Kimkim Trip Reviews

Ash, our guide, was amazing. He was a great driver on challenging Sri Lanka roads. Ash is also very knowledgeable and infinitely great company. We loved every minute with him.

Planning with Shalindra was very easy too. We had just one misunderstanding re our need for a guide and driver. We ended up paying for both but only getting (and needing) Ash who was well qualified to both drive and guide. We did get a $100 credit, but that type of confusion at the beginning of a vacation far from home is a bit concerning.

Overall a wonderful trip!!

The trip was well-planned but had a couple of glitches. We did not receive the packet of materials including daily schedule until 2 days before the trip. It probably should have been sent earlier. Also we were scheduled to leave the hotel in Santa Marta several hours before out flight. Since it was a domestic flight and the airport is only 25 minutes from the hotel, that was too early. Fortunately our birding guide was able to call the office and have it changed so we arrived only 90 minutes in advance.

Our birding guide, Breiner, was excellent. He is only 20 year old, but is able to recognize birds almost instantly by sight or sound, even when the birds are mostly obscured by foliage or flying high in the sky.

The accommodations at Eldorado lodge were fine and the food was good.

We did not like the hotel in Santa Marta, Casa del Farol. It was conveniently located very close to the center of town and restaurants, but the water for the shower was not even luke warm; the shower heads were broken; and their advertisement of an afternoon happy hour was not correct. They did not even have sodas to purchase.

The trip was amazing, more than I could have hoped for. I was able to meet with winemakers and winery owners. The guide assigned to my trip was extremely knowledgeable and was able to answer all of my questions.

Everyone showed up on time, and schedules were flexible enough to meet our needs. No problems, no "hitches", no hassle.

Very well done!

Natalia was superb. I initially indicated there would be about 10 people traveling and ultimately there were 17. She did an excellent job of structuring an itinerary (consisting of Santa Marta- Zipaquira- Villa de Leyva-Bogota-Medellin-Guatape-El Penol- Santa Elena) to accommodate my requests. She graciously and quickly accommodated every change as needed. She did a terrific job of planning the trip, choosing the hotels, securing the airline tickets, acquiring all the subcontractors, responding to inquires, and making adjustments as needed 'on the go'. She was totally accessible, even responding to What'sApp texts on Sunday morning during the tour, and immediately interfacing with bus drivers when there was confusion about their location.

Her choice of subcontractors for guiding and transportation was excellent. All of the vehicles were new or nearly new, and had ample space for all passengers and luggage. The 6 personable guides were always on time, spoke excellent English, and had a immense grasp of the history, culture, and noteworthy information of the locations we visited.

KimKim's pricing was very fair. It's 5% surcharge became somewhat confusing from time to time, and it's payment system for payments from multiple guests was somewhat clunky, but we managed to get it straightened out quickly and completely before the trip even started.

In summary, I would gladly recommend KimKim and Natalia to anyone who wanted a great travel planner and booking agent in Colombia.

Our experiences in Sri Lanka were amazing ! Prior to the trip Sandun helped us put together an itinerary that suited our interests and needs. He always replied promptly and courteously and even rang during the trip to check all was going well.
Our Guide , Sath Kumara was outstanding throughout our 20 day trip. He was professional, knowledgeable and had a great sense of humour. It was like travelling with a friend. Nothing was ever too much trouble and he presented the car each morning washed and spotless.
Every day of our holiday brought new and awesome experiences but some of the highlights included climbing Sigiriya's Lion Rock to see the remains of an ancient palace and soak in unbelievable views; getting up close and personal with elephants and other wild life at Udawalawe and Yala National Parks; watching fishermen haul in their night's catch on the beach at Mirissa; walking through fish and vegetable markets with the locals; Jaffna, Delft Island and Point Pedro; visiting Danbulla's Cave Temple and witnessing history going back to 1st century BC; riding on the scenic train from Kandy to Ella through the tea plantations, vegetable gardens and high mountains. The list could go on. Sri Lanka is so diverse and to date unspoilt. Kumara and Sandun you made it the BEST holiday. Thank you.

