Kimkim Trip Reviews

Luis was wonderful in understanding what my daughter and I were looking for in this trip. He found out-of-the-way places and experience that made our first time to Europe an unforgettable one. We will definitely be returning, and when we do, we will contact Luis first and foremost.

I have travelled a lot, with the Can military for 23 years and personally. Without any doubt, the professionalism and courtesy that my daughter and I experienced from Emilie of kimkim was the most helpful ever. Thank you Emilie! You were marvellous and we want you to know how much we appreciated your attention to every detail, and your availability to assure us of worry-free travel every step of the way. The three days of trekking with Joe and Robert were remarkable. Such care, appropriate attention to our needs, always responsive to our own curiosity, and such teaching! We enjoyed every minute. For our final day in Chiang Mai the city guide was Bab - there could be none better. We were so blessed with her generous spirit and her willingness to make our tour tailored to our interests. Each hotel was ideally chosen, and the hotel staff was friendly, courteous and helpful in every way.
The only glitch in the entire trip was the final pick-up from the hotel to the Bangkok airport. The driver was forty minutes late and unapologetic. The only stressful moment of our brilliant trip!
Thank you again, and again!

Activity Reviews

City, Temple Tour & Doi Suthep Viewpoint

Chiang Mai

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Jungle Trekking - Day 3/3

Thailand

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Jungle Trekking - Day 2/3

Thailand

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Jungle Trekking - Day 1/3

Thailand

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Highlights of Chiang Rai and transfer to Chiang Mai

Chiang Rai

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Ayutthaya Historical City

Bangkok

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Bangkok - Wat Pho & Grand Palace – Klong Tour and Wat Arun

Bangkok

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

I’ve travelled all my life and this was the first one that was curated for me. I loved it! I didn’t have a lot of time but it’s a huge country, so I wanted to see as much as possible without having to figure it out for myself and Rachel got it perfectly. On her suggestion I visited the Lencois Maranhenses on the North Atlantic coast which I never would have discovered on my own and yet I’m so glad she guided me there. I had personal boat trips, nature trips in groups and personally, all my accommodations were set and there were zero flaws in my transfers or my accommodations. My trip through the Favela in Rio with a climb up Two Brothers was excellent. My Eco-lodge on the Amazon was great, and all my adventures on the coast were also excellent. Rachel was always available for questions and I always felt I could reach out at any hour. Brazil is an amazing country and definitely worth a visit

I asked Irene to plan a trip for my family. I wasn´t going to be able to attend & wanted to feel like they would be in good hands and have an easy experience on the ground. Irene planned an amazing trip!! It was perfectly catered to them and their health needs. She was super attentive, even late into the night. And when one of our family members had health issues, she did everything possible to make sure they could still enjoy their experience - helping to adjust our itinerary as needed. They loved their stays, all very lovely with great breakfasts! And I heard rave reviews about their tour guides in the different cities.

Irene estuvo muy atenta a nuestras necesidades lo cual nos dio un sentimiento de seguridad. Los hoteles escogidos x ella estuvieron perfectos para nosotros, muy céntricos principalmente, bonitos y cómodos. Los 4 tours todos muy informativos y amenos. En verdad nos hizo el viaje cómodo y fácil. Todo fluyó fácilmente y sin trabas. Mi rating para Irene es = excelente.

Mónica Muller

Lisbet did an incredible job planning our twelve day trip to Iceland. She really listened to our needs and gave us a very structured list that made planning the trip easy to follow. Not only that, she was very responsive to any messages we sent regarding changes to our itinerary or any other questions we may have had. In fact, one day an excursion we had planned was canceled due to the weather and she contacted us before we had a chance to reach out to her to reschedule at a different location. There is so much to see and do in Iceland (and the language is so difficult) that it was a huge relief to have someone who lives in and knows the country plan our stops and ensure that our trip stayed on a realistic schedule. We loved our horseback riding trip at Hellasport. I have every reason to believe those horses are very humanely kept. Vok Baths, the Secret Lagoon, and Sky Lagoon were our favorites. Blue Lagoon is a must stop, but the other three places were more intimate. I wish we would have had time to fit in a dog sledding excursion, perhaps another time. Our favorite hotels were Hotel Geysir in the Golden Circle and Hotel Laxa at Lake Myrvatn. Hotel Laxa’s staff were so warm and welcoming, and they’re manager, Fion, has created and nurtured a fun, friendly, very comfortable environment. Be wary of the IcelandAir/Berjaya hotels. Evidently, they behave been purchased by another company and are planning to renovate, but some of the rooms look like they haven’t been renovated since the 90s. It’s also a more family friendly chain, which isn’t the environment one would hope for when celebrating a wedding anniversary. However, some places are so remote that they were likely the best options. All in all, I’m very grateful to Lisbet and kimkim for taking the stress out of a fabulous vacation.

