Kimkim Trip Reviews

Our trip was absolutely amazing! Thank you so much for your thoughtful itinerary- the hotels, transport, food suggestions were fabulous and the addition of the sunset cruise with Captain Guillermo and guitarist Alvaro was perfect! Every excursion was fabulous! The Biking tour of Barcelona with Corentin hit all of the historical marks and taught us about culture, art and architecture while we pedaled and got the lay of the land! Touring and hiking in Montserrat with Ramon and being able to customize our experience to our family was amazing- He is an expert on the history, lore and the hiking area- we escaped the crowds and got some amazing views! Costa Brava is gorgeous and our adventure with Stepan, despite the cloudy and slightly rough day at sea- was great! Every detail of our kayak, snorkel, swim, walk-was planned out and executed perfectly. Without exception- lovely people, great communicators, professional and fun and ready to adapt to our wishes and needs. Can't say enough great things!

Hotel Review

Hotel Aigua Blava

Costa Brava · Girona

Absolutely gorgeous grounds, airy rooms, restaurant breakfast is excellent, staff very pleasant, attentive and helpful!

Authenticity & Character

paradise!

Location

Staff

reception was particularly helpful with reservations in local towns and modes of transport

Cleanliness & Comfort

everything was immaculate

Activity Reviews

Tapas Walk in Barcelona

Barcelona

Jeanne was so fun! She asked great questions, engaged the entire group. We had a great group, tried all types of tapas in different neighborhoods. my 16 and 13 year olds enjoyed it and felt very comfortable in the mix! Try the cava!

Quality of Experience

Food

We tried it all- snails, fried sardines, meatballs, desserts- vermouth of course and cava! be adventurous!

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Flamenco Night

Barcelona

We all enjoyed the flamenco- it seemed the crowd was quite reserved and didn't know if they should cheer or watch quietly or get up and participate. Since the large majority re: ALL of the patrons are tourists- maybe an introduction that talks about the history and the crowds expected response would enhance the experience. We had tapas at the expat next door and would highly recommend!

Quality of Experience

Guided Visit of Barcelona by Bike

Barcelona

Great way to cover a lot of ground, see a lot of the cities highlights and get some history as well. Corentin was our guide and was excellent.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Family Visit Montserrat & Hiking

Barcelona

Ramon is a pro. We were able to customize our visit to focus most of our time on the hiking around Montserrat. We steered clear of the crowds and had some marvelous views while Ramon taught us the lore and history of the area ( as well as a geology lesson ) ! Highly recommend!

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Coastal Hike, Kayaking & Lagoon Dipping in Costa Brava

Spain

Stepan was amazing! Every detail of our walk, kayak, swim/snorkel was well planned and executed. We had a wonderful day despite the imperfect weather and learned a lot about proper technique for kayaking as well as environmental conservation efforts in the area.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Iceland was amazing, and the bookings made it really smooth and hassle free for us as busy parents. The accommodations for our needs were excellent in great locations that with our unique needs (two parents, two children and an au pair) would have been very difficult to find on our own, and almost certainly would have resulted in less ideal locations than we had.

Activity Reviews

Glacier Super Jeep Tour

Iceland

Quality of Experience

Whale Watching Tour

Reykjavík

Quality of Experience

Mieke was excellent. We had great things planned and plenty of time to explore on our own. It took us a few days to figure out the amazing train system, trams, etc., but then it was a great way to see the rest of the countries we visited. We did a combo with kim kim (Netherlands and Germany) and a cruise with MSC to Denmark and Norway. We loved staying right across (Premier Suites) from the Rotterdam Central Train Station and then visiting different cities from there. Gouda was our favorite. We did the Cheese Experience (Excellent and so fun) and made our own stroopwafels at Berg's Bakery. Soooo fun. In Amsterdam, we did some things on our own. The Lookout Restaurant was well worth it. The Anne Frank House is so interesting. Very very worthwhile. We did a lot of just walking and visiting shops and restaurants and little cafes, etc. We opted not to do a planned Kinderdijk windmill tour (from Rotterdam) - it was cold that day and we decided to just do other things. We came back to Amsterdam after some time in Norway and Germany (also thru Kim kim) and did a tour to the Zaanse Schans Windmills. They were great! A clog shop and cheese place right there. The only suggestion I have for kim kim is to figure out some way for people to have a phone. Our carrier did not provide coverage there. We contacted Mieke one day from our hotel and she gave us very detailed directions to the Anne Frank house. This was great. However, if we would have had phones with mapquest that worked, it would have avoided alot of looking on our own. We had wifi on germany trains but not in the netherlands. We checked train schedules, platforms, etc. in the morning at our hotel before walking to the Rotterdam train station, and we were fine that way, but it would have been very very helpful to have a phone with wifi. The chip cards are a must (provided by kim kim). They loaded it with sufficient dollars for what we scheduled and then we added to it for some extra places we wanted to go. Then they provided an envelope and on our last day, we mailed them back to them at the train station. You can use them on any form of transportation which is very very convenient. We will never forget this trip - it was a once-in-a-lifetime experience for us. The two words that best describe it all are - Beautiful and interesting. Thank you all!