I booked a 6 day trip with Umoja to visit Rwanda together with my girlfriend

Agnes was very responsive on the KimKim chat at helping me tailor the trip I wanted (seeing some of Kigali, chimps in Nyungwe, gorillas and golden monkeys in Volcanoes NP), and the quote from Umoja combined with KimKim's relatively modest commission made the trip much cheaper than comparable quotes I got from traditional agencies.

Eric was the guide on the trip itself and he was excellent. Picked us up and made us feel welcomed at the airport, and struck a great balance between being informative and helpful but also providing us the space and freedom we needed to enjoy the holiday.

Would definitely recommend talking to Agnes about your next trip to East Africa.

Thanks Sotiria for an helping us plan an amazing trip to Iceland!
We had such a great time there and are so pleased we ended doing all the fun things you suggested. The waterfalls and the ice cave were the highlights of the trip!

We spent two weeks traveling around to multiple areas in Costa Rica. Randall helped us with a tremendous itinerary enjoying different climates and activities along the way. Some of the recommendations for dining were expensive and we didn't go to them as there were many choices available in each town. Beware the tour to Osa Pennisula is very remote, don't compare the accommodations to your standards! Drake Bay has only had electricity since 2007 and building codes are something they are not familiar with. That said, it was perfect and unspoiled.

This trip was fantastic. I had some ideas as to what I wanted to do in Norway, but Ingrid put together the itinerary to accomplish it in a really unique trip.

We flew from Minneapolis to Amsterdam, then to Oslo, and finally to Tromso, before transferring to the Malangen Resort. Delicious dinner at the resort. We stayed in one of the deluxe cabins. The next day we went dogsledding and saw the Northern lights. We were allowed to mush our own team of dogs and were given a snack (reindeer sandwich and coffee/tea afterwards).

The next day we flew to Oslo and explored on our own. The next morning we had a 3-hour walking tour around Oslo with Stig, a knowledgeable local guide. That afternoon we saw several museums including the Viking ship museum and the modern art museum.

Then on to Geilo where we stayed at the Dr. Holms hotel for several days. One day we went cross country skiing with Hilde and Jorgen from vinternatt.no. Then for the next two days of snowkiting in Haugastol, I rented a car so that I could drive there, yet my wife could stay in Geilo and be close to the spas, etc.

Following this we took the train to Flam, fjordcruise to Gudvangen, then on to Bergen. The next morning in Bergen, we met David a local musician and guide. Following Bergen, we took a train back to Oslo and then flew home.

I had never been to Norway previously and contact KimKim with only basic requests as to the activities I wanted to do. Ingrid put together a great itinerary that was easy to follow. We felt like we saw a great amount of Norway but it also left us wanting to return. We look farward to working with KimKim for future trips.

Jordan was exhilarating, the itinerary was perfect, well scheduled and planned. Two more days in Petra would be fantastic, but that will have to be for another time. Special mention to our driver/guide and friend, Hasheem 'Petra', and to Why?jordantours for this unforgettable adventure.

The driver/guide Ruwan Hadinnapola was A++... He went out of his way to please us and help us in many ways. His conduct is truly exemplary. He and Shalindra made our trip to Sri Lanka very enjoyable and successful. Rowan had a nice comfortable air conditioned car that took us to different places.
The places we went to like the safari, Kandy and the shore were most memorable. In fact, the whole time we were in the six day tour were very comfortable and enjoyable. We wish all the best to the Kim Kim team.
Mohamed and Nuzhat Masood.

