Kimkim Trip Reviews

Our local specialist, KATY from Aspiring Adventures, arranged our local experience carefully, based on our preferences as a party of 6 adults with various levels of fitness ability and 2 active children. She got us a trip to experience Peru from the Pacific coast to the Andean mountains to the Amazon jungle. She arranged for us to taste Peruvian local cuisine at luxurious restaurants, a farmer's house, an Amaru village house, a boat picnic setting, and a set-menu dining in a jungle lodge. She got us to experience local lifestyle by having us to stay at hostels, Amaru village house, and a jungle lodge. The Muresan family also appreciated our 'green' experience in Peru.

The Muresan family appreciated Katy's list of What to Expect When Traveling to Peru and List to Bring. Perhaps Katy can add:
1. Amaru, the village experience living, is super cold, so please bring seriously warm clothes to be comfortable.
2. Riding ATV is super dusty, so please bring a face mask to cover up, and a backpack cover/plastic to cover yourself and your backpack.
Other than those, Katy was spot on. Please bring gifts for your host families. Something small from your country. From Indonesia, we brought keychains. From the US, we brought t-shirts and keychains. They cost $2-5 a piece and will last a lifetime for your hosts and friendship.

Aldo Sanchez was our ultimate BEST guide! He was patient, quietly listening to our needs, courteously adjusting our trip based on our requests, happily taking our pictures as a group in 'Instagram-worthy' places :), and most importantly, very passionate and knowledgeable about his mountains! He did not push us to buy anything from any merchants. He did not force us to do anything we were not comfortable with. He also made all those hiking and walking a pleasure because he carried a book with him and he kept on stopping to tell stories about the places we passed as we were walking. He was like an audiobook. No suggestion to improve for Aldo. Keep up your great work and service, Aldo! Thank you for your service to our family.

The Muresan family found Wilhen, the cyclist guide, fun, and careful with ensuring our safety on the trails and road. He went as far as we wanted to, as fast as our kids pedaled, and was willing to take several breaks to give Elisa a break because she was running out of gas from not eating proper breakfast. Her fault totally. Luckily, Aldo got a piece of Amaru potato for Elisa to munch and get a little more energy. Thank you, Wilhen.

The Muresan family enjoyed paddleboarding with David at Lake Piuray. He was competent, patient, and more than happy to have fun with my extremely happy kids. Our kids are fish in disguise. I thought they were goofing around a little too much, but David encouraged them to have serious fun. The kids ended up feeling ecstatic, I ended up relaxing, and the car ended up being quiet because both of them fell asleep after our water activity. Thank you, David. Stay safe, keep traveling, and carry on.

The Muresan family had a great time in Amaru. We loved the welcome 'ceremony' when we arrived. We enjoyed working the field for Fredy's family, using the tools that the Inca farmers had been using for centuries. We loved the cooking in the ground procedure that we witnessed and graciously devoured. We admired the camaraderie amongst Fredy's neighbors, who came to help and showed us how devoted the women were to care for their children. We adored the view from hiking 4000 m hill near Fredy's house. BUT the chill was down to every single tiniest bone in our bodies. It was extremely cold during the night that when we had to pee, we almost decided to pee on ourselves to warm our bodies up. But no, we walked down to the toilets, like proper ladies and gentlemen, to release ourselves. What a reward we got. We looked up the sky and saw what the Inca people saw many centuries ago, with our naked eyes, the clear sky with beautiful formation of the stars and the milky way. It was one of our moments of: man, we were glad we had to pee in the middle of the night. Thank you for your hospitality, Fredy. I will send you the printed picture, as I promised.

We loved the Amazon jungle that we got to experience from Puerto Maldonado. Oscar's lodge was pleasantly clean, rustic, and relaxing. The architecture and landscape looked to be carefully designed for ultimate enjoyment of the city people like us. (Juan) Carlos the chef was strict with dining timetable, but we loved his creations, every single time! Oscar's staff members were courteous and very honest. Perhaps, at the bar, for people who don't drink, Oscar can add selling chips, candies, or small muncheries. We enjoyed the common rooms very much, playing games and getting to know other guests, while swinging at the strong hammocks and imagining a leopard or a snake or a monkey or even a sloth peeking to watch us, humans.