Hotel Review

Premier Suites Plus Rotterdam

Rotterdam

This hotel is great - right across from the central train station. We had a room that overlooked the central station - very nice and interesting. Restaurants and shops are close. We could walk. They also provide a coffee/expresso machine in their lobby.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Review

Gouda - Stroopwafel workshop

The Netherlands

Berg's Bakery is amazing. It is a 6th generation family bakery. The owner, himself, did our workshop, and we enjoyed chatting with him about his journey in the stroopwafel industry.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

My wife and I usually plan trips ourselves but I was short on time for planning our trip to Norway. Relying on kimkim and its Norway-based Ethical Travel partner greatly relieved the stress. After some initial guidance, our knowledgeable local specialist Tom Christer proposed an itinerary. We communicated back and forth a few times, with Tom providing clear answers to all questions, to refine the plan. The high point of our trip was a 4-night stay at a boutique inn called BesteBakken, in Hafslo. The owner personally hosted delicious family-style dinners and breakfasts where we had a chance to meet other travelers including quite native Norwegians. It was a great base for exploring the local region, including a glacier hike, a kayak day paddle, and a hike up Molden mountain on our own. Our family of 4 adults needed some rest as well as wonderful sights and that's what we got on this trip. Tom or others at Ethical Travel were available to answer questions during the trip, and rebooked us in advance when one boat tour was cancelled. I would not hesitate to use kimkim again.

My wife and I had an incredible experience in Flores with our guide Sergio and driver Eto. Both gave us a lot of good local insights into the culutre, people and food. We were treated to beautiful scenery in the form of canyons, waterfalls and unique rice fields. And the last 2 days were on a boat which was a once in a lifetime experience. Thanks to Marc and his team for creating the itinerary and giving us a great local experience mostly away from the tourist crowds in Laboan Bajo.

Hotel Reviews

Mbeliling Mountain Ecolodge

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Liveaboard in Komodo

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Puri Sari Beach Hotel

Labuan Bajo

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Spring HIll Bungalow Ruteng

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Golo Hill Top

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Rangko Cave

Labuan Bajo

Unique experience of swimming in a cave with bats. Highly recommended

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Cunca Wulang and Spiderwebs Rice fields

Indonesia

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Ruteng Town

Indonesia

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Liveaboard Cruise: Discover Flores & Komodo

Komodo Island

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Liveaboard Cruise - Departure Day

Indonesia

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

We worked with Juan in the Guatemala office. He and his team are very thorough and helpful at every step of creating a custom trip. We were offered several options and travel plans during our time in Guatemala. All the guides were well versed in the area/activity they provided. I felt everyone involved had our best interest in mind. All pick ups and transports were on time and in clean vehicles. We felt safe and happy with the options that we chose.
I would absolutely recommend them to friends wishing to travel in Guatemala. In our case, mostly in the Antigua area.

