Kimkim Trip Reviews

We had an amazing trip to Sicily, and loved working with our local specialist Lorenza! She was so easy to work with and attentive and worked with us through several itineraries as we finalized our trip. She was also super responsive while we were on our trip to one small glitch we had and was willing to answer any questions we had. We loved every part of our trip and hard to pick a favorite. We love history and archeology so loved Salinunte, Valley of the Temples, Syracusa Greek Theater and Amphitheater as well the theater in Taromina. Also went to Syracusa (specifically stayed in the island of Ortigia) and Taromina a must.

All our guides were truly wonderful! Chaira (Palermo), Carmelina (Valley of the Temples), Azzurra (Selinunte), Sabine (Ragusa), Giuseppe (Syracuse Neapolitan Archaeological Park) and Aureliano (Taromina Theater). Chaira, Sabine, Aureliano and Carmelina were particular standouts but all wonderful!

Hotel Reviews

Bed & Breakfast Il Giardino di Ballarò

Palermo

The staff are wonderful. Room very comfortable. Great location near to so many sights and restaurants. Felt very safe. Loved our stay!

Authenticity & Character

Location

Centrally located in old city.

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Le Terrazze di Pirandello

Good location. Didn’t love our room. Good breakfast!

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Not great air conditioning and bed not comfortable. Shower not great.

Algilà Ortigia Charme Hotel

Syracuse

Lovely hotel and great breakfast. Good location. Easy to walk everywhere. Very safe.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Hotel Casa Adele

Taormina

Lovely room. And close to everything - shopping, great restaurants and sights!

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Habitat Boutique Hotel

Catania

Such a cool hotel. We only stayed a night and wish we could have stayed longer! Great location! Vibrant and close to things you will want to see in Catania!

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Syracuse Neapolis Archaeological Park - private guide

Italy

Good guide! Very interesting.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Guided visit to the Ancient Theatre of Taormina (private guide)

Italy

This was a beautiful site and tour. Aureliano was of our best guides!

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Palermo guided walk insight on the anti-mafia movement and street food tour (private guide)

Italy

We LOVED our guide.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Selinunte Archaeological Park visit - private guide

Italy

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Boat Tour in Syracuse

Italy

Great trip. And had a lovely group!

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Temple valley guided visit

Italy

Wonderful and knowledgeable guide!

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Ragusa guided visit

Italy

Sabine was a wonderful guide! We loved our afternoon here and wish we could have stayed longer.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Mount Etna half-day trip (group experience)

Italy

Guides were great and spoke good English. It’s a lot of driving and wish there was more hiking!

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

We had an incredible time in Japan. KimKim had everything planned out and made it easy. We would use them again going abroad

This was our first time to Costa Rica and we wanted to bring family from several places to join including in-country and from three spots in the US. After some reasearch, we chose KimKim as the company to help us have an all-inclusive trip through the highlights of Costa Rica. Olman was assigned as our travel advisor and, in short, he did a bang-up job arranging our trip and getting everyone gathered into one spot smoothly. We gave KimKim a budget, a wishlist of activities, quality of hotels and asked for private transfers between places as it was the rainy season and the driving sounded iffy. Olman listened carefully and was very patient in revising our itinerary many times before it was set. It became increasingly apparent that who you know is important. Olman connected us with local services, guides, tours, restaurants and hotels that enabled us to not worry about the details and just enjoy ourselves. Any issues we did have, Olman and his team were fairly responsive and got back to us within hours, if not sooner. We never tried the emergency number, so have no info on that service.

Itinerary (8 days): San Jose - La Fortuna and the Arenal volcano. - Monteverde (cloud forest) - Manuel Antonio (beach)

Travel: Private driver (Leo). Olman arranged transport from the San Jose airport to each of our hotels and back again. It went perfectly. I want to put in a kind word for our driver Leo, who stayed with us almost the whole trip and was fantastic. He was unerringly on time, careful, thoughtful, courteous and friendly. He would stop when he saw wildlife he thought we'd like to see, he planned stops and suggested restaurants and was generally flexible and helpful for the whole trip. Leo made going from place to place seamless and stress free (and there is a lot of driving). If you do use a private transport, be prepared to tip your driver $10 - $20 per person, per day depending on your experience.

Hotels & Places:
> La Fortuna and Arenal volcano. We stayed at the Arenal Montechiari hotel, which had bungalows which blended with the landscape and had a terrific view of the Arenal volcano. We took a tour of the volcano area and local waterfall led by the local tour guide Franklin (as recommended by KimKim). Franklin was a character - full of knowledge and stories. We highly recommend him, especially for those who want to know about the local plants and wildlife. This was one of the highlights of our trip.

> Monteverde. We stayed at the El Establo Mountain Hotel. Beautiful hotel with unbeatable views of the clouds and countryside. It has extensive wildlife paths on the property. In the area we enjoyed a tour of the local coffee, chocolate and sugar cane farm as hosted by Don Juan Monteverde - again, the local and deep knowledge of the process was really interesting. We also went to the zip line adventure park including cloud forest canopy bridges and gondola ride. This was another fantastic day. You really get a sense of how naturally diverse the area is. Finally, we also did an amazing night hike at the Monteverde Wildlife Refuge which you MUST have a guide for. Our guide, Mario, did an incredible job spotting snakes, spiders, birds, owls and bats. This was a longer hike with lots of ups and downs - a poncho, flashlight and binoculars come in handy.

