Kimkim Trip Reviews

It was beyond great to have our own private driver pick us up at the airport and spend the next two weeks with! Tariq was a really good driver and I felt safe with him driving us around Morocco! No easy feat! He was friendly and so good to us. It would have been helpful if his English was a little better, I think some of our questions were lost on him, as he did not understand what we were asking him, but he more than made up for it in personality! We had asked for 4.5 or 5 star hotels and all with the exception of one were really nice. The second night of our trip in Asilah our hotel got changed due to an event at our original booked hotel. The replacement was less than a 3 star, although was advertised as a 4 star online. That was pretty disappointing after we walked by our original booked hotel and saw that it was more in line with where our other reservations were! The rest of our hotels were wonderful with special mention La Maison Arabe Hotel in Marrakesh was spectacular and we were grateful to have spent 3 nights there. Our trip was pretty action packed with tours (maybe a little too action packed some days) and what we saw so I will highlight a few things we really loved. We began at the Sofitel in Casablance, beautiful hotel, excellent restaurant. We spent our first and last night here. The first night the restaurant was excellent. The female server fantastic, food amazing. Our last night service, non existent, 3 men serving, not a great experience, but again the food was excellent. The breakfast is fantastic!

Our guide Khalid in Tangier was excellent good English and really knowledgeable. The Riad Mokhtar in Tangier also lovely! The restaurant in the Riad was also excellent, a great location too. Chefchaouen is an experience you have to have. The Lina Ryad & Spa is also lovely, you have to bring your own wine for dinner, food was good and the wood burning fireplace in the dining room was so cozy! Excellent breakfast too! Our tour guide Abdul was charming, English was a little challenged, but made up for it in enthusiasm.

We stopped at the Roman ruins on the way to Fes, our guide's English was minimal and he spoke very fast so I had a hard time catching a lot of his explanation. We stayed at the Palais Amani in Fes. It is beautiful. We did have an issue. They clean the rooms with Orange Blossom scented cleaning products and it was so strong in our room that we had to change rooms in the night because we were both ill from the strong scent. The hotel was extremely accommodating moving us and then cleaning our room, all of bedding replaced the next am so the smell was less the next night, but it is very strong in this hotel. If you are at all sensitive to scents its pretty overwhelming. The restaurant in the hotel is very expensive. The location is awesome just inside the walls of the Medina. We had a fantastic guide Sharif for our tour of Fes, his English was great and his knowledge excellent! We also had dinner with a local family. This was so nice and they were incredibly welcoming and made us a fantastic traditional meal! I love Hara soup!

We spent two days at the Tiziri Luxury Camp in the Sahara! We road camels into the desert watched the sunset over the dunes and carried on in the quiet dusk to the camp! I will always remember the quiet peacefulness of that ride. The camp is fabulous! Mustafa and Yousef are fantastic hosts. The food was amazing and the whole experience was so memorable. I love how proud they are of their culture and so willing to share history and stories. The owner of the camp should stay out of the gin if he is going to interact with his guests! We had a stop at Ait Benhaddou it was pretty cool to see where many movies have been filmed. The drive through the High Atlas Mountains was spectacular! Again I was grateful for our driver Tariq he is skilled and we always felt safe with him!

La Maison Arable Hotel in Marrakesh lives up to its reputation! It was such an amazing Riad. We had a private garden area outside our three rooms to gather. The hotel is beautiful and the staff amazing truly! The restaurant was so good we ate there 2/3 nights, breakfasts fantastic. The location is great 10 min walk the markets. We had a food tour here with Hanan. She was our favorite guide of the whole trip! We also had her for our Medina market tour the next day and spent 6 hrs with her. Her English is impecable, she is gracious and kind, and extremely knowledgable about her country and proud of her heritage. She went above and beyond to help us with some of our shopping wishes!

Our hotel in Essaouira Le Medina Essaouira Thalassa Sea & Spa was beautiful. The pool area is really nice. The hotel restaurant across the street was great, breakfast at the hotel was ok.

Overall this was an amazing vacation, and we stayed in some beautiful places. Kim Kim did a great job in planning our route and our hotels with the exception of one, in 15 nights that's pretty good. I would definitely travel with them again!