Activity Review

Walk Antigua Like a Local

Antigua

The trip was just ok. The hike at Besseggen was a disaster because Christina failed to mention the necessary ferry. She only offered a guide (which you totally do not need and was $800, just needed info on the ferry - trust me you don’t need a guide, just the knowledge to catch the ferry). This ruined several days of our trip and almost ended up with physical harm. When questioned the next day I was told only by Christina had she mentioned it (when, I have no idea). But it was not anywhere in the final itinerary. Riddergarten was a lame town with little food choices. Like really bad food choices. Bestebakken in Hafslo was nice but definitely didn’t need 3 nights there. 2 would have been sufficient. Food here was quite good and we liked this place a lot. Loften Ullensvang had good bike ride but absolutely nothing to do second day. Did not need 3 nights here. 2 nights would have been more than enough. The food here was horrendous. Literally only the (very) overpriced mediocre hotel buffet or a pizza shop. I had wanted to go to Bergen and Lofoten but was told Bergen was boring and not enough time to go to Lofoten. I’m used to planning my own trips but ran out of time. I’m sworn off travel agents. I was not impressed with the final itinerary.

Hotel Reviews

Bestebakken

Hafslo

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Riddergården

Beitostølen

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Hotell Bondeheimen

Oslo

Authenticity & Character

Location

Noisy at night with bar across the street open very late otherwise this hotel was fine

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Hotel Ullensvang

Lofthus Hardanger

Food was very expensive (about $60 per person without drinks for a mediocre buffet), and only other open restaurant was a pizza shop. We ate here two nights but kind of sad to have to do that on vacation

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Kayaking Adventure in Gudvangen

Gudvangen

Basic kayaking trip, was nice but spent most of the trip just sitting there waiting for 2 people who couldn’t keep up with the other 10 people in the group. Not that the rest of the group was fast.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Tailor-Made Activity on Lustrafjorden

Hafslo

E-bike ride was very nice

Quality of Experience

Great trip Sarah was a great host made our trip seamless Croatia is a wonderful country to explore👍👍👍

Hotel Reviews

Cornaro Hotel

Split

Great location and breakfast

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Adriana Hvar Spa Hotel

Hvar

Great location and staff service

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Rixos Libertas Dubrovnik

Dubrovnik

Completely breathtaking Awsome all round

Authenticity & Character

Location

Hi

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Hotel Odisej

Goveđari

Great location good breakfast

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Guided Walking Tour of Split

Split

Good guide lots of history

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Krka National Park + lunch in the countryside

Croatia

Lovely hike cool guide

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Dubrovnik Kayaking Adventure

Dubrovnik

Government cancelled not Sarah or Kim Kim fault

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Private Motor Boat Excursion to Brač & the Pakleni Islands (end in Hvar)

Split

Great captain breathtaking scenery

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Privately guided hike through Mljet National Park

Croatia

Great guide good sense of humour great hike to the highest point

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Hvar - Island Bike Tour with Local Food and Drink Tastings

Croatia

Awsome passionate leader great route

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Tour Dubrovnik's Old Town

Croatia

Great guide she was knowledgeable and local

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

From the beginning, Ezdi was always available to help with the organisation of this trip then Fenne took over and also did an amazing job. Every aspect of the trip went very smoothly and this mustn’t have been easy as I had told them from the beginning that I wanted to see everything Norway had to offer. The guides and I kept communicating back and forth up to the very end. No other company could offer me an all encompassed tour of Norway and such good service as Kim Kim did. My travelling companion and I liked and enjoyed every step of this trip. Norway is such a beautiful and amazing country and Kim Kim helped make my dream come true. Thank you so much!!!!
I also have to mention Iggy ([email protected]) who brought us on a 12 hour Geiranger tour. It was incredible, we made so many stops along the way from the very top of the mountains to the deepest valleys so we could take in the views. He is very knowledgeable and has a very good sense of humor, We highly recommend this tour, it’s a long day of travelling but wouldn’t have missed a second of it. Anita

Activity Reviews

Private Tour to Geiranger

Ålesund

Already did in the general comments. We highly recommend this tour.

Quality of Experience

The planning team were all very helpful.

Food

Loved the seafood everywhere we went.

Guides, Drivers and Staff

They were anlways available and ready to help.

Transport

we always felt very safe.

Norway in a Nutshell Tour

Norway

Everything was great.

Quality of Experience

Good organisation from start to finish

Quality of Experience

Good organisation from start to finish

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Transport

A belated Thank You to Tom and the Norway crew at kimkim!