Ngima and his team did an outstanding job from the planning stages all the way. Ngima was very prompt in responding to all my queries and helped us plan our trip without any problems.
We were welcomed at the airport by Lakpa who was very friendly and helpful and he took us around everywhere till we left.
Our trekking guide Ang and our porter Kungha were just as amazing as all others on the team. Very accommodating, kind and helpful.
Ngima is a wonderful tour operator. He made all arrangements for our stay and flights in spite of bad weather and flight cancellations. He worked very hard to get us a rescue helicopter when things got bad in Poonhill.
We will be definitely using Kimkim travels again and Ngima’s team in Nepal for our next expedition.

Marina was fantastic. The organization and transports really took the stress out of planning and traveling. We absolutely loved every city, especially Granada and Cádiz where we had the opportunity to relax and really take in the amazing history and culture. Fantastic tour guides, great hotel locations even with a smaller budget. I also loved that even with some downtime and free afternoons, there were a ton of great recommendations and literature about each city on the itinerary. We never felt lost, stressed, or like we didn’t have hundreds of exciting options, even on free afternoons. We were also having trouble getting tickets to some of the Gaudí sites in Barcelona and Marina was able to quickly get us tickets at great times. If we had a question about anything, she always responded quickly and was able to help us in record time. Thank you so much Marina and KimKim for a fantastic trip!

Hotel Review

Hotel Palacio de Santa Inés

Granada

This hotel is lovely and comfortable with amazing views. We also loved the breakfast. The location is fantastic, right next to a bustling plaza with some of the best tapas we had the entire trip. Thanks so much for making our stay in Granada even more beautiful.

Authenticity & Character

Beautiful, great location, incredible views.

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Monumental Seville on Foot & Visit Real Alcázar

Seville

Pablo was a wealth of information. He is so clearly passionate and knowledgeable. His energy was infectious and the 3 hours flew by!

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Guided Visit: Alhambra & Generalife Gardens

Granada

Jaime was an amazing guide! His passion and excitement for the Alhambra was inspiring and apparent throughout the tour. He was patient and answered any question we had. Highly recommend this experience. It was a main highlight of our trip!

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Traveling through Morocco with our driver Samir was amazing! This gentleman was extremely knowledgeable about the area and accommodating. He advised us well on the culture of the locals in the area and was most pleasant at all times. Mohammed was our personal guide through the markets and well needed. Truly we would have lost our way if not for him. Mohammed recommended stores and restaurants that were worthy of visiting.
Overall, the entire experience was incredible. If I could do this visit again, I would do only one night of glamping and stay an extra day in Marakesh and three nights in the resort. I will add that Morocco is not only a beautiful place to explore and enjoy, but an area with an extraordinary cuisine that is delicious and healthy!

This special trip otherwise known as My Dias de los Muertos Birthday Celebration was beyond amazing & was magnificent!! Leslie was kind, helpful, patience & extremely creative with her planning & designing our 10 day adventure! We also were so very impressed with the constant communication from our "Guardian Angel" Ximena Villavicencio. She gave us the comfort of always being there with confirmation info, questions or problems we had. It was like having insurance our entire journey as she was an excellent communicator & problem solver. This is what makes Kim Kim so special and personalized, Leslie's planning & Organizing and Ximena's follow through & communication. As for the entire trip itself, it was a a dream come true. Starting with The Hotel Morales in Guadalajara was perfect in terms of location, onsite restaurant and amenties was perfect. Our driver Ceaser was a sweet heart, kind, gentle & always on time or even a tad early. We knew we could depend on him. Our tour guide Josue was wonderful, helpful & very knowledgeable. Our trip to Oaxaca was a dream come true and our hotel at Hotel La Parra was amazing. The pool & bar side service were wonderful. Our trip to Mezcal country was a special experience. We also were blown away with the rooftop access and terrace at our second hotel in Oaxaca. Our last night was in the cute Mexico City neighborhood of Coyoacan and we loved our quaint b&b at Casa Jacinta, but the showstopper & grand finale Gastronmic workshop & coffee tasting was beyond any experience we could have imagined. It was the best way to end a dream vacation and left us full with happiness!

Activity Reviews

Learn how to prepare delicious traditional food

Mexico City

This experience was truly one of the highlights of the week and a perfect ending to a perfect vacation! The education & guidance for our cooking experience was superb. We learned techniques on how to chop veggies, prepare food and tricks w/ garlic. The menu that was provided was so much and a great way to learn about Mexican culture and dining. The food was delicious and our Host Chef was excellent. He truly made us feel comfortable and he was very entertaining & engaging. This experience was exciting, enjoyable and full of passion.