Linda organised a great trip to the Galápagos and Quito.. We went back and forth in what would suit us best. Linda was very patient throughout the process and didn’t hesitate to call to discuss queries. It was great that she came to the hotel in Quito to meet us so that we could put a face to the name.
Our guide Sebastian and his father Alexander who picked us up from the airport were fabulous.
They were knowledgeable and went out of their way to make sure everyone in our group was catered for. Our thanks to the whole team for a truly great experience and holiday.
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My trip to Ecuador was a blast!!
Mathias did a great job drawing out a 13-day itinerary, tailored to my interests. The one-on-one guides, naturalist, and drivers were professional and fantastic except one who was soon replaced by Authentic. The group boat tours at Galapagos were even more exciting; loved seeing many sea birds and animals. The experiences are unforgetable.
I highly recommend this itinerary, showing one the city Quito, the equator origin, the highland Cotopaxi national park, the green Mindo, and the oceanic islands of Galapagos!
Thank you!

Louise was great to work with in planning my trip. With the exception of one lodging place, I give KimKim an A for the overall trip.
I visited so many incredible places- Glow Worm Cave, Doubtful Sound, Milford Sound, Otega Regional Wine Tour, Hiking Trails, Wharf in Queenstown!!
This was my second trip to NZ and it was worth seeing again. The citizens of NZ are the friendliest and sweetest people I’ve ever met in all my travels. The country is one postcard after another - even the retail areas are nice. Public bathrooms are cleaner than most peoples homes!!! You can just tell these people love the tourism as it provides the majority of their lifestyle. All other countries with this much tourism should use NZ as a model.
People in the states - stop going on the same ole vacation year after year - go to NZ. It’s a lifetime vacation and one that you will remember forever.

Hotel Reviews

Blue Peaks Lodge

Queenstown

Old, tired and very dated. No amenities whatsoever. It was clean and is very convenient. The staff was super sweet and friendly. But I would not stay here again.

Authenticity & Character

Everything. Cleaner parking lot, updated rooms, add a lounge, add a courtyard, don’t put trash bins in the front door.

Location

Staff

Both of the young ladies were great.

Cleanliness & Comfort

Clean and simple. Lots of people like this. I just thought I was in low income housing.

Distinction Te Anau Hotel And Villas

Te Anau

Great location.

Authenticity & Character

Typical NZ hotel.

Location

Heart of city center.

Staff

Very accommodating.

Cleanliness & Comfort

Could use new mattresses.

Activity Reviews

Te Anau Glowworm Caves

Te Anau

The rarity of seeing such a beautiful cave.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Buses are just too rough riding. The bouncing makes you car sick.

Doubtful Sound Wilderness Cruise from Queenstown

Queenstown (NZ)

Loved everything this sound offered. Spectacular in every way.

Quality of Experience

The incredible views.

Transport

Better shock absorbers for a smoother ride. More knee room in between seats. Window shades to block sunlight when necessary.

Te Anau to Milford Sound, Milford Cruise with Picnic Lunch

Te Anau

Never seen anything so beautiful.

Quality of Experience

I’m

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Better riding bus is needed. Just so much bouncing and roughness. It’s very car sick.

Appellation Boutique Wine Tour

Queenstown (NZ)

Loved the first and last stop. Beautiful wineries.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Worst driver ever. Rude. Non stop talking. Drove extremely too fast. Just a lousy driver.

Transport

Not luxury at all. It’s van. Nothing luxurious about it.

We worked with Olivier as our tour guide. He was the best tour professional I have ever worked with. He paid close attention to all our requests. He designed our mother-daughter dream trip with care and attention to detail. On our last evening, Olivier planned a river cruise on the Seine and added in a surprise birthday cake delivered by the crew. Who could ask for more?

Hotel Reviews

Les Trésorières Tours

Tours

This Hotel was wonderful. The staff were terrific, and the breakfasts were amazing.

Authenticity & Character

Location

It was a short walk to everywhere.

Staff

The staff went out of their way to make us comfortable. They made reservations for us at recommended restaurants.

Cleanliness & Comfort

The room was cleaned every day. It was spotless.

Maison Colbert Meliá Collection

Paris

This hotel deserves every one of its five stars. Superb!

Authenticity & Character

This hotel was the home of a famous French writer. Our room was on the fifth floor with a private hallway. It had exposed wooden beams and was beautifully decorated. There was even a welcome sign on the screen of the Television that was personalized for us.

Location

The location is right near the river and Notre Dame. Also on the edge of the Latin Quarter which we always love.

Staff

The staff are professional and ready to help. Everyone spoke English and many other languages which was helpful.

Cleanliness & Comfort

Impeccably clean.

Hotel Le Clos d'Amboise

Amboise

This is one of my new all-time favorite hotels.

Authenticity & Character

very clean

Location

short walk to castles, wine caves, and great restaurants.

Staff

The staff went out of their way to help us. Making reservations, recommending restaurants finding a driver.

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Review

Paris Dinner Cruise

Paris

This cruise was well done and fun! We had a spectacular last evening in Paris because of this cruise and crew!

