Kimkim Trip Reviews

Ingrid was quick at responding, understood what we wanted out of our trip and made the whole booking process very easy. I would definitely use Kim Kim again and would recommend it to others.

Chris, our local specialist did a phenomenal job at creating a customized itinerary on a very short turnaround when our travel plans changed right before our trip started. Chris was also really helpful in changing around our plans when there was an unexpected sickness on the trip. All of our guides were amazing. Manuel took us on a walking tour of Antigua which was a great way to start off our trip. In Monterrico, we had a really fun and relaxing afternoon kayaking with Alex. Alex was also able to help us when our transportation fell through last minute which was invaluable. My favorite day was our tour around Lake Atitlan. Edgar is really knowledgeable and was able to answer all of our questions. He showed us the beautiful town of San Juan where we explored the women's textile co-op and did some shopping. Our last day, we took a cooking class at Guatemala Food where we made a yummy and traditional dish of Pepian with Fernando, Joaquin, Carolina, and her family. The class was a really great way to end our trip and the group was really funny.

I'm so happy we chose to use KimKim and were partnered with Old Town Outfitters to assist with our trip! Our trip to Guatemala wouldn't have been the same without them.

Review for Nepal trip from13th February - 19th February
This was my first short trip to Nepal.
On the first day that I touched Nepal, my tour planner Kripa, Jeevan, driver Narayan, welcome me at the airport, Jeevan such a meticulous person, he quickly open a bottle of mineral water and pass it to me. Arrangement to meet Amanda, my tour guide Pratikshya, make me feel warm welcome to visit Nepal.

1st & 2nd day, stayed at The Inn Patan, an old traditional brick and timber Newari house transformed into a beautiful heritage hotel and interesting olden way to lock the door of the room. If it was not in winter time, it should be a very comfortable lying on the floor mat. Besides the building attracted me wanted to come back to stay in this hotel again was the service provided by the waiter here, his name Sam and also the great food provided by the chef.

One thing must try in Patan here was the mountain flight and I was quite lucky to be able to take the flight and view the long waited, charming Mt Everest and panoramic view of the Himalayas.
I like greenery and mountains, though can't stay near to Mt Everest but thank you for the arrangement to Astam, Annapurna Eco Village, it was a very beautiful place eventhough has to go thru a very bumpy road but worth for it. Along the way, you can see the magnificent views of Annapurna Range and Fishtail (Machhapuchhere). I like the warm, authentic and hospitality, I like the feeling of whole family involvement in preparing the food, sharing the joy, singing & dancing which left me a memorable experience. Hope can stay longer and try the yoga and meditation in future visit.

I think it is not an good idea to leave Astam at noon, because have to miss the delicious lunch and upon reaching Pokhara after the normal lunch time.... Self exploration of the Lakeside town also not suitable for person like me whom don't like the heat and dust under the sunny afternoon.
Back from Pokhara to Kathmandu, meet another driver, Arjun. He was quiet but with wonderful smile. You will feel safe with his skillful driving along up to hilltop. Another place that I love - Namobuddha, Pratikshya arranged to have short walk and climb some staircases was a great way to explore Namobuddha, if the sky is clear, I can imagine the great view from the top however Nepal wanted me to go back therefore still left some mystery (foggy weather).

Besides scenery and rich culture, Kathmandu also has nice local food and snack waiting to explore, thanks Pratiksya recommendation. That I have chance to meet the member of Vespa Valley. Caring and friendly, Niraj, he brought me to taste the nice local Lasi, "laughing", meat momo, Newari food, samosa......the one that I love most -> Lasi, Bara?. Hope can try more and explore some other places by scooter ride.

Last, I would like to thank Kripa who planned the trip for me though I gave her a short notice for solo lady traveler like me, warm and caring call during flight delay at Pokhara and arrangement for hotel extension on my last day in Nepal because of late flight. Besides Kripa, someone whom I will not forget Jeevan, thank you for coming to say good bye.
Hope to see you guys in future visit.