Yuri is a passionate and competent guide. We appreciated that even with his stomach problem, he still stayed upbeat and strong to help us enjoy our time in the jungle. He spotted many animals for us when we couldn't even see the creatures! He found the best place (spots) for us to enjoy the clay-licking birds of Peru, had a picnic breakfast, and walked to another spot to enjoy those beauties! He skillfully took us for long day and night walk through the Amazon jungle and to Condenado Lake. He caught 3 piranha fish with ease and graciously shared 1 with us at the lodge. We 4 are still jealous at Yuri for catching those piranha, because none of us could do that! We appreciated Yuri taking us to try to find an Anaconda (or two or a few) at Tres Chimbadas Lake. Yuri knew Reserva Nacional Tambopata very well and was always being green and environmentally conscious, at all times. Thank you, Yuri. Keep up your great service!

The Muresan family would also like to acknowledge the super boat driver Carlo! Carlo drove very smoothly on Tambopata River, without light, at 4 in the morning!, maneuvering through deep and shallow spots, and avoiding fallen trees! WOW! Carlo also managed to stop his boat, to show us a small monkey hanging on the top of a tree, and several families of Capibara, cleverly camouflaged amongst the mudbanks of the river. To top it all of, Carlo ALWAYS kept his boat clean and tidy, every time we got on board of it. You are the man, Carlo! Thank you for showing us a great time at your Tambopata River.

The Muresan family enjoyed the kayaking down the Tambopata River on the last day at the jungle. Next time, please consider arranging this activity to NOT be on the last day, so that we could dry our wet clothes and not bringing those wet clothes back to the US, in our suitcases, for 2 days.

The Muresan family had a glitch with Mayli. She was not able to answer any of my questions during our trip in Peru. She was not helpful and was incompetent at Cusco airport, prior to our departure to Puerto Maldonado. She needed more training to help clients with their airport experience. I wish we had Aldo sending us off from Cusco to Puerto Maldonado. He would have known what to do!

In conclusion, our trip to Peru was a blast! Thankfully, Mayli is just a little insignificant glitch. Our family had a once in a lifetime experience and will be sharing our reviews (minus Mayli) in Social Media, to promote Peru, Kimkim Travel, and Aspiring Adventures. Thank you.

We had a wonderful trip to Norway and enjoyed having the expertise of our KimKim specialist, Vilde. Our Norway trip included visits to Oslo, Bergen and Ålesund. We had done our own research, but it was great to have the local touch from Vilde - including some lovely recommendations for where to stay, shop and eat. Our favorite spot was Geirangerfjord - truly spectacular scenery and we lucked out with sunny and clear weather during the majority of our trip (July 2019). Another highlight was the hike up Fjellstua to see the panoramic views of Ålesund’s architecture, the surrounding archipelago and fjords. Thanks KimKim and Vilde for a memorable vacation!!!

Te trip was amazing. The organisation was superb and we were able to do all that was promised. Our guide and driver looked after us and we did not have to worry about anything other than having a good time.

Thank you for putting a terrific wonderful outstanding vacation for us. It was one to remember forever.
The team was amazing. From a birthday cake for our son, to cold water bottles delivered unexpectedly in the middle of a hot Santa Marta tour, even loaning me money until I found an atm, the team is exceptional. The best. I highly recommend them.

Wonderful knowledgeable guides. All drivers were professional, courteous and responsive. Francisco in Bologna was exceptional.

This is my family's 10 day self-guided TMB trekking. Special appreciation to Julien, the local specialist, who provided consultation and support to my trekking. I am not good at English on oral and listen, our communication was done with plenty of text chatting. He always gives professional answers in patience.

We have a great experience working with Kim Kim and specially with Mario Fortini our guide. Mario went above and beyond, not only by booking and coordinating our trip to Italy and Greece, but also he follow up all the time in our transfers, connections and difference places we visited.