My 27 year old son and I had an amazing trip to Patagonia. Erin and Emily planned it beautifully. Every place we stayed, every connection and each experience was just what we wanted and more. Even when the weather was uncooperative we were able to make the most of an activity. We especially enjoyed staying at the all inclusive Hotel Rio Serrano right outside of the park. The accommodations were luxurious and the guides and daily excursions gave us a terrific understanding of the area and wonderful memories. Erin and Emily were always available to help with questions and get us through a missed flight connection. and any other hiccup along the way. They gave us a sense of security while traveling down at the bottom of the world. I will recommend Dittmar Adventure to any friend planning a trip to southern Chile and Kimkim for anywhere in the world.

The Dittmar team went above and beyond for our adventure. Erin really took the time to understand the type of trip we were seeking from the very beginning. She brought to the table amazing suggestions on how to incorporate both the Cerro Castillo trail with Fitz Roy and a classic road trip. They made logistics easy as pie for our small group. Even when we blew two car tires on the classic Carrera Austral, their team jumped in with support immediately. The four day through hike for Cerro Castillo was my favorite trail to date. It lived up to all of the expectations that the Dittmar team provided. I'd highly recommend using their team if you are looking for a laid back, self-guided adventure through Patagonia!

The trip was marvelous. Yenyi was very responsive, attentive and made a real effort to understand what we were looking for and arrange it for us.
Our particular favorites were the all day ride through the countryside around Monteverde with Horse Trek Monteverde. Flavio, who rode with us, was friendly and informative and pleasure to spend the day with. The owner, Marvin, was very generous in showing us the stable and his horses at the beginning of the day. He is a skilled, knowledgeable, passionate, charismatic horseman and was incredibly fun to talk to. And, the country side was magnificent!
Another highlight was a rafting trip in the tenerio area which was super fun with a great guide.
With one small exception which was quickly remedied, all of the plans and pick ups worked perfectly.
Thanks, Yenyi!

Nepal in one word is......AMAZING! My husband and I were heading towards India for a wedding but wanted to make sure we could include at least a short trip to Nepal. Tashi and his team made it possible and we were able to see Kathmandu as well as hike up to see Everest.

Firstly, the whole organisation and process was incredibly easy. Tashi understood quickly what we wanted and organised it within days. His response time, even with the time difference, was within hours even.

Once we arrived, he was there with the driver to pick us up. Explained the entire next steps and made sure everything with our hotel was fine. He even organised a "to-go" breakfast from our hotel for the next morning at 4:30am (since heading to Lukla that morning). That morning he brought us to the airport, explained the process, and kept in contact with our guides during the whole trek to make sure everything was running smoothly. Once we flew back to Kathmandu from Lukla, we had a few more hours until our next flight, and he used the time to show us another beautiful site, and we got to enjoy a nice tea together there. His detailed dedication to the guests is impeccable and highly appreciated. I've never felt so well taken care of by any tour company.

The trek itself was stunning and perfectly planned. We arrived in Lukla around mid-morning (after a few flight delays). Our guide, Mingma Gyaljen, and sherpa, Fu Renji were waiting for us once we arrived. They then took us to a Teahouse for a quick tea and introductions. From there we hiked to Phadking. It was a beautiful hike. There we spent the evening at the Khumbu Traveller's Guest House. The hosts were very friendly and welcoming, and made sure we had everything we needed (tasty food too). The second day we hiked up to Namche Bazaar. What a beautiful hike! It gets a bit uphill the last part, so you need to take your time. Both guides were very attentive and adapted to our speeds when needed. During the hike up, we stopped at the Sagarmatha National Park's 3.140m view point to get our first view of Everest. Once at Namche, we stayed at the Shangrila Lodges right in the middle of the town with a great view of the area. It was pretty cold up there since it was January but we kept warm at the fire, and our guide made sure we had enough blankets. The host made some amazing homemade Momo's for us too! The next morning, our guide woke us up at 6am as the sky was clear so we could hike up further to see the surrounding mountain peaks. We hiked up about 30minutes to 3.555m to get a perfect view of Everest, Lhotse, Nuptse, Tabuche and Amadablam and many more. We are so grateful to our brilliant guide and sherpa for suggesting it and taking us there! They both made sure we really enjoyed ourselves the entire trek.

