Kimkim Trip Reviews

Antonia was outstanding! From the way of communicating, to taking care of every detail, to taking care of needs of each of our traveler’s needs . Everybody was happy with the organized tours, the exceptional guides. Just highly recommend Antonia and her crew

Thanks to Kimkim we had a wonderful trip of Japan and South Korea. We got to see all the must-sees, from the Imperial Palace Gardens to Himeji Castle to the Korean DMZ, but we also got to see a few less-obvious places. We went to Kinomoto to visit a soy sauce brewery and a sake brewery, we stayed in a wonderful hotel with hot springs in Hakone and we visited teamLab Borderless in Tokyo - which was incredibly impressive, a very *different* kind of art experience. And of course, we got to try all kinds of different foods, which was half the point of our trip :D

Our tour guides were all friendly and the trip went smoothly. Shona coordinated with us and even provided alternative ideas for a self-guided day when her original suggestion turned out to be unexpectedly closed.

Hotel Review

Hakone Hotel Kajikaso

Hakone

Lovely hot spring tub in the room, very comfortable room overall. The food was great, and we got lucky enough to have a geisha performance while we had our kaiseki dinner. The "public" section of the hot springs was also really really nice, including sitting outside during a rainstorm.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Review

Tokyo Night Foodie Tour in Shinjuku

Tokyo

Fuka was lovely company on a fun trip to Shinjuku - and she selected great restaurants, too!

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

The planning was good and easy and accommodated my asks and adjustments.

Some hotels were not as good as others but all in all they were good. Our favourite was the Bespoke Trendy hotel in Hanoi and our least favourite was the DeLaSoi in Sapa for various reason.

I would also call out that the tour guides wanted to take us to factory tours even when we asked not to go to factory tours.

Hotel Reviews

Paragon Saigon Hotel

Hotel was ok and in a good area with easy walking to sites and places. The staff were very helpful and always available.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

The Saga Hotel Hoi An

Hoi An

Good hotel but if your room is street facing then it could be noisy. Only feedback was that they have a shuttle to the old town but last shuttle stops 5:30 but night market starts 7PM so not easy to go into the old town after 5:30.

Authenticity & Character

The staff were great and very helpful

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

White Lotus Hue Hotel

Hue

Not a great location and not very modern

Authenticity & Character

more a business hotel. Not a great pool or breakfast area.

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Bespoke Trendy Hotel Hanoi

Cant say enough about this hotel. I have NEVER stayed in a hotel that went that far out of their way to accommodate us. They were the best

Authenticity & Character

REally unique and really felt like a bespoke hotel

Location

Great location and in the heart of the city

Staff

They made the visit a pleasure. Helped with everything and were the best. They arranged so much for us and gave us so many tips on where to go and what to do

Cleanliness & Comfort

Chapa Express Train

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

What you would expect on a train

DeLaSol Phat Linh Sapa Hotel

Breakfast was not good. Did not even offer breakfast tea and when we asked for tea nobody could speak English. No staff spoke English so hard to communicate. Food was left open and had fly's on it. very bad breakfast.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Doris Cruise

Very large boat and did not really sail into some of the areas because of the size. It was full to capacity and not very personalized. Felt like over commercialized and were we herded around like cattle. I would not recommend this tour option. They packed the guest into a smaller boat and then picked up other guests form other boats for any off-boat tours (group as large as 40 people on side tours) They were too commercial and were more interested in scale and taking large groups around. Nothing was personalized Meals were not very good, Buffet but very standard and plane and very set (had 45 min each meal to finish and move out)

Authenticity & Character

very commercial

Location

The large boat never really sallied anywhere and we had to get on a smaller board to go anywhere which was a shared boat with all the large boats in the area

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Ho Chi Minh City Highlights

Ho Chi Minh City

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

The Original Taste of Hoi An

Hoi An

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Cycling At Viet Hai Village – Kayaking – Swimming (Doris Cruise 3D2N)

Ha Long Bay

Boat was very commercialized and full capacity (40 people). Teh boat was too large to go into the smaller areas and basicalyl jsut went up and down for 30min cruise. Any acticvyties were off boat at the boat was too large. They then put you into a smaller boat with people from other boats to go swimming or cylcing. Very impersonal and mass tourist with no real engaement.

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

boat does pickup from 4 other boats so waist a lot of time just picking people up and dropping off

Lan Ha Bay – Dark & Bright Cave – Disembark Cruise (Doris Cruise)

Ha Long Bay

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Explore the Cu Chi Tunnels

Ho Chi Minh City

Interesting but a little outdated. The video shown was from 1980 and quality was bad

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Day Trip to the Mekong Delta (Ben Tre)

Ho Chi Minh City

It was a good experience and glad we added

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Hoi An Walking Tour

Hoi An

Tour was good and we enjoyed the foot tasting part. Only part we have a issue with was that theatre show. It was rubbish and there was 100% agreement from the audience that it was a tourist trap. Not worth doing at all

Quality of Experience

remove the theatre show

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Touch the History of Former Imperial Capital - Hue Full Day Sightseeing (S)

Hue

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

A Wonderful Day Experience At Van Lang Fishing Village

Vietnam

Quality of Experience

Food

Food was just ok

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Hanoi Fullday City Tour with Train Track Coffee Enjoying

Hanoi

Have to see it but very tourist trap. Teh old town cycle was ok but guy cycling us around just wanted more money for a tip

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Cyclist complained while cycling us around old town. Went so slow people were going past us and then he asked for double tip

Trek Along the Rice Terraces in Muong Hoa Valley - Visit Lao Chai and Ta Van Villages

Sapa

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Visit Black Hmong Villages of Sa Xeng & Sau Chua

Sapa

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Onboarding - Lan Ha Bay – Ba Trai Dao/ Tra Bau (Doris Cruise)

Ha Long Bay

Very busy and full of tourists.