> Manuel Antonio. Our last location was at the Kahari Beach Hotel. The hotel is a beach hotel and was a little plainer in it's amenities than our other hotels, however Olman told us to give it a chance and he was right. The staff, food, access to the beach and views were terrific and we would come back again. Beach is a wide swath of volcanic sand n which you can walk into the waves a good distance. They also had beach life guards which we were glad of. Hotel is surrounded by wildlife with sloths, monkeys, iguanas and more hanging around the property. Drinks and lunch on the beach was very relaxing and staff was attentive. We also took a day hike in the nearby Manuel Antonio preserve. Olman had said we did not need a guide for this one, and again, he was right. Paths are clear, wide and well mapped. It's a circle, so you won't get lost.

We ended our trip with a ride back to San Jose and the Hampton Inn by the airport which has shuttles to the airport every 15 min or so. Good hotel, comfortable rooms and a good choice for our last night.

Bottom line was this was a memorable family trip that went amazingly smoothly given all the moving parts. Thank you, Olman and KimKim!

Hotel Reviews

El Establo Mountain Hotel

Monteverde

We loved our stay here. While very spread out, the views were wonderful. There are walking paths on the grounds, a nice pool with a bar and a decent restaurant.

Authenticity & Character

Loved the stone facade and integrated nature.

Location

Up on the hill side, views were beautiful and often dramatic.

Staff

Friendly.

Cleanliness & Comfort

Very nicely appointed rooms. Could use screens on windows to enjoy the views but keep insects out.

Hotel Arenal Montechiari

La Fortuna

Authenticity & Character

Bungalow style was fun an made you feel integrated into the surrounding nature.

Location

Within walking distance of La Fortuna with a good view of Arenal volcano.

Staff

Friendly.

Cleanliness & Comfort

Rooms are bungalow style. AC is each, which was nice. Bathrooms are open air vented. Room was clean and comfortable.

Karahé Beach Hotel

Manuel Antonio

Hotel is adequate, but amenities, grounds, and staff upgrade the whole experience. Higher floor rooms seem nicer than lower rooms. Rooms are basic, but clean and comfortable. Restaurant, staff and beach are terrific. Food was good, standard Costa Rica fare, drinks were good and staff went the extra mile. Direct beach access is a big bonus and the beach itself is lovely. There are life guards, which we liked, and you can go out a long way because it is shallow. Playing in the waves was terrific and you can rent surf boards and boogie boards right there. There are roaming beach vendors, but they were always nice and backed off immediately if you said no. There is lots of wildlife right on the grounds with sloths, monkeys and birds. Would definitely stay again.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Direct beach access and only 1.5 miles from entrance to Manuel Antonio Park entrance.

Staff

They did a great job taking care of us.

Cleanliness & Comfort

Rooms are very clean. Beds are comfortable. Furniture is basic. Remember that it is a beach hotel and salt eats everything.

Hampton by Hilton San José Airport

Alajuela

Good place to stay by the airport. Very comfortable rooms and dining was fairly good. Shuttle to airport runs 24/7 every 15 minutes. Great place to start or end a trip.

Authenticity & Character

It's a Hampton.

Location

10 minutes to airport.

Staff

Very attentive and friendly.

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Arenal 1968 Hike & Visit to La Fortuna Waterfall

Arenal/La Fortuna

Rustic and outdoorsy. Our guide, Franklin, really made the difference as he knew an amazing amount of info about the volcano, plants, insects and animals. Amazing views and well worth it.

Quality of Experience

Food

A very nice coffee shop by the entrance. Wonderful views from the roof terrace.

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Our guide, Franklin, was excellent. Took his job very seriously and had a great amount of knowledge of the area and the natural surroundings.

Transport

Coffee, Chocolate & Sugar Cane Experience

Monteverde

We didn't know what to expect at Don Juans, but turned out great. Our guide was entertaining and was very knowledgeable about the process, uses and market of the chocolate, coffee and sugar cane farms. Lots of opportunity to smell, touch and taste.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Night Excursion at the Wildlife Refuge in Monteverde

Monteverde

One of the best excursions we had. You really feel a part of the nature and night time is when you can see the animal and insect world in full swing. The walk is about 2 hours and is up and down, so be ready for a good walk. Our guide, Mario, was excellent and we saw far more than I expected.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

This was a wonderful trip. Thanks to kimkim for working with Responsible Travel of Ecuador, to Sebastian, our outstanding guide in Quito, to Sani Lodge in the rainforest, and to Raul, our excellent guide during our stay at Sani Lodge.
Sebastian met us at the airport in Quito and drove us to our hotel (La Casona de la Ronda – excellent, recommended) in the city. The next day he took us to the Middle of the World where we toured the museum and visited the actual equator line. This was fun and informative and the museum tour guide was very good. Afterwards, we drove back to the city and Sebastian led us on a fascinating and informative walking tour, stopping for lunch in the afternoon.
Next day Sebastian drove us out to Otavalo, stopping at a rose farm on the way. We participated in a cooking class in Claudia’s house. She was very hospitable and it was great fun picking herbs and vegetables in her garden and preparing a traditional Ecuadorian lunch. Then we drove back to the city, stopping to visit the market in Otavalo and, briefly, for traditional bizcocha cookies.
Next morning we took a short flight to Coca and a three-hour boat trip along the Napo River and tributaries to Sani Lodge. Our guide for this portion of the trip, Raul, met us at the Coca Airport. The boat ride was fascinating and we began to feel as if we were in an entirely different universe. Sani Lodge is owned and operated by the Kichwa Indigenous People. Everyone working there made as feel so welcome and seemed to be incredibly proud of their heritage and their accomplishments.
We traveled with Raul, assistant guide Pato, and two other guests on several trips in a small canoe during the next three days observing the lush and dense rainforest and spotting innumerable birds, monkeys and other creatures. Sometimes we hiked on muddy trails, sometimes we went out after dark to experience the night time sounds of the rainforest, and sometimes it rained quite heavily. On one trip we visited a small Kichwa settlement. The inhabitants were very gracious, sharing knowledge about their simple and humble lives and teaching us some traditional cooking skills. Raul’s knowledge of the ecosystem and it’s plants and animals was remarkable and he was ably assisted by Pato. Accommodations at the lodge were excellent and the food was very good. The entire experience was wonderful and truly exceeded our expectations.
After our three-day stay, we returned by boat to Coca, then flew to Quito to await our flight home. We enjoyed this trip greatly and learned so much. Very highly recommended.

