Kimkim Trip Reviews

Our Galapagos Islands trip was an absolute dream come true! From the moment we first talked with Alvaro and later Jacquie from Kimkim Travel/Responsible Travel, we knew this was going to be a truly special experience. They handled everything with utmost professionalism, even when we had delay upon our arrival in Quito.

Our guides were nothing short of fantastic—friendly, knowledgeable, and incredibly passionate about the islands. It was challenging to single them out, as each one was exceptional in their own way. They took us to breathtaking locations on land, in the water, and introduced us to a diverse array of wildlife and marine life ecosystems. Their stories were simply incredible and left us in awe.
The accommodations were cozy, clean, and the staff was incredibly welcoming, especially at Ilatoa Lodge, Ninfa Lodge, and Loja Hostel.
I am so grateful for this unforgettable experience. If you’re planning a visit to the Galapagos Islands, I highly recommend Kimkim and their incredible team.
Thank you so much, Jacquie and Alvaro!

Hotel Reviews

Casa de Nelly

Puerto Baquerizo Moreno

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Hotel Loja Galapagos

Puerto Villamil

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Las Ninfas

Puerto Ayora

Exceptional staff. Accommodations perfect. Close to everything!

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Ilatoa Lodge

Quito

Absolutely gorgeous! Staff extremely helpful!

Authenticity & Character

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Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Welcome Back to Quito

Ecuador

Great evening in downtown Quito with Jacqui, our tour administrator. Yummy food and great company. Celebrated Jarkas birthday!

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Kicker Rock: A Snorkeling Adventure

Isla San Cristóbal

I was unable to go on this trip.

Afternoon Bay Tour in Santa Cruz

Puerto Ayora

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Wildlife Encounter at Los Tuneles (Cabo Rosa)

Galapagos Islands

First time I snorkeled. Incredibly supportive staff. I saw sharks, sea turtles, and a sea horse!

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

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Hiking the Sierra Negra Volcano

Galapagos Islands

Very rigorous hike. I’m 75 and opted to do the last 3 miles. I finished it but not in time for the rest of the group. They had to catch another tour, so they sent a private escort for me and my friend.

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

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Experience the Pristine Beauty of Galápagos Islands: Discovering an Uninhabited Island

Puerto Ayora

Loved this trip. Saw iguanas and red bellied frigates.

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Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Welcome to Santa Cruz Island: Highlands (Plant a Tree) & Charles Darwin Research Station

Puerto Ayora

We got to the highlands and spent the afternoon with the tortoises. Never got to the Charles Darwin Center.

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

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Welcome to Ecuador: Let Your Adventure Begin!

Ecuador

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Stanley our driver was amazing! He was always on time and provided much insight into places to go and things to see and very flexible if we wanted to vary from the assigned itinerary and schedule.

Hotel Reviews

Ashnil Mara Camp

Maasai Mara

This hotel and facility was amazing and very clean and so unique with the tent cabins and the culture at the dining facility.

Authenticity & Character

The Massai members that did the chanting and dancing at our meal were exceptional!!

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Maji Moto Maasai Cultural Camp

Maji Moto

We spent one night at the bush Camp and it was amazing, what an experience we will never forget!

Authenticity & Character

Unreal in that it was authentic Massai life style and culture.

Location

It was definitely located in the rough but that is what we requested and received.

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Naivasha Sopa Lodge

Nairobi

Very nice location and great accomodations.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Located close to the lake and we were able to see the hippos when they came upon land near our facility. (We were protected by an electric fence so there was no threat to us.

Staff

The staff carried our luggage to our rooms and back to the lodge the next day.

Cleanliness & Comfort

Very clean and the staff was very congenial at the dining facility.

Fair Acres Boutique Hotel

Karen, Nairobi. P. O Box 1121 – 00208 Nairobi.

Quiet with good service and very personable personnel. A nice hotel and good food.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Maasai Mara Game Drives

Masai Mara

Our driver, Stanley was very knowledgable and we really had alot of fun with him. He knew where to go to see the animals and knew his way around for game drives.

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Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

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Maasai Mara National Reserve

Masai Mara

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Maji Moto Maasai "Olpul" Bush Camp

Maji Moto

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

The Massai people were amazing!!