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Holden was so responsive and helpful. He and the kimkim team got creative when I decided at the last minute to add a stop and I so appreciated their willingness to make things work. Holden found us beautiful hotels, great local guides. We had such a wonderful time. Thank you!

The activities were surprising and personal. We really loved our hiking guides in Barcelona and San Sebastian. The private cooking class in a commercial kitchen in Rioja was also a treat. The routes we drove led us to beautiful vistas and hikes that we never would have found on our own and the restaurant recommendations made each stop a delicious breeze. The team was super helpful, responsive and supportive. It was honestly an amazing trip that we would recommend to someone in a heartbeat.

Hotel Reviews

Hotel Restaurante Les Brases

Sort

Wonderful food, cosy hotel, lovely staff. Adorable

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Acta Splendid

Barcelona

Loved the breakfast and location of this hotel. Very clean and well-appointed. Helpful staff.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Review

Medieval Villages & La Garrotxa Volcanic Zone Hiking

Spain

Uni was incredible. The nicest guy in the world and so knowledgeable. The whole day was full of amazing surprises. Including a delicious picnic!

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

We loved out trip to Colomba and Michael was always very responsive to accomodating with all my questions and adusting our preferences during the planning process to custmoize it for our famliy of 4. We enjoyed all our guides who were very informative and passionate and our drivers were super nice and drove very safely! When one activity could not be accomodated per our itinerary, Micahel was very responsive and added another actvity we also wanted to do to replace it, and for that we were grateful. Our only regert is that we wished we had more time - another day in the Salento coffee farm area (our faborite) and another day on Isla Mucaro to extend the relaxation would have been perfect - but we did and saw a lot while we were there in the time we had! I have been raving about the country and our experience to our friends and highly recommend (and I am often hard to please and am used to planning trips all on my own) but I'm glad we booked through KimKim and Chaska Tours espeically since we were travelng with kids, as they helped to make our vacation seamless and turnkey. Thank you again and we hope to be back! Cara

Hotel Reviews

BH Bicentenario

Bogotá

Clean and good breakfast in a good location near Monserate! Just wished their was temperature control or AC in the rooms as we were a little hot and opening the window at night can be noisy with street traffic

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Rancho San Antonio

Loved this place outside Salento -and the staff are amzing and welcomnig! Jeffrey prepared an early homecooked breakfast just for us the mornnig we had an early flight! He also pre-arranged cabs for us in town

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Wished we could open up windows for cool air but there were no screens and mosquitos so we couldn't

Bastión Luxury Hotel

Cartagena

Beautiful hotel and room with rooftop bar in the heart of the city. AC stopped working at night but we called the next morning and they fixed.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

beds were comfy and bathroom spacious

Hotel Punta Faro

Isla Mucura

Beautiful grounds and beach; lovely room; AC had some issues working and some tours were not in English so this was difficult for us (plankton and bicycle) so my family did not benefit from the information as much. Also would love a pool but understand why they probably can't put one in being a national park but that would bring it more next level. Food was hearty but not gourmet so a tad pricey for that compared to other resorts

Authenticity & Character

Loved the setting; wish we could have had dinner on beach

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

GHL Hotel Armería Real

Cartagena

Great duplex room, good location; nice pool and rooftop bar/couryard - good value for $$! One of the AC units was leaking a bit on the bed

Authenticity & Character

Location

A little outside city

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Walking Tour & Street Food

Cartagena

We loved our guide and the food - he was informative and passionate and great with the kids! Thak you!!

Traditional Dinner - Top Chef Private Dining

Bogotá

Loved this experience - food was great, people warm and inviting and it was unique - thank you! Only lasted 2 hrs though but this was totally fine and we wanted to get to bed earlier :)

Fruits of Colombia at a Local Market

Bogotá

Loved it! Not really though it wasn't as long as advertised it was great

Horseback-Riding in the Coffee Region

Colombia

Gorgeous scenery and relaxing! Horses well behaved!

Bogota's Essentials (City Tour & Monserrate)

Bogotá

Loved it but we would have liked to have lunch sooner as we were a little starved and tired - ate around 4-5;30pm and then we didn't have energy to see the last square however we did squeeze this in and see it the next day so we were satistfied with that

Visit the Guatavita Lagoon

Bogotá

Beautiful hike and scenery and made us understand the culture better and our visit to the Gold museum more meaningful!

Coffee Farm Tour in Finca Buenos Aires

Salento

Another fun and unique experience not to be missed!

Cocora Valley & Salento

Colombia

Just amzing scenery and guide was great and informative!!!

Filandia & Basketry Workshop

Colombia

really NA because we didnt get to to this - wasnt sure why bt Michael offered us a Casillo Tour in Cartegena instead which was very good to see and informative! The shop we visited though was lovely and we bought souveniers

Sunset Drum & Dance Safari at the Beach of La Boquilla

Colombia

A unique experience that the kids loved!

Chocolate Workshop

Cartagena

Another amaznig time - they made it so special for my son's bday and we loved makng the cake and chocolate figurines - perfect bday celebration and end to our trip!

We had a fabulous trip hiking in Ecuador, including Cotopaxi, Quilotoa, Chimborazo, Cajas National Park, and Ingapirca with our great guide Milton. It included collaborative planning; when a landslide blocked the road to one of our hotels, the team quickly found a new hotel that we could get to. I cannot say enough positive things about Milton; truly a great ambassador for all Ecuadorians.