Quality of Experience

The Chef, his direction, menu and the whole experience!

Food

The Guacamole, Mezcal, Coffee Drinks, Rice, and putting it all together

Biking tour and street art

Oaxaca

My Birthday Day was kicked off with this amazing Bike Street Art Tour and it did not disappoint! The guide Shai was amazing, kind and spirtual. She made the trip 5 star. Her kindness & help was beyond. Somehow we had no confirmation number and they initially were not going to let us on the trip. I was so upset, but she was kind, patient and spoke to Kim Kim so they could provide an email confirmation. Luckily it worked out. The tour itself was perfect. Plenty of stops to see art, hear explanation and a few stops to galleries as well. A perfect size group too and the best way to cover a lot of ground in the busy city roads of Oaxaca.

Quality of Experience

All

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Shai was the best tour guide ever

Transport

Bikes were comfy and great to have mountain bikes on the cobblestone roads

The Mezcal Route

Oaxaca

A wonderful day with lots of stops to see many things that make Mezcal country special. Loved the variety of places we visited and the two different type Mezcal Distilleries. They really were informative and the Mezcal was yummy. Our private dinner at a families house was very special and the food was very good.

Quality of Experience

The whole day

Food

Homemade food was wonderful

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Anna was a beautiful lady with a kind heart & very knowledgeable. She just needed to speak a bit louder

Transport

Wasn't so comfortable in the van. The driver never attemtped to talk to us. He wasn't mean just no connection w/ us

Walk through Oaxaca's colourful streets

Oaxaca

I did not personally do this tour as I wanted to see the Dias De los Muertos parade (we were not told about this by Leslie) but by our hotel and this was a priority. My roomate enjoyed the thour and thought it was great. She left it an hour early to go with me to the BIG parade!

Quality of Experience

seeing the town

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Archaeological Tour in Monte Albán

Oaxaca

A great place to visit to get the history of the area. It was a hot day and very busy so we cut the trip a little bit shorter. We appreciated the guide letting us cut the trip shorter as the information was alot to absorb.

Quality of Experience

Give options of 2 or more hours

Guides, Drivers and Staff

not sure

Transport

Tlaquepaque: The artisan's route

Guadalajara

This was a magical & visual experience I will never forget. Seeing all the town decorated for Dias de Los Muertos and the vendors and Catrinas was eye candy and made me so happy. I felt like this was my DisneyWorld experience. Loved seeing the town, alters, vendors and more. A special town with a special celebration.

Quality of Experience

Getting my face painted, watching the Brides Parade

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Helpful and knowledgeable

Transport

knew the short cuts to avoid traffic

Tlaquepaque: "The Magic of Cacao"

Mexico

A mouth watering sensory journey for your pleasure! This was an amazing tasting & educational experience. I learned so much and felt this was a special session that I would highly recommend to anyone.

Quality of Experience

The food, samples, drinks, atmosphere were top notch

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Educational & helpful

Transport

On time and helped with carrying my purchases!

Tequila Distilleries Tour

Guadalajara

Loved our guide & driver and the town of Tequila. I do think there was a little miscalculation of time and we didn't get to go to Jose Cuervo as we had been told. But what I appreciated about the guide was he wanted to make us happy and found a way to get us a tour at Sauza. That really was impressive to see how much they wanted us to have a good experience. The lunch was a little long in time but was a great choice for food & atmosphere. We really enjoyed the day.

Quality of Experience

timing of sightseeing

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Kind & Helpful

Transport

On time and enjoyed their company. It was great as we got familiar w/ them having them on other tours

Tiago incorporated all the places we wanted to see and arranged tours to do all the things we we asked for. All the hotels were wonderful. The port tasting and food tours were great with the best one in being in Lisbon, but the cork farm was a highlight for me. Nothing would have been as seamless, if we didn’t have Diogo taking us all over Portugal and explaining the culture. As a bonus he took us to a bar to see a soccer game. He shared all the history of his beloved country and knew every building, statue, river, bridge etc. Diogo enhanced the whole experience.

Hotel Reviews

Hotel Hospes Puerta de Alcalá

Madrid

Good location and helpful staff. Sweet treats were delivered to the room every afternoon.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Hotel Britania Art Deco

Lisbon

The art deco features were authentic and well done but the toilets and shower could be updated.

Authenticity & Character

Location

They were doing a big renovation across the street which was very noisy. There was so much traffic in that area it was hard to drive in and out. It was close enough to walk places but it was a long walk.