KimKim Feedback
Working with KimKim really helped me with getting ideas and plans for transitioning to one town to the next on our trip to Norway with 7 people. It was extremely helpful to have someone figuring out the tickets, times, locations, etc. for the hotels, drop off and pickups, activities, etc. My only recommendation is to verify the links you include in the itinerary. A few of the links did not work so I'm glad I verified and asked the questions before we left.
Here are a few reviews of the things we did.
Oslo
• We had a pickup scheduled from the airport to our first hotel in Oslo, but the driver cancelled. I contacted KimKim and they quickly arranged a different ride.
• The Grand Hotel Oslo was beautiful! We loved the rooms and the morning breakfast was amazing. The French president, Emmanuel Macron, even stopped by the hotel as we were there. The location was perfect for seeing all the common sights in Oslo.
• The 3 hour Private City Walk was okay. We ended up taking a ferry to the Fram museum. The guide was excellent at providing us with some background and history regarding the Fram. It was very interesting, and the museum was excellent and I highly recommend it. Once we were at the Fram, we wanted to stay there and look around but our time with the guide was up so she left and we stayed at the museum. I’m just not sure if the guide was really that useful, but without her we may not have attended the museum so we are thankful for that. The time may have been better spend walking around Oslo and getting the history and background about the palace, opera house, etc. from the guide and then doing the Fram on our own.
• We took scooters to the Mathallen Food Court which we all really enjoyed. We also shopped around that area which had lots of unique boutiques and secondhand stores. Very fun to see a variety in shopping areas. Downtown Oslo has lots of “chain” stores, but since we are not from Norway, they were all fairly new to us as well. Very fun shopping.

Stavanger
• Took the train to Stavanger. The train was fabulous - quiet and a great way to see the scenery.
• The second hotel, Scandic Stavanger Park, was fine. Not bad, not great – very standard. It was on a very busy street, so it was loud when the windows were open which we did because our room was hot. I personally would not recommend this hotel.
• The kids did the hike to Pulpit Rock which became the highlight of the entire trip.
• I loved looking at Old Stavanger and the buildings, as well as shopping around Ovre Holmegate in all the boutiques. I love to shop and look at goods so this was excellent for me.
• My husband and I went to the Petroleum Museum also – which I highly recommend. It was very well done and informative.
• The art all around the city is very fun. It would be fun to do a “scavenger hunt” for the art.
• Several of the hotels allowed umbrella checkout. We didn’t use it because we had raincoats, but I thought it was a great thing and worth mentioning to people you are planning trips for.
Bergen
• Took a Fjordline “ferry” to Bergen. This was more like a cruise ship. Very comfortable and beautiful. We loved this way of traveling. Highly recommend.
• The hotel, Radisson Blu Royal Hotel, was very nice and in a very central location. The only drawback is that there is a nightclub right by it, so it got loud at night.
• We did the Fjord Cruise & Seafood Dining Experience. I would not recommend this. It was fine, but our service was extremely slow and the food was okay. Not worth the money or time in my opinion.
• The Norway in a Nutshell was a great way to see a lot of things in a short time, but there was very little time to explore the places that we visited. We would barely get off the boat/train/bus and would have to get in line to catch the next boat/train/bus. It would be nice to have 1-2 hours at each stop.
• We did love seeing the fjords and mountains as we traveled. Stunning views!!!
• In hindsight, we should have stayed in Flam or Voss a few nights. My kids love “doing” things like hiking/biking and there were lots of opportunities for this in those smaller villages.
• The Catch and Cook Fishing Excursion was fun. It was rainy, but they had tons of clothes to outfit all of us so we were not miserable. My husband and sons are avid fisherman so to them it was a bit “touristy” and not real fishing, but it was an activity versus more sight-seeing so they liked it because we were doing something. We did catch some fish and enjoyed the cooking of it. Our guide, Iris, was great. I would recommend as an activity to do with the understanding that this is not for the serious fisherman.
• The Fløibanen funicular was good. Excellent views of Bergen, and a fun park. We could not get into the restaurant because we did not have a reservation so I would recommend this as something to consider to your clients when doing this activity.
• One activity we looked up and did on or own was the “Magic Ice” bar. I heard it was a bit gimmicky and expensive – which it was – but fun to experience and see it nonetheless.

All in all – it was an excellent trip. I loved seeing all that we did. Knowing what I know now, I should have done more activities versus sightseeing, but now I know for our next trip.
The kimkim app was very helpful to have all our tickets and information in one spot. I hope you continue to use and improve it.

Thank you!

Hotel Reviews

Grand Hotel Oslo

Oslo

This hotel is beautiful and is in a great location to the central Oslo. The breakfast buffet was amazing and become a food highlight of the trip. I highly recommend this hotel.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Very central

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Radisson Blu Royal Hotel

Bergen

Nice hotel and excellent location to Bergen,

Authenticity & Character

It's pretty and clean.

Location

Very central location to get around Bergen

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

The cleanliness and comfort of the hotel is great. The only issue is that it is close to a night club so it got loud at night.