Transport

Lake Naivasha Boat Tour

Kenya

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

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Giraffe Center

Kenya

Quality of Experience

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David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust

Kenya

Sharing with feeding the giraffes was really neat.

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Nairobi National Park

Kenya

We went on several game drives and thoroughly enjoyed our time with the animals we saw and the experiences we had. We went on a Hot Air Balloon ride that was exceptional.

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Stanley was an exceptional driver!

Transport

All in all a good trip. Well organized without a hitch on all the connections. Costa Rica itself is amazing, if not a little over sold. A couple of the tours were a bit disappointing, especially the Manual Antonio tour thru the park. Way to many people, to commercial and very little wildlife. Hotels were all good except Monte Verde which had a small room and the Wyndham in San Jose which is very dated with bad (very) beds. An upgrade helped, but this one is questionable. Greg and Gustavo, thanks for all of your work, we would not hesitate to use you again now that we have a better idea of what we might like...
Rick and Simone

We enjoyed a fantastic family trip to Costa Rica! All three locations were fantastic, and the activities really let us see so many different animals. Adam and Jessica were very helpful especially with changing weather conditions right before the trip started!

Hotel Review

Hotel Kokoro Mineral Hot Springs

La Fortuna

Fantastic location, very quiet and peaceful. Easy to get into town and such a spectacular view!

Authenticity & Character

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Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Review

Arenal Volcano Hike & Paradise Hot Springs Experience with Meal

Arenal/La Fortuna

Great hike and our guide was very knowledgeable about the area and the history of the area. The hot springs and meal afterwards was a perfect way to enjoy the evening.

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

As a senior woman travelling solo my 6 night tour of southern Sri Lanka could not have been more perfect. Kapila, a lovely gentleman who was my guide and driver, was incredibly knowledgeable, kind, and flexible. Whether a riverside yurt/tent in the forest, beachside, or downtown urban setting, all the accommodations were perfect: clean, modern, with helpful staff. The arranged safaris and tour of the Galle Fort were amazing, but I think my favourite part was Kapila sharing a visit to his Buddhist temple and just completely relaxing on the beautiful Weligama beach. I could not have asked for a better experience.

My mom and I had an absolutely amazing time on our week long Kim Kim-planned Morocco trip. Our travel consultant really took our preferences and requests into consideration to plan a brilliant - and varied - experience. We loved the riad (and hammams) in Marrakech, the rugged beauty of the High Atlas Mountain kasbah and the gloriously luxurious desert camp in Adafay. The few times there were minor hiccups, our driver, coordinator and travel specialist were very responsive and fixed the issue quickly. We would highly recommend.

Hotel Reviews

Barceló Casablanca

Casablanca

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Kasbah du Toubkal

lmlil

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Bedside heater didn’t work but otherwise an amazing accommodation

Inara Desert Camp

Marrakech

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Palais Sebban

Marrakech

Convenient location near the souks, beautiful architecture and design, delicious food and friendly staff. They have a small room you can reserve for hammam or private massage (which was ok).

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Only issue was there was no door to the bathroom/toilet

Activity Reviews

Day Trip from Marrakech to Essaouira

Morocco

The Day Trip from Marrakech to Essaouira was quite lengthy due to the travel time. While Essaouira was nice, we might have preferred another day in Marrakech instead. Some downtime or independent exploration time would have improved this day trip.

Marrakech Evening Food Tour

Marrakesh

The Marrakesh Evening Food Tour offered delicious options and was adjusted well to our dietary needs, but it felt rushed. It would have been nicer at a leisurely pace, as originally planned, to fully enjoy the food and atmosphere.

Visit Majorelle Gardens

Marrakesh

The Guided Tour of Majorelle Garden was beautiful and very much worth the visit. The location was a little out of the way so it required transportation, but the garden itself was stunning and a great addition to our itinerary.

Half-Day Guided Tour of Marrakech

Marrakesh

The Half-Day Guided Tour of Marrakech was mostly enjoyable as we got to explore the souks and major gates of the city, which were quite walkable. However, our guide, while nice, seemed to have a preference for taking us to pricier places, which wasn't ideal. It felt like there might have been a kickback involved, leading us to overpay for some items.

Architectural Elegance: A Journey through the Hassan II Mosque

Morocco

Visiting the Hassan II Mosque in Casablanca was a beautiful experience. Aside from this, I'm glad we did not spend too much time in Casablanca since there isn't much to do, as our travel consultant advised.

A Relaxing Hammam Experience: The Art of Moroccan Wellness

Morocco

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Imlil Valley Walk - Toubkal NP

Imlil

Mohammad was our favorite guide (besides our driver Mustapha). He was honest and funny and real, and he was very considerate to tailor the hike to my mom’s level of fitness.

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

We had a lovely time. The service before departure was great - listening to what we wanted, lots of clear and regular communication and the Kim Kim and local team also helped us with some refund issues after we’d left.

The team on the ground were lovely. Good fun and great guides.

Doris provided a memorable itinerary for our trip. Guides (Brian and Toan) and drivers provided a wealth of knowledge and expertise at each site throughout the journey. We are not tour style people, however, this was well crafted to provide history, sites, landscapes, and activity. Beautiful country, rich culture , delicious food, and wonderful people.

Hotel Review

Eldora Hue

Hue

Loved this hotel. Best hotel during our trip

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Review

Hue - Thuy Bieu Eco-village, Cooking Class & Imperial Citadel

Hue

Toan was excellent guide, providing insight and knowledge to this area.

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Thank you the KIMKIM company for connecting us with local Egypt from Egypt Promotion. entire team was fabulous including guides, driver and other team members. our trip was planned and executed with precision by local team, congratulations. from our arrival at the airport on day one till we left on day ten we were superbly attended. we want to show our sincere gratitude to: 1. Mr Hasham (our guide: First of all, he is wonderful person, very caring, extremely organized. Our 3 daughters loved him. He is very knowledgeable about everything Egypt. One of the best things we loved about him was his punctuality, gentle mannerisms, and sense of humor. He made our trip memorable. 2. Mr Mahmoud: he was our go to all person from airports to hotels, and in between. In short, superb team. We highly recommend them without reservations.
One of the best parts of the trip was The Nile Cruise with Dahabiya, amazing. Thank you all from bottoms of our hearts for an unforgettable experience.

Hi Kim Kim,
Chris and Diana Knauer just returned home from Thailand. The following was our experience.

Tina was super helpful at the inception. She suggested things to do, hotels to stay and the flow out the trip.
All transfers were effortless and in time in clean and roomy vehicles.
The hotels selected were great.

I will recommend Tina and Kim Kim to my friends for future travel.

Thanks

Chris Knauer

Hotel Reviews

The Xcape River Kwai

Kanchanaburi

Nice hotel on the river but i would not say this is a five star hotel. Staff great, Nice hotel, clean but far removed . If i was to stay in Kanachanburi again i would stay closer to the waterfalls as this is the only thing to do, which was great.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

The Salil Hotel Riverside Bangkok

good location but bathrooms /bedroom a little small. Good breakfast, great staff and on the river for convenience.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Anantara Bo Phut Koh Samui

Surat Thani

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Raya Heritage Hotel

CHIANG MAI

great ambiance and staff

Authenticity & Character

people, staff and accommodations

Location

central which was great

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Erawan National Park visit

Thailand

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Transfer from Bangkok to Kanchanaburi

Thailand

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Enjoy Food Tasting in Chinatown!

Bangkok

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Bangkok by local transfers and Temple Visit

Bangkok

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Welcome to Bangkok!

Bangkok

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

A private boat day trip to Koh Tao & Koh Nang Yuan

Thailand

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Angthong Marine Park - Private Speedboat Tour

Thailand

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Adventure with Quad Motor or ATV ride in Samui

Thailand

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Chiang Mai Cooking Class Experience

Chiang Mai

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Chiang Mai Temple Tour with Market Visit!

Chiang Mai

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Elephant Jungle Sanctuary in Chiang Mai-Half Day

Chiang Mai

Quality of Experience

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Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

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Half-Day Doi Suthep Temple Tour

Chiang Mai

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

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Margoth and team designed a trip that was perfect for us. All internal flights, accommodations, transfers and tours were well organized. Our guides and drivers were friendly and knowledgeable and everything worked seamlessly. I would highly recommend the Kimkim team.