Thank you, thank you and thank you again Andy for putting together such an exhilaratingly wonderful itinerary for me in Vietnam !! I loved the way you listened to what I was interested in when we chatted and texted several times beforehand because you really knocked it out of the park for me with everywhere I went !! Each place and all accommodations from the tropical feel of my hotel in the colorful and ancient city of Hoi An, to the gorgeous hotel in the significantly historical city of Hue, then up to Hanoi and my adorable boutique hotel, with an outstanding 2 day side trip out onto HaLong Bay staying overnight on a lovely classy boat, then all the way down to Phu Quoc island only to stay in the magnificent eco friendly resort of Mango Bay and then wrapping it all up in Saigon ... well it was simply just superb !! I loved all of my guides and especially have such fond memories of Mr. Troung and his driver who schooled me with emotional sights and many unknown historical facts of the war.
One of my most fun days was deciding to ditch a couple museums and hop on the back of the scooter of my guide in Hanoi and ride with the masses of those who miraculously and artfully flow through the city streets of organized chaos. It was tremendously exhilarating !!
I do not typically return to places I've already traveled to for the sole reason that our world is so big and I want to see it all, but I most definitely would return to Vietnam, travel throughout more of the country and hope for more beautiful encounters with it's warm and loving people ... but only if Andy was in charge of making it happen for me !!!

We had an incredible Myanmar trip that Anne Cruickshanks from Myanmar Pure helped put together. Anne was amazing in creating an itinerary filled with activities that were tailored to our interests, intentions and yet gently pushed us beyond what we normally do on our own trips.

She truly listened and talked to us prior to the trip to better understand us as travellers and proposed itineraries that suited our needs. Anne is responsive, intuitive and knows Myanmar beyond the beautiful pictures and images.

For our 16 days trip, she included the 'essentials' of Myanmar along with the 'personal/intimate' side of the country, that helped us not only see but experience and feel the country. From the religious/spiritual side of Myanmar to the friendly and charming people of the country to the many local food scenes that she and her guides set up for us were just simply amazing, loved the BBQ.

Being independent travellers, we had a fair sense of what we wanted from our trip but Anne and her team over delivered on each of the experiences and made our journey unforgettable. Some of the more memorable and unique experiences include the Buddhist Nunnery (very touching), the cooking lesson and market outing with Ma May (immersive, personal and delicious), the bike tours (a little exhausting but exhilarating), the sunset cruise (great way to end the day), the hikes (incredible views and great way to work up an appetite for the delicious foods of Myanmar). The guides and drivers were all very personable and Ah Korn was a stand out, he made the Bagan temples come to life with his story telling. Impressive.

The whole trip went smoothly without a hitch and Anne was there every step of our journey. I cannot wait for her next curated journey. J & R.

We were impressed by our guides along the way. In Santiago, Maria showed us the sights. She was very knowledgeable. Vivian picked us up at the airport and dropped us off for the flight home. She was lovely, stayed in contact on Whatsapp and was very helpful.
In St Pedro, the tours were interesting, guides Elaine and Sina were very good. Really enjoyed the Moon and Mars valley with Sina very much. She was a fountain of information. The wine and cheese at sunset was a nice surprise.
All went well in Puerto Varas and Chiloé. The car rental experience was excellent and it was nice to drive around and make our own plans. Parque Quilquico Hotel was outstanding. Lovely scenery, peaceful surroundings, great staff and fabulous food.
In Patagonia, we were met by the Los Torres driver, Hernan, who had lots of sights to point out and was very interesting. The Cerro Negro stop was nice. The Las Torres hotel was great. Glad we did the all inclusive. Room was comfortable, staff very helpful and the food was excellent. Even the box lunch was well done. The excursions were very interesting. Our guide, Steve, on the Full Paine was excellent, very knowledgeable and helpful. The horseback ride toLake Norgenskjol was fun, lovely horses and guides there too. All in all an unforgettable vacation!