Scandic Stavanger Park

Stavanger

This hotel is fine, but I would not recommend. It was on a busy street so it was loud in our room. Our room was on the top floor and it got hot. They brought us a fan, which helped, but we could not adjust the temperature. The breakfast was included and was very good.

Authenticity & Character

Not bad, not great. Just not memorable.

Location

We were able to walk to central Stavanger

Staff

Several times staff was not available at the front desk or there was only 1 person so it took time to get help.

Cleanliness & Comfort

The hotel is on a very busy street so it was loud. Our room was hot and we could not adjust the temperature. They gave us a fan, which helped.

Activity Reviews

Self-Guided Pulpit Rock Hike

Stavanger

The kids in our group did this activity and it was their absolute favorite.

Quality of Experience

Private City Walk

Oslo

The 3 hour Private City Walk was okay. We ended up taking a ferry to the Fram museum. The guide was excellent at providing us with some background and history regarding the Fram. It was very interesting, and the museum was excellent and I highly recommend it. Once we were at the Fram, we wanted to stay there and look around but our time with the guide was up so she left and we stayed at the museum. I’m just not sure if the guide was really that useful, but without her we may not have attended the museum so we are thankful for that. The time may have been better spent walking around Oslo and getting the history and background about the palace, opera house, etc. from the guide and then doing the Fram on our own.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Mathallen Food Court Visit

Oslo

Fun to see and experience some food.

We just returned from the most amazing family trip to Croatia- thanks to Sara and KimKim. We booked very last minute and had so little time to plan / research what to do. Sara guided us from the very start- working within our budget to craft the best possible trip- finding great hotels just a couple of weeks out and developing an itinerary that left us feeling like we truly explored the Dalmation Coast.
Sara was a pleasure to work with- attentive and informative and incredibly helpful with every detail!! The private tours she arranged left us feeling like we got to know not just the area we were visiting, but the local people as well. Ivana spent two days with us in Split and she provided a great foundation for our trip. She is funny and knowledgeable and great company- we all enjoyed being with her. Grgo in Hvar was an outstanding local guide. He provided us with the most memorable tour of the island and his life there. Our time with him , visiting his homeland, was the highlight of the trip for us all. We cannot say enough positive things about our trip- and our experience using KimKim. I will tell ANYONE who is heading to Croatia that they must contact Sara- she is THE BEST! Thank you for so many wonderful memories and a fabulous family trip to the beautiful country of Croatia!! K. Filling

Hotel Review

Valamar Argosy Hotel

Dubrovnik

Perfectly positioned on the coast with amazing views and a great pool!! Loved our time here!

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Private Walking Tour of Split

Croatia

Ivana gave us a wonderful overview of the thousands of years of history in Split! :) She was a wonderful, knowledgable and personable tour guide and my whole family enjoyed their day with her. It felt like a local friend walking you around their hometown. Highly recommend, Ivana for anyone visiting Split!

Hvar Half-Day Private Island Tour (Afternoon)

Hvar

This half day tour of the island of Hvar was the highlight of our trip. Great views, interesting information, fabulous food, wonderful wine, and the most amazing tour guide, Grgo!! It was a very special day having Grgo show us the island his family has called home for seven generations. What he shared with us truly felt like a gift in every way. This is the ideal way to go beyond the vibrant waterfront and see more of the real Hvar. Spectacular in every way and we left feeling like we had made a friend. Thank you, Grgo, for sharing your home, your insights, your passion and your humor with us for the day. We will never forget it. This tour is a MUST for anyone visiting Hvar!! K. Filling

Quality of Experience

Food

lovely traditional dinner - very yummy! followed by a wine tasting- also very yummy! :)

Guides, Drivers and Staff

exceptional driver AND tour guide - Grgo!

Transport

We, overall, are very satisfied with the services provided by the Kim Kim team especially Sebastian. Throughout the planning process he was always quick to respond and make suggestions that worked out well for us.

Our personal guide in Bordeaux, Hela, was a delight and took the time to explore the city and many of it's delightful food and beverage vendors. Ala Francaise host Vicki was also great and we really enjoyed her knowledge of the wine region and the process of wine making.

Hotel Reviews

Hôtel du Cygne

Tours

Great location and fantastic large room. Most importantly, air conditioned! We happened to be in Tours France during an early heat wave and coming back after touring wineries and having dinner to a comfortable air conditioned room was most appreciated. David and the staff were friendly and accommodating during our three night stay.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Lola Boutique hotel

Bordeaux

This small hotel was delightful and the staff was always helpful when we needed recommendations on things to do. It's location right across the street from St. Michel was a bonus. The atmosphere every evening for happy hour was fantastic taking place on the plaza in front of the church steps. The bartender made some amazing craft cocktails and we enjoyed sitting and people watching as we wound down our evening.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Wine tasting and discovery tour of Caves Ambacia

Amboise

This tour was worth the short train ride from Tours to Amboise. The castle and Da Vinci's resting place and home were very enlightening.