Back in the cold days of February this year, my spouse and I had the wonderful opportunity to visit Norway for a short time - and on short notice. Not being good at quickly making detailed plans to visit a new country for the first time without a car in the winter, we went with a recommendation to try kimkim. We are soooo glad that we did!

Tom transformed our desires for beautiful fjords, train travels, and a chance or two at northern lights into a fantastic itinerary of unique memorable experiences and splendid overnight stays in towns rich with history.

The arranged tours, travel, and lodging were all top-notch. Communication was great! The availability of the team's 24/7 phone assistance really helped put our minds at ease with the travel connections.

Kimkim was a fantastic provider for our trip to Morocco. Beyond organizing the hotels and recommending which cities to visit, their organization was second to none and made our trip run exceptionally smoothly. Our driver, Khalid, took great care of us, sharing different facts about the cities we traveled through and showing us some of the most beautiful landscapes. Our guides in both Fes and Marrakech made us feel properly welcome in the cities and helped us break through the crowds of tourists to find the hidden gems in both cities. I would highly recommend Kimkim to anyone looking to travel to Morocco or anywhere else!

Hotel Reviews

Dar Kika Salam

Rabat

Dar Kika Salam in Rabat was incredible. The manager was one of the kindest people I've ever met, making our stay truly special. The hospitality was top-notch, and the Riad itself was beautiful and cozy. Definitely one of my favorite stays during the trip.

Luxury Oasis Camp Merzouga

Taouz

Luxury Oasis Camp Merzouga was unexpectedly impressive. My girlfriend booked a tent with AC, which was a blessing given the extreme heat. Though it was quite hot initially, the AC eventually kicked in and made it bearable. The camp was well-equipped, and having a shower in the middle of the Sahara was a pleasant surprise.

Location

Riad Faraj

Marrakech

The Riad in Marrakech was great, especially for the little pool we could use every day after a very hot day in the city!

Activity Review

Camel trek to your camp

Merzouga

Wow, the camel trek to the camp in the Sahara was an absolutely unique experience. I had never seen anything like the vast desert landscape before. It was surreal being out there, especially with the intense heat, even at 8 PM, when it was still over 105 degrees. The guides were super welcoming and made the experience even better

Tayebb was our main guide from the beginning (Tangier) until end (Marrakech), very professional, polite and knowledgeable about history of the region. Two of us went on the Morocco tour with him.
Camel ride in Erg Chebbi with Sunset was memorable. Hotels and Camps were high class except the hotel Kasbah Tirit in
Ait Benhaddou was substandard, to the point of lack of sanitation (roche infested). I highly recommend not to use this hotel.
Overall our experience was excellent. I will highly recommend for anyone.

Svetlana planned a perfect trip for us - the hotels were wonderful and the travel plan hit all of the highlights of Ireland without feeling rushed. We particularly liked having much of the trip booked and paid for prior to our arrival. It was the trip of a lifetime and we will absolutely be using KimKim for our next adventure.

Martina did an excellent job organizing the trip for us. We had a fantastic time! From the hotels to the tours/ day trips, our trip was truly unforgettable. Martina made great recommendations to help us make the right decisions being our first time to Italy. Truly appreciate her advice & guidance during the planning/ booking process.
Also, Gabriel was amazing as our main POC while we were in Italy to make sure everything was perfect. He helped guide us along the way & answered any questions/ concerns that came up. Both Martina & Gabriel were fantastic & we couldn’t have done this trip without them, thank you both!

Hotel Reviews

Sogno di Giulietta e Romeo

Venezia

Great hotel. Excellent food & Located in the center of everything!

Authenticity & Character

Very cute boutique hotel

Location

Staff

Staff was very nice & helpful

Cleanliness & Comfort

Very clean hotel

Hotel Navona Colors

Rome

Great location, excellent food, & located in the center of everything

Authenticity & Character

Super cute hotel

Location

Centralized in the

Staff

Staff was helpful & friendly

Cleanliness & Comfort

Very clean

Hotel Residence

Amalfi

Great location right on the sea, steps from the main strip, also near the ferries, & bus stop. Very nice hotel

Authenticity & Character

Super cute hotel

Location

Right by the main strip, beach, & transportation

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Very clean

Activity Reviews

Welcome to Venice!