Family Vacay!

We recently took a family vacation to Greece for two weeks. There was a total of 9 of us, including three kids, ages 7, 5, and 1. Siena did a phenomenal job lining up kid friendly activities, while balancing the itinerary to make it enjoyable for all ages. Traveling with young children can be difficult, but Siena listened to our needs and logistically made everything easier for everyone.

Our guides were all great with the kids as well. They all kept the kids engaged in the tour(s) and made them feel included. They were all so patient with us as well when we needed extra time.

I can say the favorite for everyone was in Naxos where we visited the dairy farm, beekeeper, and the kids made pottery. Even the adults loved feeding the newborn lambs. However, Meteora was a close second. It is absolutely beautiful!

Hotel Review

Alsos House

Kalabaka

The staff was great! They were so friendly to the kids and changed the hours of breakfast to make sure we could eat before we had to leave.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Family-Friendly Trip to the Acropolis & Pnyx

Athens

Angelina (our guide) made this tour amazing. She was patient and had activities for the kids to do throughout the tour to help them learn and keep them engaged.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Wednesday 4WD Winery, Gorge & Beach Trip

Heraklion

We had two drivers/guides for this activity. They were both very helpful and played with the kids throughout the day. The restaurant they took us to for lunch had some of the best food we had on our trip.

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Private Dairy Farm Visit, Cheesemaking & Pottery Class

Naxos

Everyone on our trip loved this day. We started the day with a local family and made cheese, fed the animals, and ate some amazing food. The kids loved jarring their own honey and being able to take it home, and they also loved making their own pottery.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Gustavo didn’t “get” what we were looking for. We had a nine day trip to Athens and Crete with our 13 year old granddaughter who is into mythology. He kept suggesting multi day trips to mythological sites that involved wasting a whole day traveling each way. He should have advised us that we didn’t have time for those kind of time-consuming trips and that the Mythological Day trip we took in Athens covered most of the mythological stories and characters. It seems like he didn’t know anything beyond the short description on the website.

When we told him we were looking for hands-on activities that would appeal to kids, he recommended tours that included wine tasting. He also didn’t take into account the limited time we had so the all-day trips from Athens that he recommended weren’t the best use of our time. We did take one which was good except the tour guide’s accent was so strong that we understood about 20% of what he said.

Gustasvo recommended taking an overnight ferry to Crete which should had been wonderful with the three of us in a cabin. When we got on board we discovered that the reservations were totally screwed up: we were all listed as “Mrs” and I (the only male) was assigned to an all-female cabin with two other women. Our other reservations were for economy class which meant sitting on the equivalent of a dining room chair for 9.5 hours. The times for the ferry and the drivers both coming and going were also incorrect on the itinerary. While on the ferry we were unable to reach KimKim for quite a while (they weren't able to help us) and ultimately had to make a new reservation for a cabin at our own expense (it was after midnight by then) and apologize to and rebook the taxi drivers.

Nevertheless, the parts of the trip that worked were terrific (Mythology Tour and Gourmet Food Tour in Athens and the History and Food Tour in Crete). Kimkim did their best to rectify stuff (thanks Lea!) and reimbursed us as well as offering a free day tour in Crete.

We had a wonderful experience on our KimKim trip to Norway several years ago. So although there are plenty of negative things in this review, our previous experience was great. So much depends on the advisor…

Hotel Reviews

Be My Guest Hotel Athens

Athens

Modest hotel. Excellent staff and breakfast. Room very small. Good location. Shower had been added to a very high tub making it very difficult to get in and out.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Cleanliness = excellent. Very small rooms limited comfort. There were only two chairs (kitchen chair type).

Malmo Historic Hotel

Chania

Incredible! Recently renovated with amazing design and every modern amenity that you might imagine and more. Wonderful staff and incredible breakfast!

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Avra Hotel

Rafina, Attica

Unexpectedly terrific. We were unable to get a booking at the airport hotel so we settled for this one that was 20-30 minutes away. This was far better than what we would have had at the airport. Spacious, modern, next to a small beach. Breakfast had many, many delicious options. The shuttle to the airport was great.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

History & Foodie Walk in Old Town

Chania

Terrific in every way.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Wonderful, friendly, knowledgable guide!

Transport

We walked to the meeting place and the entire trip was walking.

Ancient Athens Acropolis and Mythology Walk

Athens

Great guide. It covered all of the mythology and we visited the most important remnants of the ancient buildings.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Not applicable - all walking.

Gourmet Food Walk

Athens

Terrific guide, wonderful food. The meat and fish market were overwhelming. Smell stayed with us fort hours.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

No drivers - we walked to the meeting place and walked on the tour.

Private Delphi Day Trip

Athens

Driver was terrific. The guide’s accent was so strong that we understood about 20% of what he said. Restaurant that the driver had arranged was terrific and he got us a table with a wonderful view.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

driver = wonderful. Guide = although knowledgable, not understandable .

Transport

Overall the trip worked out because I had to stay on top of changes and updates to make things go smoothly. I will walk through each day and what went well and what could be improved. Our trip was with my 80 year old parents, and my 10 year old daughter.

One takeaway that still confuses me is that we had the Siene Dinner Cruise until 11p, and then Versailles at 8a the next day. When I asked to move the Dinner Cruise, I was told it was not an option and non-refundable. But when I called the company, once in Paris - and paying international calling fees - they said it was not a problem but that the company that booked it had to ask to move it. Then it seemed like no problem. It seemed like KimKim just did not even want to try.