Staff

All the front desk people were very helpful

Cascade Wellness Resort

Lagos

Beautiful hotel and setting. The nicest room.

Location

Staff

Thomar Boutique Hotel

Tomar

The location ended up being good. We had a nice walk to the soccer bar from the hotel and also to another location the next day. They were very welcoming at check in with port.

Location

Staff

The Vintage House

Pinhão

Beautiful setting and view. Nice restaurant.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Beautiful view of the Douro river and vinyards.

Pousada Porto - Rua das Flores

Porto

Activity Reviews

Enjoy Dinner with Live Fado Music

Lisbon

The fado was well done but no explanation. The food was terrible.

Lisbon - half day guided visit

Lisbon

Good overview of Lisbon. Loved seeing the old town and Jewish section, Belem, the Coach museum. Diogo took us to all the mentioned places plus the overlook of the whole multi colored buildings and river.

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Diogo is the best!

Transport

Cascais & Sintra Guided Visit

Portugal

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Lisbon Market, Food and Cultural Walk (morning)

Lisbon

Excellent food in welcoming places

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Cork Farm Visit

Portugal

Loved the enthusiasm of our guide. She explained in great detail how the farm worked and all the extra things that were done in addition to the details of cork harvesting and the many ways cork can be used.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Wine Estate Visit in the Douro Valley

Portugal

Not worth it. Repeat of the same info.

Port Wine Cellars & Tasting Experience

Porto

The history was informative. The port was delicious.

Culinary Tour of Porto

Porto

It was just ok. Nothing special. The food market was nice.

Food

The overall trip was a remarkable experience being my first time to Morocco. My guide Yassine and I covered a lot of ground in the 10 days I was there but that was what it was meant to be. My next trip to Morocco will most likely be to spend more time in each city/village, etc. to get more of the daily life experience.

As I mentioned, Yassine was my guide throughout the trip. By the second day, I felt like we were "brothers". We got along so well. His warm, welcoming nature and knowledge, I couldn't ask for more. I enjoyed and looked forward traveling with him everyday, he made the trip so easy. It was hard leaving him on the last day but hope to have a lasting friendship well into the future. I would certainly, without hesitation, recommend him as a guide. Here's to you Yassine!!!

So hard to pinpoint what was my favorite of places since they all had their own uniqueness. My top four would be the overnight in the desert (Merzouga), Chefchaouen (wished I had spend two nights instead of one), Fes and Marrakech. Feeding the barbary apes in the Atlas Mountains was a highlight as well.

In addition to Yassine, I also had day guides in some of the cities/villages I visited.

Taher, was my guide as he showed me the ancient Roman ruins of Volubilis, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Very pleasant, he informed me of the history of the once former grand city along with its demise.

My Fes guide, Said, was a true gentleman. Also a very knowledgeable, educated person who showed me the Royal Palace, Jewish Quarter and the medina. We had great conversation at lunch of which we shared New York stories as he once lived there for a time. I hope to reconnect if he was to visit NYC again or myself to Morocco.

In the oasis town of Tinghir, my guide Mustapha, showed me the palmeraie, which is a green oasis where the locals grow their own food and then we walked through the Mellah (old Jewish area). Although my time with Mustapha was limited, I was humbled by the experience.

Lastly, my day guide in Marrakech, Rachid, showed me the Bahia Palace, the Saadian Tombs and the souks (bazaars) of the city. Also a pleasant, happy person to be with, Rachid seems to be what I would consider a "foodie type" as he brought me to untouristed places for tea/coffee and then to lunch in the Mellah at a restaurant which served lamb cooked from a Merchoui underground oven made of bricks and local earth. The lambs are drained, steamed and roasted for several hours. If you're a meat/lamb eater, you've never tasted anything like this - amazing!

I will treasure my trip to Morocco in the years to come having the privilege to have met such wonderful people. I hope to return sooner than later. My love to you all.

Erin and her team were all phenomenal from start to finish with this trip. We were initially very overwhelmed with planning it out until working with the team who were super attentive and gave us so many options for activities to book based on our interests, as well as booking all of our accommodation for us and bus transport between cities. They were so helpful when we finally arrived in Chile, gave us a briefing on arrival and a very detailed itinerary outlining where we would be going and when we should leave. One of the highlights was that they arranged for us to have a private tour of Torres del Paine National Park with an amazing tour guide who was super friendly and knowledgeable, cannot recommend Christian enough and our driver for the day Miguel was also a very safe and careful driver!
We ended up missing one of our tours due to a misunderstanding and Nara really stepped up and helped us find a fantastic alternative activity to take up that day, where we had an unforgettable horse trek at Pingo Salvaje outside Puerto Natales, another highlight of the trip!
Erin, Nara and all the team were amazing and we cannot thank them enough for helping us make the most unforgettable trip happen!