Following that we hiked back to Lukla. There we stayed at the Sonam Lodge. The hosts made us feel like part of the family, and even came with us to the airport to make sure we had no issues.

The entire trip was more than any of our expectations and we definitely want to go back for a longer trek with the Tashi team. Thank you to Tashi, Mingma Gyaljen, Fu Renji, and the Teahouse hosts for the amazing experience!!

There was an issue with one of our excursions in Monteverde where the sky adventures park never received the reservation from desafio tour company and we had to reschedule the tour, which was a little disappointing

I had a wonderful trip in Guatemala. Everything was very well planned and executed. The communication with all involved was very impressive. David our local guide was very knowledgeable. The accomodation and transport was first class. I would highly recommend this adventure.

This is a response from Bernard and Jean as a couple.

In rating your services, we are making a direct comparison to the last time we were in India on a small tour in 2014 as well as a private tour in Portugal in 2017.

We found the contact with Preeti to be sporadic with twice having to contact kimkim because Preeti was not responding to emails. We suggest that kimkim should have a "follow through" strategy if staff/contractors are sick or on leave. All emails should be responded to within 24 hours.

The only time we had good response from Preeti was when payment was requested.

Accomodation, before and at the end of the tour, was not finalised until very late despite a number of requests for this to happen. As a result of this we booked our own private accommodation at the beginning and end of the tour which was infinitely better in character than was provided by the tour.

On previous tours we have been provided with an itinerary well beforehand by email as well as a paper copy on joining the tour. This was not offered or provided. We had to scroll through many emails to look for itinerary.

We were very pleased with our guide Arun. He was informative, knowledgable and well organised. He ensured that we were safely taken to our destinations re:accommodation, tourist sites etc. We would highly recommend him to any future tour groups.

Our driver Shaqa was also very good - he was polite, patient and got us safely around South India.
The vehicle provided was excellent and reliable. It was cleaned everyday and water bottles were provided on a daily basis.

A separate guide in Goa, Avi (sp), "shouted" at us. The only time he lowered his voice was in a church. He was however well informed and had a rich knowledge of the area.

We were disappointed by the accommodation provided. The hotels selected were all characterless boxes which could have been from anywhere in the world. It appeared that little thought was given to showing Indian authenticity and pride. On a private tour such as this we had an expectation that the accommodation would be chosen that reflected the character of the area.

Carlos was very communicative with us and flexible. He made our itinerary changes whenever we requested them and did his best to accommodate our schedule and interests. He made himself available via text message as soon as we arrived and was very helpful whenever I needed some local advice.

Amit, our guide throughout the trip was an exceptional young professional on so many levels. His personality and patient disposition were indispensable in creating a relaxed and fun experience. He is very knowledgeable in the 4 major religions of India and his command of dates and facts rivals a PhD in Eastern religion. A good teacher communicates by sharing stories and Amit explained wars (political and religious), customs, cultures, gods and goddesses and historical people like he was intimately involved with each one and sharing the history of his country as if reading a novel or watching a movie. Vividly, animatedly, and with humor. We were lucky to have had him all to ourselves!. He was also a fun person and highlighted his stories with personal tales of his life in India.

DalGeet Ji was an incredibly skilled driver. His knowing the roads all over Rajisthan, especially when construction and some political demonstrations lead to road blocks, made the trip so much more reliable and safe. Again, we were very lucky to have had him. He got along with Amit so well.

Highlights for me were: (1) the night in the Thar desert with the best meal of the trip cooked by Soda and Abdul over the open fire, (2) praying in the Sikh temple and then visiting the kitchen , (3) The sound and light water show in Delhi, (3) the colors of the markets, men and women's attire, (4) the graciousness of everyone in letting us photograph them, and (5) the elegant little hotels that each had cultural character, beauty and /or historical significance.