Day1 - we arrived in Paris with someone waiting with my name once we got through customs and had our bags. They had the wrong delivery address though and so we hand to figure that out and I had no cash yet to tip them.

Day2 Notre-Dame: We started early (9a) with a tour of the Notre-Dame. It would have been nice to sleep in a bit more and acclimate to the new time zone. Also there was some confusion in that we did not actually have tickets to the Notre-Dame, they just let us get in the very long line with everyone else, even though the title of the event was "Private Notre-Dame & Sainte-Chapelle Visit".

Day2 Louvre: For it being day1 after long travel, this made it a long day, but we did have a private entrance here. This guide seemed very scattered. The first thing we heard was that we were going to see the Mona Lisa, but we kept getting "distracted". This visit was supposed to be 2h, but it went about an hour over. If we had plans after we would have missed them. They give you a headset so you can hear them as you drift around a bit. Personally, I would rather had the easy entrance and then to just meet in the middle with a map and let us guide the route, and the person can speak to the things we are interested in. There is just so much there, and it was information overload. There are a ton of tour groups at the Louvre, so you need to pay attention to where your guide is.

Day3 Eiffel Tower: This worked out well, in that we got in quickly and had time to ourselves at the top.

Day4 & 5: We had food tours both of these days that had about half of the experience overlapped. Marais Pastry & Chocolate Tasting Experience - was all around sweets, and very interesting, and the guide was very good. The next day we had the "Montmartre Local Food Walk" tour with another very good guide, but they were not that different.

Day5 Siene River Dinner Cruise: This was good. Guidance on a dress code would be good here. There was a mix of folks dressed in full suits, and others in sweatshirts. Also, we do not drink alcohol so the fact that the agency paid for the wine paring for our whole table was a waste. Seeing the Eiffel blink at night was wonderful.

Day6 Shopping Day: This was nice to have a day to walk around and enjoy the city.

Day7 Parfume Making: This was very good, and we highly recommend this experience.
Day7 Baking Class: This was also wonderful and very kid friendly. We came home with so much bread!

Day8 Versaiiles: Taking the private van out to Versailles in the morning was the way to go. Going through the neighborhood of Versailles and visiting the queens grounds was all new to me. The guide here was very good as well.

Overall a very memorable trip.

My husband and I have never used a service like KimKim before when planning a vacation itinerary, and we are so glad we did. After being welcomed so warmly by Across Portugal, however, the bar has now been set very high for the future, for we feel very spoiled indeed. From the moment we arrived in Portugal, we were greeted and received with white-glove hospitality. Everyone we encountered provided such thoughtful and thorough service, working tirelessly to make sure that our experience ran smoothly. We truly felt cared for at every moment; every detail for our stay had been considered, from our name prominently displayed by our driver at the airport to the welcome box full of local treats in our hotel room to the printed tickets for our excursions and timely check-ins every afternoon. I have never had so many doors opened for me. We felt like royalty!

Throughout our trip, we received immediate, friendly and thorough support from the team at Across Portugal, and they graciously answered all of our questions, no matter how trivial or random. It was a true delight to experience the country through the eyes of those who live there; our drivers and walking guides were exemplary professionals, but most of all we appreciated the depth of their knowledge and enthusiasm as they shared Portuguese history, language, and culture with us, offering suggestions and recommendations for where to go and what to see, where to eat. They were quick with recommendations and remained sensitive and attuned to our every comfort. They consistently went out of their way to provide impeccable service, catering to our whims, whether it was advice on how to speak or pronounce words, removing the front seat to relieve carsickness during a winding journey, providing spare umbrellas when it rained, driving us by Cristiano Ronaldo's house to satisfy our curiosity, calling a restaurants at the last minute to book tables with an ocean view, attempting to help us attend a futebol match outside Porto... The list goes on and on. The love and pride that our guides felt for their homeland shone through their words and actions.

We discovered quickly that Across Portugal had taken the time to find only the very best in local service and excursions, from tastings to vineyard tours, boat rides to cross-country drives and fado dinners. It felt as though we were being given gift after gift of unique insights and kind gestures, invited into an exclusive family. We trusted the Across Portugal team, and by extension their partnerships with local businesses, to lead us at every turn. We would not hesitate to recommend their services to anyone planning a visit to this beautiful country. You will have no choice but to fall in love with Portugal!

Our driver Abdelkarim (Karim) was amazing, he was very knowledgeable and an incredibly safe driver. He did a great job coordinating our day-to-day activities and making sure things ran smoothly. The country of Morocco was truly beautiful and the activities we went to were very fun. We were upset that without us being made aware of it until the day of, our sandboarding activity, which we paid for (and hopefully we can get refunded for this), became impossible due when they scheduled the activity. This was especially annoying considering we were given 5hrs of free time the previous day when we could have done the activity.
What disappointed us the most were the lodgings booked by the KimKim team. With hindsight never have I been more happy that the major hotels we booked ourselves as the ones booked by the KimKim team were dirty, one had roaches, the other lacked a hot water shower. These hotels were quite rundown and did not meet the standards which we felt had been conveyed to us. The "luxury" camp which KimKim had told us had AC did not, and the food served was inedible.
Also the driver we had, as much as we loved him, was not who KimKim had told us would be our driver. This left us very confused and initially nervous since we were unable to contact our driver directly and it simply wasn't who we were told our driver would be.
To summarize, we enjoyed our trip overall and were mostly happy with KimKim's efforts, but in the future we probably will not use KimKim again due to the quality of the hotel bookings not being worth the premium we paid KimKim to book them.