Samir was our driver for almost all of our adventures and answered all our questions about Morocco. Our visit to Casablanca, Rabat, Fez, Meknes, Merzouga, Skoura, Quazazate, Marrakech and Essaouria were all memorable since each had its unique speciality. Thanks to Said Ali, Samir, Hanan, Sharif and all the other guides associated with Original Travel who made our trip so epic. It was fantastic!

What an epic, dream trip to Bhutan! Everything was off the charts! Tashi was an epic guide! 100000% was so impressed. It was stress free, professional, thoughtful, and definitely gave me the BEST cultural experience in Bhutan.

Superb - that was our experience with Chris and Maria Grazia of the Italy team.  Upon first reaching out to KimKim we were immediately connected to Chris.  He understood our hopes and preferences and compiled extraordinary hotel accommodations in four cities.  Along with Maria Grazia, he set up the right-fit tour guides and transportation for us.  Maria Grazia supplied daily detailed information with names and connections.  Midway through our two week Italy stay, we switched plans and Maria Grazia fully understood and reacted quickly to make other plans for us. Chris suggested an online meeting before we left our Boston home to review our specialized itinerary  which proved extremely worthwhile and allowed us to make a face-to-face connection.  Thanks to the Whatsapp application we had both Chris and Maria Graze in our pockets 24 hrs. per day.  We did have some off-hours communication that both Chris and Maria Graze accepted helpfully and graciously - they both possess a great sense of humor.  We could not more strongly recommend KimKim and the extraordinary Chris and Maria Grazia.

Rebecca did a fabulous job planning our holiday. So many highlights ... Having our transportation all pre-arranged was heaven. The drivers were all very professional, cars were spotless and driving was excellent. A highlight day was in Santorini with Lazarus. We had such a fun day seeing the island from his eyes....

Dimos at Kimkim put together a wonderful trip for us and when we had one glitch, he solved it promptly. Athens was fascinating especially the Acropolis and the Acropolis Museum. Our excursion to Sunio brought us along beautiful coastline to the Temple of Poseidon; our guide and our driver made the trip pleasant and our guide gave us an understanding of the significance of this temple. Meteora was fascinating and our guide brought it to life. Crete was the jewel of the trip. Beautiful countryside, beautiful beaches, and the Temple of Knossos should not be missed. Again our guide made the visit wonderful. KimKim and Dimos put together an excellent itinerary and provided great guides. Very happy we used them.

This trip was several weeks in the making. There were some changes along the way and all booked and suggested experiences were spectacular. Vaseem was patient and took a lot of pride in making sure that my wife and I saw France through the same bright lens he saw through.
Each day was thoughtfully planned. Not hurried, we were able to explore at a decent pace. There was careful consideration given to daily and weekly activities. We used the underground, Uber, bicycles when we were not able to explore on foot.
All accommodations were excellent as were the ease of being able to download tickets or directions as we proceeded. Vaseem checked in on occasion and minor adjustments were able to be made in real time.
Thank you for a most memorable experience. Thank you Vaseem, thank you KimKim. Most professional.

I hope I do this justice with my lack of written skills. We loved our trip. I have always planned my own travels, even international. This was my first time using any kind of travel service including kimkim.com. All I can say is that it was fabulous. The planning was an easy interactive process between us and our specialist Rebecca Skevakis.

Deposits and final payment was handled online and very easy. We received a very comprehensive trip app that had all our information to include city guides, tickets for planes, trains and activities. All of the transfers were by private car and everyone was on time, and we had several.

We started by arriving in Athens Greece, we were met by a representative who gave us an overview of how things worked, along with a nice gift of goodies. After this we left on our flight to Santorini. There our driver met us and drove us to out hotel. We had several wonderful events; half day on a catamaran sailboat visiting sites around the caldera with wonderful service and food. We did a Sights and Wine tour and Lazarus was a fantastic and intensely knowledgeable guide. He has a very genuine love of Thira and its history. The food and wine on this trip was more than we had expected, very top notch. There was also included a detailed hike guide to go along the cliff side trail between Fira and Oia, we had this planned in our travels but decided to use the time to see more of Oia.

Our trip took us to Athens next where we had a great guided tour of the Acropolis, our Guide Nicholas was not only knowlable but has spent most of his career involved in the restorations. The Acropolis is a sight as the sun sets.

A highlight was a trip out to Delphi, it is a long trip there and back but our guide and driver was very knowalgable. The ruins were breathtaking and we had a nice meal afterwards before the return trip.