Activity Review

Torres del Paine Full Day Private Tour

Chile

Amazing and unforgettable tour with the best tour guide!

Quality of Experience

Tour guide was so knowledgeable and took us to the best spots, was also very patient

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Guide and driver were great. Driver was super safe

Transport

We loved visiting Peru and learning about the country and culture! Our favorite places were Tahauyo Lodge in the Amazon rain forest, Cusco and Lake Titicaca in Puno. Our guide in the rain forest was Juan. He was so knowledgeable about all the plants and animals in and around the rain forest. We saw so many amazing animals including: pink dolphins, pigmy marmosets, emerald tree boa, sloth, river otter, peacock bass, caiman and LOTS of awesome birds. Juan was amazing and taught us so much! Cusco was our favorite city. The people were so kind and genuine in and around town. We especially loved spending Halloween with all the sweet children around the city square. They were so lovely in their costumes and so polite when we were handing out candy. Great Halloween in Cusco! Our guide in Puno, Willie, was fantastic! I especially liked how he would tell us things in English and Spanish to help us learn. His passion for his country and culture were contagious. He taughus a lot about the local people and history. We especially enjoyed our trip on Lake Titicaca and exploring the islands. Such a beautiful place! Overall, we were very happy with our travel and accommodations. When we did have some minor challenges, Anne was responsive and helpful in getting things sorted. We would highly recommend a trip to Peru and the use of Peruvian Soul to coordinate it.

Hotel Reviews

Intiqa

Puno

Lovely, helpful staff. Comfortable room. Nice breakfast and common areas. Convenient to lots of restaurants and shops.

Authenticity & Character

Cute decor

Location

Close to restaurants and shops

Staff

Super friendly and helpful

Cleanliness & Comfort

Clean and comfortable

El Mapi by Inkaterra

Cusco

Beautiful hotel, nice location. Comfortable room, nice restaurant and common areas.

Authenticity & Character

Lovely decor

Location

Close to train station, shopping and restaurants

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Clean and comfortable

Los Portales Cusco

Cusco

Lovely, friendly staff. Comfortable room and common areas. Excellent food and service in the restaurant. Super close to the square with lots of shopping and restaurants. Nice place to stay!

Authenticity & Character

Lovely decor

Location

Close to the square

Staff

Friendly and professional

Cleanliness & Comfort

Comfortable room and common areas

Inotawa Lodge

Nice staff and good food. The lodge itself needs repairs and upgrades. There was no warm water or shampoo in the bathroom. The mosquitoes were horrific and the room had so many openings in the walls and floors, that they (and other bugs) came right in. The common areas need to be screened in, so you can eat and relax without cockroaches and mosquitoes intruding. The stairs up to the lodge and pathways were in need of repair and were difficult to walk on. The guide, Joaquim, was great. The boat excursions were enjoyable, but the forest excursions were difficult to enjoy because of the swarms of mosquitoes. We liked the people and loved seeing the animals, but the lodge needs some improvements.

Authenticity & Character

Lodge needs some work

Location

Away from civilization

Staff

Friendly and professional

Cleanliness & Comfort

Add screened in areas, make repairs, offer warm water and shampoo in rooms

Innside Lima Miraflores by Melia Hotels International

Miraflores

Nice, comfortable hotel. Great bed and linens. Nice breakfast. Helpful staff.

Authenticity & Character

Nice decor

Location

Near shopping and restaurants

Staff

Helpful

Cleanliness & Comfort

Lovely, comfortable room

Tahuayo Lodge

Lovely staff and a lodge with basic comforts. The staff was very friendly and flexible. Great food and beverage options. The rooms were comfortable with nice linens, hot and cold water and lights. Nice common areas. Excellent guide (Juan) and lots of great options for excursions. Clean and basic, perfect for exploring the Amazon rain forest.

Authenticity & Character

Great, basic lodge

Location

Away from civilization

Staff

Super friendly and professional

Cleanliness & Comfort

Clean, comfortable room

Double Tree Iquitos

Iquitos

Comfortable hotel, excellent service! Our room was well appointed and comfortable. The staff was helpful and professional. The restaurant staff was very accommodating with my vegetarian requirements. We enjoyed our stay.