Hotel Reviews

Kasbah Mohayut

Merzouga

Disgusting hotel, roaches outside our room, horrible food, dirty and unclean rooms. There is no internet for guests either. The bed was the worst bed I have ever slept on in my life. The bed and pillows were so awful that my fiancé and I slept on our clothes to make it softer and used our sweatshirts as pillows since the hotels were as hard as cement. Maye this hotel used to be good, but now it should be avoided.

Authenticity & Character

Rundown, pool looked like the water was dyed blue

Location

Right on the dunes, great for sunset/ sunrise.

Staff

Staff didn't do much, left pool area very dirty with old food and drinks sitting out

Cleanliness & Comfort

roaches, beds, internet, pillows, actually clean the rooms, mold in minifridge, the list could continue

La Perle du Dadès

Boumalne

Good for kids with lots of little board games and activities. Bad for people who wanted a view. Hotel has bad food and not near any restaurants

Authenticity & Character

Location

so many hotels with great views of the gorge, not this one

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Bed was rough, lots of flies, lacked hot water in shower and stable wifi

Riad Madu Luxury Camp

Merzouga

Luxury is a stretch. The camel ride out to the camp went great, until the driver tried to force us to buy knick-knacks. The staff was very kind which was a positive. The food was inedible and dinner was a struggle, especially as they did not understand gluten-free meaning my fiancé could not eat most of the dinner. the tent was black which made it incredibly hot, which would've been nice if the A/C worked...

Authenticity & Character

Location

not really in dunes, right next to every other camp

Staff

Staff was nice

Cleanliness & Comfort

The A/C didnt work, black tents made them super hot, uncomfy bed

Activity Reviews

Boumalne Dades to Marrakech, via Ouarzazate and Ait BenHaddou

Morocco

Car ride

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Tour Marrakech with a private guide

Marrakesh

Great knowledgeable guide, I wish we had seen a bit more of the landmarks, but only so much can be done on a half day tour.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

our guide was super knowledgeable, made the experience great

Transport

Erg Chebbi Dunes to Boumalne Dades

Morocco

Its a car ride

Quality of Experience

Its a car ride that felt like it took way too long

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Rock Climbing

Morocco

Was fun, wish we had known it was 4 hours long in advance

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

1/2 Day Tour Fes with a Private Guide

Fes

Tour was great, our guide was very knowledgeable, and we saw so many different landmarks and interesting places.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

From Fes to Merzouga via the Atlas Mountains (Ifrane, Azrou and Zaida)

Morocco

Just a car ride, we didn't want to stop for the monkeys. Its a long ride but it has great views.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Camel Trek into Luxury Sahara Camp

Morocco

Fun ride, ruined by guide trying to sell scam objects at the end

Quality of Experience

Food

There was no food?

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

ATV / Dune Buggy Adventure in the Sahara Desert

Morocco

It is not a real ATV adventure, you slowly drive behind a guide.

Quality of Experience

Not very exciting

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Sand Boarding

Morocco

We did not get to do this activity due to poor planning by the KimKim Staff

Quality of Experience

actually planning it so we could do the activity

Guides, Drivers and Staff

actually planning it so we could do the activity

Transport

actually planning it so we could do the activity

Sunrise Hot Air Balloon Ride over Marrakech

Marrakesh

Very fun, great view

Quality of Experience

Food

generic breakfast, bread and juice

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Paragliding

Marrakesh

Very fun, further from the city than we had been told. the drive with the paragliding crew after drop off was terrifying. They had people sitting on the roof of the car as we went up a narrow windy road on the edge of the cliff.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Drive by the paragliding company to the spot we took off from was terrifying

Pedro and his team made everything so much easier and more relaxed. From the transports to the guides to the daily communication, everything about our trip was fantastic. Highly recommend Pedro and their team!!

Ahmed, our driver was superb.

The guide in Marrakesh was not a good choice.
He spent most of his time talking to his friends than to attending to us.
other that he, the trip was exceptional. Thanks, Sharon

Activity Review

Guided Tour of Marrakech

Marrakesh

The guide was an idiot! If i were you, I would not use this guy again.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Just got back from 10 amazing days in Ireland! Completely and meticulously planned and executed by Cathy. This is our second trip with KimKim and will do it again. These trips take any worry & stress right out. You are taken care of like on a cruise, with experts and locals providing tours, transportation, and lodging....but not with a huge group of people. We love traveling "independently" with the knowledge that every detail is covered and we have a safety net if something goes sideways. We love the ability to tailor the trip to what WE enjoy, and not just accept what is in an itinerary. Going with KimKim also allows for the ability to pick restaurants (which we did ahead of time with incredible recommendations from Cathy) and go at the pace we like, stopping and enjoying a spot if we love it. Not getting in line to board a bus because we need to "move on."

Some of our favorites of this Ireland trip...

Central and lovely accommodations - each different, each perfect...breakfasts were incredible.

Private tours!!! - Ring of Kerry with Aodan who grew up there, Cliffs of Moher and Aran Islands with Phil, Kinsdale, Blarney and Cohb with Derek, Connemara with Patrick? These men know the history, the people, and the places like the back of their hand. I cannot imagine doing these places on our own. We would only see the places not be immersed in them. And driving in Ireland?? If either of us needed to be the driver, we would never have seen anything but the road.

We had two nights in most places, and Cathy figured out how to plan both mornings & afternoons without feeling rushed or crunched, and moving on to the next place with efficiency. Not a moment wasted. Train trips provided views and a little down time. Lovely! Our arranged taxi driver Noel met us at the airport and delivered us at the end. He couldn't have been more delightful and gave us great tips.