After our speedy Athen nights it was off to Italy for a week. Again the transfers to the airport and hotels were flawless. The trip app updates automatically with flight information and gate updates. We arrive and Naples and our driver Pasquale was there to meet us. We drove to Pompeii for another guided tour, our guide was a wealth of knowledge and very entertaining. Pasqual drove us on to our hotel in Sorrento pointing out history and sights along the way.

Our Sorrento leg as was dampened a bit by some rain and wind which canceled our ferry to Capri but the next day it was perfect. Ferry company did not make the change very easy, this is the one and only negative of the trip, a small one in the bid scheme of things.

Off to Revello for a couple of nights, our driver once again was Pasquale. We made the drive along the Amalfi coast road with a short unplanned stop to see some of Positano. This was unplanned but Pasquale was nice enough to make it work out. We did not have any pre planned activities in Ravello but used the city guide provided in the trip App to find places to eat and see. The Villa Rufolo and Cimbrone are the must see sights. One day we also walked down to Amalfi from Ravello, about and hour and a half with our stops to take pictures. We opted to take a taxi back, wimps I know!

Finally it was time to start our journey home. The drive from Ravello to the Naples train station was by our favorite, Pasquale. It was nice having the same drive for all these transfers. It was the same in Santorini and Athens, the drivers were the same for arrival and departure.

The high speed train between Naples and Rome was nice and out transfer to our hotel by the Rome airport was uneventful. We had seen Rome on other trips so as we like to do we stay at a hotel at the airport to allow for a less hectic departure day.

I highly recommend kimkim for your travels. I was apprehensive because I thought I was always saving lots of money doing it all on my own. Well I am here to tell you the extra paid for the services is not terrible and worth every penny for two reasons. One, the headache of getting from airport or train station to hotels or between cites is a time saver because it is all taken care of. There is know searching for a taxi or bus, waiting in long lines, guessing if the taxi is charging too much. Second the communication between us and Rebecca our travel specialist was so nice, its concierge service for the entire trip.

We are independent travelers who like to rent a car and explore on our own, as well as stay in a variety of hotels (on beaches, in towns, etc.). Amalia was superb! She gave us just what we wanted, and was especially knowledgeable about what was closing down at the time we traveled (late October/November), which was instrumental as we planned our adventures. The lists of activity and sightseeing options Kim Kim and Amalia gave us were wonderful, as were the recommended restaurants in each place we stayed! Will definitely use Kim Kim again, and highly recommend Amalia! (She was also a lot of fun to correspond with during planning—and is from exquisite Crete herself!)

After a rocky start with a sandstorm preventing us landing in Casablanca and being diverted to Marrakesh and a 4 hour bus ride back to Casablanca, our trip was wonderful from there on in.
Our accommodations were top class, and the staff very friendly.
The choice of activities from the cooking class to the camel ride and the hot air balloon ride were excellent.
Our dining experiences were also wonderful
Our guides Kamal, Kamal ,Volubilis, Abdul Salaam ( forgive me if I have forgotten anyone) were first class and very knowledgeable about the history and culture of the towns they guided us through.
Finally, a HUGE shout out to our driver Abdo Ansari, who kept us safe, and drove very carefully for the amount of time we spent on the road and getting us to our destinations without any hiccups. He certainly has made friends for life with the Bermuda posse.

Regards,
Donna Hendrickson

Hotel Review

Riad Semlalia

Fès

Great friendly staff

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Camel Trek into a Luxury Sahara Camp

Morocco

Quality of Experience

Food

the deserts

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

The balloon ride was breath taking

Cooking Class

Morocco

LFun experience

Food

the tajine as a gift

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Food Tour

Marrakesh

Great experience eating the street food

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

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

Morocco

wonderful scenery driving through the Atlas Mountains

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Abdu is an excellent driver

Visit to the Majorelle Gardens

Marrakesh

Beautiful gardens

Quality of Experience

Tour Marrakech with a private guide

Marrakesh

Tour guide was very knowledgeable

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Hassan II Mosque

Morocco

Very beautiful mosque

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Iceland exceeded all our expectations. Gummi understood our desire to have an adventure-packed family vacation. He packed our days with unforgettable sights, hikes and tours. The google map links were perfect to keep us on track and his recommendations for times at each location kept us on track to ensure we didn't miss anything. The restaurant recommendations were a great mix of Icelandic cuisine and American favorites for the teenagers. Our favorite part was the Katla ice cave tour. We strapped on our crampons and were mesmerized by the blue hues and natural ice formations. We took ATVs on the beautiful black sand beach near the Myrdalsjokull glacier. We rode snowmobiles on the Langjokull glacier. Gummi even ordered up the most spectacular Northern Lights show! It was everything we hoped for.

