Kimkim Trip Reviews

Our 9-Day Morocco Trip with KimKim Travel and MOBT Global

My husband and I recently had the pleasure of experiencing a fantastic 9-day trip to Morocco, organized by KimKim Travel and MOBT Global. The entire journey was thoughtfully planned, smooth, and packed with unforgettable experiences. From start to finish, we couldn’t have asked for a better way to explore this stunning country.

Trip Planning with Yassine (KimKim Travel)
The planning phase of the trip was exceptional. Yassine, our travel specialist at KimKim, was incredibly helpful in tailoring our itinerary to match our interests. He was responsive, offered great advice on what to see and do, and ensured we had the right balance of cultural exploration, relaxation, and adventure. From the bustling streets of Marrakesh to the serene blue of Chefchaouen, every destination was carefully chosen to give us a well-rounded experience of Morocco. The biggest highlight was spending Christmas Eve riding camels and camping in the Sahara Desert—WOW, what an experience! Our only wish is that we had more time to fully soak it all in.

Our Driver: Souifiane
A huge highlight of our trip was our driver, Souifiane. For 9 days, he was with us every step of the way, making sure we were comfortable, informed, and safe as we traveled across Morocco. Souifiane was not just a driver, but a guide in his own right—his knowledge of Morocco’s culture, history, and hidden gems made the trip even more enriching. Whether we were navigating the winding streets of Fes or cruising through the desert, he was always punctual, friendly, and willing to go the extra mile to make our experience better. This included his recommendation for a Hammam spa—an unforgettable experience that will never be repeated.

The Destinations
• Marrakesh: The vibrant heart of Morocco, Marrakesh was the perfect start to our trip. From the souks of the Medina to the majestic Jardin Majorelle, we explored the city's lively markets, historical palaces, and stunning gardens. The energy of this city is electric, and we loved every moment of it.
• Ouarzazate: Known as the "Gateway to the Sahara," Ouarzazate offered a glimpse into Morocco's cinematic history. The Atlas Film Studios were a highlight, and the nearby Ait Benhaddou, a UNESCO World Heritage site, was a spectacular stop—straight out of a film set.
• Merzouga: No trip to Morocco would be complete without visiting the Sahara Desert. Riding camels into the dunes of Merzouga at sunset was an unforgettable experience. We spent the night in a desert camp under the stars, which was absolutely magical. The silence and beauty of the desert were unlike anything I’ve ever experienced.
• Fes: Fes was an intriguing mix of old and new. The labyrinthine Medina was a maze of ancient history, with vibrant artisan workshops, centuries-old mosques, and the famous tanneries. It was a fascinating place to dive deep into Morocco’s cultural heritage.
• Chefchaouen: The "Blue City" was a highlight of the trip. Walking through its narrow streets lined with blue-washed buildings felt like stepping into a dream. The tranquility of the town, combined with its picturesque setting in the Rif Mountains, made it a perfect place to relax and explore.
• Casablanca: Our final stop, Casablanca, offered a contrast to the other cities—modern, cosmopolitan, and bustling. The Hassan II Mosque, perched on the edge of the Atlantic, was an awe-inspiring sight and a perfect way to cap off our trip.

Overall, this trip to Morocco exceeded all my expectations. The seamless coordination with Yassine and the excellent service provided by Souifiane made everything easy and stress-free. The country itself is mesmerizing, with a rich cultural heritage, diverse landscapes, and incredibly warm people. I highly recommend KimKim Travel for anyone looking to explore Morocco in a truly personalized and immersive way.
Thank you, Yassine and Souifiane, for making this journey so unforgettable. We will definitely be back for more adventures in this beautiful country!

Wow so much to say...........
I travel to Jerusalem, my tour guide is in Jerusalem. I will be traveling to Istanbul, my guide is in Istanbul. I vacation to Lapland and my guide is in Detroit/Estonia?? Emerson was too far away to be very helpful.
The hotel, Arctic Light Hotel, was very nice. The breakfast buffet wonderful. The front desk people very professional and nice. But was this hotel **** hell no! The room size was the size of my walk in closet in Texas. Amazing to say, there were no dresser draws or night stand tables with draws. So there was no where to unpack your suite cases. So we had one suite case on the coffee table, one on the chair and two on the floor. I went to the front desk and stated you have no dressers!! The attendant said I "went on line and saw the photo of the room, yes you do!" Went on line........ ?? Later I complained to the 'manager', we have no dressers. He walked up to the room and explained that the shelves on top of the closet were the draws for the cloths. If we were from Finland, six foot six, that explanation would still be laughable. But being Italian/Hispanic at 5 feet and five feet six, we needed a chair to put anything on those shelves.

I learned with the tremendous influx of tourists, that these tourist locations needed to hire workers from other countries. So as stated, the front desk people were all class, but some of the workers had little knowledge of their location. So for an excursion to say meet at the 'wild about Lapland' office location, and the hotel front desk is Googling where the office is, and our guide chilling in Estonia has no clue either, it added to the stress. To be honest, my old age did not help. Siri and hard to pronounce street names did not help 'maps'. Plus the I-phone was under six layers of cloths. With the 8 year old and the -25 C weather conditions, the fear of wondering around the city was petrifying. As you know, all the tours stated best be on time or will happily leave without you. Since 99.9% of the travelers are taking excursions, the hotel staff needs to know blindly where ALL these meeting locations are. Don't give me an address. Tell me walk out of the hotel, first left, walk up the street with the Christmas trees, pass Burger King .........

More fun things.........the driver from the airport. was nice until he got to the hotel. Then he happily put all the suite cases in the snow outside the hotel and asked if we needed help. Nah, just leave the f-ing suite cases in the snow. So he brings a couple into the hotel ten feet from the van, and starts to 'sing and dance' for a tip. Not tip given and stormed back into the street. On the way home, the driver, without asking, brought the suite case into the airport and was tipped. He was thrilled!