All in all a wonderful experience very well managed, thank you.
Day 1: the first climb was almost a deal breaker. The path was not clear and we should have been warned that is was incredibly demanding.
Takahara ryokan was good. Private facilities and food were probably the best of all on the walk. Excellent packed lunch. To be able to fit around the tire at night after a private onsen was great.
Day 2: good walk with no surprises although the cold was extreme
Chikatsuyu food was good and private onsen enjoyable. Lack of private facilities was inconvenient although with only two other guests not a big problem
Day 3: this was an incredible trek, we did the entire 24kms, with ice and snow a real challenge, last 3 hours in rain made the achievement even more admirable. Knowing we had shorter options was comforting. Suggest it should end at Hongu as we had no time to sightsee given the bus timetable. Yunomineso was ok but again Hongu probably a better overnight stay. Hotel pick up and taxi drop off, enabled a later start after the exhausting walk, for next day were very convenient,
Day 4: good walk and enabled a little recovery. Momofuku was quaint but lack of private facilities was a little problematic. Nice hosts but we were over the food, especially the breakfasts by this stage.
Day 5: great walk and wonderful views on the way and just superb as we approached Nachi san. We should have stayed in Nachi san again to see more of the sites.
Kii-Katsuura, my choice, was disappointing. By this stage should have chosen a western hotel. Should have stayed in Nachi san. Lovely town to stroll around behind the train to Osaka.
Overall far more challenging than I thought but an incredible experience and achievement.
Directions, train abc bus connections all first class.

Karuizawa extension: fair to say we, especially Paula, were over ryokans at this stage again I should have requested a western hotel closer to the ski fields. Nevertheless the two days were saved by lovely snow falls and the outlet shopping, Paula was in heaven. Do highlight this in the future, some real bargains.
Food at tsuyaya was good and the buffet breakfast good fir westerners. Service was excellent here. If only the library had an open fire!
Travel by train back to Tokyo was again excellent, Japanese railways are impressive.
So all in all a great trip
Thanks for your planning, availability on the phone the only time needed, and efficient responses in preparation.
Our next walk will hopefully be coast to coast hopefully a little less demanding and not as rushed as I retire in a few months

As experienced travellers this was the first time we had 'outsourced' our travel planning and we couldn't have been happier with the outcome. Anne took the time to fully understand our ambitious wishlist and returned with a suggested itinerary that whilst action-packed never felt overwhelming or rushed.

Each of our local guides managed to strike the right balance between being extremely attentive whilst also letting us explore at our own leisure. As well as visiting flagship attractions such as Inle Lake and Bagan, the tour also provided an opportunity to scratch below the surface and visit places off the beaten track such as the fish markets of Yangon and artisan quarter of Mandalay. These combined experiences provided us with some fantastic memories and a genuine desire to return to Myanmar and explore this fantastic country further.

Huge thanks to Anne and our fantastic guides and trek leaders in Myanmar!

My husband and I just came back from our trip to Peru and it was amazing. Stephanie was great to work with and always went the extra mile in helping us out when we had last minute plans or changes. Although it was hard to get ahold of her in country, we were glad to meet her the first day and to be able to still communicate while on vacation some way or another.

Our transportation included terrific drivers, nice vehicles, and great views. The staff was on time and always helped us with our luggage. Likewise, the drivers ensured we were safe during the festivities of Carnival.

Our guides were amazing and we were pleased to have one on one private tours the entire time. We especially loved Juan in Machu Picchu because he gave us the freedom to explore while still receiving information about the magical sites. Although we cannot remember the guides name we had for Cusco and the Sacred Valley, we adored her! She was enthusiastic and always was concerned about our health especially with the altitude change. For example, the first day she let us cut part of our tour short because I was not feeling well! She was very knowledgable as well with the area! She even suggested great places to eat and things to do for the rest of our trip.

As for hotels go, not all of them were excellent and we did run into a couple of problems with room arrangements. Nevertheless, the hotels upgraded us twice and made us feel very welcomed and we were grateful for that! Meals were never too much of an issue, except towards the end of the trip. We wish we would have had the chance to know of places to eat that "won't get you sick" because we ate on the streets towards the end and we ended our last two days of our itinerary in bed instead of out and doing what we had originally planned.

Overall this was a great trip and I would definitely book again with this company! The only suggestions are to include more about packing tips or essentials, money exchange, and popular foods or restaurants to try! We were very satisfied though despite our hiccups here and there.