Monika helped to curate this amazing trip to New Zealand. We had an amazing time and really saw much of the South Island. Every experience was unique and wonderful. Our guides were great especially the heli hike on Mt Cook with Charlie. The fly cruise fly is the way to go to see the fjords. The flight was breathtaking. The star gazing was incredible and the hot springs after was a plus. Our wine lunch in Otaga was incredible. I can’t say enough and loved the recommendations given on way from one place to next. Just amazing !!!

This was a great way for us to get a feel for Costa Rica and an understanding of the available options for further travel. All of our tour guides were knowledgeable and enthusiastic and their experience and sighting skills made a huge difference to how much we were able to see.

Hotel Reviews

Bahia del Sol Hotel

Guanacaste

This hotel had a stunning location right on the beach, and beautifully landscaped grounds-- I found it odd that we didn't see any pollinators on the many tropical blossoms. The reception staff was very helpful. Our standard room was a let down from our first 2 hotels--primarily because it had no windows. The room itself was comfortable and stylish. We liked being able to walk around the town of Potrero Beach and had a couple of nice meals at the Shack and La Forketta.

Cloud Forest Lodge

Monteverde

Very attractive hotel with comfortable and stylish room. The grounds right around the hotel were beautifully landscaped but we saw only an occasional hummingbird on the grounds. The trails were not very inviting--poorly marked, and the loop we followed wound along the service side of some of the buildings. The food was excellent, albeit expensive. Staff was helpful and efficient, but felt quite corporate compared to Tenorio Lodge where it felt like a family operation.

Tenorio Lodge

Bijagua de Upala

Tenorio Lodge was my favorite of our 3 hotels. Small, owner operated and lovingly maintained it had an astonishing array of birds, from Toucans to Baltimore Orioles, coming in to enjoy daily feedings of bananas. Also sported a pair of resident sloths, and a tapir trail through the grounds. We stayed in Cabin #6 which was airy, comfortable and very private. Breakfast was excellent, if we went back we would probably go into Bijagua for dinner--we had a very tasty lunch at El Barrigon.

Authenticity & Character

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Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Palo Verde National Park Safari Cruise

Costa Rica

This is remote--we enjoyed seeing the countryside, but it was a long time in the car. The boat tour itself was excellent, and the captain was very skilled at spotting wildlife and maneuvering the boat in close for a good look. It was in our favor that it was low tide and there was a breeze. The lunch and stops at a community center with a craft stand run by single moms as well as a stop to see traditional pottery were both quite interesting and a nice change from many of the souvenir shops with made in China goods.

Day at Selvatura including Hanging Bridges and Fauna Exhibitions

Costa Rica

The hanging bridges walk was a chance to experience the grandeur of the canopy. I enjoyed simply breathing in the surroundings, but we would have understood what we were seeing much better with a guide. I would skip the sloth and reptile displays. The butterfly garden was worth a visit--we had a particularly good guide for the Fauna exhibits who had a special interest in insects. The next day we booked a last minute tour at the Monteverde Biological reserve, which I highly recommend. It was a nice complement to the canopy walk at Selvatura.

Private Rio Celeste & Tenorio Volcano Hike

Bijagua / Rio Celeste

It was raining, and the only trail open in the park was the waterfall walk, but our guide gave us a great tour. He spotted several snakes, I tasted a termite, we made it to the waterfall and back. Our driver was extremely attentive to wildlife along the road to the park and stopped so we could get a good look at howler monkeys and a king vulture. The fruit snack at the end of the hike was delicious, and we were delighted when the driver and guide accepted our invitation to lunch on the way back to the lodge.

This was a great trip to Vietnam and Cambodia. 2 weeks was exactly the right amount of time to see everything we wanted to see. It struck the proper balance between activities every day, a variety of excursions, with the right amount of rest time in between. Transportation around town was excellent. Pickups and drop-offs at the airport were smooth, enough of the people in Indo-China spoke English to get by. The education about history was very informing. Bike rides, although challenging at my age of 73, was good exercise and allowed us to see the local people and how they lived. We saw some cultural events, some flavor of the local food. There were 3 cooking classes. We saw a variety of places in Vietnam and understand the role that Vietnam and Cambodia play in the modern world. The only negative is that we probably did not ask questions of Ashley often enough. She eventually answered them. Ashley did a great job of planning our trip. We would do it again, except Vietnam is on the other side of the world and the plane rides were exceedingly long.
Ron Goings

Our 26 day trip to Thailand and Vietnam was absolutely amazing from the moment we landed and our final departure . Sunny was the best and we loved every minute of our very moment of our adventure.