Each city was unique and perfect - Galway (Aran Islands), Limerick, Killarney, Cork (Kinsale & Cohb), Dublin - offering us a taste of each area. We loved them all, but enjoyed the everyday feel and peace of Limerick (not touristy), the quiet lifestyle on the Aran Islands, the travel around the Ring of Kerry in Killarney, and the absolute beauty of Cohb, and fun shopping of Kinsale.

The people in Ireland are just as beautiful as their land and sea. We have traveling quite widely and have never been treated with more hospitality and kindness. We won't ever forget this trip. Thank you, Cathy and team!!

Hotel Reviews

The Hyde Hotel

Galway

Centrally located, beautiful restaurant. Our room was a bit dated, but nice and they are renovated all of them. We were there just a little early. Stay there!

Authenticity & Character

Decor is beautiful and unusual. Old place, but being renovated beautifully.

Location

Can walk to everything, but quiet at night!

Staff

Attentive

Cleanliness & Comfort

Had to walk through construction zone to our room....but that should be over soon. The construction crew was super friendly.

The Bedford Townhouse

Limerick

Centrally located and quick walk from the train station!

Authenticity & Character

Beautifully designed right in the center of tour.

Location

Walkable!! 3 bridges walk was delightful

Staff

The woman who greeted us was INCREDIBLE! Gave us local info and a map for a walking tour including pubs.

Cleanliness & Comfort

New!! And with a special room in the lower level for chilling out. Like a living room with wine and water. Sweet!

The Ross

killarney

Right in the center of everything!! Our view was of the church and its cemetery. Breakfast was lovely in the lower level - decorated like on a cruise ship. Walked out with baskets of baked goods to choose from...then incredible full breakfasts. Double doors toward downtown kept out the noise of the fun happening....if you didn't want to join in!

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Walked in the door and jumped in to grab our luggage...as check in is up a flight and behind the bar area, not easy to see.

Cleanliness & Comfort

The River Lee Hotel

Cork

Central and walkable. We were upgrade to the 5th floor where we had a view of the River Lee and access to extra waters and snacks down the hall. They do turn down service, too.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Stauntons on the Green

Dublin

Dublin is a busy city and this inn is a little on the edge, away from the people, but not too far. It sits right across from a beautiful park and you can get to everything you want by walking.

Authenticity & Character

So different than our other lodging in Ireland. A small feel inn....walking into a parlor...with a dining room...and rooms tucked in upstairs, main level, and ours in the downstairs garden level - very cozy!

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

A Full-Day Tour: Cliffs of Moher Cruise, the Aran Islands, South Connemara and the Burren

Galway

Phil and Fion were our guides. We had a very small group of 8. We learned much about the land and the people along the way. Loved the time spent on the island. Phil gave us great ideas and choices. Riding on the ferries to see the cliff and just be on the water was spectacular.

Quality of Experience

Beautiful area, good stops

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Good sense of humor, knowledgeable

Transport

Private driver Half day in Connemara

Galway

Our guide picked us up very early (breakfast wasn't open yet)and drove us through the Connemara countryside on our way to Kylemore Abbey. While rainy, it was very beautiful and he told us about the land and its people. We were scheduled for the Abbey and also a sheepdog demo. When we arrived at the Abbey it wasn't open yet, so he took us to a park to view Diamond Hill. We didn't have enough time to hike or anything. Headed back to the Abbey. Had just enough time to visit the building, not the grounds. Too late for the dog demo. We had to head back right away to make sure we didn't miss the train. Had to skip lunch and grab a snack at the train station. All in all, I would change this. My recommendation - an 8:00 pickup with an advised big breakfast beforehand. Less driving around, go directly to the Abbey for the building and the gardens. Then head to the train station for a snack.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

He was so polite and shared so much of Connemara. He had water and tissues for us in the back. Sweet man!

Transport

Welcome to Limerick!

Limerick

We got here in the late afternoon. They suggested we take the 3 bridges walking tour with map. It was perfect! We loved Limerick. Not as touristy and the pub were filled with locals.

Quality of Experience

Transport

Train was great!

Killarney National Park Jaunt - From Park to Castle

Ireland

It was a nice ride through the park. Our guide was not very talkative. The horse carriage ahead of us was having a much more interesting ride as we could hear their voices and laughter.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Our carriage driver rarely spoke.

Transport

Horse and carriage itself were great.

Private Guided Tour of The Ring of Kerry

Ireland

Aodan was incredible!! Share his personal experiences the whole way around the ring. Saw the 1800s village, had Irish coffee, watched an awesome sheepdog demo, drove by his Granddad's place and heard stories of his life, stopped by Skellig tourist info and watched the movie, had an delicious lunch by the sea, and took in the beauty of the land, waters and waterfall. What a day!

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Private Tour of Blarney Castle, Kinsale and Cobh

Cork

Derek makes you see, feel, hear, smell and taste these places! Seriously! The ocean, the castle & gardens, the tiny towns, the people, the restaurants. the shopping, the music in his car. What an incredibly delightful day exploring three unique areas in Cork. Can't believe we got all three in one day - but he knows where to go, what to do, and paced things perfectly.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Cork Tasting Trails

Cork

Bob met us at the church and gave us the history of Cork as we made our way to the market. We also stopped at a candy store, where they had been in business as a family for 3 generations. At the market we had a big seafood sampler, huge olive and cheese tray, chocolates and coffee. It was a nice time.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Atrium Afternoon Tea

Dublin

What a lovely last thing to do! Quiet and relaxing off the streets of Dublin, the food was absolutely wonderful and service was top notch. We sat and took in the surroundings, food, and tea while revisiting all the loveliness that had been the last 10 days. Not something I would have thought to request, but delightful!