The 'Snow Hotel' and dinner probably the best of the trip. Unfortunately, mental blunder by the tour guide in Estonia. We were all finished with dinner at 21:30, and the bus to bring us back to the hotel was not to come until 23:00. So while Emerson was keeping warm, we were trying to avoid frost bite waiting for one and half hours in the ice cold lounge with the -25C temp.

The snow mobile excursion was great. But please don't mention a class to teach you how to drive one. Press the button to start, press here to go is not a class to manage the vehicle. I'll mention this here. We dressed and had cold winter cloths. We did not have to wear those unsightly winter jump suites over all our cloths. I imagine it's a legal issue. "We recommend that you wear our cloths and boots over your cloths so that you look like meat balls" The last two trips I refused. I was dressed plenty warm. This was the worst part of the trip for the wife. She being short, these outfits made her look so bad. Dressing the eight year old was difficult, and then putting the jump suites on ourselves was not fun. Plus on all the tours, they were yelling HURRY UP the tour was getting ready to leave!! We should have gotten to all the tours 1/2 hour earlier. But your excursions companies wish to jam as many tours into the day to generate as much cash as possible.

Emerson from Estonia, you can't book tours on the weekends at 8 am when the dinning facilities at the hotel don't open until 8. Or tell me where to get something to eat for the grand-daughter in the snow? Or how to eat with two pairs of mittens on?

But I saved the best for last. Where did you get this clown from? JOHKA 358-40-544-53854
The first 'Northern Lights' tour was cancelled. I was the one who e-mailed you when at 12:30 two days later I had heard nothing about a new tour. I got an email from you and notification from the front dest to be ready in the hotel lobby at 19:00. This Johka arrives 15 minutes late and then yells at me because the lights were better hours ago and he was unable contact me. Then he states he is driving to Sweden! So I said yeah, but the 8 year old and I are going to pee again before leaving.
By the way the wife was vomiting; food poisoning, the last two days of the trip and did not go on any excursions. Yes I know no refunds, since your company is so cheap, but not one of your people even said "I'm sorry she is not well" or "I hope she feels better". Not one! Very sad. Back to this clown.......We get into the van with a 7 and 10 year old girl and a wealthy mother. We drive into a snow bank, and this guy says to you want to take a portrait? I am thinking a portrait? With the grand-daughter totally covered up and only her eyes showing, and me looking like a balloon? No. I am thinking he will take a picture, go on line, google images Northern Lights Finland and photo shop. The only thing we had seen was mist'. He never explained what he was doing. Or his plan. This is when I would tell any of your clients get female tour guides. Females have brains, and men are dumb as dirt.

This Johka was a perfect example, dumb as dirt. The tour description stated Northern Lights 7 PM. Lasting 4-6 Hours
Ladies, imagine going on a eight (8) hour excursion and the driving never saying does anyone have to pee? Or are any of you children 7,8 and 10 year old girls hungry? WTF (For Emerson in Estonia this means What The F--k) It was only the children's mother who told me she requested that he found a bath room. So dumb as dirt says there is a 7 Eleven and gas station one hour away...........What??

We were given a box of cookies and juice. The children ate close to two hundred cookies. They were starving.
After driving around half the arctic, I asked him when we were heading home. He told me we were still in Sweden. It was 01:30. He told me we were another one and 1/2 hours from the hotel. Losing it, I told him he was getting 7, 8 and 10 year old children home at 3:00 in the morning? The girls didn't enjoy anything concerning the Northern Lights. The best part of the trip was eating ice cream at 7 Eleven. When we got back to hotel I told my baby let's get you into bed......it was 3 am. Your driver, I hope he wasn't expecting a tip, yelled out next time make sure you review the excursion details......I did later, tour time 4-6 hours. Not 8 hours. He wasn't the one to wake up the baby in four hours to the Zoo tour scheduled for the next day.
If I wasn't with my grand-daughter, I would have kicked his Finnish Ass right out side the hotel. The zoo tour guide the next day, a woman sweet like sugar, said I hope. it wasn't her company. They have an 'family friendly' tour a 7-11 tour and a longer Northern Lights tour. Emerson, just had a mental error booking us on the wrong tour. But none of the tours was listed as eight hours. If my wife, remember who was back at the hotel vomiting that no one cared about, would have choked his ass right in the snow bank.

Hotel Review

Arctic Light Hotel

Rovaniemi

I forgot.......when you travel to Europe the hotel rooms are the sizes of walk in closets. Our room had no dresser draws. It had no night stands/tables. There was no where to unpack or put your cloths. The front desk was highly professional and helpful. The hotel lobby very pretty and classy. The breakfast buffet just great. The breakfast buffet can't open at eight, if people have excursions that start at eight. The hotel is too expensive to have breakfast included in the price, and opens too late to capitalize on it. The location is perfect but some of the seasonal workers were unfamiliar with their surroundings

Authenticity & Character

just nice

Location

Right near main street with all the Christmas trees.

Staff

All class!!

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Snowmobile Safari to Santa Claus Village

Finland

Nice Excursion Needed to spend more time teaching how to drive a snow mobile. No snow in south Texas. The above would have decreased some of the anxiety level.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

All people want to take photos of their trip. Bad enough the I-phone is hidden in 6 layers of clothing, don't yell at people for taking out their cell phones to take pictures.

Transport

Family Husky Safari

Rovaniemi

very cool and lots of fun feeding the dogs great for kids with the price of the excursion, I think we had to pay for the food to feed the dogs. Kind of cheap

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

I got yelled at for taking out my cell phone to take pictures.........I. understand the reasoning but kind of sad

Transport

SnowHotel & Ice Dinner Experience

Rovaniemi

very cool (cold) place. Grand-daughter enjoyed the hotel the best

Quality of Experience

Food

Dessert in ice dish very cool. It is just impossible to enjoy a hot meal when the temperature is -25C

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

The experience and the dinner ended at 21:30. The return driver showed up at 23:00. What were we suppose to do for the other one and 1/2 hours??

