The dress rental was so easy. And we learned so much.
We got lots of pictures! My daughter so much of her kpop idols and was able to get merch which was at the top of her list. The cruise was so peaceful and beautiful that it made my daughter want to study abroad.
I was very disappointed. They clearly had not planned for us to show up despite having contacted me and asking which song my daughter wanted to dance to. When I told them, they never responded. And were obviously unprepared. They finally got everything situated thanks to my tour guide. But we started late and ended on time. So we lost time we paid for. And the dance almost thrown together at the last second. Long story short, we danced to a song/group my daughter dislikes when this was supposed to the best part of her trip. She loves plenty of kpop artists, but we had to dance to something we weren't feeling at all. While the choreographer was sweet and the camera experience was cool, I was highly upset at this experience. We were not feeling this music, or this experience as a whole.