Quality of Experience

Dublin Highlights and Hidden Gems Walking Tour

Dublin

Such great detail of the history of Dublin! Our guide was extremely knowledgeable and honest about the past. He took us all over and handled questions well, too.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Celtic Night Show & Dinner

Dublin

Loved the opportunity to see the incredible dancers and hear so much of the fun music. The musicians had all of us singing along, too. Nicely interactive at times. The food was very good - three courses with nice choices. Only thing we didn't like was how rude people were when the show started. Lots of talking and side conversations. I felt badly for the performers. Also, some people get up and leave before it's over.

Quality of Experience

Self-Guided Guinness Storehouse Experience

Dublin

I have been in breweries and had tours, but Guiness is over the top!! Kind of like Disney World and Willie Wonka rolled into one. Floor after floor you guide yourself through the interactive, all senses experience. It is kinda crazy, but cool! At the top, we had 360 degree (sunny) views of Dublin. Had lunch at their restaurant and it was very good!

Quality of Experience

Tickets for St Patrick Cathedral, Dublin

Dublin

The handheld audio brought this church to life. I'm not much into churches, but this was interesting and well laid out for tourists. Spent about 45 minutes there.

Quality of Experience

Overall this was a good experience. Lucy set everything up for us and all of the transfers were seamless. Our guides and drivers all met us in the hotel lobbies and were very easy to find. This dramatically reduced any travel-related stress. Most of our guides were wonderful and very hospitable. However, I do think there is some room for improvement. I think we felt underprepared for some of the excursions/tours. For example, it was almost 100°F during our walking tour of the rice terraces and our guide spoke little English. While beautiful, this was maybe not the best choice of a tour for this weather. Additionally, we did a tour involving river boats where it wasn’t clear to us ahead of time whether we’d be getting wet and needing swimming gear. In hindsight, I think we also would have reduced the Ha Long Bay trip to maybe just a day visit or gone to Cat Ba instead. In general I think it would have been nice to know what other tour options there were, as we met others along the way that took motorbikes to a waterfall in Pu Luong or saw some folks doing a seaplane tour in Ha Long Bay.

The service provided by our local specialist, Lucy, was superb. Her communication was fantastic and all the plans worked seamlessly. She organised several informative and fun guides, and good transport - and the accommodation was terrific. Have never used kimkim (and not typically used travel agents), so this was a new experience for us - we were delighted with how it went. Found the whole kimkim process very easy to use and the outcome terrific. Thank you so much, Lucy!
Best wishes, Liz (Darwin Australia)

Hotel Reviews

De Syloia Hotel

hanoi

We spent several nights here and thought it fantastic - lovely rooms, friendly and helpful team and a great location.

Authenticity & Character

Beautifully appointed rooms - ours had cool views!

Location

Easy walking distance to lots of fun things (eg Old Quarter and Hoan Kiem Lake), with lots of great food and coffee close by.

Staff

All staff were super friendly and helpful.

Cleanliness & Comfort

Le Clos Du Fil Hotel

Ninh Binh

Found this hotel very charming - loved the embroidery (part of the owner's background); room really comfortable with a view of the sunset over the skyline; also a nice pool.

Authenticity & Character

Cute embroidery featured throughout.

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Gateway Inn Pu Luong

Loved this place! The views were breathtaking, team was lovely, and room was cute with a gorgeous view from the balcony.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Stunning views.

Staff

All staff were lovely.

Cleanliness & Comfort

Signature Cruise

Hanoi

Room was lovely, food spectacular and team extremely friendly.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Very welcoming and helpful throughout. Andy was a great manager, the food was brilliant and drinks on deck very fun!

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Hanoi Evening Walking Street Food Tour with Jazz Music

Hanoi

Our guide, Tim (Trung) was absolutely superb - really entertaining and knowledgeable with a great sense of humour. Also had brilliant communication. Could not have enjoyed our time with him more!

Quality of Experience

Food

Street food experiences were fab!

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Our guide Tim (Trung) was fantastic - great with communication and ideas for what we'd do as well as full of great information and insights. Enjoyed his company immensely.

Jeep Tour The Inside Hanoi - Morning Tour

Hanoi

Food

Had one of my best bowls of pho of the trip!

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Exploring The Natural Beauty of Ninh Binh (Tam Coc - Hang Mua - Bich Dong) (Maximum Personal Experience)

Vietnam

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Very interesting and knowledgeable guide.

Transport

Pu Luong Explore Village Life Water Wheels & Rafting (Excursions)

Vietnam

Beautiful scenery and a very knowledgeable, interesting and friendly local freelance guide.

Quality of Experience

Gorgeous scenery.

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Our guide was lovely and had a lifetime of local insights to share.

Explore Pu Luong Iconic Rice Terrace & Local Brocade (Excursions)

Vietnam

Stunning scenery with a very friendly and insightful local guide.

Quality of Experience

Breathtaking scenery.

Guides, Drivers and Staff

We had a really lovely guide with a lifetime of local insights.

Overall, we enjoyed the trip. It was a bit busy with making transfers every 2 days .

It would have been much easier to have our hotel stays closer to the attractions that were scheduled. We had to arrange for taxi/Uber due to the distance.

The hotels were nice but not always clean.

La Tonnarella was wonderful, clean and we would go again.

Hotel Liassidi was not clean and not very special. Super basic and had bed bugs.

Pitti Palace was nice, but not very close to the attractions that were scheduled.

Trevi Palace was nice, but again, it was across town from the colloseum and the Vatican.

Our tour guides, Sarah in Florence, Alex in Rome and Luca in florence were great !

We actuallly did not get a tour of the Royal Gardens in Venice. wondering what happened here ? We did not have vouchers for this .