Hotel Reviews

Fosshótel Reykholt

Reykholt

Excellent modern hotel. We had two rooms to accommodate our two teenage boys.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Great duvets!

Stracta Hotel

Hella

A charming hotel. Our rooms required us to walk outside so it felt more like a motel. Our TV wasn't working but the front desk person came immediately and fixed it. We're awaiting resolution on a room discrepancy.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

A single room is quite tight. It was too small for 4 people.

Hotel Katla by Keahotels

Vík

Modern hotel. Our rooms were close by reception which was convenient.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Hotel Smyrlabjorg

Hofn

Very quaint and charming. Very spacious room for the 4 of us. The staff are very friendly and accommodating. The wifi wasn't great but we were too busy looking for the northern lights to care. Also there is no elevator so better bring your best viking to lift the bags.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

The bed was extremely spacious.

Fosshotel Stykkishólmur

Stykkishólmur

Lovely modern hotel.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Fosshotel Baron

Reykjavík

Lovely modern hotel in great location.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

The lighting in the room and location of the outlets could be improved. Our room had two small beds vs. a queen bed.

Activity Reviews

Langjokull glacier snowmobiling

Iceland

Very well organized. The staff were extremely friendly. They took our pictures and helped us get back on the trail.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

The Secret Lagoon

Iceland

A relaxing geothermal experience in a modest setting.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Katla Ice Cave

Iceland

Our guide Siggi was amazing. He shared his personal experiences and explained the geography and science behind the ice cave and the Katla glacier. You could tell he absolutely loves his job. He sang, joined our family photos and had great energy.

Quality of Experience

The scenery and ice formations are stunning. And the science behind their creation is interesting. It's also very precarious!

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Siggi was an expert and very funny.

Transport

The transport was fine. The music is fun

ATV to the Black Beach and Plane Wreck

Iceland

The scenery was stunning. Seeing the plane wreck is another interesting part of history. And noting Justin Bieber filmed on it was interesting for the kids.

Quality of Experience

Going over sand, through streams and on the actual road create exciting experiences.

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

There was no transport

We had a wonderful, memorable trip to Colombia focused on Medellin and the surrounding area. Margoth and her team checked in with us throughout the stay and made sure things went smoothly. When an airline maintenance issue caused us to miss our connection to Colombia we easily communicated to make sure our pick up at the airport was adjusted. The lodgings were well chosen for us. This was our first time in Colombia and thanks to our guide Diego and the great driving of Yiovanny we had a remarkable trip. They made sure we could stop and try local foods on our excursions and see things along the way to our destinations. They were always right on time and the communication was perfect. Diego is deeply knowledgable about the area and his exuberance for Medellin as a local is contagious. We didn't want to leave Colombia-- every experience was perfect!

Activity Review

City Tour of Medellín (with Local Market and Comuna 13)

Medellín

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

I will definitely Work woth kimkim again to plan my trip.
The professionalism, patience, knowledge, humor and kindness of every tour guide was among the best I have experienced throughout many travel experiences.

Bianca booked our honeymoon perfectly! We had a wonderful mix of relaxation and adventure and were set up with a great tour guide who was able to move things around when one of our bookings was cancelled due to weather. Would definitely recommend Bianca if you want to make planning easier for yourself!

Ravi and the team from Active India organised a fantastic trip for my partner and I. He suggested a variety of itineraries based on our dates/interests and was able to personalise the trip to exactly what we wanted, ensuring that everywhere we stayed was LGBT friendly. He was very responsive both before and during our trip. The trip ran very smoothly throughout allowing us to do both sightseeing and trekking across a wide area of India. Mr Kewal (driver) was very reliable and ensured we were comfortable during our journeys and all our guides were extremely knowledgeable and friendly, particularly Priya in Amritsar. We would definitely recommend booking with Active India if you want a stress-free, memorable trip!

Mieke did a great job planning our trip and answering all of our many questions quickly. We had a wonderful time in The Netherlands despite the rain! Our hotels were perfectly located and we walked everywhere. Alex our walking guide and Maarten our driver were pleasant and very knowledgeable. Unfortunately we cut them both a little short because of the pouring rain. Thanks so much for your great work.

Hotel Reviews

Singel hotel

Amsterdam

Small and quaint. Good location

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Hotel van Walsum

Rotterdam

Comfortable hotel. Very pleasant staff.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Amsterdam - Private guided historic city walk

The Netherlands

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Public Transport Pass Amsterdam

The Netherlands

Quality of Experience

Amsterdam - Day trip to Volendam, Edam and Alkmaar

Amsterdam

Maarten was great. We loved the cheese factory tour and the cows! We did cut the trip short because or the downpour of rain.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport