Kimkim Trip Reviews

Excellent, excellent! Our wonderful tour guides were just like having local friends in Rio. I don't know what we would have done without them. They made sure that everything ran smoothly, organized activities for us that we thought of at the last minute and did some heavy duty problem solving - such as when my wife discovered she had left her medication at our hotel just as we arrived at Rio airport for our next destination. Thank-you KimKim, thank-you Renata and many thanks to Bruno and Wanessa, our lovely tour guides. I highly recommend your services, and I have left Brazil with very warm feelings.

We have used Kim Kim several times for trips in various parts of the world. Never ever have we had such a terrible experience as we did with the Travel Agent in Japan. As a family, we look forward to our annual vacation and at every turn the Travel Agent and her choices made things harder for us. Not only did she not give us good advice But she was culturally insensitive to our religious dietary needs and other areas.

Because of this experience, I don’t know if I would use this agency again. It was that bad and it ended up costing us more money to make changes due to the inefficiency and incompetence of the agent. I never write bad reviews, but I do want to protect other people who might book

Minh and his team were extremely responsive both before and during the trip. Our son had an accident and we had to reschedule almost the whole trip, which they managed to do at no extra cost.

Just came back from a fantastic vacation in Costa Rica that Randall, our agent from KimKim, booked for us. All the hotel checkins and excursions went seamlessly smooth.

La Fortuna - we stayed at the Montañad de Fuego Mountain Resort & Spa. Nice rooms but probably wouldn’t recommend as to the paths to our bungalow were not lit and it was easy to trip along the way. The “thermal” pools are warmer at my home. We did the Arenal lava hike and that was good although we never did see the top of Arenal due to daily cloud cover. Baldi Hot Springs were fantastic as was the cano negro boat tour.
Our next stop was in Monteverde where we stayed at Poco a Poco. Loved this hotel and highly recommend it. Hanging bridges were great as was the zip lining. Really enjoyed the coffee, chocolate and sugar cane tour.
Our last stop was in Tamarindo and we stayed at the Wyndham. Very nice hotel although they would run out of clean towels (both in room as well as pool). Did a catamaran snorkel tour through Marlin Del Rey. Snorkeling was poor due to all the rain but the unlimited drinks and food were really good.

Hotel Reviews

Wyndham

Tamarindo

The Wyndham had a great location with a nice view over the city and beach. However, they routinely ran out of towels, both for rooms and the beach. At times, the rooms weren't serviced even after requesting housekeeping.

Hotel & Spa Poco a Poco

Monteverde

Hotel & Spa Poco a Poco in Monteverde was a quaint hotel with great service. The staff were lovely, making the stay highly recommendable.

Montaña de Fuego Mountain Resort & Spa

La Fortuna

Montaña de Fuego Mountain Resort & Spa had very nice rooms, but I was surprised by the lack of lighting on the paths, making it difficult to walk at night. The thermal pools were also not as warm as I expected. The garden was beautiful though, and the facility itself was lovely.

Activity Reviews

Coffee, Chocolate & Sugar Cane Experience

Monteverde

The Coffee, Chocolate & Sugar Cane Experience was a delightful and educational tour. It was fascinating to see the process and try various samples. Walking through the plantations and learning about these products was a wonderful and tasty experience.

Monteverde - Hanging Bridges Guided Hike & Zip-lining tour

Monteverde

The Hanging Bridges Guided Hike was a wonderful experience. Although I didn't do the zip-lining due to my knee, I exchanged my ticket for the Sloth tour, which I really enjoyed. The park was well-maintained, and there were plenty of activities available for everyone.

14 day Andalucia solo travel - Adam and Lea were great with helping me book my trip. Adam especially was helpful in working on last minute changes, etc. Adam spent a lot of time with me working through the changes I had suggested.
One area of improvement that I would suggest is, I felt most of the trip details, etc. came from me including the places I wanted to visit, how I wanted to plan my day yo day, etc. I would have expected suggestions from the travel rep as to what I could do in my free time, on days when I did not have a KimKim tour planned, restaurant suggestions, etc.
I am not sure yet if I will use KimKim platform again because of the fact that I have limited ability to change my trip once booked, and also due to the fact that I am less in control of the options, etc.

Activity Reviews

Private Ronda & White Villages Day Trip

Seville

Carlos was a pleasure to travel with. The only part that I was not very thrilled with is I did not get much time in the stops and did not know about some of the sites that I could have visited (for e.g. in Ronda, I had no idea there was a castle, old town, Church, etc. that I could visit). This was a private trip which cost a lot, so I would have loved to spend more time in each of the places I visited. Other than that the trip was nice and pleasant.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Nice car

Private Visit to Seville’s Cathedral & Alcázar

Seville

Cristina was awesome! Really thorough explanation of the history and architecture.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Flamenco Show & Museum Visit

Seville

Really loved this experience. The performers were very professional

Quality of Experience

Old Town Discovery Walk

Málaga

Even though it was supposed to be a group tour, I don't think anyone else had signed up so I ended up as the only one. The tour was great! Victor was really thorough and took me around the old town in addition to the Alcazaba, Roman Theater, etc.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Private Alhambra & Generalife Gardens with a Historian

Granada

I couldn't provide a 3.5 rating which is what I wanted to give this. Edu was good but not great like the other guides I had. He was a very nice person and gave a good high level overview of the Alhambra and the gardens. He did not go in-depth w.r.t. the details as some of the other guides that I happened to notice on the tour. It was a good tour.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Could have provided more details about the history, pointed out interesting aspects, etc.

Private Mezquita, Alcázar & Jewish Quarter Discovery Walk

Córdoba

Ruben was really awesome! he spent almost 3 hours with me on the tour explaining the history of Cordoba, the Jewish quarter, etc. His tour of the Mezquita was so thorough!

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

I was very satisfied with the level of interaction from planners, detail of the itinerary, and the quality of the hotels, excursions, and transportation. I'm a seasoned traveler and usually do everything on my own. However, finding myself in the midst of a last-minute planned marriage left me little time, if any, to put this trip together. So, if you would rather skip all the time and headache, I can't recommend them enough. However, just know that it comes with a price, and I estimate I could've saved 20-30% on my own. Nevertheless, they excel at what they do, so if the time value of money leans the favor of a third party, go for it!

Galapagos 2024 - Excellent Trip!
My husband and I just completed a 9 day trip to Quito and the Galapagos Islands. We want to recognize the highlights of our trip with a few special commendations.
Angie Maldonado - Did an excellent job booking all the drivers, local transportation, excursions, hotels, and even dining for Christmas eve, and Christmas Day! We wanted to feel entrenched in the local culture, and we did!
Quito - Outstanding guide: Cristobal! We thoroughly enjoyed his tireless attention from the time of our arrival at the airport to our departure. He was a wealth of knowledge, attentive, shared so much with us, including recommendations for local foods. Exceptional experience! We stayed in Casona de la Ronda and loved the accommodations and the staff as well!
Santa Cruz - We stayed at the Acacia Boutique Hotel. Perfect location, lovely people, spacious accommodations. Excellent choice for us! We loved our excursion to the highlands to see the Tortoises and our excursion to Bartolome island where we snorkeled, and saw sharks, penguins, and the famous blue footed boobies along the way as well. The scenery was exceptional! We also spent time visiting N. Seymour Island. Busy schedule, but wouldn't change any of it.
Isabela Island - A welcome quiet experience on this island. Less commercialized, at this time... hope it stays that way. Very much enjoyed all of our day excursions, but our favorite was Los Tunneles, and our hike on the Sierra Negra Volcano. We were here for 3 nights, and wish we had had another day or 2 to explore and relax more.
Some helpful tips or things new South American Travelers should know:
1. No toilet paper disposal (you can't flush it!) in the toilets anywhere. If you want to bring sanitary bags to dispose, that might feel better to you.
2. Bring small denominations (not just $20's) for tipping money. This will be a big part of your expenses while on the islands.
3. Be prepared for some minor inconveniences, and handle them with grace. We were totally embarassed by some of the tourists we witnessed misbehaving toward the dedicated, gracious natives we encountered.
4. Angie and guides did a great job helping us navigate the travel requirements including paying for Transit Control Card, and admission fee to Galapagos National Park upon arrival/departure.
5. You will be moving around a lot on this trip. Try NOT to overpack. (We did bring a wetsuit and our own snorkel and mask and we were glad we did).
6. Final recommendation: The trip back to Colorado was quite long to do without an overnight stay on the mainland on the way back. If you have enough time, I would recommend booking an overnight stay after leaving Baltra airport, on the mainland, rather than hanging out at the airport for several hours in Quito and having to travel for such an extended period of time.
We loved our trip to Ecuador! We appreciate all the drivers, guides, boat captains, restaurant and hotel workers who were so kind, and always helpful. The food was delicious everywhere!
We love the model for KimKim - with local agents planning the trip! They are also a great contact if you have any hiccups/issues/concerns during your trip, and Angie was very responsive, and did "check on us" to make sure all was going well.
Thank you for the surprise of covering our Christmas Dinner!
Happy New Year to all!

Hotel Reviews

La Casona de La Ronda

Quito

We arrived in the early morning (2:00 a.m.?). There was a city wide power outage when we arrived, and the back up generator was working beautifully, and the staff was expecting us. Although the street we were on was busy at night, we did not hear a peep in our rooms! (YAY) The staff was diligent with walking us to/from our driver's car and making sure we were well attended to. Breakfast was good; Wifi was good. Mattresses were comfortable; room was spacious. Loved the atmosphere here! Felt very authentic!

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Acacia Galápagos Boutique Hotel

Puerto Ayora

Excellent location! Easy walk to restaurants, shops, pier, Charles Darwin center. Hotel clean, with pool and hot tub, comfortable mattress, TV; designed with safety and security in mind as a bonus. Quiet in our room and away for the busy town streets. Wifi available but somewhat unreliable. Spacious room and accommodations. Staff very attentive and always on top of our needs/schedules. Very good breakfast, and packed us box breakfasts when needed.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

La Casita de la Playa

Puerto Villamil

Lovely, clean beachside accommodations within steps of amazing oceanview sunsets! Room size was adequate, bed was comfortable. WIFI was reliable and quite good! Staff was excellent! Food for breakfast was excellent! Only inconvenience - ran out of water around 6 p.m. (which did not affect us too much, but did for some other guests. I think this is an island problem, not an isolated problem to this accommodation). Would be nice to have a few hooks outside the rooms to hang up swimsuits, etc, to let them dry.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Beachside! Easy to walk to center of town and restaurants.

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Guided Excursion to Tortuga Bay

Galapagos Islands

Wish we had been able to spend more quiet time here. It was beautiful. We were unable to snorkel here due to a laceration I had on my knee, and kayaking had not been planned here. Wish we could have done either. It is beautiful, and quiet. Our guide was Diego. He was friendly and accommodating.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Kayaking & Snorkeling at Las Tintoreras

Galapagos Islands

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Hiking Sierra Negra Volcano

Galapagos Islands

It seemed we got off to a late start due to the size of the group. Although we loved the hike, I felt the guides were rushing us. This is not to be missed, but be prepared for a faster hiking pace. As we were near the back of the large group, we did not get any attention on this hike, nor did we get to hear much from the guides. We did, however, prefer to be away from the "crowd".

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Snorkel at Los Túneles

Galapagos Islands

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Visit to another uninhabited island

Galapagos Islands

Excursion to an uninhabited island

Galapagos Islands

Visit to the Charles Darwin Research Station

Puerto Ayora

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Transfer Baltra Airport - Puerto Ayora with visit to the highlands of Santa Cruz

Galapagos Islands

Our transfer did not go smoothly. There was no one there waiting for us with a sign and our name on it, as expected. We had the name of the person who was supposed to greet us but they did not show up. The manager of the tour company eventually showed up after I contacted the agent from KimKim and smoothed everything out. The visit to the highlands was a 5 star experience, along with the expertise and friendliness of our guide.

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Quito City Tour

Galapagos Islands

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Maria-you exceeded all our expectations for our family trip to Rome and Florence to celebrate Chris holidays. The tours, restaurants and recommendations for walking while we had down time on our own were perfect and we cannot wait to come back and experience even more (hopefully soon!). Thank you for everything!
Laura

Hotel Reviews

Hotel Glance

Firenze

Perfectly located to walk everywhere and experience all the amazing streets of Florence!

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

GCF Luxury Suites

Roma

Centrally located, clean and grey space for us and our two older kids. Walked to everything nearby.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Private Walking Tour of Florence | City Highlights with David & Duomo

Italy

Very detailed history tour!

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Central Food Market & Tuscan Cooking Class

Florence

The best family-friendly class with great people from all over the world. What we made and ate exceeded our expectations and we had so much fun!! Jon-our chef-was superb and taught us a lot o about Florentine life.

Quality of Experience

Food

All of it!!

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Vatican Tour & Sistine Chapel

Rome

Learned a lot and loved seeing everything thru the eyes of our guide.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

2 Restaurant Reservations

Rome

Delicious!!

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Private Colosseum Tour Including Roman Forum

Rome

Julia is amazing!! We learned so much!

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

We had a wonderful trip in Morocco. Every detail of the trip was clearly laid out by Majid & we covered all the major attractions 100% as part of our trip. We truly appreciated the rich culture & heritage of this wonderful country. All in all this is one of our most memorable trips & we thank Majid for making sure that we are taken care of throughout our trip.

Wow!! What an AMAZING trip we had to Chile!! Angel was the absolute BEST in helping us plan our incredible itinerary to Santiago, Patagonia and Easter Island. His communication was so helpful and made us feel totally at ease knowing that we would be perfectly taken care of. Every private car transfer, each hotel, tour, tour guide, and domestic flights were exactly what we wanted. Chile is an absolute paradise and I miss it already. THANK YOU so so much for helping to make a wonderful family vacation.

Hotel Reviews

Hotel Taha Tai

Easter Island

The prettiest hotel! Our rooms were large and spacious, the air conditioning worked great, lots of palm trees and flowers around the resort. The views of the ocean each morning while we ate our breakfast was the best!

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Holiday Inn Santiago - Airport Terminal

Santiago

Perfect place to stay if you are in-between flights and need to just sleep for the night. Rooms were large and modern and the restaurant had great food and wine.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Hosteria Pehoe

This hotel has the BEST views and scenery in all of Patagonia. That’s why you stay here. It’s located on its own little island that includes a short hike to the top of a hill to get the most stunning views of the mountains. The food was just okay and kind of expensive, but that’s true of all of the accommodations in the park. The staff were kind and helpful. The WiFi only works in the common area which includes a large lounge upstairs with beautiful views of the landscape and mountains.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Hotel Solace

Providencia

Rooms are large and spacious, the complimentary drinks in the mini fridge were a huge bonus, the rooftop lounge and pool are gorgeous (we spent most of our time up there), the food was delicious and the staff were all extremely friendly.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Half Day Tour Orongo Volcano

Easter Island

Loved going to the top of the volcano to see the giant crater, and then learning about the Birdman competition. So interesting!!

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Rano Raraku Volcano & Anakena White Sand Beach

Easter Island

A perfect way to see the highlights of the island! We saw all of the Moai statues, the quarry where they were carved from, and learned all about the history and culture of the Rapa Nui people.

Quality of Experience

lol

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Grey Glacier Navigation

Torres del Paine

This was a highlight!! The views of the glaciers were stunning! And the complimentary drink was much appreciated!

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Hike to Mirador Base Torres del Paine - Full Day Private Tour

Chile

Well, it would have been a fabulous hike but unfortunately me and my family were not in-shape enough to complete it. We gave it our best shot but not being used to hiking, it was too difficult for us. I thank our guide Nacho for taking our health and safety into consideration and recommending we try shorter and easier hikes instead. The day was just as good, if not better.

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Torres del Paine National Park - Private Panoramic Tour

Chile

Our guide (Nacho) did a fabulous job at showing us all of the most beautiful spots in the park. His knowledge of the geology, the flowers and plant life, the animals (we saw 2 pumas!!) and the best places for us to hike for our skill-level was perfect.

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

We spent an *extraordinary* 10 days in Morocco organized by Kimkim through Original Travels in Marrakech. We landed in Casablanca, then drove with our *fantastic* personal driver Tayebb to Rabat, Chefchaouen, Volubilis, Fez, Merzouga, Skoura, ending in Marrakesh. At every stop, we had a local personal tour guide to share the location’s history and take us on the appropriate outings/ activities. Tayebb was extraordinary company and just a great human being in every way. He was very knowledgeable, interesting, warm, and had a great sense of humor! We looked forward to seeing him every day — he felt like family by the end! Our local organizer, Saïd, was extremely responsive to our requests and at times seemed to anticipate our needs in advance! Overall, Kimkim via Original Travels both planned and executed a beautiful, memorable vacation of a lifetime!

The trip overall was one we will always remember and cherish. Our family of 4, with an 18 year old and 15 year old, made the trek to Lapland from the southern United States to see the Aurora Borealis and Santa Claus. Jennifer did a fantastic job with communication and always helpful with difficult tasks before and during our trip.
We were switched to a different trip planner (Jennifer) a couple months before the trip and think that she would have had a much better go of it had she been the planner from the beginning. She had to make up a lot of shortcomings in both planning and communication from the original planner. Jennifer did an excellent job in helping us while on the ground, as in country logistics and travel proved to be challenging. We think most, if not all, of the struggles with those logistics would have been avoided if Jennifer had been our planner from the start. She was placed in late and had to work within a somewhat flawed itinerary that she had no part in, initially. It should be noted that taxi transfers in this part of Finland are exorbitant and often difficult to obtain during the Christmas week. Would highly recommend renting a car. Otherwise, the cabs were always spacious and very friendly. Specific feedback on the resorts:
Apukka Resort:
Room was lovely. Small for the family of 4 that we were placing in it, but exceptionally nice. Nicely private in spite of there being other igloos around us. The very muted lighting of the resort made for exceptional Aurora viewing. Minimal light from the ground and rooms. We were able to have the sort of Aurora viewing, with the naked eye, that you usually only see on highly filtered social media posts. Did a nice job on their menus to appeal to a wide swathe of guests. Service was friendly and available. Had a minor problem with the room door freezing shut, but they came out and devised a solution quickly.
Overall excellent experience, would definitely recommend and would happily stay here again.
Kakslautanen Arctic Resort:
An entirely different experience from the prior resort. While the room was very spacious for our family of 4, it was exceptionally dated. No amenities whatsoever were supplied. We have visited 30 countries around the globe and have stayed in everything from hostels to the finest hotels in the world. The price point of this resort was on par with the finest hotels in the world. The amenities were not. No maid service was given unless we called, no soap, shampoo nor conditioner was provided. The in room sauna to difficult to work. In a room costing around 2000 euro a night, this complete lack of anything is entirely unacceptable. As has been noted on multiple travel sites, Kakslautanen charges extra for EVERYTHING! They even charge you for firewood for the fireplace in the room.
For a resort that prides itself on the Aurora viewing (to the point that there is a screeching Aurora alarm in the cabin that pierces the silent nights whenever they determine that the lights can be seen -- we thought there was a fire when it first went off. Seriously, there should have been a warning and the capacity to shut this off), the ground light pollution was overwhelming. In complete contrast to Apukka, the neighboring igloos could see directly into ours, and the extremely bright porch lights from other igloos made any Aurora viewing from our glass igloo impossible.
As mentioned above, taxis were difficult to get this time of year. The resort is in the middle of nowhere, so that lead to the feeling of being trapped. This was particularly noted given the at culinary options were atrocious. The 25 euro daily lunch bullet consisted of a single 15 foot table with soup, salad and unimpressive cold cuts on it. The daily offerings were over 50% Indian food with no local cuisine at all the 3 .5 days we were there.
The resort must be targeted to a different traveler demographic than our family represents. The common areas were always overrun with Asian tourists. Their giant tour busses made it nearly impossible to find our taxis, and the concept of waiting in a line for ones turn, be it at the buffet, the bar or the restroom, was completely absent. It made for a very stressful, overcrowded and frustrating experience. The staff, with the notable exception of the front desk manager who worked very hard to find us a taxi one afternoon, was aggressively unhelpful. No assistance was ever offered, even on approaching the reception desk. Whenever we asked a question, or even placed an order at the bar, we were treated as though we were a nuisance.
The excursions, however, were all fantastic as well as the guides! The husky sledding, snowmobiling, ice karting and reindeer rides were well run, engaging, informative, exciting and tremendous!
Outside of the excursions, however, the service was at best mediocre. The waitstaff was stretched very thin, drinks were uninspired and difficult to get. Water glasses sat empty. Food arrived in no particular order. This distasteful experience was made particularly stark after we made an afternoon trip (that the aforementioned very helpful desk manager arranged transport for) to Saariselka. This was the next tiny little town up the highway, 15 minutes away. The town was quaint, the service was excellent and the food was both local and delicious. We have no idea why the resort could not achieve this level of excellence when the most expensive accommodation in Saariselka was 20% the cost of our room.
We will never return to Kakslautanen. We would advise in the strongest possible terms that no one else does either.
In the end, this was a tale of two cities, of sorts. Apukka was tremendous, Kakslautanen was very disappointing.