Reindeer Safari in the Nature of Lapland

Rovaniemi

Great for kids Should have been given two sleds Two adults and an eight year old too tight and squished in one sled.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

The owner of the Reindeer farm really did not have command of the English language. Hard to understand

Transport

Ranua Wildlife Park Visit

Finland

In Texas at the zoo the animals look half dead it is so hot. Here the animals were half hibernating or under ground due to the cold. The eight year old still had a blast

Quality of Experience

Food

Is the only food in Finland mashed potatoes and meat balls?

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Our guide....sorry for forgetting her name (tall skinny white girl) was sweet like sugar and my grand-daughter just loved her,

Transport

Flexible Northern Lights Hunting

Rovaniemi

I guess I should have known that with the naked eye you see nothing special in the Northern Lights. Only with a special camera and filters or computer enhancement do you appreciate the bright colors that you see on postcards or mugs. Oddly enough, taking photos of white haze and mist with my cell phone actually some color showed up. Our guide Johka avoid. He was an absolute jerk. He forgot he had three young girls on our tour. He never asked them if they had to pee or if they were hungry. He seemed to be more interested in their mother when she said that her husband was vacationing in Florida alone. They talked for hours while I was totally ignored. The trip should have lasted 4-6 hours. Our tour returned at 3 am, eight hours later, with all the children having non-refundable excursions in the morning. How pathetic. Then this ass outside the hotel when I tell my grand-daughter let's get you in bed, his response, "Next time read the excursion description". This clown had no common sense. He had no idea whom his passengers would be. He made no adjustments now knowing the ages of the children. I just hope this rich American womana from CA tipped him well.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Get a female tour guide who has some. motherly instincts and common sense.

Transport

Don't put young children in a van for eight hours

Mar and the entire Kim Kim team made our trip fantastic. We really appreciated the real time help when we had travel hiccups to help us find solutions (or reservations). The plan she set out for us made logical sense and we also got to maximize our time and see the best of Norway in the winter. LOVED the Flam train ride and all the activities in Flam. Mar and her team were very approachable with any and all questions and also very responsive. The only complaint would be that sometimes our taxi's did not accommodate our travel party and luggage, but we were able to work around this. I want to go back!

All of the transfers worked out seamlessly. We loved all of our guided tours and excursions with only one exception, which is impressive. Kim Kim was great to work with and had good ideas for things to do. We had only 8 days for our trip, but we were able to do so much and the planning made that possible. Would highly recommend working with Kim Kim!

Hotel Review

Hotel Eco Arenal

Fortuna

Affordable hotel with very nice breakfast and very comfortable beds. Beautiful grounds. Restaurant within walking distance. Easy to get to town via car/Uber/taxi. Friendly and helpful hotel staff. Cleanliness was average. The toilet are was not closed off from the room, only had a 3/4 door, making privacy a challenge. Showers were fine.

Authenticity & Character

Location

away from the bustle of town in a beautiful setting by a river, lots of wildlife

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

cleaner walls and bathrooms. install full doors to give toilet area more privacy.

Activity Reviews

Self-Guided Hike to La Fortuna Waterfall

Arenal/La Fortuna

incredible swim in the waterfall. did not matter that there were many people present - it was still so magical.

Quality of Experience

Río Peñas Blancas Safari Float

Arenal/La Fortuna

Guide and trip were stellar. Would highly recommend this activity to anyone.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Private Tamarindo Surf Experience

Tamarindo

The guides were so nice and we had a great time. The surf shop was excellent. Highly recommend them.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

our guides and all the staff - so friendly and helpful

Arenal Volcano Hike & EcoTermales Hot Springs Visit

Arenal/La Fortuna

This was difficult to execute well because it was 2 very different activities merged into one. We were unable to complete the volcano hike because of extreme rain and lightning. We started the hike, but only proceeded to get drenched and muddy before turning around to go back to the bus. The rain made it impossible to even see anything beyond the path below our feet. The guide told the agency we canceled the tour, although the elements (lightening) made it unsafe to continue the hike. The guide was not proactive about guiding for this trip - he was basically an escort. We then sat in traffic in our wet clothes on the bus before arriving at the hot springs resort, only to learn that we couldn't enter the facility until our previously scheduled arrival time. We waited in the lobby there for 30 minutes. Would not recommend these 2 tours together. I'm sure the volcano hike is amazing though! The hot springs were incredible. Highly recommend those to everyone. Food buffet was great there too.

Quality of Experience

Amazing hot springs resort. Less amazing hike experience.

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

TreeTram, Hanging Bridges & Zipline Adventure

Monteverde

Everything about this experience was incredible.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

I want to thank Original Travels for planning an amazing trip to Morocco for our family of 3.Communication was on point and they delivered a 100% on everything from booking the Riads, Sahara camp to organizing knowledgable tour guides in different cities for us. Our driver Mustafa was friendly , sociable and took very good care of all our asks. Our tour guide Sharif in Fes gave us a great insight of the old city life ! Overall we came back with warm memories and would definitely recommend this company to anyone!

Hotel Reviews

Palais Sebban

Marrakech

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Riad Ksar Ighnda

Ait Benhaddou

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Tiziri Luxury Camp

Merzouga

We had a great time at this camp. The tents were clean and well decorated and equipped. The food was amazing and in the eveneings there was live Berber music performances around a camp fire! The sunset camel ride is a must!