Authenticity & Character

Local decor

Location

Near the square

Staff

Accommodating and professional

Cleanliness & Comfort

Clean, comfortable room

Activity Reviews

Sillustani tombs

Puno

Fascinating ruins! We enjoyed learning about the history and meeting the local people.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Sailing in Lake Titicaca, Taquile, Luquina & the Uros floating Islands

Puno

Wow! What an amazing day. This was one of our favorite things about the trip. The floating islands are incredible. We enjoyed meeting the people and seeing how they live. Taquile was absolutely stunning. We enjoyed visiting and meeting the folks there. Lovely lunch experience.

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Scenic Journey to from {{start_location}} to {{end_location}}

Peru

The day with stops ended up being 12-1/2 hours. WAY too long in a car. Our guide, Willie, was awesome and we really enjoyed all of the stops along the way, it was just a really long day.

Quality of Experience

Food

They weren’t prepared for a vegetarian.

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Machu Picchu Exploration

Aguas Calientes/ Machu Picchu

Wish we would have had the whole day, because the weather was wet and foggy in the morning and we couldn’t see the ruins very well.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

The train on the way back was MUCH nicer than the one on the way there. I would use the nicer train both ways.

Ollantaytambo Village and Inca Site Exploration. Pinkulluna Hike

Peru

Beautiful ruins and valley.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Pisac Archaeological Site

Peru

Beautiful ruins and valley. We loved the cultural stop with the painting and music. Loved learning about the different instruments and uses. Very nice family and environment.

Quality of Experience

Painting

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Lunch at Chuncho Restaurant

Peru

Nice restaurant! Great staff and food. Enjoyed watching them make the Uchucuta dip.

Quality of Experience

Food

Uchucuta dip was awesome!

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Sacsayhuaman & Cusco Guided

Cusco

Loved the visit to the ruins and the textile place. Beautiful experience.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Welcome to Cusco City

Cusco

Missed our connection to Cusco, so arrived later than anticipated. Our guide, Cesar, was very friendly and helpful.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Inotawa Lodge 2/3: Las Torres Claylick & Tres Chimbadas Lake

Tambopata

Loved the trip to the lake! We saw monkeys, river otters and beautiful birds. Best part of the lodge experience.

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Inotawa Lodge 3/3: Leaving Tambopata

Tambopata

Comfortable ride.

Quality of Experience

Food

No food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Urban food tour at Lima Historical Center

Lima

Great overview of Lima. Tough tour for a vegetarian, not many options.

Quality of Experience

Food

More vegetarian options

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Knowledge and friendly

Transport

Comfortable

Endless possibilities in the Tamshiyacu-Tahuayo Reserve

Iquitos

Amazing excursions tailored to our needs. Our guide, Juan, was fantastic! He was knowledgeable, professional and friendly.

Quality of Experience

Excursions, staff and food

Food

Great vegetarian options, lots of fresh fruit and veg

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Friendly and helpful

Transport

Journey to Tamshiyacu-Tahuayo Reserve from Iquitos City

Iquitos

Pleasant ride, nice staff. We got to see the pink dolphins on the way…added bonus!

Quality of Experience

Pleasant ride

Food

No food provided

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Professional staff

Transport

Inotawa Lodge 1/3: Boat Journey to your lodge & Nightwalk

Tambopata

Pleasant, comfortable ride. Nice lunch on the way to the lodge.

Quality of Experience

Food

Awesome, local lunch!

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Friendly staff

Transport

Guadalajara and Oaxaca, Mexico. My friend, Deb Weed, organized the trip and worked extensively with Leslie on planning and Ximena on the details. So I was along for the ride. From my prespective, the trip was fabulous. Our guide (Josue) & driver (Caesar) in Guadalajara were friendly, prompt, sincere and flexible. We felt like they were our friends when we left. Day trip to Tequila was memorable. In Oaxaca, our guide for our art bike tour (Shai from Coyote Aventuras) and Ximena helped us through a miscommunication issue which was resolved satisfactorily. Ximena was available every step of the way to help. She was awesome. Last night was in Mexico City before our departure, we did a cooking class with Luis Alfonzo, chef of Barra de Cafe de Malinche which was over the top. I will definitely recommend KimKim to my friends.

Hotel Reviews

Casa Jacinta Guest House

Del Carmen, Coyoacán, Ciudad de México

Only one night here but wish it were more. Property was cute and quaint in a good neighborhood.

Suites de la Parra

Oaxaca

Only stayed one night, but loved the penthouse suite. Large suite with outdoor patio and 360 degree views. Lots of stairs to the penthouse.

Hotel De La Parra

Oaxaca

This smaller hotel was perfect for us. The location was perfect and within walking distance for all of the Day of the Dead feastivies and sightseeing. The staff was very helpful. Loved the pool area and the ability to get a cocktail in the afternoon. Breakfast was delightful.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Hotel Morales Historical & Colonial Downtown Core

Mexicaltzingo, Guadalajara, Jal.