Quality of Experience

Villandry, Azay-le-Rideau castles & Vouvray wine tour - Full-day

France

Our guide, Marion, for the tour of the amazing Castle Azay-le-Rideau, the Vouvray wine tour and the Chateau Villandry was amazing. She was so knowledgeable and was obviously a subject matter expert on the history and lifestyle of people who inhabited the Caste and Chateau.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Afternoon Tourraine Wine tour

France

Our guide for this private tour was a former Lieutenant Colonel in the French army and current winery co-owner. Very knowledgeable and took the time to take us first to the vinyard to explain the cultivation, pruning and harvesting of grapes before taking us to the wine cave for a tasting. This was a hightlig for us and we learned so much about appelations, terrior, and thcuteriee types of grapes allowed in the production of wines in the Lorre Valley. The tasting in the cave was accomapnied by a great selection of Cheeses. Really enjoyed this tour.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Wine discovery day from Bordeaux to Saint-Emilion

Bordeaux

Our guide was delightful and our first wine tasting was great with the winery staff taking time to explain the wines and the process of how the wines were grown, produced and bottled. Our second tasting stop was more of a hard sell on the owners preference for the sparkling wine they produced. Lunch was provided there and it was a great selection of cheese, charcuterie and fresh salad with a nice red wine paring. Saint -Emilion was amazing but we were only allowed 45 mins before we needed to be back to meet the driver for our return to Bordeaux.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Gourmet Dinner in Bordeaux

Bordeaux

This dinner was fantastic and we were treated to a window seat that looked out over the central plaza and river bank. Food and wine were amazing and the cheese course for dessert featured a delicious selection of interesting cheese varieties.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

UNESCO Guided cruise on the Garonne river

Bordeaux

Our guide was delightful and knowledgeable but the trip was short and it's highlights were really just the history of the bridges we passed beneath and some overview of the architectural rules governing development and restoration of the city's building facdes. We schduled this for the afternoon after Cite du Vin and wished we had spent more time at Cite du Vin

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Cité du Vin : priority access with the skip the line ticket and wine tasting

Bordeaux

We wished we had alloted more time to tour this museum. It's multimedia and interactive exhibits were immersive and informative. Our wine tasting experience there was top notch and an experience not to be missed.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Bordeaux gourmet & wine experience with a local

Bordeaux

Hela was so engaging and knowledgeable about the history of Bordeaux and took us on a walking tour of some great local wine and culinary shops.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

We really can’t say enough of the service provided by Zeljko and Antonia. From the beginning Antonia was responsive, quick to offer suggestions and solutions, and knew exactly how to manage a large group. I can’t think of 1 complaint on how she planned and executed this trip for us.
Zeljko is a STAR! He was not only our travel guide but became our friend by the end of the trip. Everything that was asked of him was followed up on and executed without fail. He noticed needs immediately and remedied them as quickly as he noticed them. He accompanied us to trips when he was supposed to be his free time.
Our family travels extensively and this trip was one of our best trips we’ve ever experienced.
I cannot recommend Antonia and Zeljko enough for making this happen.
It was flawlessly planned and executed.

Hotel Reviews

Occidental Hotel Ljubljana

Ljubljana

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

AC Hotel

Split

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Hotel Tirena

Dubrovnik

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Private Walking Tour of Ljubljana

Croatia

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Day Trip to Bled Lake & a small town of Radovljica

Ljubljana

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

I

Transport

Private Walking Tour of Dubrovnik

Dubrovnik

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Private Walking Tour of Plitvice Lakes National Park

Croatia

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Elafiti Islands - Private Half Day Speedboat Tour

Dubrovnik

Wish it was longer!

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Private Walking Tour of Split

Croatia

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Konavle Region Culinary Experience (small group)

Croatia

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

The Gems of the Amalfi Coast and Eternal Rome vacation was my family's favorite and most memorable trip we've taken together. I usually plan our family vacations, but I was less confident about planning an international trip that would require either renting a car or scheduling multiple transfers during the trip. I decided to contact kimkim. I was so fortunate to have been connected with Chris. He listened to what I wanted, made adjustments along the way, and created a dream vacation for my family. He even arranged transportation for my oldest child to join the rest of the family on the second day, which was when she completed a summer term abroad. In addition to Chris, Maria was our local contact. She was always just a text away to answer questions and to provide us with drivers' contact information and pickup times. Having our activities and transportation taken care of allowed us to have a more relaxing and enjoyable vacation. The accommodations were another excellent aspect of our vacation. The Charme Spagna Boutique Hotel in Rome was a little gem! The room was comfortable and quiet, breakfast was excellent, and the staff were so kind and accommodating. In Sorrento, we enjoyed Hotel Leone with its lovely pool and patio, delicious breakfast, quiet but convenient location, and friendly staff. When we ended our trip with another stay in Rome, we found the accommodations at The Republic to be outstanding. Again, the rooms were comfortable and spacious, the staff accommodating, and the breakfast very enjoyable. The activities were where we truly made our memories, and Chris selected the perfect ones for our family. My family of five had so much fun at our Mediterranean cooking class at Villa Pane (even my 17-year-old son enjoyed it). Luca took us on an amazing tour of the Amalfi Coast, sharing many stories about local history and landmarks. We were so grateful that he was driving on the narrow and busy road! Paola was the most entertaining and engaging tour guide on our visit to Capri and Anacapri. She really took care of our group and made sure we had the best experience. Our private tour of Pompeii was fascinating. Our guide there was extremely interesting and informative, as was our guide at the Sistine Chapel and the Vatican Museum. We were impressed with and appreciative of the knowledge all of our guides shared with us. We were also grateful not to be part of a large tour group. The most people we were grouped with were another family of five. Another great thing about our vacation was that not every moment was planned. We had free time to explore Rome and Sorrento, visiting places that we chose along the way, including the beach in Sorrento and various historical sites and museums in Rome. We made the most of our time in Italy without stress, thanks to Chris, Maria, and the kimkim team. Now that we're home, we can't stop looking at our photos and dreaming of our next trip to Italy.

Mathia planned an amazing trip for 11 of us incorporating all that we wanted to see and do in Norway. He was attentive, informative and efficient the whole way through. All the hotels were excellent, the tours were wonderful and all transportation was perfect. We could not have navigated this ourselves. Mathia is a professional with intimate knowledge of Norway. We all highly recommend Kim Kim and Mathia.

My specialist Simon did an excellent job in making my France experience with my grandchildren absolutely perfect. Our drivers were great, giving us some info on each place we were visiting, I literally never had to worry. Our hotel accommodations were absolutely wonderful especially in Nice and Aix en Provence - I could have stayed in Aix much longer as it was so beautiful. We had a lot of fun in Monaco in the Casino - No one won but definitely had fun while Nicole and Hillary enjoyed browsing the stores and doing a little shopping at Zara’s.

The heat was my only downfall, kids didn't mind as they went to the beach to swim in the ocean and also in the pools to keep cool. Everyone thoroughly enjoyed the Perfume Making experience, so happy I did that. Our tours were all anmazing and the kids really enjoyed their night life in each place we stayed, not getting to bed until the wee hours of the morning. Paris is such a beautiful city with so much to see and do. The hotel we stayed at was wonderful as it was walking distance to everything. All the restaurants we went to had fabulous food, wine and cocktails no one complained.

Thank you Kim Kim for another wonderful and memorable holiday.

Hotel Reviews

Renaissance Paris Vendome Hotel

Paris

Wonderful hotel walking distance to everything - disappointed their spa and pool closed even though they offered us to use another hotels pool.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Villa Saint Ange

Aix en Provence

This hotel was beyond beautiful with its lovely gardens, fabulous pool with restaurant attached to the pool area where we enjoyed lunch, excellent breakfast and walking distance to town .

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

La Bastide Saint Antoine

Grasse

Authenticity & Character

Beautiful grounds and excellent dinner

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Boscolo Nice Hôtel & Spa

Nice

Absolutely beautiful, walking distance to beach, excellent breakfast - highly recommend

Authenticity & Character

It’s beautiful decor

Location

Close to beach, cafes and bars

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Review

Dinner at Le Plongeoir

France

Food

The trip was fantastic. Virtually all of the accomplishments exceeded expectations. The guides and drivers were fantastic. Felt like we got an excellent feel for Indonesia.

Regarding all of the above Yuqqa did a terrific job. There were a couple of areas she fell short in. She arranged two hikes for us, only one of which we did. That was the Mt Batur hike. She did not adequately explain what the hike was. The first ninety minutes or so were on a road going up the mountain with cars passing us. I don't understand why we weren't dropped off further up the mountain. On the way down we were. It was poorly planned or executed.

The second hike was supposed to be to the Wae Bae village. My son looked it up on All Trails and the reports were daunting. We have hiked all over the world, but were not prepared for anything serious. We received virtually no explanation from Yuqqa about the hike. She actually tried down playing the trail report. Even asked to see it. Once we had decided not to do the hike she continued to press us to do it. In fairness maybe she just thought it would be an amazing experience, but regardless it was way too much. She was very inconsistent with her descriptions of the hikes, at one point even countering what she had said in the itinerary. She asked me the same question a few times when she was pushing the hike. She wasn't even communicating with the guide who did a terrific job of making alternative plans. She sounded angry and unaware of what was going on.

My other criticism of her regarded her availability. She wanted to arrange for a call, but when I went on the website her open times were at 3 and 4 am of my local time zone. Not acceptable. At times I didn't receive a response on the WhatsApp chat for an overly long time, sometimes not until the next day. Fortunately our guides or drivers were always available to help.

I really enjoy working with Kimkim. I would not do another trip with Yuqqa.

Hotel Reviews

Jakarta Airport Hotel

Jakarta

Hotel was basic. We arrived into terminal 3 at Jakarta. Yuqqa had selected a hotel in terminal 2, but we flew out of terminal 1 the next morning. Why so much movement. Spending the night at the terminal we arrived at would have been much easier and better.

Authenticity & Character

Location

A different terminal

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Arma Museum & Resort

Absolutely fantastic. Was our favorite hotel of the trip. Grounds were magnificent and the staff was great.

Authenticity & Character

Felt like you were in Indonesia

Location

The center of Ubud

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Puri Santrian Beach Resort & Spa

Bali

A beautiful resort right on the ocean

Authenticity & Character

Location

Right on the ocean

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Wae Rebo Lodge

VERY basic, but we expected that. We were only there to access the hike, which we never did.

Authenticity & Character

Maybe a little too authentic

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Bayview Gardens Hotel

Gorgeous views of the harbor

Authenticity & Character

Location

Views of the harbor and access to downtown

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Loved breakfast being served on our private porch every morning

Private cruise trip in Komodo National Park

Labuan Bajo, Indonesia

The highlight of the trip was the MonaLisa 3. The crew was great. Boat was lacking only one small thing, places to sit. There were no chairs. A couple of benches but nothing else. Everything else was great. Our guide Robert was absolutely sensational. By the end of the trip it felt like we were hanging out with a friend who was a local. When we had the problem with the Wae Rebo hike Robert saved the day. He was amazing looking for Komodo Dragons. He made up for all of Yuqqa's mistakes. One of the best guides I have ever had.

Authenticity & Character

Food was all local and tasty

Location

The snorkeling was amazing.

Staff

Crew was focused on all our needs

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Komodo Cruise Day 2

Indonesia

Ten stars. Best day of the trip. We saw eight Komodo Dragons! Two terrific snorkeling experiences. We will remember this day for the rest of our lives.

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Sunrise trek to Mount Batur

Indonesia

A little bit touristy and poorly scheduled as mentioned previously. View was magnificent.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Komodo Cruise Day 1

Indonesia

Fantastic

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Vanilla Plantation Trekking at Dukuh Buahan Village

Ubud, Bali

Very authentic. Loved the hike through the rice fields

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Komodo Cruise Day 3

Indonesia

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Our local specialist Hoa was excellent in helping plan our Thailand vacation! We appreciated her communication before, during, and after the trip. She would reach out daily to check on our group and address any issues that arose (there were none).

Our tour guides Nana (Bangkok), Bam (Chiang Mai), and Billy (Krabi) took great care of everyone in the group, from the kids to the seniors. Also our guides during the excursions, Boy at Elephant Eco Valley and Mr. A at SeaKayak Krabi, were wonderful as well.

Hotel Reviews

Varana Krabi Hotel

Excellent breakfast buffet and restaurant. Great resort for active vacationers such as swimming, working out, yoga, rock climbing, Muay Thai boxing.

Authenticity & Character

Great for active people.

Location

Walking distance to the beach and restaurants.

Staff

All the staff was friendly.

Cleanliness & Comfort

Clean and spacious rooms.

Nysa Hotel Bangkok Sukhumvit 11

Bangkok

Great location, only 15 minute walk to Terminal 21 shopping mall. Very busy hotel. Breakfast buffet staff were not very friendly though. Some guests were sitting with their bare feet on the couch and coffee table in the lounge area.

Authenticity & Character

Breakfast dining staff could be friendlier.

Location

Close to 7-11 and Terminal 21 mall.

Staff

Breakfast dining staff could be nicer. It was very busy so maybe they were under a lot of stress.

Cleanliness & Comfort

Rooms were clean and spacious.

Solitaire Bangkok Sukhumvit 11

Bangkok

Great location, only 15 minute walk to Terminal 21 shopping mall. Excellent breakfast buffet.

Authenticity & Character

Clean and modern design.

Location

Close to Terminal 21 mall.

Staff

Staff was friendly and helpful.

Cleanliness & Comfort

Clean and spacious rooms.

De Chai The Colonial Hotel & Spa

Chiang Mai

Great location, only 15 minute walk to the night market. Good breakfast buffet.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Only a 15 minute walk to the night market.

Staff

Staff was friendly and helpful.

Cleanliness & Comfort

Clean and spacious rooms.

Activity Reviews

Doi Inthanon National Park - A Touch of Nature

Chiang Mai

Great place to go hiking and learn about the Hmong people native to the area.

Quality of Experience

Food

Tom Yum soup, fried fish.

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Railway Market & Floating Market

Bangkok

Wonderful activity for all ages and to buy souvenirs.

Quality of Experience

Food

Fried bananas, mango and sticky rice, noodles.

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Chiang Mai Culture and Art

Chiang Mai

The kids enjoyed learning about the temple and the craftsmanship involved in the silver pieces. They loved making their own key chains out of aluminum.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Self-guided Bangkok Exploration

Bangkok

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Wat Umong & monk blessing

Chiang Mai

Very interesting tour about the history of the temple.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Private Elephant Rendezvouse & Bamboo Rafting in Mae Tang

Chiang Mai

Highlight of the trip. Learned how to take care of elephants, feed them, make paper from their poop, and bathe them.

Quality of Experience

Food

Fried rice, chicken satay.

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Our excursion guide Boy was very knowledgeable.

Transport

Phi Phi Islands Discovery by Private Premium Speedboat

Krabi

Great place to play on the beach, snorkel, and dine on the beach.

Quality of Experience

Food

Pomelo salad

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Billy and the boat crew took excellent care of everyone.

Transport

Private Half Day Kayaking at Ao Thalane

Krabi

Fun activity for all ages. No paddling required if you hire a guide to paddle for you. Beautiful scenery. Lots of animals to see.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Mr. A and his crew were great. They were super friendly, knowledgeable, and helpful for people in our group that couldn’t paddle.

Transport

Night Street Food Tour After Dark by Tuk Tuk

Bangkok

Great way to try the street food without the fear of getting sick.

Quality of Experience

Food

Everything

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

The hotel was in the center of everything we explored and the staff was absolutely amazing and was very welcoming. I absolutely loved the dinner cruise as it was one of my favorites along with Disney land.
The tours were wonderful with lots of amazing history and art,
The metro made things alittle stressful at times into navigating the city.

Hotel Review

Hôtel Parc Saint Séverin

Paris

Such a great fit! The staff was welcoming and very accommodating and helped in any way you needed. Felt spoiled while we were there.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Nighttime Seine River Cruise with Dining Experience

Paris

Made this truly an amazing way to end the trip. It was amazing.

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Haut Marais & Canal St Martin Food Tour

Paris

Loved trying all the famous and delicious foods of Paris!!

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

We had an absolutely wonderful time on this trip to Northern Ireland and Scotland! Salome did an extraordinary job planning the trip, and patiently took into account our many updates and requests. We ran into just a couple of minor hiccups during the trip, but Salome and kimkim were instantly reachable and quickly (within minutes) resolved them. I would highly recommend kimkim to anyone, and will definitely use them again in the future.

During this trip, we visited Belfast, Glasgow, Inverness, Isle of Skye, and Edinburgh. Kimkim reserved excellent hotels for us at each location, with the highlight being the Tigerlily in Edinburgh. Of these locations, Isle of the Skye was the only one where we ran into any difficulties. Not only is Isle of Skye out of the way, it is also not equipped for the large number of tourists it receives. We stayed in Portree, the largest town on the Isle, and found it very difficult to find restaurants with availabilities for dinner. Most restaurants and shops there close relatively early. Private transportation and taxi service is difficult to arrange as well.

One other note is that while kimkim arranged for private transportation for most transition points, we did have to move our own luggage to and from the train stations to our local hotels. This was typically a 10 to 20 minute walk that could be uphill over ragged streets. We probably would have chosen this over any additional expense, but others may feel differently.

Hotel Review

Tigerlily

Edinburgh

This is a truly exceptional hotel! The lobby is absolutely gorgeous, the room was massive and elegant, and the hotel and wait staff could not have been more gracious and helpful. I could not give a higher recommendation for this hotel!