Authenticity & Character

The staff consisted of Berber peole and we got to learn about their culture

Location

Staff

Very friendly

Cleanliness & Comfort

Riad Salam Fes

Fes

Dar Jasmine

Chefchaouen

Barceló Casablanca

Casablanca

Staff

The staff was not friendly, must be big city attitude

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Review

Guided Tour of Fez Medina

Fes

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Absolutely fabulous trip. It was well organised and we had the best time and cannot fault the logistics.

Anna-marie and team did an amazing job planning our family trip to South Africa and Zimbabwe. From unique local experiences we never would have discovered on our own to ensuring our trip had enough to engage and inspire both kids (ages 10 and 12) and parents, I can't recommend their services enough! You won't be disappointed!

Happy New Year, Raquel! We had a FABULOUS and MAGICAL time in Spain! We can’t thank you enough for making this trip for our family of nine, run so smoothly and efficiently. Our drivers were top notch, always on time, courteous and very helpful, and the vehicles they transported us in were very comfortable, roomy, and accommodating. Your choices of hotels for us were AMAZING!..very clean, friendly staff, centrally located, and within walking distances to a lot of places we wanted to visit. The guides for all of our tours were very well educated, knowledgeable, and willing to go above and beyond their call of duty to answer any additional questions we might have, recommend eating places, and very patient when we needed to add an additional stop along the way to grab a water and/or a snack. The 15th birthday celebration for our granddaughter was a hit! She loved the cake, the balloons, the food, and the ambience in general. We were very pleased with how quickly someone always responded through the chat when we had questions, or needed existing reservations changed. We look forward to planning our next trip through KimKim, as you truly made our 50th Golden Anniversary a very memorable one!
Gloria and Jose Ramirez
Wimberley, TX

Hotel Review

Eurostars Puerta Real Hotel

Granada

Beautiful hotel with great amenities, super friendly staff, clean and spacious rooms, and a delicious spread for breakfast! Location is superb!

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Review

Private Tour of Barcelona & La Sagrada Familia

Barcelona

This place is beyond belief!…a must see in person to really capture all of its beauty and exquisite detail. Dani, our tour guide, did an excellent job explaining the history of every corner of this amazing place!

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Margoth was really helpful and on top of everything from planned activities to unplanned circumstances (changing plans, illness, etc). The guides took amazing care of us and were great guides!

Hotel Reviews

York Luxury Suites Medellín

El Poblado, Medellin

Great place, great location!

Authenticity & Character

Location

Shopping, restaurants all nearby. Beautiful area.

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Hotel immaculate and well run!

Hotel Capellan de Getsemani

Cartagena de Indias

UNIQUE hotel. Tranquil inside. Great service. Perfect location.

Authenticity & Character

Rooftop great! Food great!

Location

Located in area with many art galleries, shops, activity

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Sofitel Baru Calablanca

Cartagena

Cannot say enough about the level of service in every detail of our stay. One of best hotels I’ve been to.

Authenticity & Character

Great international vibe. Incredible food. Breakfast buffet fantastic!

Location

Remote, tranquil spot, away from all but other guests.

Staff

So accommodating!

Cleanliness & Comfort

Spotless. Beautifully appointed everything and aesthetics and decor gorgeous .

Activity Reviews

The Best of Medellín City Tour (with Comuna 13)

Medellín

Learned a lot and saw a lot of the city. I highly recommend.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Christmas Lights Medellin Night Tour

Medellín

Worth seeing!!!

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Mo

Transport

Mangrove Tour with Local Fisherman

Cartagena

Fascinating experience and don’t have to go far from city to do it.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Mo

Transport

Our guide and driver were fantastic

Chocolate Tasting and Colombian Cacao Experience

Cartagena

This was blast. Our guide Koko was a lot of fun and knew her chocolate!

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Dinner Reservation at OCIO / OCI.Mde

Medellín

The dinner at OCIO / OCI.Mde in Medellín was amazing. The food and atmosphere were fantastic, making it a perfect dining experience.

Dinner Reservation at Andrés Carne de Res

Medellín

Andrés Carne de Res was also an amazing culinary experience in Medellín. The reservation was definitely worth it, and the food was excellent.

Hi - overall our experience with Kimkim and Angel was good. Im writing this more as feedback from kimkim as a service and less as a review of our trip, but there are definitely some learnings others could take from our experience.

We are experienced travelers, but when we looked into Japan it was overwhelming without some local knowledge to narrow down where to stay and how to book tours. Trains were overwhelming and without your support we would not have made this trip.

Hindsight being 20/20 I would have done more research on accommodations up front, but was trusting the service too much. Trusting things for Tokyo and Kyoto (to some extent), but Hakuba was a total miss and i'd advise you against booking that property.

I feel like communication during the trip was OK - there was one time when we were trying to figure out a transit and a more immediate response was needed. I received phone calls from China (which i would never answer) and whatsapp messages (which I dont use). You should align on preferred communication during the trip (text messaging for me) ahead of time to avoid this confusion.

As we went through our trip it became clear that the knowledge and experience around Hakuba valley was very limited as there were some major gaps in the plan that we had to address in real time without guidance. Our accommodations in Tokyo were great, Kyoto was nice as well, but Hakuba was no where near what the other two were like. It was more like a youth hostile than a family hotel. Logistics in Hakuba were also very challenging and if we didnt figure out we needed to pre-book a bus to get out of Hakuba we could have had to spend $1000 USD on a car service (Kimkim's recommendation was to order one from Tokyo which was 5 hours away). Taxi's were not an option from Hakuba and it was impossible to travel around without a car. We received zero guidance about this and would have changed both where we stayed and how we moved around with some more local experience. I believe this all comes down to a lack of local experience and knowledge about the Hakuba valley and i would have much rather there have been transparency about this which would have caused us to plan more closely there then to rely upon the service or pull in support who had local knowledge.

Our tours in Tokyo and Kyoto were all great, we really enjoyed the guides we had on all tours and felt they did a great job. The food tour was a highlight for us.

I do feel like you could do a better job of advising on the differences between a ryokan style hotel and a regular hotel. Our Ryokan included japanese breakfast every day which we only went to once due to it being so foreign for our kids. I appreciated doing it once, but it is unfortunate we paid for it 3x. I also think I didnt fully appreciate the style difference in this type of hotel and you could likely do a little more expectation setting when people are evaluating these options.

I know there are a lot of reviews about price transparency concerns with Kimkim and I do agree this is a challenge with your platform that would likely prevent me from using it again (not an absolute statement but a feeling as of now). Seeing what the cost difference is locally vs expectations in the US I cant help but feel like we were overcharged and with no detailed breakdown how do you overcome this feeling? It could be unjustified but I have no way of knowing.

So overall this was a good experience, especially when you are traveling somewhere you have never been. If Hakuba went more smoothly our review would likely be even better.

Hotel Reviews

Asakusa View Hotel Annex Rokku

We loved this hotel and location. The breakfast was great as well as the hospitality suite at night.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Asakusa was a really cool area.

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Hakuba Sun Valley Hotel Annex

Hakuba

This hotel is more like a youth hostel vs a family hotel. It was OK overall and the location was great if you wanted ski out, but with the Hakuba valley this comes with some major consequences about not being able to easily get to restaurants or town. I would stay here again with a car and if expectations were more clearly set.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

the owner of the hotel was very nice and helped us get to places on 2 separate instances.

Cleanliness & Comfort

the rooms were clean and while extremely basic, they were functional

Gion Ryokan Karaku

kyoto

This was a traditional japanese style hotel - as an american it was a fun experience but definitely know what you are getting into with this style hotel.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Comfort is more about the style of this hotel vs the actual hotel.

Activity Reviews

Kyoto Night Foodie Tour

Kyoto

we loved this tour, a highlight of our trip and we wished we did one in Tokyo as well.

Quality of Experience

Food

great experience at all stops.

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

was a walking tour

Tokyo Highlights Day Tour - East & West

Tokyo

Great guide and tour, made getting around Tokyo easy and gave us a good layout of the city.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Full Day Mt. Fuji with Lake Kawaguchi & Oishi Park

Tokyo

We had a good experience, but we didnt realize Mt Fuji was as far away as it was and that we were taking a bus there for 2.5 hours each way. We got really lucky that the weather was good but it would have been a bust if it was cloudy. We loved the temple we saw and Mt fuji was amazing but it is a lot of car time for what you do.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Bamboo Grove and Monkey Park Tour with a Boat Ride

Kyoto

This was a really fun day, lots of walking but we had a great time across the board and really appreciated how much we learned from our guide.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

I started looking on places to go on my son’s winter break. Were from San Diego so finding a place with a better weather or more beautiful can be a task. I landed on going to New Zealand and was contacted by a few companies who help planing a trip. Monika contacted me and followed through everything she said. She called me and answer all my questions via phone call. She planned my itinerary and modified it according to my needs (I have 2 little ones). She made sure I’m comfortable and let me know she’s here for me for anything I need. I just got back from a wonderful 2 weeks in New Zealand and couldn’t be happier. I was relaxed and saw all I could in those 2 weeks. The team and especially Monika were easy to talk to and available for me during my stay with every bump that had happened.
Thank you so much Monika for an unforgettable experience!!!

Hotel Reviews

River Birches Lodge

Turangi

I posted a google review for this accommodation. Simply beautiful and so calm. Everything we wanted and more

Authenticity & Character

Beatiful hotel, very clean

Location

Very close to stores and hike

Staff

Jason was our host and he contacted us daily to make sure we have all we need. He also helped with reservations and suggested what should we do on the days we had no olans

Cleanliness & Comfort

Super clean and comfortable

M Social

Auckland

Really nice hotel. Super central

Authenticity & Character

Very modern

Location

Amazing location. Walking distance to restaurants and ferry

Staff

Friendly staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Very comfortable and clean

Activity Reviews

Explore the Waitomo Glow Worm Caves

New Zealand

Amazing, beautiful. A must see

Quality of Experience

It’s was unique

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Very knowledgeable guide

Gannet Safaris

New Zealand

Really nice experience if you love bords

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

The guide was funny and very knowledgeable

Hawke's Bay Half Day Wine Tour

Napier

By far our most successful activity. The kids loved it and we got to see areas you don’t get to see from the car

Quality of Experience

The view, the wine and the freedom

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Our guide was flexible and offered solutions to difficulty we had

Transport

Came on time

We had an amazing time in Argentina with the itinerary Juan and the team at KimKim planned! This was our first visit to Argentina so it was great to have a local customize our trip. We started in Buenos Aires and was welcomed by our wonderful driver Alberto. Alberto ended up doing all of our airport pick up and drop offs from Buenos Aires which was awesome because he’s great and it was good to have a familiar face with us each time. He also gave us some suggestions on neighborhoods and sights to visit during our drive.

Jessica was our first BA local guide and she was wonderful! We went around to different parts of the city and learned a lot about the culture, history and city life in BA. San Telmo was one of our favorite neighborhoods with the food and craft markets. We also saw a Tango show at El Querandi which was intriguing and educational.

Our next stop was Puerto Iguazu where we went to Iguazu Falls on both the Brazil and Argentina side. Both are amazing in different ways and a must see! Our guide on the Brazil was Manuel and our guide on the Argentina side was Ramon. Both were awesome in making sure we navigated the parks and customs flawlessly. Highly suggest the Gran Aventura boat ride on the Argentina side if you don’t have any health restrictions - we’re very glad we decided to add this excursion. The town of Puerto Iguazu was also very cool to experience. On one hand, there’s a touristy downtown with great bars and restaurants (recommend the Argentine Experience food and wine tasting) and on the other, you have Guarani villages that you can visit (highly recommend horseback riding with Beto and Alberto at Cabalgata ecológica del indio solitario).