We loved this hotel with its rich history. Beautiful courtyards and centrally located. The restaurant was an added plus since some nights we were too tired to venture out. Staff was very accommodating.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Learn how to prepare delicious traditional food

Mexico City

Loved this private experience! Luis, our chef, was amazing, friendly and professional. The food we prepared was delicious and we learned that everything is used in one form or another. Highly recommend this experience.

Tlaquepaque: "The Magic of Cacao"

Mexico

Christina Taylor was amazing with this private experience. You could tell she was passionate about her work and shared that passion with us. Loved the pairing portion of the tasting.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Josue (guide) and Casear (driver) were professional, knowledgeable and very friendly.

The tours were excellent and the tour guides knowledgeable, friendly, helpful and prepared to go beyond my expectations to allow me to experience the atmosphere of Chile,

There were a couple of hiccups along the way but your organization worked diligently and solved them quickly. The one was prior notification prior to the start of the tours in San Pedro de Atacama and the second was where the tour ended (different from where it began). Both were resolved quickly by your extremely responsive staff,

Thank you.

Hotel Reviews

Hotel La Casa de Don Tomás

San Pedro de Atacama

very rustic with very nice services

Authenticity & Character

Fits into the area so well

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Novapark

Santiago

Excellent service

Authenticity & Character

It's a hotel

Location

right downtown

Staff

Helpful

Cleanliness & Comfort

Clean and comfortable

Activity Reviews

Evening Astronomy Tour

San Pedro de Atacama

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Cejar & Tebinquiche Lagoons - Atacama Salt Flat

San Pedro de Atacama

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Tatio Geysers

San Pedro de Atacama

Really important to have start time knowledge before the tour starts especially at 0500.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Half day Moon Valley and Mirador Ckari

San Pedro de Atacama

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Rainbow Valley

San Pedro de Atacama

Again knowledgeable guides and very capable passing the knowledge on

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Full Day - Valparaiso & Viña del Mar

Santiago

Same guide and driver. very knowledgeable and friendly. It was like being on an adventure with a buddy. Highest marks.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Panoramic City Tour

Santiago

History and beauty of the city and the country

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

From the first interaction with Tamer through KimKim, we were blown away by his excellent customer service, kindness, and professionalism. We really hadn't done much research on the Galapagos and so he had his work cut out for him. He came up with an outstanding itinerary for our 10 day adventure across Quito and the Islands of Santa Cruz (with a day tour to Bartolome), two day stay on Isabela, and another two days in San Cristobal. Prior to our departure, we had several phone calls with him verifying the hotels, tours, etc, and he truly managed to make us even more excited than we already were about our trip. He also touched based with us each day of our journey to check in and re-verify pick up times, itinerary, and what we needed for the next day ahead. The entire experience was seamless, and we were throughly impressed with the way we were handed off and taken care of during the periods of transition to ports and activities. The tour guides he set us up with ( Viviana, Philipe, Eduardo, Wilson, and Sebastian just to name a few) on the different islands and mainland were incredibly knowledgable, hospitable, and so very friendly! We elected for the luxury accommodations and it was definitely worth the extra expense as it made us feel safe and well taken care of. On our adventures, we were able to see many blue footed boobies, frigate birds, sea lions with brand new pups, giant land tortoises, and snorkeled with sea turtles, and white tip sharks! The Galápagos penguins had migrated to a part of Isabela island that we weren't able to visit, but this was truly the only animal we wanted to see that we weren't able to for the time of year we traveled. This honestly was a trip of a lifetime, but in no way would we have been able to plan it on our own. Tamer even took the time out of his day to meet us for coffee in Quito which was just another testament to what it was like to work with him in planning this incredible journey. Thank you for everything, Tamer! We highly recommend working with him and his company to plan your adventures!

Hotel Reviews

Hotel Solymar

Galápagos

Great location on the Harbor. Right on the main strip with access to great restaurants and shops. Great food and drinks at the hotel restaurant too!

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Wyndham Quito Airport

Quito

Great choices at the hotel buffet, comfortable beds and great view of the Andes. Prime location for early or late flights is a perk.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Golden Bay Galapagos – Specialty Boutique Hotel

Puerto Baquerizo Moreno, San Cristóbal

By far the most beautiful room of our stay. Watching the sea lion pups on our balcony and off the hotel property was incredible. Eating at the hotel restaurant MUYU is a must!