I continue to be confused. I worked with Johanna to plan the trip and then Kristy took over. I do not know why and I did not have similar experiences with the two. All in all, kim kim fell short of my expectations.

Hotel Reviews

Hosteria El Paraiso

El Chalten

Hosteria El Paraiso in El Chaltén was not as comfortable as expected due to the lack of air conditioning. The hot weather made it difficult to sleep peacefully. It would have been helpful to know this in advance, as I could have brought a small fan. However, the location itself was beautiful.

Remota Patagonia Lodge

Puerto Natales

The Remota Patagonia Lodge in Puerto Natales was absolutely lovely. The ambiance and service were excellent, making our stay enjoyable and relaxing.

Activity Review

Full-Day Trek to the Base of Torres del Paine

Argentina

The Full-Day Trek to the Base of Torres del Paine was quite interesting. We ended up walking the trail on our own as the guide allowed us to break off due to our quicker pace and the large number of hikers. The guide wasn't necessary since the hike was straightforward, and we felt that only transportation was needed, as the guided aspect was minimal and mostly in Spanish.

We have SO MANY wonderful memories & photos from the trip thanks to Michelle's guidance in planning and pacing. We were trying to identify our favorites on the journey home, and had a really hard time narrowing it down as there was at least one special experience each of our 15 days in-country!
If we were to pick our top 3 activities: Doubtful Sound Overnight Cruise, Glacier Explorer Tour, and Hobbiton. We also really loved both of the local tours Michelle arranged (4WD experience in Cass Valley & Country Tour of Geraldine). The guide for the latter was particularly generous with his time, local knowledge, & willingness to share a Kiwi perspective on all kinds of topics as we took in the sights.
And top 3 accommodations: Ruru PurePod (the breakfast & dinner included - just an amazing experience all around), the Vicarage in Gerladine, & the Lodge at Mount Cook (bc of the fabulous view of Mount Sefton from our room).

Hotel Reviews

The Great Ponsonby ArtHotel

Auckland

Fun, quirky B&B with a very nice host. Lots of personality and local history in the decor. We had a room with a lovely little sitting area over the garden that we enjoyed for several hours. Great breakfast service. Conveniently located in the arts district and just a few minutes driving from downtown Auckland. Only negative was that the bed itself was extremely hard.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Sudima Lake Rotorua

Rotorua

We would not elect to stay at this property again, nor would we recommend booking for others. It was not very clean - there was hair from previous guests and either black mold or corrosion on many of the fixtures in the bathroom, as well as just a lot of wear, tear, dust, & staining on the furniture, bathroom floor & fixtures. They had a little sticker asking us to "please excuse any staining from the sulfur in the water" but I didn't perceive that to be the only cause. The window had been left open, allowing the sulfur-rich air from the adjacent lake to permeate everything with humidity & unpleasant smell. The balcony was just plain uninviting, and the walls were very thin, making the noise from other guests in the hallways and courtyard very hard to ignore. We seriously considered calling the travel agent for an alternative, but stayed only because we did not have time before our dinner commitment to manage re-booking / relocating and already had an activity weather cancelation issue for the next day they were working on.

Authenticity & Character

Clearly recently renovated lobby / restaurant & decent courtyards, but very tired guest rooms and associated hallways.

Location

It's siting on the edge of the sulfur-rich lake = overpowering smell everywhere. Balconies are present but unusable because of this and the huge air-handling units sitting on them.

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Cleanliness of guest room, insulation / sound-dampening of guest rooms, replacement or fixing up of some of the furniture & fixtures.

Christchurch City Hotel

Christchurch

Good hotel in the city center. Very convenient to many of the central tourist spots. Similar amenities to many of the mid-range chain hotels we're used to in the US, but room was a little more spacious, which was handy since we were re-packing / shuffling souvenirs at this point in the trip. We had a hard time with parking, as it required interacting with the front desk multiple times, and we were there over a holiday, so it wasn't staffed full-time & the gate to the garage they had specified was lowered & locked on the holiday itself. We ended up finding our own surface parking, down the street.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

A bit more clear in instructions & communication ahead of holiday non-staffing periods.

Cleanliness & Comfort

The Vicarage Geraldine

Geraldine

Really cool property that is clearly a much-loved passion-project for the owners. Definitely in our top 2 accommodations for this trip! Bed & bath were the epitome of luxury, the shared sitting rooms were so inviting, and the location is super-convenient to dining, shopping & main roads. Loved the simple, contactless check-in process, but we also used the help number during our visit and were attended to promptly.