One of the best trips of my life! Tour was nicely set up, and Anne make changes where necessary when my flight screwed up my arrival. The Bagan tour guide was very good, and the accommodations at the hotel were superb. And the cooking class was very informative and tasty. Flights and airport transfers went without a hitch. I highly recommend the tour, and KimKim tour company.

My wife and I had arranged a holiday to Peru and took advantage of the international flights connecting via Bogota to spend a week in Colombia on the return journey.

I then researched via the internet for itineraries and transport options around Colombia, which is when I came across the Kimkim site for the first time. From then on the trip fell into place very nicely with Elisabeth from Aventur making contact with a suggested itinerary based on my stated preferences. A few changes were made at my request, and were accommodated by Elisabeth readily until we had the perfect itinerary for us. The proposal we received was detailed and clear, and included all transfers, guided tours and internal flights as well as a breakdown of hotels booked and inclusive meals . Everything was covered. The payment system was simple and secure via credit card.

The holiday itself was super, having come off the back of a great time spent in Peru I was concerned that our Colombia stay might have been overshadowed, but not at all! The variety of Colombia was reflected in our itinerary and made for a great experience.

Following our arrival at Bogota airport our polite private transfer driver was waiting at 'Arrivals' and drove us to our standard accomodation in the Candeleria area of Bogota which we found to be a bustling and lively part of the city. I admit that the press and government advice regarding security and safety in Bogota did have us slightly on edge but spending the best part of 2 days there we did not feel threatened at all, but we were sensible about where we walked and careful that we didn't make ourselves look like tempting targets. That said , we did see a bag snatched from a young woman on the walk to the Monserrate funicular/ cable car station, but police were very quickly on the scene.

Our guided bike tour around Bogota, ably guided by ex pat Californian Mike 'the bike', was a great experience where he introduced us to the key sites over quite an area of the city centre, to places that we would not have ventured on our own or on foot. We really covered quite a distance in the 5 hours. In addition to seeing key sites Mike explained historical connections and context to the places that we saw as well as generally giving us an understanding of Bogota and Colombian society, culture. politics, and yes the past influences from the darker side of the Colombian economy.

Time spent in a neighbourhood cafe where they roast their own beans in the back was a worthwhile experience (we were given a peak at the process in action at the back of the shop), and the time that we spent wandering through the central fruit/veg market between stalls tasting different fruits was great. Mike seemed to know everyone!

Ending with a drink and a game of the national sport 'Tejo' which involves throwing rocks at paper wraps filled with gunpowder on a clay base the whole tour was definitely a success. I would recommend the Bogota bike tour to anyone who can ride a bike.

Food options in Candeleria were endless, we ended up having an evening meal in an Israeli restaurant just down the road from the hotel and it was nice food at a good price.

We were transfered on time to the airport for our internal flight to Armenia from where we were transfered to our hotel(Salento Real) in Salento, which was a very nice place just at the edge of the town centre. It was a good location because we were staying over the weekend and the town gets very busy, we were 2 minutes from the wonderful centre but not efftected by the noise at bedtime.

We had a leisurely guided tour to see the Wax palms in the nearby Cocora valley which involved a bit of light hiking, amazing views and lots of flower and bird spotting. Our guide, Blane, was passionate about the environment and had us catapulting wax palm seeds into the jungle to help spread the area where they are growing(as he explained, they are under some threat from agricultural development) Blane had us climb a wax palm(not easy!) followed by him playing the flute pipes while we had a rest at a view point. Then to a restaurant with a view for lunch, where we ate trout on a crispy plantain flat bread, delicious.

In the afernoon we were led, again by Blane, to a small scale coffee plantation, about 45 minutes walk, which was a very informative experience.
The next day we were taken on a full day driven tour of the Quindio villages/ small towns, guided by David who again was a very capable guide with environmental matters being part of the discussion. The villages were varied and beautiful, we took the time to experience churches, crafts , local flora and architecture as well as a coffee producers with a difference, a fermented raw milk cafe and a Bar of memories, all quirky and interesting. We had a 'locals lunch' by the Rio Verde and all in all a great day.

Salento town itself is a fantastic destination, beautiful buildings and open spaces, with a buzzing plaza and central streets with old fashioned entertainment and fair rides, lots of craft shops and bars/ restaurant of good quality.