I highly recommend Sunny she was very easy to communicate with while on trip.

The hotels were great and all the guides were very knowledgeable and friendly.

We will definitely use her again

Overall we had a great time. A few bumps along the way. Three of us got sick on different days on Isla Baru so that slowed us down a bit. But we still managed to have a good time
Time in Cartagena was well planned and and tours were well appreciated. Tour guide Anna did a very good job. We enjoyed our time very much.

My son and I had an amazing trip to New Zealand in December 2024. I could not have pulled it all together without Michelle from Once upon a trip New Zealand. She was absolutely wonderful to work with. I gave her our wish list and she put together the ultimate itinerary to fit our interests. I would highly recommend Michelle!

We had a wonderful trip with so many various experiences. Jesse did a fabulous job setting up all the tours, transportation , hotels. All of our local guides were amazing and made our trip so special.

Lorena did an outstanding job all the way around. Our accommodations were excellent. Transfers (with one exception) excellent and timely. Lorena always responsive and helpful. This was an epic trip for us and we owe great thanks to Lorena for that!

Activity Reviews

Fly-Fishing Program Magic Waters Patagonia

Puerto Bertrand

Skorpios II - 6 days/5 nights Cruise

Chile

Definitely a trip to do., Small ships. Greater food. Incredible experiences.,

Quality of Experience

Montes Winery - Tour Premium

Chile

Great restaurant, and great wine.

Quality of Experience

Valparaíso & Wine Tour - Private

Santiago

Old town Valparaiso was excellent! Highly recommended. Sole took us on an awesome tour.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

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Private Dinner Experience

Santiago

Gloria and Leonids were suggest gracious hosts and it was an honor to have a meal in their home. Highly recommend this to anyone who has the chance. Just an amazing experience. I will never forget the “third flavor”.

Quality of Experience

Food

Gloria prepared an amazing dinner, paired with Leonides excellent wines. What a gift it was to be with them!

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Santiago City Tour - Private

Chile

Sole was fantastic! Great tours. Deep and thoughtful knowledge. A pleasure to be with Sole!

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

My wife and I had the pleasure of visiting and exploring Morocco with the help of kimkim from January 21 - January 29, 2025 (9 days). We put 1,318 km (819 miles) on the Mercedes! The following was our itinerary: Arrive in Casablanca; Rabat (1 night); Fes (2 nights); Midelt (1 night); Merzouga (1 night); Boumalne Dades (1 night); and Marrakesh (2 nights). Majid was the local specialist who, from the moment we booked our trip, was instrumental in guiding us along our amazing journey from city to city and across the Moroccan countryside. He was the perfect quarterback who drew up winning plays and called for last-minute changes to ensure all of our needs were met. There were also several tour guides who helped us become intimately familiar with the religiously and historically significant aspects of each city and site we visited, and we appreciated each and every one of them. So, now, for the best part of the trip: Mouad. Mouad was our driver/guide/friend with whom we spent several hours each day, as we traversed the Moroccan shorelines, the High Atlas Mountains and the Sahara Desert (we will, by the way, never forget the sight of the stary night in the desert!). From the moment Mouad greeted us with his big, bright and contagious smile, we knew that we were in for a treat! He greeted my wife with a bouquet of flowers, which was so very thoughtful of him. He was, quite literally, happy, talkative and engaging the entire time. He went above and beyond each and every single day to make sure that every single one of our needs were met, no questions asked--zero hesitation. He then surprised us with a heart-shaped cake to celebrate our 13th anniversary, in the middle of the Sahara Desert no less! We cannot say enough wonderful things about Mouad, and Majid was not kidding when he told us (initially) that Mouad was one of his star players. We left Morocco having made a special friend! I encourage kimkim and Majid to continue to recognize the professionalism and love with which Mouad performs his work (although we're sure he does not even consider it work!) by giving him a call (+212-658-774107) to say Thank You! We sure are grateful to Mouad, Majid and the entire kimkim Team for making our Morocco trip one for the ages!