We also visited Salta and Purmamarca. Salta was a bigger city with bars, restaurants and shops. One day here was enough to walk around, go on the cable car to Cerro de San Bernardo and see the sites. The next day, we were picked up by our guide Federico who was super fun and knowledgeable. He took us to San Antonio de Los Cobres (small mining town) and Salinas Grandes (salt flats). We drove along the scenic route 40 and saw a lot of locals from the mountains and farms. We saw all the Llamas, Vicuñas and Donkeys :)

To our pleasant surprise, Federico was back the next day as our guide! We saw the 7 color mountains and 14 color mountains. Federico shared a lot about the people and culture from the area and it was such a great experience to learn from him.

Our last day back at Buenos Aires was perhaps one of the best. We visited the Boedo neighborhood with Graciela and Pierre, our local guide/dinner host. It was so rewarding to meet them, their sons and their pets! They showed us how to make empanadas and we had a wonderful home cooked meal with them.

As for hotels, most were good. Our favorite hotel was Mine Boutique Hotel in Buenos Aires. This was closest to what we would expect of a 4 star boutique hotel. Awwa in BA was spacious but didn’t have much ambiance. La Reserva in Puerto Iguazu was a nice resort with a nice room and was literally in the jungle. My only reservation here is that the bathroom was not too new - it didn’t match the rest of the resort. Villa Vicuña in Salta had a very nice bathroom with an older colonial boutique room. Purmamarca had amazing views from the hotel room and a wonderful balcony. The bathroom again was not as good and there was no A/C if that’s a concern. Overall, we selected boutique hotels as our lodging option and believe that that’s what was arranged for us.

One of my favorite things to do when traveling is to get to know locals and see the culture from as much of a non tourist perspective as possible. KimKim did a wonderful job with this - especially with the Graciela and Pierre.

I would definitely recommend KimKim if it is your first time to a city or country. They gave great suggestions and the logistics were seamless. Drivers were always on time, excursions were confirmed and local flights were at times that helped maximize our day. Thank you Juan and Joaquin!

We had a memorable trip to Costa Rica, and I would like to thank Kim Kim for putting the itinerary together and making all the required bookings. Olman was fantastic and super responsive to all our questions. Everyone we interacted with, including the drivers and guides, was terrific. I highly recommend Kim Kim to anyone planning a vacation.

Activity Reviews

Day Trip to Doka Coffee Plantations, Poás Volcano, & La Paz Waterfall Gardens

San José

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Arenal 1968 Hike & Visit to Ecotermales Hot Springs

Arenal/La Fortuna

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Whitewater Rafting on the Balsa River Class II & III

Arenal/La Fortuna

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Río Celeste & Tenorio Volcano National Park Guided Rainforest Hike

Arenal/La Fortuna

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Selvatura Park Self-Guided Hanging Bridges & Zip Lining

Monteverde

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve Guided Hike

Monteverde

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Manuel Antonio National Park Guided Hike

Costa Rica

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Everything about our experience with kimkim was absolutely amazing. Our specialist Vicky was very responsive and chock-full of great ideas and recommendations for our diverse travel group, and because she knew the area so well, was able to make perfect suggestions for us. We were a little indecisive at first and she was extremely accommodating and always fast to respond and give alternatives. The trip we found ourselves on was truly a dream, each day we kept saying "this is the best day", and having had all of the reservations made for us allowed us to simply enjoy each other's company and take it all that Australia and New Zealand had to offer! Which is a LOT!!! We have already recommended kimkim to friends and will definitely use the service again. Thank you for making an intergenerational trip extremely memorable.

Hotel Reviews

Swiss-Belsuites Victoria Park Auckland

Auckland

Roomy, modern fantastic views in a great location!

Authenticity & Character

Location

Walkable to many attractions, great view of the sky tower!

Staff

We had an issue with our dryer and the person on duty helped us out immediately.

Cleanliness & Comfort

The rooms were very large with nice closets and large bathrooms.

The Glebe Apartments

Queenstown

Absolutely loved this hotel, the kitchen was very well appointed, living area was delightful, nice balcony overlooking a central garden courtyard that was so beautiful and peaceful. We were told there would be construction and to potentially expect noise, but we didn't experience any inconvenience the entire trip, in fact it was one of the most tranquil places we stayed. The rooms were large, nice closet space, heated floors in the bathroom! It was decorated so nicely that it literally felt like a home away from home!

Authenticity & Character

Charming courtyard and warm and welcoming decor

Location

Very walkable to the city center with shopping and restaurants as well as to the ski lift.

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Lounging in the living room felt just like being at home!

Vision Cairns Holiday Apartments

Cairns

Odd smell upon arrival, didn't feel particularly clean, beds were TINY and there was little to NO decor at all. Only positive experience here was the person at reception - she was very kind. Also - it was nice to have a washer and a dryer.

Authenticity & Character

Extremely outdated and almost zero decor

Location

Very walkable

Staff

Front desk staff was very kind

Cleanliness & Comfort

Strange odor, living room felt unclean, beds were tiny, closet was tiny, bathroom needs racks for towels

The Star Grand Hotel and Residences Sydney

Pyrmont, Sydney

Impressive, perfect location and excellent customer service

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Review

Sydney Bridge Climb Summit

Sydney

We felt very well taken care of and safe during the entire activity, and enjoyed every minute of it, especially the sense of accomplishment at the end!