Authenticity & Character

Loved how they incorporated so much of the property history into the design!

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Doubtful Sound Overnight Cruise - Southern Secret

Great quality for a boat berth! Bathroom was small, but had separate sink & a shower corner, so actually larger than I expected, being accustomed to boats with wet-baths.

Authenticity & Character

It's a boat!! Loved being out on the decks, dining in the saloon, and going out in the little tinder boat for a closer look at the little cove.

Location

Definitelt convinced this is the best way to experience Doubtful Sound, & it is beyond beautiful.

Staff

The whole crew was courteous, welcoming, and knowledgeable, but the nature guide was particularly good and shared all kinds of great info on the weather patterns and fauna of the region during our trip.

Cleanliness & Comfort

Only reason is not 5-stars are because of things you would expect on a boat - thin walls, a little footstep clanging on the stairwell, & the last that they had to leave the engine / generator & many exterior lights on at night for safety.

Ramada Suites Queenstown

Queenstown

Great, convenient location for walking to main tourist areas in Queenstown without actually being right in the nightlife / bustle. Good partially-obstrcted view from our room, too. Standard but good-quality chain hotel amenities & services. Front desk staff were universally welcoming, polite & helpful.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

PurePod Central Otago (Taima)

(Note: This review is for the Ruru PurePod instead of the one listed, due to schedule change. ) Just an amazing experience all around! We enjoyed the drive & walk across the farm to reach the Pod, the tranquility, amenities, stargazing, and local food. The bed was so comfy & the shower / bathroom was so much nicer than we expected for an off-grid experience - true luxury quality. We requested dinner & breakfast with our stay and the hosts really delivered a thoughtful and delicious menu that was a pleasure to eat while enjoying the view. Only one warning: the hike from the "carpark" is a little steep, so definitely recommend packing in as little with you as possible!

Authenticity & Character

True eco-friendly luxury achieved!

Location

Private, secluded, gorgeous 300°+ mountain & valley views

Staff

Left thoughtful welcome note + information & instructions for meals, local activities, & about the history of the property / current owners & plans.

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Hobbiton Movie Set Tour

New Zealand

Fantastic, especially for Tolkien fans! Clearly done with respect to the source material, and as magically quaint as we had hoped. The tour guide was great, dropping little tidbits about the making of all the movies & construction of the sets, but without ruining the magic behind it. (I also really enjoyed learning about the Alexanders' farm operation & how they are running the tourism stuff in parallel today.) We both loved getting to go inside the hobbit hole near the end of the tour & having a pint at the Green Dragon. There were so many opportunities for photos & just enjoying all the "Easter eggs" the designers included in each hole design - the tour could easily have been twice as long in duration for adults, but I did notice the timing was pretty perfect for the kiddos in our group.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Loved the drive across the beautiful, rolling farmland and the video that accompanied it each way. Really helped get you in the Middle Earth mindset!

Te Pā Tū - Maori Cultural Experience

Rotorua

Great learning experience & delicious meal. Very talented staff in the show & excellent service throughout the night. The interactive activities at the learning stations were a great way to understand more about the meaning of the performance elements before seeing it & to give guests a chance to ask questions. The staff did a really nice job acknowledging it was a performance while also asking for respect of the source material & deeper meaning of some of the rituals for those participating in them. I don't know how they did it or if it was just luck, but our dinner seating couldn't have been more perfect - we were with two other young adult to middle-aged couples who all enjoyed traveling & spoke English, so had great dinner conversations, too.

Quality of Experience

Food

Great selection of options & very accommodating of allergies / dietary needs.

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Transport by bus out to the village w/ narration was a nice touch to help get you in the right frame of mind. Turned out that they picked up & dropped off from our hotel, even though we had gone over to a different meeting location indicated by our planner - so that would have been nice to know in advance to save us travel & waiting time. The sing-along by the driver at the end of the night was a little cheesy & repetitive of the concluding dinner entertainment. Would have been more enjoyable if the mic on the bus hadn't repeatedly cut in & out with loud squeaking noises.

Country tour of Geraldine

Geraldine

Our tour guide, a local farmer (whose name I've blanked on already 🫠) was excellent & joined in our rental for a driving tour around the area. He gave us a great history lesson about NZ, the tribal wars, the ongoing debates in Parliament between the Maori & settlers' descendants over the terms of the original treaties, the farming history and trends, and its native forests - as we passed farms filled with sheep, cattle, dairy herds, red deer, and crops (wheat, corn, hay, alfalfa, clover, & fodder beets). After visiting a lovely little church and learning about how the settlers constructed it from native resources, we enjoyed a picnic tea service at a park, and then walked up into a small portion of protected native forest to view huge, old Tōtara tree. It was beautiful, and the ferns & moss along the walk to it were just as lovely. We then made our way over to view & learn about the huge river-water retention pools & distribution channels they constructed in the 1930's that have enabled the shareholders to triple farming capabilities in the region. Along the way, we engaged in fascinating conversations about all kinds of other topics - it was a fantastic way to get a Kiwi perspective on the world!