Mario is a true trusted travel advisor and very knowledgeable. He truly enjoyed that we got the best out our trip and experience fully the places we visited. Mario gave us very good advise all the time and work in advance every detail that allows us to really enjoy the trip with all the family.

Our trip was quite challenging, because we visited several places in the North of Italy (Milano, Torino, Portofino, Lago Di Como and the Swiss Alps) and also Greece (Athens, Mykonos and Santorini).

We built beautiful memories as family and all the places are must see, but we specially enjoy Portofino, Lago Di Como, Belagio, St. Moritz (Swiss Alps, Bernina Express Rail Tour, highly recommended!), Mykonos and the memorables Phira and Oia in Santorini. Among many other good things, Mario booked for us a catamaran cruise day in Santorini, highly recommended, since you enjoy the view of the cylades islands from the see, plus the captain gave us a great history lesson of Santorini and its myths, plus you are able to enjoy the great Greece cuisine on board.

Thank you Mario and Kim Kim team, our trip to Italy and Greece was a blast!

Our only complaint was that our driver, Azzam, suggested that we leave Petra earlier than the itinerary called for because we didn't need that much time Petra and so that we could have more time at the camp in Wadi Rum before sunset. We found we did want that additional time, and there was nothing gained from getting to the Wadi Rum camp earlier. It was mid-July, and our tent was barely habitable in the heat, but we couldn't be outside. Otherwise, Azzam was great, but this suggestion was not a good one.

It was my dream to travel to Morocco to see many things, but I did not have time to plan and execute. That is, until I started working with kimkim and Brahim. He helped me plan my trip by asking about my time constraints and preferences. My wife and I went back and forth refining the trip plan and then settled on a six day option where we started in Casablanca and went to Rabat, Chefchaoen, Volubilis, Meknes, and Fez returning to Casablanca. Our reserved stay in boutique hotels was amazing. Our driver, Amin, was very helpful and caring, the car was spacious and well airconditioned. All our stays were accompanied by knowledgeable private guides. It was well-spent travel money, the service worth every cent! Thank you very much, Brahim, Amin, and the kimkim team!

Mark and Tina, Chicago, IL, USA.

My wife and I just enjoyed a wonderful 12 day trip through Norway. Our local specialist Ingrid took care of all the planning for us including the hotels, transportation between our stays and several excursions. The detailed trip plan including maps of all the pick up and drop off points at the areas we stayed in was very useful, it helped take the stress out of traveling through unfamiliar cities.

Our Bergen guide Vilde met us at the airport when we arrived and brought us to our hotel where she made sure we were checked in and gave us some restaurant suggestions for dinner. Vilde returned the next morning and guided us on a walking tour of the city. We loved our time with Vilde, she is a gem. Stig was our guide for Oslo and brought us off the beaten path to what he called the hidden gems of Oslo. These are beautiful areas that we would not have expierienced without his guidance. Thank you Stig!

The highlights of the trip (other than Vilde and Stig) were the trip to Flor & Fjære where, because we don't speak norwegian, we virtually had a private tour of the gardens by the owners daughter, a trip to Merdø Island that was suggested by Ingrid, and of course the beauty of travelling through Norway and meeting so many wonderful Norwegian people which cannot be put into words.

The hotels that Ingrid booked were all very nice. The Scandics in Stavanger and Oslo were typical city hotel rooms, clean and neat but tiny. The hotels in Bergen (Bergen Bors) and Larvik (Farris Bad) were exceptional. These are both excellent hotels with a high level of service.

The only hiccup we had during the trip was checking in at Arendal (Grand Arendal Hotel). The not so nice desk clerk claimed the reservation we had was only for a single, the hotel was fully booked and there were no other rooms available for either night. When I said I wanted to contact our specialist she said she didn't have time and if we didn't take the single she would sell it to someone else. I sat in the lobby and contacted Ingrid and she contacted the hotel and I don't know what she said but 5 minutes later the now very nice desk clerk found a second single for the first night and moved us to a two room suite for the second night.

Our experience booking this trip through KimKim was excellent and I would recommend their service highly.

This trip was perfection. Our local specialist Simon planned it seamlessly. Each leg of the trip was different and special. The location of the Lyon hotel and the gourmet walking tour and winery trip with Tasty Lyon was great too.
Domaine Capelongue was stunning and a great location to visit all the small towns around.
Our favourite by far was Caroline’s beautiful B&B Villa Astoria. She was a great host and her help Sylvie is very sweet. The location, views and house are perfection .
Thank you to Simon again for the great planning, communication and making our holiday a Dream!

Our trip to Vietnam exceeded our expectations in every way. Victor put together an itinerary that was perfect for our group. He answered all of our enquiries promptly and was very flexible to suit any request we made.
Our English speaking guides were very friendly and more than willing to share their knowledge of Vietnam, its history and way of life. Our transport was comfortable and always on time.

The highlights of northern Vietnam were the evening street food tour of Hanoi by Vespa, trekking in the Pu Luong Nature Reserve and the overnight Junk on Ha Long Bay.

Our accommodation in Ho Chi Minh City was very central and comfortable . Our day trips to Cu Chi tunnels and the Mekong Delta were interesting and well managed.

We cannot recommend KimKim and Victor highly enough.

Our trip to Peru was unique and authentic! Our guide Aldo really contributed to make our trip enrichful by sharing with us his knowledge and taking care of us. The itinerary was great, we enjoyed everything. Our most memorable moment was our stay in Amaru where we could experience the authentic village life by being hosted by an amazing Peruvian family. We strongly recommend this destination.

We just returned from our amazing trip to Iceland. Preeti planned a great itinerary for us, with the perfect mix of activities and sightseeing for a family of 3 with a 10-year-old. Highlights included a glacier hike, horseback riding through the hot springs, exploring lava caves and soaking in the hot baths at Krauma. The waterfalls and glaciers were epic. Each one, unique and awe-inspiring. We covered a lot of ground over the course of our 9-day trip and were blown away by the natural wonder of Iceland and its varied, other-worldly landscapes.

Our local specialist, Katy from Aspiring Adventures, arranged our local experience carefully, based on our preferences as a party of 6 adults with various levels of fitness ability and 2 active children. She got us a trip to experience Peru from the Pacific coast to the Andean mountains to the Amazon jungle. She arranged for us to taste Peruvian local cuisine at luxurious restaurants, a farmer's house, an Amaru village house, a boat picnic setting, and a set-menu dining in a jungle lodge. She got us to experience local lifestyle by having us to stay at hostels, Amaru village house, and a jungle lodge. The Muresan family also appreciated our 'green' experience in Peru.

Aldo Sanchez was our ultimate BEST guide! He was patient, quietly listening to our needs, courteously adjusting our trip based on our requests, happily taking our pictures as a group in 'Instagram-worthy' places :), and most importantly, very passionate and knowledgeable about his mountains! He did not push us to buy anything from any merchants. He did not force us to do anything we were not comfortable with. He also made all those hiking and walking a pleasure because he carried a book with him and he kept on stopping to tell stories about the places we passed as we were walking. He was like an audiobook. No suggestion to improve for Aldo. Keep up your great work and service, Aldo! Thank you for your service to our family.

The Muresan family found Wilhen, the cyclist guide, fun, and careful with ensuring our safety on the trails and road. He went as far as we wanted to, as fast as our kids pedaled, and was willing to take several breaks to give Elisa a break because she was running out of gas from not eating proper breakfast. Her fault totally. Luckily, Aldo got a piece of Amaru potato for Elisa to munch and get a little more energy. Thank you, Wilhen.

The Muresan family enjoyed paddleboarding with David at Lake Piuray. He was competent, patient, and more than happy to have fun with my extremely happy kids. Our kids are fish in disguise. I thought they were goofing around a little too much, but David encouraged them to have serious fun. The kids ended up feeling ecstatic, I ended up relaxing, and the car ended up being quiet because both of them fell asleep after our water activity. Thank you, David. Stay safe, keep traveling, and carry on.

The Muresan family had a great time in Amaru. We loved the welcome 'ceremony' when we arrived. We enjoyed working the field for Fredy's family, using the tools that the Inca farmers had been using for centuries. We loved the cooking in the ground procedure that we witnessed and graciously devoured. We admired the camaraderie amongst Fredy's neighbors, who came to help and showed us how devoted the women were to care for their children. We adored the view from hiking 4000 m hill near Fredy's house. BUT the chill was down to every single tiniest bone in our bodies. It was extremely cold during the night that when we had to pee, we almost decided to pee on ourselves to warm our bodies up. But no, we walked down to the toilets, like proper ladies and gentlemen, to release ourselves. What a reward we got. We looked up the sky and saw what the Inca people saw many centuries ago, with our naked eyes, the clear sky with beautiful formation of the stars and the milky way. It was one of our moments of: man, we were glad we had to pee in the middle of the night. Thank you for your hospitality, Fredy. I will send you the printed picture, as I promised.

We loved the Amazon jungle that we got to experience from Puerto Maldonado. Oscar's lodge was pleasantly clean, rustic, and relaxing. The architecture and landscape looked to be carefully designed for ultimate enjoyment of the city people like us. (Juan) Carlos the chef was strict with dining timetable, but we loved his creations, every single time! Oscar's staff members were courteous and very honest. Perhaps, at the bar, for people who don't drink, Oscar can add selling chips, candies, or small muncheries. We enjoyed the common rooms very much, playing games and getting to know other guests, while swinging at the strong hammocks and imagining a leopard or a snake or a monkey or even a sloth peeking to watch us, humans.

Yuri is a passionate and competent guide. We appreciated that even with his stomach problem, he still stayed upbeat and strong to help us enjoy our time in the jungle. He spotted many animals for us when we couldn't even see the creatures! He found the best place (spots) for us to enjoy the clay-licking birds of Peru, had a picnic breakfast, and walked to another spot to enjoy those beauties! He skillfully took us for long day and night walk through the Amazon jungle and to Condenado Lake. He caught 3 piranha fish with ease and graciously shared 1 with us at the lodge. We 4 are still jealous at Yuri for catching those piranha, because none of us could do that! We appreciated Yuri taking us to try to find an Anaconda (or two or a few) at Tres Chimbadas Lake. Yuri knew Reserva Nacional Tambopata very well and was always being green and environmentally conscious, at all times. Thank you, Yuri. Keep up your great service!

The Muresan family would also like to acknowledge the super boat driver Carlo! Carlo drove very smoothly on Tambopata River, without light, at 4 in the morning!, maneuvering through deep and shallow spots, and avoiding fallen trees! WOW! Carlo also managed to stop his boat, to show us a small monkey hanging on the top of a tree, and several families of Capibara, cleverly camouflaged amongst the mudbanks of the river. To top it all of, Carlo ALWAYS kept his boat clean and tidy, every time we got on board of it. You are the man, Carlo! Thank you for showing us a great time at your Tambopata River.

The Muresan family enjoyed the kayaking down the Tambopata River on the last day at the jungle. Next time, please consider arranging this activity to NOT be on the last day, so that we could dry our wet clothes and not bringing those wet clothes back to the US, in our suitcases, for 2 days.

The Muresan family had a glitch with Mayli. She was not able to answer any of my questions during our trip in Peru. She was not helpful and was incompetent at Cusco airport, prior to our departure to Puerto Maldonado. She needed more training to help clients with their airport experience. I wish we had Aldo sending us off from Cusco to Puerto Maldonado. He would have known what to do!

In conclusion, our trip to Peru was a blast! Thankfully, Mayli is just a little insignificant glitch. Our family had a once in a lifetime experience and will be sharing our reviews (minus Mayli) in Social Media, to promote Peru, Kimkim Travel, and Aspiring Adventures. Thank you.

My India trip was everything I hoped it would be and more! So grateful to the KimKim team, especially Jay and my driver Kierin; Kierin was so much fun and taught me the most as we drove from location to location exploring beautiful exotic places in South India like Munnar, Alleppy, and Kochi. My guides were all knowledgeable, friendly, and professional: special thanks to Glen (Kochi), Junis (Munnar) and Shreedevi (incredible hostess at hotel UDS in Trivandrum) - these wonderful people, among others, made my experience extra special. My goal in India was to really immerse myself in the culture, try new foods, see wildlife, and interact with local people - coming from a large metro city in California, I also wanted to get off the beaten path a bit and unplug - KimKim made the whole thing seamless and fulfilled my desire to go a bit beyond regular “tourist” type experiences - the most memorable moment, perhaps, was waking up at The Leaf in Munnar and listening to the birds while I drank my coffee and talked to a family visiting from Saudi Arabia. I will also never forget the seeing the tea plantations and the mountains in Munnar; the best smelling place in the world! Alleppy houseboating was also incredible; I had a meal I’ll probably never top! When it was time to say goodbye to Kierin, I realized I had truly made a friend, and will always remember our conversations and the laughs we shared - so thank you AGAIN KimKim for finding me the perfect road companion and for setting up my dream travel in India! I will be back and I will use KimKim again, no doubt.

The overall experience is ok,but I wonder if something urgent happens and I need some help,who should I turn to? There were several times I failed to contact the travel agent and when I turned to Kimkim I find the contact person and number is the same number I have and have failed to get in touch.Besides the quality of some local guides needs improving. Everyone seems to tell his own stories. We don’t know who to believe.
Thank you!

My wife and I decided to use KimKim to assist with planning our 3 week trip to Norway. Ingrid was our local specialist.
We wanted to travel to Norway with several family members and everyone had different ideas of what they wanted to do and see in Norway. Plus, some of our party were going only be with us for part of the vacation. So, our needs seemed to be a little complicated, and things did change during the planning phase.
I was impressed by Ingrid's ability to structure an approach to our visit to Norway that was uncomplicated, yet still offered excitement, and adventure. Ingrid's insight and recommendations were the difference between a confusing/challenging visit and a visit that we will remember for the rest of our lives - - - simply stated, Ingrid was amazing. At no point did she rush us into any quick decisions, she provided options and was able to accommodate the changes we had as we got closer to our departure dates. In addition, Ingrid stayed in communication during our entire planning process. All details were sent to us in advance and this was of great assistance. We discovered during our visit to Norway that Ingrid was constantly confirming our reservations and therefore we did not encounter any unexpected disruptions. I was also impressed with the quality of the recommended hotels, local guides (in Oslo we particularly enjoyed Stig, he was knowledgeable, friendly and fun), travel suggestions (for trains, buses, etc).
I am now a KimKim fan, and I highly recommend Ingrid as the local travel specialist.
If you have ever wondered if Norway is someplace you would like to visit, our experience leads us to say "Just Go, You Will Be Amazed and You Will Have Fun!" And if you want your planning to be easy, trustful and provide peace-of-mind, consider KimKim and especially, Ingrid.
Wes

Adriana was absolutely great to work with! Our trip had a rocky start when a delay in our first flight caused us to miss our connecting flight to Costa Rica. That delay in turn made us miss our our first booked trip. Adriana and kimkim rearranged our whole schedule, rebooking hotels and tours. The following day when there was a nation wide truckers' strike, and we couldn't get to the east coast of the country, she rebooked everything all over again! I can't even imagine what we would have done with out her. just thinking about trying to deal with that mess on our own was daunting. The rest of our 18 day trip went flawlessly and we are so thankful that we had someone help us through it. Gracias y Pura Vida Adriana!

Incredible. That's the only word I have for it. This was, by far, the best vacation the family has ever had. Tasos and the team at Travel 12 did an outstanding job of customizing every step of the way to meet exactly what we were looking for. It's hard to call out the places that were most memorable because the entire trip was fantastic.

Thank you Kimkim and the team at Travel 12 for making this such an outstanding adventure through Greece.