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Here is feedback on the Chile trip
1. The organization by Francisco was less than what I expected. Communication was done with him over Kimkin portal or verbally but then actions were different.
2. The hotels that were promised were changed after we paid the deposit and they were much worse than we initially were told.
3. The hotel in San Pedro de Atacama (Don Raul) was very bad – I even sent photos of the hotel. The toilet seat did not fit the toilet bowl, no closet, extremely small room with barely much room for luggage, no closet, very small shower with half the shower door so water will spill out. This was not a 3 start hotel.
4. We were told that there will be 2 cabins in Torres Del Paine in Konkashken Lodge for 2 days. Then Francisco said that there was only 1 cabin with 4 beds and everything else was booked and nothing else was available. He never told us that the 1 cabin will be with bunk beds – imagine that! 4 adults, 2 aged in mid-thirties and 2 in their sixties trying to fit in bunk beds. We discussed with the owner/manager and she said Francisco changed the reservation from 2 cabins to 1 cabin and they had rooms available (but Francisco told us that there were no rooms available when original booking was done). The situation was so bad that we could not stay a second night as we had planned and paid for. Originally when I had asked Francisco that he should reduce the amount since he had charged for 2 cabins and changed the reservation for one cabin he said that vegetarian food was expensive so he will not reduce the price. This was not true also. I should be refunded for 2 rooms for 1 night and also for the other night that we were forced to spend in totally unacceptable accommodation with bunk beds in a single cabin.
5. I did not expect this kind of service from KimKim. Extremely disappointed.

Otherwise Chile and specially Torres Del Paine overall is a wonderful place to visit.

Hotel Reviews

Hotel Don Raul

San Pedro de Atacama

Very small room with hardly room for luggage and with bathrooms in poor condition, the checkin clerk at front desk were rude (for English speaking guest). Would not recommend staying at this place.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

A couple of people doing the checkin were rude

Cleanliness & Comfort

Need to fix bathroom, have toilet seats that are right for the bowl, shower door needs fixing to prevent water spills

Hilton Garden Inn Santiago Airport

Santiago

Stayed for short few hours but good service and helpful people

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Hotel Alma Sur

Punta Arenas

Rooms were just okay as they are older and not updated. Restaurant would not server normal course meal and had to have their expensive Christmas meal with limited option

Hotel Plaza El Bosque Ebro

Santiago

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Konkashken Lodge

Torres del Paine

Very nice, helpful owner

Activity Reviews

Astronomical Tour - Atacama Desert

San Pedro de Atacama

Full Day Trip- Red Rocks, Lagunas Altiplánicas & Atacama Salt Flats

San Pedro de Atacama

Best tour for Atacama desert and salt flats

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Magdalena Island - Penguin Encounter Half Day Tour

Chile

Don's miss it

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Panoramic Santiago City Tour

Santiago

Baltinache Hidden Lagoons and Vallecito(magic bus).

Chile

NOthing very spectacular

Navigation Excursion - Balmaceda & Serrano Glacier with Patagonic Lunch

Chile

Nice tour

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Adeline was the absolute best. She really listened and found the best excursions and activities to accommodate our multi-generation trip. My kids had a blast with their grandparents. From the beautiful bike ride in Kyoto to the capybara cafe to amazing restaurant recommendations, we were so lucky to have her in our corner. She even proactively helped us with a couple of last minute changes once we were on the ground in Japan (while she was on her own vacation!)

Liz was wonderful to work with and collaboarate with in planning our Australia trip. The transports were flawless and tours were great! Here hotel recomendations were perfect and very centrally located for all of our activities. I will not hesitate to reach out to her again for help with another vacation.

Our trip to Costa Rica was outstanding. From our accommodations, activities, and transportation, Serendipity Adventures was the local specialist who helped plan, organize and manage our trip. They made sure everything ran smoothly (Wilman, Bryan, and Nancy).
We loved our activities of hiking Arenal volcano, seeing the waterfall, ziplining and hanging bridges, night walks, seeing the animals, a coffee/chocolate/sugar cane tour (that we added last minute--and there was a lot of help coordinating our transportation and timing), nature walks at the beach, etc. Wilman and Bryan also gave us many recommendations for restaurants and other activities when we had some free time.

Hotel Review

Arenal Paraíso Resort, Spa & Hot Springs

La Fortuna

This hotel had nice views of the volcano. And we enjoyed the thermal pools. However, we did run out of hot water for showers several times (there were 3 of us in a room). It was located about 10-15 minutes from town and restaurants.

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Sky Tram, Ziplines & Sky Walk Adventure

Arenal/La Fortuna

The ziplining had spectacular views of the volcano and the lake. And you went 45+ mph on the zips...super exhilarating. The staff was very friendly and helpful.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Waterfall & Volcano Hiking Adventure with Lunch

Arenal/La Fortuna

Mariano was our guide and was very patient with our group of 12 taking photos and having fun. Seeing the volcano closer was very interesting.

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Alex was awesome...he provided a lot of information.

Private Cloud Forest Night Walk

Monteverde

Of all of the activities we did while in Costa Rica, this one ranked last on our list. It had just rained prior to us starting the night walk, so that may have affected the wildlife, but I was underwhelmed with what we found. Our guide was so enthusiastic and knowledgeable, so that made the walk interesting.

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Manuel Antonio National Park Guided Nature Hike

Manuel Antonio

Loved that we had 2 guides for our group of 12. And they made sure that all of us saw the animals and were satisfied before moving on. It was an interesting walk on the path, spotting all kinds of interesting wildlife, including sloths (with babies), monkeys, birds, lizards, etc.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Eric was an amazing source of information and guidance for our Winter Iceland Trip (for our family of 8)! I had done a lot of research on specific areas we wanted to visit, and he provided excellent details in creating a realistically-paced vacation, as well as specific details for greater understanding and additional highlights to visit. Eric was responsive and thorough in his explanations, as well as professional and patient with our itinerary questions and changes.

Specifics:
Car Rental - No problems at all... only a pesky spot that the windshield wiper didn't quite wipe away in the driver's view.