Authenticity & Character

Very modern and elegant boutique hotel

Location

Great location in the newer part of Edinburgh near many shops, restaurants, and pubs.

Staff

I have never felt more welcomed than by Tigerlily's hotel and wait staff. They were incredible!

Cleanliness & Comfort

A true 5-star experience!

Activity Review

Eat Walk Glasgow

Glasgow

The food and drinks on this tour were fabulous, and each stop presented a unique view of Glasgow. However, the true highlight of the tour was Megan, our tour guide. Megan was full of personality and highly knowledgeable about the venues, the food, and Glasgow in general. She made the tour a very enjoyable experience for all of us.

Quality of Experience

Great choice of venues

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Megan was exceptional. She was so fun to talk to and had an impressive knowledge of Glasgow.

Linda was an amazing vacation coordinator! She suggested many activities that I never would have found on my own. It was so easy to have transportation and accommodations arranged in advance. Our favorite activities were the fjord safari and floating sauna in Flam and our stay at Bestebakken.

Our family of 4 had an incredible trip to Prague, Vienna and Budapest in June 2025. I liked working with Clemens, Kamilla and Andrew. They even encouraged a send-off call to review the trip plans prior to our departure. Hands down, Prague was our favorite probably because of the medieval feel and our hotel was perfectly located. In Vienna, Kamilla made excellent dinner reservations and suggestions and we probably had our favorite and most memorable dinner based off of her reservation - at Plachutta and ordered Tafelspitz! We really enjoyed our e-bike tour in Vienna. This tends to be favorite family activity for us when we travel and Vienna is the perfect place for e-biking. We enjoyed Budapest but our hotel was farther away from the action. However, we were in very large hotel suite that was fantastic for a family of 4. And it was part of a large mall that my teenagers really enjoyed.

Hotel Reviews

Hotel At the Golden Scissors (U Zlatých nůžek)

Prague

Loved everything about this hotel! Even the restaurant had incredible food and the breakfast was perfect. The only issue was no elevator - so walking the steps to the top floor but that is Europe for you. Perfect location, perfect place!

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Austria Classic hotel

Vienna

Great hotel and super friendly staff. The suana and fitness were under construction and not usable. That is the only reason for the 4 stars.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Crowne Plaza Budapest

Budapest

Nice hotel but farther from where we wanted to be. The suite was amazing but the a/c didn't work well.

Authenticity & Character

It's modern, not historic.

Location

Farther from where we wanted to be.

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

A/C didn't work well but they provided fans.

Activity Reviews

Candlelight Dinner Cruise

Budapest

Loved this .Exactly what we were looking forward to.

Day Trip from Prague to Bohemian and Saxon Switzerland

Prague

This is an incredibly long day. You will sweat and be exhausted. It is something to know ahead of time. We didn't anticipate how much of a hiking day this would be - lots of elevation and steep hills.

E-Bike through Vienna - Highlight Tour - private

Vienna

🎵 Classical Concert Extravaganza: Vienna Baroque Orchestra 🎶

Vienna

This was more informal than we were expecting. I think we just had the wrong expectations. We dressed up but then most were in shorts and tshirts.

Guided Tour Old Town Prague & Jewish Quarter

Prague

Dana was great but we were so tired after just arriving in Prague from a long day of travel. We shouldn't have booked something right at our arrival.

Krista did a great job coordinating everything for us; wonderful ideas and and reservation selection. Your 24-hour support team was super helpful along the way...that is a great service. its almost impossible to get ahold of anyone these days, and that service was top notch.

Thank you!
Keith and Sydney

We worked with Majo and Steven to plan our Ecuadorian adventure, which included the Napo Cultural Center in the Amazon, Chilcabamba in the Andean region, and Casa Aliso to close out the trip in Quito. Majo was patient and thoughtful as we went back and forth about the details of our itinerary. She adapted to our wants/needs and the result was a well-planned and executed trip with a lot of moving parts. Our tour guide, Luis, in the Amazon was a 10/10. Incredible wealth of knowledge and really made our time in the jungle special. Chilcabamba was a modern, rustic lodge surrounded by wildflowers and beautiful views of several volcanoes. The food prepared by the staff was fresh, local and delicious. Casa Aliso in Quito was perfectly situated for those that enjoy exploring the city on their own as it was very safe, and centrally located to dining hot spots, shops and local attractions. Taking the metro to the old city was a breeze and felt totally safe (also an incredible engineering feat). Majo & Steven went above and beyond to ensure everything was going according to plan and that we were happy. They checked in on us regularly on the what’s app thread and were highly responsive when we had questions. We also enjoyed meeting them at a local brewery to share insights from the trip. They were sweet, sincere and full of knowledge about what makes Ecuador special. Overall, we feel like we stumbled upon a gem with KimKim and we have been recommending to friends & family since. Thank you for an unforgettable adventure. We’ll be back!

Melanie made this family trip a once in a lifetime trip. We started planning over 20 months ahead and she led me through all the necessary details once I laid out things we wanted to see and places we wanted to visit. She set up a couple of unbelievable events that made the trip beyond description. I had 13 of my family the first week and 11 continued onto week 2. She made all the arrangements for our visit from hotels and tour guides; all of which were the best! I even asked her to make some dinner reservations away from tourists and they were all great restaurants reserved! The suggestion of the private boat tour out to Capri was worth the entire trip - it was fabulous! My daughter and granddaughters called her throughout the trip to locate the tour guides or see verify the plans for the day and she was always available to us. In fact, there were times when I called from the states and it was late at night, when she was homes with her kids but still answered the phone and handled all my questions. She and her team were the greatest! I would never do an Italy tour without them!