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Cass Valley Backcountry Tour

New Zealand

Our driver / guide, Steve, did a great job sharing about the local area, farming / ranching practices, outdoor sports, and wildlife, while navigating the challenging route & adeptly spotting aforementioned wildlife roaming the mountains, fields, and tarns for us to view. The local chocolate & glacial spring water stop at the waterfall & cabin was an unexpected & much appreciated treat. The variety of terrain we covered in just a few hours was amazing & really helps you appreciate the ruggedness of the region.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

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

New Zealand

Top quality experience all-round, and the most memorable & unique of our trip. The location is absolutely stunning - from Lake Manapouri, over the Wilmot Pass, throughout the fjord, & even at the edge of the Tazman Sea. Staff were excellent, & knowledgeable. Accommodations were even better than I expected for a relatively small ship. Meals were great, too. We had unusually pleasant weather & thoroughly enjoyed it, but now also really want to go back in the rain to experience all the wet-weather-only waterfalls.

Quality of Experience

Food

Fjord-boards & dinner were excellent, especially the complex salads & ceviche fish.

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Boat captains, bus drivers & staff on the ship were all excellent & clearly skilled at their respective jobs.

Historic Steamship Cruise to Walter Peak Farm + BBQ Dinner

Queenstown (NZ)

Great way to see the lake & mountains, delicious dinner, cool old ship, and nice sheep shearing & herding demo. The boat rides were lovely bookends to the evening. Would have loved just a bit more info in the farm show on the current operations and a little more time after it to view the animals, walk the grounds, & poke around the shop.

Quality of Experience

Food

Excellent selection & quality. Staff could have been a bit more organized in releasing folks to the buffet - some people got a little pushy around the seafood station, even though there was clearly plenty available.

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Historic steam ship is really cool, and they allow you to view the engine room in operation.

Skyline Gondola Ride

Queenstown (NZ)

Awesome views over Christchurch. Smoothest gondola I've ridden on. Great staff & lots of activities once you're at the top. The luge was very well designed and a real blast. Fun to watch others parachuting off the mountain-side and gliding down into the city, as well as the boats zipping around the lake below from the viewing platform & restaurant area.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Maria was nice. Other than that everything was horrible except the hotel in Puebla . Starting from our hotel room in Mexico City to uber driver from Puebla to Mexico City as he kept turning the AC off in the car in the heat. The boat guide was good. We did not like the way we were given the hotel room or the way we were treated when we complained about the hotel

The Trip:
My wife and I did a 7 day expedition to the Galapagos Islands arranged by KimKim. Angie from KimKim was our Experience Assistant. She helped guide us through the decision making process and provided all the details of our trip. She was also available along the way as we needed some assistance with travel hassles related to late flights and such. Her assistance was invaluable.

Quito:
Angie arranged for two local guides to help us on our journey in Quito, Alejandro picked us up from the airport in Quito when we arrived (though our flight was quite late, and took us to our first hotel, so we did not have to worry about taxis or hotel shuttle transportation. He help us reunite with our lost back, and provided us with transportation back to the airport the next day to resume our trip to the Galapagos islands.

Upon our return from the Galapagos we were greeted by Fabricio. He met us at the airport, though our flight was several hours late. He provided transportation to our hotel in Old Town Quito. The next day, he showed us the highlights of Old Town Quito along with all manner of local and historic information as we toured Churches, monuments, Old Town, a Chocolate Factory, and stayed with us through our cooking experience. On our last day he picked us up very early and took us to the airport. Fabricio was very informative, kind, and genuinely enthusiastic to show us around.

Galapagos:
Upon our arrival in the Galapagos, we were met by Alex, our Naturalist and guide for our expedition. Alex demonstrated his knowledge enthusiastically though the lens of both local and learned understanding. Through his expert knowledge, he was able to show us all manner of plants and animals endemic to the islands including both the ones we expected and hoped to see, as well as some rare sightings. We visited four islands: Santiago Island, Isabella Island, Fernandia Island, and Santa Cruz Island. During our expedition we stayed on the Bonita Cruise Ship, a small ship that sleeps about 16 people. Daily we had the opportunity to hike the islands, travel in small boats along the coast viewing the various wildlife, and snorkel in the many bays on the islands. Most days we did all three. The crew performed their duties efficiently and expertly, doling out specific equipment for the days activities, providing zodiac transpiration to and from islands, keeping the cabins clean, serving chef prepared delicious meals and even a small party on Christmas for both the crew and the guests. The crew was polite, and extremely helpful during our stay.

To sum it up, my wife and I had a wonderful experience in both Quito and on the islands. I can highly recommend KimKim if you are considering a Galapagos Adventure Experience.

Hotel Reviews

La Casona de La Ronda

Quito

Our stay at La Casona de La Ronda was delightful and surpassed our expectations. It was definitely a nicer experience than we had anticipated.

M/Y Bonita

Quito

My wife and I did a 7 day expedition to the Galapagos Islands arranged by KimKim. During our Galapagos expedition we stayed on the Bonita Cruise Ship, a small ship that sleeps about 16 people. Daily we had the opportunity to hike the islands, travel in small boats along the coast viewing the various wildlife, and snorkel in the many bays on the islands. Most days we did all three. The crew performed their duties efficiently and expertly, doling out specific equipment for the day's activities, providing zodiac transpiration to and from islands, keeping the cabins clean, serving chef prepared delicious meals and even a small party on Christmas for both the crew and the guests. The crew was polite, and extremely helpful during our stay.

Location

Sailing around the islands allows you to see more, more efficiently than flying from island to island to experience the local nature

Staff

The crew performed their duties efficiently and expertly, doling out specific equipment for the day's activities, providing zodiac transpiration to and from islands, keeping the cabins clean, serving chef prepared delicious meals and even a small party on Christmas for both the crew and the guests. The crew was polite, and extremely helpful during our stay.

Cleanliness & Comfort

The room was larger than expected on the Bonita and was cleaned daily by the crew. The meals were prepared daily by an onboard chef. The chef prepared each meal with a local style and each meal was delicious.

Activity Reviews

Charles Darwin Station & Tortoise Breeding center

Galapagos Islands

Our visit to the Charles Darwin Station & Tortoise Breeding Center met our expectations. We were there primarily to see the tortoises, and there were lots of them. Our naturalist, Alex, provided thorough explanations, and it was nice that the place wasn't crowded, making the experience more enjoyable.

Quito Cooking Class

Ecuador

The Quito Cooking Class was a fantastic experience and exceeded our expectations. Although we initially thought it might be in someone's home, having it at a restaurant was a pleasant surprise. The chef's professionalism and the way he explained the chemistry behind cooking, not just recipes, were excellent. The food turned out great too!

Trip planning by Hamza and Said were 5 star.
Driver Rashid was very friendly and Fez guide Miriam was amazing . Hotels were good / no delays and all went smooth. A friend got hurt and we were givrn amazing help by Mohammad driver in the desert. Helpful Feedback I can share for future travel planning is that we wish we were shown the main market square in Marrakech where snake charmers etc were there (we were taken close but not exactly there) . Also timings of travel in the itinerary are not accurate - fez to Marrakech took almost double the time . Wish we were told about flight options . Overall had a great time. Kimkim is very reliable and great service

Olman helped me plan the trip according to my specific requirements. Every single pickup for scheduled activity and transportation was ON TIME and that takes out the stress when you are on vacation. I honestly use Kimkim just for that - to ensure there are no cancelations on planned activities - its very reliable and definitely worth every penny to go with a travel agency.

Activity Reviews

Coffee, Chocolate & Sugar Cane Farm Experience

Arenal/La Fortuna

We went through Coffee and Chocolate tour - there was nothing mentioned about Sugar Cane - guess it wasnt that important for us, but would be nice to not include it from the beginning, so not create any expectations. Also, not sure if the pricing we paid was "extra".

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Manuel Antonio National Park Guided Hike

Costa Rica

You absolutely need a guide here, since they will show you close up views of animals, spiders, birds etc. The beach is also great but we did not really use it.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

A taxi driver picked us up - while it was ok, would rather have better transportation like a private van.

EcoTermales Hot Springs Experience with Meal

Arenal/La Fortuna

I have mixed feelings about Hot Springs - the activity was late in the evening - the dinner was good but the hot springs were ok especially with limited visibility in the dark.

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

El Silencio Volcano Hike

Arenal/La Fortuna

This was the best activity - enjoyed the views of the Arenal Volcano from close by.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Francesca initially and then Kristy were our local specialists. For this trip we interacted largely with Kristy. They were both great. Kristy was very prompt in responding to our questions and resolving hiccups promptly during our trip. She’s a gem! Our guides Cesar at Inkaterra, Franklin in Cusco and Machu Picchu and Mario in Lima were all very knowledgeable, caring and extremely professional. We couldn’t have asked for better guides. We can’t pinpoint one highlight. Peru was one of our best vacations and we’ll definitely go back for the beauty, the food and the hospitable people we met! Kudos to kimkim looking forward to using your services again!

Our time in New Zealand was amazing because the country was absolutely gorgeous and our local specialist, Michelle, booked us into some really great accommodations and events. Some of the highlight experiences I would recommend for others:
-Christchurch walking/food tour
-Kaikoura: Haipuku Lodge and Tree Houses was a gorgeous property, with great meals! On top of that, the Haipuku Kitchen Seasonal Feast cooking class was a wonderful experience with great hosting by Fiona and Becca. If you get a chance, this wasn't an official itinerary item but you should go to Nin's Bin for super fresh caught crawfish/lobster!
-Lake Tekapo Farm Tours stargazing: We got to take advantage of the dark sky reserve to really soak in a gorgeous night sky and beautiful near-full moon.
-Lake Tekapo Lodge was a great accommodation with really friendly hosts that made that stay but it sounds like those hosts will be retiring so can't vouch for the new owners
-Cass Valley Backcountry Tour was an amazing 4WD tour with a personal tour guide of the space -- one of our favorite experiences of the entire trip!
-Doubtful Sound Overnight Cruise was my personal highlight of the trip; a fun mix of activities (kayaking, fishing, sightseeing) plus delicious meals (fresh fish and crawfish/lobster) and stellar hosting by Shaun and Juanita. Bring lots of bug repellant because the sandflies are absolute terrors; I'm still scratching a couple of bites from them.
-Ahi restaurant in Auckland was delicious and absolutely worth checking out!

Regarding our local specialist, though -- she quite honestly could have been more on top of trip details (there were multiple examples I can cite) but these issues *thankfully* did not ruin the trip.