Venice

Our tour with Daniela was amazing! Highly recommend

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Daniela!

Transport

Our transport was a little delayed in Venice

Guided Walking Tour of Venice

Venice

Daniela was great. She was knowledgeable and gave us an option on what we wanted to see. She took us all throughout Venice.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Guided Walking Tour of Rome

Rome

Quality of Experience

Very detailed, knowledgeable

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Very knowledgeable & personable

Transport

Wear good shoes, you will be walking a lot!

Wine Tasting and Lunch in Amalfi Coast

Italy

Alfonso was extremely knowledgeable, beautiful scenery, delicious wine & food!

Quality of Experience

Organic ingredients are used & women owned business

Food

Amazing food! Technically a feast

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Very knowledgeable staff, thanks Alfonso!

Our time in Rome was divided into three guided tour days, and a free day. We had two diifferent guides and stayed in a private apartment. Our overall impression is that the visit was educational and enjoyable. The big disappointment of our time in Rome was the very large crowds. Every location we visited had long lines and we had a hard time taking a photo without numerous other tourists in the scene. That is not something the tour company who scheduled us could have changed, but perhaps we should have been warned when we booked that crowds of tourists were the largest ever, and that it might have been better to book much later in the year.

First, our lodging. The tour company put us in a private apartment that was a ten minute walk from Piazza del Poppolo. We were thus able to walk to all of our tours. At the same time, we had good beds, a large living and diining room, a fully appointed kitchen, and four showers. What a nice place to stay for six days! Thank you for this! We were very happy with it.

For the first two days our guide was Mariapaola. She is a trained archeologist with a graduate degree. And she was able to answer all our questions professionally and put answers in historical context that was very refreshing. Our third guide was not as knowledgeable. We cannot recommend her.

Hotel Review

Rome Apartment Colosseum RIR 11

I have already mentioned our total satisfaction with our lodging. It had all the amenities of home, so we ended up eating breakfast and some dinners inn the apartment and were happy to be able to do so. The apartment had four showers, so each room's occupants had their own shower. The apartment also had a laundry, and we used the washing machine several times. But we could get the clothes drier to work, so that was a problem. We loved the apartment, and want to say thank you for arranging our stay there!

Location

Three blocks from Piazza del Poppolo..

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Rome Private Guided Walk

Rome

Our guide for this walking tour is a trained archeologist with extensive knowledge of the cultures and civilizations that created the magniicient monuments we were visiting. It would have been hard to find a better, more knowledgeable and qualified guide. We. were very happy with her and recommend her to other visitors.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Pantheon Tickets

Rome

This is where a highly educated guide added a lot to the experience. She was able to describe the architecture of the Pantheon and how it used the natural movement of the sun to illustrate the progression of the seasons. She explained the structure of the building inside and out. As part of this tour, we also visited the Spanish Steps and Trevi Fountain, and she was able to include a lot of history from those fountains in her explanation of their history. We were very pleased with her extensive knowledge and her pleasant demeaor.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Colosseum and Roman Forum - Private guide

Rome

Again, a knowledgeable guide who was able to communicate well in English was an enormous benefit and we got a lot out of the tour.

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Mariapaola was an outstanding guide.

Colosseum & Roman Forum skip the line ticket

Rome

It says a lot about the large number of tourists at the Colosseum that this service is provided, but the truth is you would spend more time standing in ine than seeing the Colosseum and Forum if you did not take this option. By all means, take advantage of this.

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Again, Mariapaola was a knowledgeable guide aand a pleasant person to see the tourist sites of Rome with.

Vatican Museums and Sistine Chapel - private guide

Rome

The Vatican and Sistine Chapel are must-see sites for any visit to Rome. Must-see for tens of thousands of tourists in addition to you, regrettably, so you will spend your entire time shuffling through the museum and chapel dodging other tourists, trying to keep up with your guide, and trying to hear your guide describe what you hope to see through all the other tourists. I don't suppose there is any way to change this situation, but it detracts from the experience.

Vatican Museum and Sistine Chapel skip the line ticket

Rome

Again, the fact that this is offered makes it clear that the number of tourists visiting the Vatican Museum and Sistine Chapel is enormous. You must buy this option if you are going to visit these sites, but the large number of tourists just detracted from the experience for me.