We transfered early the next morning to Cartagena(internal flights) on the Caribean coast. On arrival at Cartagena airport there was a slight confusion with the transfer driver who was there on time(as it later turned out) but had the incorrect name for pickup, which led to a short delay while we called Aventur on the office number to fix it. Within minutes the mixup was resolved and we were matched up with our driver.

It was just gone lunchtime when we arrived at the hotel(Casa Deco), which is an attractive old boutique place with friendly, helpful staff. The hotel made a room ready early for us while we had some lunch around the corner and then we were met on time at the hotel by our guide for a walking tour of Cartagena. The city is a beautiful, fascinating place, with a rich colonial history but we did find the guided tour which was suposed to be 4 hours but was barely over 2 hours quite light on historical, architectural and cultural details and we came away feeling underwhelmed by the experience... maybe the guide was having an off day!

Anyway, we had a great meal out later and enjoyed the hospitality of the hotel, including the pool.

The next day was speedboat ride to one of the Rosario islands, Isla Bella, which was tiny but beautiful. after an hours boat ride we spent a few hours lounging on the beach-front paradise, enjoyed an inclusive meal and caught the speedboat back, which was a scarily exciting journey, as the wind(and waves) had picked up. We got quite wet but not a problem in the tropical heat and it was quite a laugh.

Another great night out and the next day gave us the morning to explore the city ramparts, and have lunch before getting our transfers back to Cartegena airport to start our journey home.

I have gone on at some length with this review because I wanted anyone reading to get an idea that the trip was a great experience and well organised by Elisabeth (Eventur) with a good selection of interesting activities along the way. The balance of planned activities and free time worked well for us, others way want more time to relax, or want to be more full on. I am confident from our experience that all holiday styles would be ably catered for by Elisabeth.
The Trip was well organised and the itinerary was spot on, with the only exception being the name mix up on arrival at Cartegena, which lets be honest is nothing, and was sorted without delay.

So well done to Aventur, thanks to Kimkim for getting us connected, and our gratitude to Elisabeth for taking care of us so well.

Our journey in the mountains of Bhutan was richly rewarding. A gift not wrapped in paper but bound instead in the thread of discovery and the characters we were blessed to encounter along the way. A journey of reflection and life in focus - so generously mentored by the welcoming will and inspiring talents of the Bhutanese people, Like our fabulous guides Yonten and Pema, who helped us climb higher..beyond....as each new step took our breath further away. Thank you!

And also thank you to all our amazing crew and the nine ponies ... especially camera pony!
Everyone we encountered helped make our expedition an experience that will long be remembered as an outstanding example of living in the moment..

Thanks to Bas at Kimkim for making the arrangements so easy and to Wind Horse for organising everything on the ground. Thoroughly enjoyed this Bhut-Camp!

Hello and thank you Zeynep for your guidance, support and assistance on our tour preparations. The tours were nothing but spectacular, with excellent and well informed guides, on time schedules and well organized en route sites. I sincerely thank you for your awesome planning and your patience with me, answering all my questions in a detailed and prompt manner. Thank you again. I will not hesitate to recommend you and your good offices Kimkim to any of my colleagues, who ask about a reference. Regards Julian

Really good planning. Enjoyed the activities arranged for us

Our tour of Bogota was fantastic, thanks to Katiana. She had all the patience and energy needed to give us real insight into the history and culture of Colombia. She really made the Gold Museum come to life with the backstory she provided. She’s probably the best tour guide we’ve ever encountered.

Susan also did a great job on showing us the sites in Villa de Leyva. What a beautiful setting.

We had both a translator and a guide in Barichara. Waste of time and money. We translated for ourselves much more quickly and accurately. The Spanish speaking guide had only very rudimentary comments on the town. We ended the tour before it ever really got started. Nice guys but they need to look for other work.

Marine and Elizabeth at kimkim are both excellent. Patient, thoughtful, and articulate.

My only complaint about kimkim is that it is not transparent in its pricing. No price breakdown is given for the individual components of the trip. Difficult to decide among various trip components / options when planning the itinerary if you don’t know what the individual pricing is. We requested a breakdown on numerous occasions but were politely refused the information. For this reason alone we will most likely not return to kimkim for future travel planning.

Trip to Colombia was fantastic. Guides were terrific, car services were prompt, which made this trip run very smoothly.

We had a wonderful month in Myanmar being looked after by a range of guides who were all fabulous. Great knowledge, love of the country and fun to spend time with. Everything went smoothly in line with the plan and any changes we requested were dealt with very quickly. We loved our trekking at both hsipaw and kalaw. Swimming at waterfall and sleeping at monetary were terrific experiences. hot air ballooning over bagan, Inle Lake was a delightful and different location, the meal we ate at our cooking class was superb. Great to finish at Ngapali Beach relaxing after a very full 3 weeks touring.

Hi there, I am catching up on sleep and starting to feel more normal. I even cooked a Peruvian dish, tacu tacu, last night! My husband is on an alternating vegetarian diet. Loved the food, especially on the Phima portion of the trip. Remember we did an Intrepid trip to Machu Picchu before. All in all the trip was very good. The sites we visited were all very interesting and the meals that were arranged for us were fantastic. The only thing we were unsure of was tipping as we didn't know the price of the meals.
Our hotel room, for Trish and I, in Trujillo was quite disappointing.
I don’t think Bev and Amy’s room was as drab as ours. Unfortunately, there was a stain on the carpet, mildew in the shower and some windows opened into the hotel lobby and the others fronted onto the street, so it was very noisy.
I did feel that the reception and breakfast areas of the hotel were clean and modern looking and I do want to emphasize that the staff were very kind and helpful. I checked the hotel on line and some of the comments said that the owners were going to have to step up the quality of the rooms, but otherwise good value.
The itinerary was good . I thought the pace was pretty good and we really loved everything we saw. On day 4 we couldn’t go to Ventarron as there had been a fire, we went to Huaca Rajada museum and site, were supposed to go to the Bruning Museum , but opted to go to Tumbas Reales as we really only had a couple of hours after lunch and Jhon told us the museum closed at 4. The museum guide told us that it was open until 5 p.m. and you could stay in longer. If we had known that we might have taken in the Bruning museum. We really enjoyed what we saw in any event!
Just looking at the Itinerary now, We did not see all the destinations on Day 5, We went to the Bosque Pomac, there were a couple of pyramids in the distance,. I think they were Ventanas and Loro, but I am not sure that we went to the valley of the Pyramids in Tucume/ We drove through Ferranafe but did not visit the museum. We had lunch after going to the museum in Tucume though. I believe that driver Jhon had said that there was construction or some other obstruction on the road and he felt we should leave earlier to get to the airport so we could get our flight back to Lima. I think the itinerary was a bit too ambitious for that day.

One thing I might tell you, after going to the Sipan museum at the site of Huaca Rajada, we might not have seen the actual site with the Huaca and where the tombs of el Senor de Sipan y El Viejo were found if the local guide hadn’t taken one of our group there. This is a very important site and am so glad we saw it. It should be compulsory on the tour. It all fits in with what we saw at Tumbas Reales.
Regarding our guide Jhon’s English, I thought his knowlege was very good, but when you asked him a specific question, he either didn’t understand the question, or didn’t know the answer. His pronunciation could be improved, but he was fine to chat to. He tried very hard and was very pleasant and kind.

For future tours, it would be good for the Phima guide to know when Tumbas Reales closes. The museum guide, Orlando, said it closed at 5, but you could stay later.....we might have been able to squeeze in the Bruning museum. We were happy with what we saw that day.
Just to be clear, I didn’t think there were too many excursions in our itinerary, the pace was pretty good for day two and three. Day four, we didn’t go to Ventarron because of the fire, but really enjoyed the Museum at Sipan and Huaca Rajada. After lunch we didn’t have time to see both the Bruning Museum and Tumbas REales, so we opted to see Tumbas Reales which was fantastic.
I think I might be repeating myself. Sorry, still have a bit of jet lag. If you need any clarifications, just let me know. Gracias,

I loved all of the information provided to us in preparation for our trip (Lists 1-3) and the detailed itinerary that was provided. Everything that we had requested was on the itinerary and we were pleased to have some of the added items, such as the Garcia brothers who played and sang some of the traditional music using some of the instruments that date back over the years. I also enjoyed the Forest of Pomac as it was different from the other temples we saw. We didn't see everything that was on the itinerary - the Ventarron site was closed because there had been a fire. On day 4 we did not go to the Bruning Museum as we were running out of time and we all wanted to see the Tumbas Reales. On Day 5, I don't think we went to the Valley of the Pyramids but we did go to a museum in Tucume that had interactive displays. In hindsight, I think we tried to get too much into each day. It was great to finish our day around 5:30. The other consideration is that we were nearing the end of our vacation, so may have wanted the additional sites if we had started in the north and then done the south after. As it was, for me, I liked what we did in a day.

It was nice to have John the guide (Yeltsin), and John the driver meet us at the airport on our arrival and get us settled into our hotel. Definitely enjoyed the night tour of Trujillo, but may not have given Yeltsin my full attention because I was tired from the travel.

All of the meals provided in the tour were excellent. In hindsight we figure we may have been a bit cheap on our tips as we did not know what the actual meal cost so went on a similar formula used on the southern tour. I would recommend that one of your lists include some suggestions around tipping valets, waiters, hotel housekeepers, and for breakfast.

Our hotels were basic but clean. Staff were very helpful even if we spoke minimal Spanish and they spoke minimal English. it is amazing how much you can understand with a smile and sign language and a few key words.

John, our guide, had great knowledge of the history and particular features of the sites we visited. He was willing to respond to any questions we had but at times may have had some difficulty in understanding what we were asking him. He had a great personality and great humour. He was a good guide.

John, our driver, was also very friendly and willing to help. He was a very competent, professional, and calm driver. He also pointed out things along the way - such as the tree where the egrets were nesting. He pulled over and made sure we were safe when taking pictures.

It was really nice to have the same guide, driver and van for the whole tour. It was also nice have the bottle of water (some days 2)/day.

I have and will definitely continue to recommend KimKim Tours and PHima Voyages to others.

Bev

My overall experience with the travel arranged for me in Jordan was quite nice.

Plus
- all the drivers arranged for my pick-ups were professional, polite and kind. They made some calls for me on the way to the hotel and so on to make sure everything goes smoothly. I really appriciated that

Minus
- I feel like I didn’t get enough information about Jordan and all the destinations I was going to prior my trip. Carmen created Vamoos app for me for my itenerary, which was great, but I thought I’d get more personalised information about some interesting places , where to dine, or some local facts I wouldn’t normally get from the internet. Clicking the map didn’t help much, since most of the places on the map don’t have any information. Also the traveling date was wrong, and is still wrong up til now. It’s Febuary in the app.

- on my first day, my visit to Amman beach was pretty disappointing. The facility was not great, shower room broken, no hair dryer, lockers with no lock, and no staff to borrow the lock or lend towels from. Good thing I had my towel with me so I didn’t have to, but i had a hard time showering and drying my hair after the swim, espeically with that much salt on my body and hair. I would have been willing to pay more for better places, like one of those 5 star hotel facilities nearby (Kempinski, movenpick, dead sea spa etc.)

- on my last day, it seemed like my bus ticket from Aqaba to Amman was wrong. I couldn’t read Arabic of course, but my driver was kind enough to check for me at the bus station when he dropped me off, so they changed the new one for me.
And since my bus was at 6 PM and i was dropped off at 10 AM with my luggages, I had to find a place to store those before I could do anything, which was pretty troublesome. At that point I wish I was told or suggested beforehand what to do with my luggages. In the end I mannaged to ask Movenpick hotel to keep them for me, eventhough I wasn’t staying with them.
And I also wish I was given some interesting information about Aqaba, restaurants, cafe and attractions. Since it was a very low season, whatever I tried to do (glass bottom boat tour etc.) everything was unavailable due to too small group of people joining.

I think that’s pretty much my opinion on my trip to Jordan. Thank you Carmen for all the help in planning and everything. Jordan was an amazing country and I loved my experiences there.

Thanya