A full and fantastic Brazil trip: Glad I used Kim Kim & local guides!

Brazil | Oct 10 - Oct 18, 2025

As someone who usually researches and plans their own trips and sets up all the things (hotels, day trip passes, transportation, sightseeing itinerary), this was a different approach for me but one for which I am very thankful. Brazil is an incredible country, but as a tourist, there are safety issues to be aware of in some places and the language barrier is real (Google translate helps, sure, but there is nothing like an actual local guide who doubles as a translator).

I went "hybrid" with this Kim Kim experience: I researched what we wanted to see, then handed it off to Federico to bring it to fruition. He did all the itinerary plans and reservations, including setting up the day trips we wanted - some of a quality we could not have set up on our own (historic coffee farm tour, for one - which you can do through day trip companies but are better with genuine local connections). We still got to weigh in on what we wanted to do, but not getting in the weeds with reservations and the itinerary was heaven for a busy professional (or others short on time) and was very reasonable for the level of care and service provided.

We had a local guide with us every day (Alberto was amazing in Rio and Joao Luiz in Foz was great!), along with reliable drivers and a couple of other guides who were all wonderful. Kim Kim works with a local tour agency there, and they were always a text away if we had questions. The only snafu we had was a driver who was late picking us up for dinner and a show, but the local tour company owner showed up in person to apologize and bring us some bubbly to make good :) Noting, it was great to not be with a large tour group the whole trip; the only time we were with others was on a boat excursion, which made it fun in that case.

Going back to Alberto, what a fascinating, knowledgeable man! We loved his level of historical and local knowledge - made the trip so educational - and he has the patience of Job when you are out with him. Appreciated his being attentive to our needs and safety but allowing us to meander around shopping and seeing the sites at our own speed. Top notch! Likewise, Joao Luiz is so kind and attentive - he's a speed warrior, so we had to slow him down at times, but thanks to him we saw more of Iguazu Falls than we would have ever seen otherwise, and we loved that he pointed out all the birds, animals, and best views! He made going from Brazil to Argentina and back so easy - even walked us up to the counter at the airport on the way back to Rio - and was very accomodating in moving activities around to maximize the weather (as were Alberto and Benni in Rio!).

That is another win for KimKim, by the way. Rio's weather is fickle, but because the guides have vouchers rather than hard tickets like we would have purchased for specific times/dates, we were able to flex days around the best times to see Christ the Redeemer, Sugarloaf, the Bird Park in Foz, etc. and go to the Botanical Gardens and other activities the days when it was overcast, foggy or drizzly. HUGE perk and one that allowed us to see everything we wanted!

Federico was good to work with me on hotels. He provided suggestions, some of which we took, but also booked the other hotels we requested. Same with working around a couple of other activities we booked directly (like a cooking class and beach day). Again, Kim Kim is good to accomodate and work with you, and I found it very reasonable for the service and level of attention you receive. Our many thanks to Federico and Kim Kim, their local partner tour company in Brazil, and our wonderful drivers (we loved Ricardo!) and outstanding tour guides (Alberto, Joao Luiz, Benni!) for making the trip such a terrific experience! I will definitely use KimKim again!