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Albemarle

Puerto Villamil

This hotel was an amazing experience with great views of the sunset, friendly and hospitable staff and very clean accommodations. Be sure to grab a local beer from the lobby and enjoy the rooftop terrace at sunset! You might even catch a local soccer game if you are lucky!

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Review

Kicker Rock: A Snorkeling Adventure

Isla San Cristóbal

Great snorkeling adventure! The tour guide and boat crew were wonderful and we even had a champagne toast at the end of the day to celebrate new friends and a wonderful day on the water.

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Our family (two kids, 10 and 14) had a great time in Sydney and really appreciate the opportunity to set it up in advance. Ruth was very accommodating in building and changing our trip plans and made sure we were well prepared before leaving.

We really enjoyed touring the city by foot, boat and bike, including the Bonza bike tour. We stayed in a short-stay apartment in Nesuto Woolloomoolloo, which was a great quiet launching point for the Royal Botanic Garden, Harris Farm Market and restaurants in Potts Point. Highly recommend wandering through the Royal Botanic Garden in spring! We also enjoyed our tours through Southern Highlands, Northern Beaches and Blue Mountains and recommend planning ahead to keep kids happy on the long drives, though the time in the mountains on beaches made it worthwhile.
Recommend the Aussie Gold Tour at the Taronga Zoo, as the behind the scenes and up front look at the Aussie animals, with tour guide, really made the visit. We also loved the Sharks exhibit at the Australia Museum, short-time only.

Ruth worked with us to bring down the overall cost of our trip, and it really was helpful to have all of the arrangements made for us and put into a single trip plan. It was good to know that we could swap things in and out to meet our needs.

Activity Reviews

Ocean Cliffs & Blowhole, Waterfalls, Wineries & Rural Delights Southern Highlands Tours and South Coast

Sydney

This tour has a lot to offer, and it's mostly enjoyable when you let the tour guide and KimKim know up front what you'd like to do. For example, we loved the Illawarra Fly Park and found out that we needed to reserve the zipline tour ahead of time. Unfortunately for us, the zipline was not available, as it was too windy that day anyway. We enjoyed the stop for lunch and shops in Kiawa and enjoyed spending some leisurely time at Illawarra. We even saw a wombat in the wild on the way there and some local birds at the Park.

Quality of Experience

variety, pretty landscape, loved the rainforest at Illawarra

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Go Beyond was friendly, accommodating

Transport

Taronga Zoo - Morning Aussie Backyard Adventure Tour

Sydney

It was great to have a private guided tour of some of the Aussie animals, including up close visit with the koalas. Zoos can be crowded and overwhelming, so this quiet tour was a great way to start our visit.

Quality of Experience

the animals

Guides, Drivers and Staff

friendly, knowledgeable

Blue Mountains Day Trip with Hike

Sydney

Loved the short and longer hikes in the Blue Mountains, including some really diverse geography and flora. We had a very friendly and knowledgeable tour guide and enjoyed the Botanic Garden and apple pie stops towards the end of the trip.

Quality of Experience

variety, hiking

Food

apple pie stop

Guides, Drivers and Staff

friendly, knowledgeable

Transport

comfortable van

If you are traveling to South America, you need to go to Patagonia / Torres del Paine National Park & stay at Patagonia Camp. It is the most luxurious glamping & unique stay we've ever experienced! Emilce was wonderful & helped plan the perfect honeymoon for us!

Our trip to Scotland planned by Rachel exceeded our expectations and became the trip of a lifetime for us! With very little lead time, she planned a two week trip filled with wonderful experiences and excellent accommodations. We were fortunate to have excellent guides to drive us from one location to another. Their commentary and insights helped us to appreciate what we were seeing. We especially enjoyed Neil McLeod, who did a fantastic job of finding interesting sights and stops for us, and we loved his stories! We had such a good time together and he made our trip filled with special moments.

We asked Rachel for some quiet times to sit by the fire or read, and we loved being able to do that at The Haven Guest House and Monachle Mohr. The DunstaneHouse was also memorable and in a great location.

Hotel Reviews

Monachyle Mhor

Lochearnhead

This is a dream come true kind of place! In a gorgeous setting. Our room was super clean and comfortable. The staff was outstanding and the food was the best we had on our trip. Don't miss staying is this unique and wonderful place.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

The Roseate

Edinburgh

We had a comfortable room and loved the location. The food was amazing and the staff went out of their way to be friendly and provide excellent service.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

the biscuits provided, modern luxurious bathrooms

Activity Reviews

Visit Inverarary Castle

Scotland

Edinburgh Private Walking Tour

Edinburgh

This was not the ordinary walking tour! Our private guide took us to several places in the city that were off the beaten path and so interesting! She had a wonderful presentation!

Quality of Experience