Lisbet was an absolute pleasure to work with - incredibly knowledgeable, very responsive, and set us up with a spectacular itinerary for our family trip to celebrate our kids’ graduations from high school and college. From the moment we touched down in Iceland, it was clear that this was going to be a special vacation - and it was indeed. Blue Lagoon, geothermal park, super cool hotels off the beaten path, waterfalls galore, amazing food recommendations, lots of hiking (to work off all that incredible food), snorkeling in frigid waters between tectonic plates, kayaking amidst giant icebergs in a glacier lagoon, walking on top of the glacier to access ice caves - and many many more unreal experiences. Iceland blew us away and the trip exceeded our expectations. We will definitely be back!
Thank you Lisbet for all your help in making this week absolutely unforgettable.

Beatriz and her weekend support were wonderful. She was totally responsive the small things that come up and made sure everything went as planned. This is our second straight year with her and she has always been great. Looking forward to another trip with her in the future.

Bill Moody

Hotel Reviews

Hotel Saturnia

Venice

This hotel had a good location and great people working there. Breakfast was great!!

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Hotel Mozart Rome

Roma

The Mozart was and good hotel. We were k no it in the actual hotel as they have some rooms a couple of blocks down the street. No way for the travel company to know this when they booked. Where they had us was under construction so it was a little noisy during the day and construction materials where we had to walkthrough to get to our rooms. Shouldn’t be use for anyone with disabilities, as even though it had an elevator, you had to walk stairs to get to your room. Fine for our group but not for many.

Authenticity & Character

When the construction is done it will probably be fine. The base hotel was great and the breakfast was very good.

Location

In a great location and walking distance to most places you would want to see.

Staff

It depended on the shift. Most or the staff was very helpful.

Cleanliness & Comfort

Hotel Il Guelfo Bianco

Florence

The only reason this isn’t 5 starts is that the breakfast was pretty weak compared to the other hotels and other hotels we have stayed at in italy. Overall it was very good.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Privately Guided Visit of Pompeii & Naples from Rome by Train

Rome

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Private Guided Visit of the Colosseum & Ancient City

Rome

The guide was great, very knowledgeable and good with people said all ages. but the directions where to find the guide need to be more specific. Either a transfer needs to be arranged or in the write up it needs to explain where the meeting actually, which was below the coliseum, not at the coliseum. Many taxi drivers don’t speak great English and many of our group had to walk about half a mile from taxi dropoff to the meeting place.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Guide was great.

Transport

Depending on where the hotel is, having transport instead of using a cab would be much easier.

Gelato Making Class

Florence

This class is for a maximum of 7 people at a time and the owner was willing to do 2 sessions once we got there, but we decided not to spend the extra time. This fact should be noted when booking. The owner said the travel company knew and should have told us. Not Kim Kim, their supplier. But the kids, which is who we picked to attend, thought it was great!! The owner was very friendly and very accommodating.

Quality of Experience

Hot Air Balloon Over Florence

Italy

A must for anyone that hasn’t been in a hot air balloon. When I asked our group what was the favorite thing they did, almost all said the hot air balloon.

Quality of Experience

Once in a life experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Everyone that worked there were very accommodating, friendly, informational, and very safety conscious.

Transport

The owner actually one of the vans so he could get to know our people better. He was wonderful.

Private Guided Visit of Florence Including Michelangelo's David

Florence

Quality of Experience

The guide was very knowledgeable and great with the whole group.

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Tuscany Day Trip to Siena and San Gimignano

Florence

Both cities were unique so there was no overlap in info. The guide was very good at telling both the historical fact of both places and stories to bring them to life. This was a very good day.

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Privately Guided Visit of Venice: St. Mark's Basilica & Doge's Palace

Venice

Guide was very good and St. Marks was close to our hotel.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Venetian Lagoon Experience: Rowing in Venice

Venice

Once again, this was awesome. We were taught to row the boats, which was like a gondola, but made for two people to row. The operators were all women school teachers also doing this and they could row the boat without you if needed. Everyone got a chance to row both through the back canals in Venice and out in the open water. Everyone truly enjoyed the experience.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Emanuela did a great job of planning and pacing our trip. We had a great blend of activities with some down time. She listened to what we were looking for in places to stay and hit it out of the park. She also gave great dining recommendations. She was very responsive when we were there and made sure everything was going smoothly. Going north on the ring road was the perfect path for us, allowing us to acclimate a little before the heavier duty activities of the south. We especially loved the iceberg lagoon zodiac tour and the side trip to Seyðisfjörður,

Kadri did a great job planning and organizing our trip thru the southern fjords of norway. She picked excellent hotels and scenic spots and active activities to do. We did want to ride the Rallervegan (sp?) bike trail which ahe thought started near Voss but actually started about 100 kilometers from Voss so that part of the trip didnt work out unfortunately as where our bikes were reserved and where the trail started were not even close at all.
We also had a major medical problem as i slipped on some rocks mountain biking and broke my leg but Rofu helped us make some changes on our remaining itinerary and we were able to “limp” along the rest of our trip. A little more knowledge and understanding of more adventurous activities like Via Ferratas and paragliding and hiking would have been helpful not to mention the Extreme sports festival in Vass in june would have been great to know about in advance.
Also a heads up to the Parking laws and heavy fines for violations and even minor speeding Violations would have been good as well.
Other than those issues we had a great trip and appreciate kimkims services
We’ll definitely use them again and recommend them to others

This was our first trip to Czech Republic and we were very favorably impressed with the country and the amenities we saw. All of us left thinking we should have had more time in the country, but we didn't know that when we planned the trip because we knew so little about the country.

We were six: grandfather (me), two daughters and one son-in-law, and two sixteen year-old granddaughters. We left all the plannig to Kim-kim, who contracted it out to Grand Cuvée Tours, and they did a good job of selecting international connections, airport transfers, lodging, and tours.

International flights were on Ryan Air, a first on that carrier. We were not impressed with them: airport check-in was poorly organized in Rome (chaotic is a better description) and we would not fly with Ryan Air again if there were an alternative.

Connection from the airport to the hotel in Prague was easy and comfortable, and accommodations at the Hotel Cube were very good. We would recommend them for others going to Prague.

We had three tours while in Czech Republic:

1. a walking tour of Prague Castlle, old town, and Charles Bridge with Lenka while in Prague,

2. a road trip by van with guide and driver Pavel to Kutna Hora, where we saw the gothic cathedral and the bone church and learnend the importance of silver mining to the prosperity of the town, and

3. a road trip by van with guide and driver Pavel to the castle of Český Krumlov, where we walked through the gardens and the walkways of the castle. On the way back to Prague from Český Krumlov, we stopped to walk around Pisek, across the bridge, and to a restaurant where we enjoyed a light meal and local beer. This was an added stop for the day's tour, and a very worthwhile stop.

Both Lenka and Pavel were very good tour guides, with extensive knowledge of the history of the sites we were visiting and good English so they could explain what we were seeing and its significance to the history of the country. Both also had interesting insights on the long-term history of the Czech people and the place of the country in the wider history of Europe. My granddaughters (and all the adults) learned more about the pre-war and post-war of history Europe than they had learned in secondary school.

We also discovered over the course of four days that Prague has outstanding beer and dining facilities. We enjoyed the complimentary breakfast at the hotel (a full breakfast, not just coffee and rolls), but we really enjoyed the lunches and dinners we found each day. The itinerary and guide for our tour said we would find good restaurants, and we truly did. Some were pricey, others were very reasonable, but all were good and we enjoyed menus that were new to us. An eating tour of Czech Republic would be a good plan!

We thoroughly enjoyed our visit to the Czech Republic and very much appreciated the program put together by Grand Cuvée Tours, contracted by Kim kim. Our big takeaway from this is that the Czech Republic is a real treasure for tourists looking for a new and special experience. We were delighted with the time we had and the people who worked with us on every aspect of the tour. We will say we were somewhat surprised by the cost of the visit to Prague -- it actually cost us more than our subsequent visit to Rome, which lasted two days longer than our Prague visit.

Our sincere thanks to Lenka, Pavel, Hotel Cube staff, Grand Cuvée Tours, Kim Kim and the hundreds of people we talked and interacted with during the time we were in Czech Republic. Top marks and thanks to the organizers and guides!