Luca was wonderful in helping us with this trip and was very responsive.

Ciao'

I was very impressed with Realistic Asia’s service. Hien was a fantastic guide, she made the whole end to end process so easy, allowing us to relax and enjoy our trip, from planning our trip to budget, the easy to follow comprehensive itinerary through to the WhatsApp prompts and reminders about timings and drivers.
I really recommend Realistic Asia for a stress free trip!

Hotel Reviews

Hanoi Allure Hotel

Big rooms, nice welcome, attentive staff, friendly and helpful for a late check out and other services when our flight was delayed.

Authenticity & Character

Great decor, it has 2 wings

Location

So central in the old quarter of Hanoi, close to the action!

Staff

attentive staff, friendly and helpful for a late check out and other services when our flight was delayed.

Cleanliness & Comfort

Nice big rooms, quiet air conditioning.

Gateway Inn Pu Luong

A good location, fabulous views with friendly staff.

Authenticity & Character

Furnishings a little bit tired but clean and comfortable

Location

Fantastic views

Staff

So friendly, engaging and happy to help

Cleanliness & Comfort

Would only let us have 1 extra pillow between us but likely because of availability of spares

Lalita Boutique Hotel & Spa Ninh Binh

Sleek hotel with helpful staff.

Authenticity & Character

It has a great rooftop pool and little bar

Location

I couldn’t be sure if they had access to a driver to take us the short way into town, but likely had bikes if we wanted to use as they are on the outskirts

Staff

The receptionist was happy to help us plan the day and organise a driver, had some great tips, thanks!

Cleanliness & Comfort

Pool looked like it could be cleaned a bit more frequently but it wasn’t too bad and I used it without issue, otherwise all good!

Doris Cruise

A quaint little cruise ship with some surprises!

Authenticity & Character

It had a great sized bedroom and bathroom with a huge bath!

Location

Visiting Lan Ha bay which was quieter was a great scoop. It offered some fun activities.

Staff

Very friendly and helpful, when I thought I had lost something they were quick to check it hadn’t been handed in

Cleanliness & Comfort

The toilet flush did stop working and the balcony door was tough to open but nothing major and we had no other concerns.

Activity Reviews

Pu Luong - Caving | Scenic Rice Fields

Pu Luong Nature Reserve

Beautiful countryside, the cave is a little past its best (not many bats live here anymore) but it’s still worth a visit and was welcome way to cool down after the hot trek down and before the hotter trek back up!

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

So great to have a local guide for our 3 trips to share her local knowledge and was also keen to learn about Australia, I hope she visits soon!

Enchanting 19km Off-Road Trekking

Vietnam

Quality of Experience

It was out of season so the waterfall wasn’t as breathtaking as it could have been but a welcome cool off experience.

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

So great to have a local guide Tuyen for our 3 trips to share her local knowledge and she was also keen to learn about Australia, I hope she visits soon! We were blessed and grateful to be invited into Tuyen’s home for some respite on this big trek as it was a hot day. She checked often to ensure we didn’t need a rest. Thanks Tuyen!

Transport

Village Life | Water Wheels | Rafting ( Day3)

Pu Luong Nature Reserve

Lovely to see the working water wheels and experience more village life.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

So great to have a local guide Tuyen for our 3 trips to share her local knowledge and was also keen to learn about Australia, I hope she visits soon!

Transport

Our family of 4 (parents and 2 boys ages 9 and 7) had a terrific week in Norway. We covered a lot of ground and saw many sights. Starting our trip with the floating sauna in the Oslo harbor was a great first day activity when we were fighting jet lag. My husband and I both jumped right into the frigid water from the diving board. Woke us right up! The next day we really enjoyed seeing the colorful summer cottages and hiking through the harbor islands with Astrid.
Then the Norway in a Nutshell tour was breathtaking in terms of the Flam railway through the mountains and fjord cruise.
I was also particularly intrigued when the train stopped in Finse, a polar wonderland for skiing and expedition training not accessible by road. I’ll have to come back to Finse and get off the train the next time. So unique.
We enjoyed learning about the city of Bergen with Chao and then taking the funicular to the top to take in the views. The next day, the helicopter ride was just incredible. Our pilot was Jan Gunnar. Flying over the tops of the mountain peaks, seeing the remote cabins above the treeline, and viewing a glacier was just spectacular and so special.
We then spent a few days in Tromsø, which we loved. The dogsled ride and the Sami reindeer experience were really fun and full of learning. I have a son who has a fear of dogs but the dogsled was organized well and he managed to warm up to the dogs enough to pet a few of them, which was a real breakthrough. We also enjoyed Polaria, the aquarium, where we saw the seal feeding, and the troll museum, which highly entertaining for young boys. The city itself is stunningly beautiful and we felt like we were in a winter wonderland in late April. One day we got 4 inches of snow. Our hotel, the Scandic Ishavshotel, was right on the harbor and we spent hours watching boats go by. We would have loved to do some ski touring or snowmobiling outside the city in the surrounding mountains, but we ran out of time. We all agreed we need to come back!

We all loved many things about our trip and wished we had more than just a week in Norway. Everything was so delightful - the people, the culture, the food, the experiences. We came home changed and enlightened by the experience, with many new ideas to pursue. Our first night home we cooked Norwegian fish soup!

Traveling in Norway with kids this age was no problem at all. We had virtually zero language barriers because English is so widely spoken, and Norwegians are particularly friendly to children. We even got invited into the old fire station in Bergen so our kids could see them preparing the antique first engines for National Day coming up. So cool! We would highly recommend this trip.