Day 1: We stopped to see some Icelandic friends at their home and visited with them awhile. The stops along the Golden Circle were beautiful... Thingvellir, Geysir and Gullfoss. What we should have, but didn't expect was all of the tour buses and group tours! We didn't have time for Fridheimar Tomato Farm or Kerid Crater, as our daylight was running out and we had dinner reservations. Our dinner at Ingolfsskali Viking Restaurant was absolutely delicious (for everyone)! We stayed at our friend's parents' cottage this night.

Day 2: Seljalandsfoss & Gljufrabui were amazing, although we couldn't see anything but pure whiteness when we pulled into the parking lot! The weather quickly cleared, and we were able to experience both waterfalls... my two sons even meandered back into the canyon to get closer to Gljufrabui, at the expense of one wet foot. Skogafoss & Reynisfara were amazing as well. We did witness a risky tourist challenging the sneaker waves too much and got completely knocked down & soaked by them! We had to call it a day after this because of weather/visibility. We went grocery shopping and cooked dinner at Eaglerock Guesthouse this night (and the next)... as well as breakfast. Very nice accommodations.

Day 3: Our Crystal Blue Ice Cave tour was awesome, and our tour guide (Johann from Troll Expeditions) had a super fun personality! Jokulsarlon & Diamond Beach were both truly beautiful! We even saw a seal playing close-up in the lagoon, and we saw the Northern Lights back at our rental this night right before bed!

Day 4: We HIGHLY recommend ice climbing with Tindaborg (referred by our Icelandic friends). Iris & Arni are expertly trained glacier mountain and climbing guides. They are involved in the national training of mountain guides, rescues, and glacier mountaineering. What's best are their friendly, patient, informative, adventurous, and truly pleasant personalities! We had complete confidence in our safety and guidance with them, and our whole family was able to experience something we never could have done on our own! We had a good meal at Smidjan Brugghus, and Vik Apartments provided a perfect stay for us.

Day 5: We really enjoyed hiking around Dyrholaey and into Loftsalahellir cave... spent more time there than we'd planned, but it was worth it! We drove to our friends' home in the Reykjavik area this night (New Year's Eve), and they had a delicious dinner catered in for us. They drove us out to one of the local bonfires, then back to their home for the traditional Áramótaskaupið TV show with English subtitles (and their helpful explanations of some jokes), then back outside for amazing fireworks all around!

Day 6: New Year's Day we went to Christ the King Catholic Church for Mass, shared coffee & pastries with some of the parishioners, then toured around some of the famous spots in Reykjavik. Some shops and quite a few restaurants were closed for the holiday, but we still got to visit a few. We had quick sandwiches for lunch and were throughly relaxed in the Seven Rituals of Sky Lagoon... Wow, what an experience! We even got to see the Northern Lights again from the warm waters of Sky Lagoon itself & outside as we were leaving. We returned to our friends' home for dinner and games that night.

Day 7: Our drive towards the Snæfellsnes Peninsula included the beauty of Hraunfossar & Barnafoss, but we didn't get to see much else because of the weather. The Gerduberg basalt cliffs were almost completely buried in snow (we could only see the very top of them), and we bypassed the other stops as well. Our family was hungry, and there were very limited options this time of year. We checked into Midhraun Resort (great accommodation), relaxed a bit, and waited for Langaholt Restaurant to open their buffet dinner (which was delicious)!

Day 8: We did a lot of imaging what beautiful Snæfellsnes would be like in the summer this day, as it we got pretty harsh weather most of the time we visited. We stopped at Budir church, Arnarstapi, and Londrangar. We spent a lot of time hiking around the amazing Djupalonssandur beach, which we thought was more enjoyable and preferable to the crowds of Reynisfara! Some of us took turns lifting the stones and staying clear of the sneaker waves. We had a very delicious lunch at Matarlist in the visitor center, but wow, it was pricey! We stopped by the Murals of Hellissandur, and half of our family walked the steps up to Saxholl Crater but found its top view a little disappointing. Unfortunately, Kirkjufell was only barely visible at its base because of the weather, but we were able to see Kirkjufellsfoss and play in the snow (snowball fight & built a snowman). We had planned to go to Stykkisholmur for a highly-rated restaurant dinner option, but were pretty worn out from the weather (and had spent so much at lunch) that we opted to stop at a grocery store and fix a simple dinner back at Midhraun.

Day 9: Breakfast at Midhraun both mornings was great, and staff was very friendly. We saw more Northern Lights this morning before heading out! We were mesmerized by the drive between Borgarnes and Hvammsvik with its incredible scenery... blue, clear skies and breathtaking views of the water and snow-covered mountains! Hvammsvik Hot Springs was throughly enjoyable, and most of us even went into the ocean in between the hot spring pools. We stopped in a shop near Reykjavik for some souvenirs, said goodbye to our Icelandic host friends, and made it to the airport on schedule.

We found the Icelandic people to be very friendly, the tour bus groups to be a bit annoying, and the trip as a whole to be outstanding!! We would love to return and experience it again one summer, but we also really appreciated and enjoyed the amazing beauty of this winter wonderland!

Thank you, Eric, for all your help and expert guidance!
Sincerely,
The Williams Family from Florida

Activity Reviews

Crystal Blue Ice Cave

Iceland

Amazing sights and creation! Johann from Troll Expeditions had a great personality and helped make this experience super fun! The crowds were the only thing detracting from this trip.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Sky Lagoon

Iceland

Truly relaxing and luxurious experience!

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Hvammsvik Hot Springs (& Nature Reserve)

Iceland

Such a great and relaxing experience! We enjoyed the views from these hot springs even better than Sky Lagoon, and it was much less crowded as well.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

We thoroughly enjoyed our mother/daughter trip to North and Central Vietnam in December. Huyen was great to work with – accommodating and flexible. She provided many options, listened to our requests, and tailored our trip to suit our needs. We were able to enjoy a few days on our own exploring the cities and finding activities like temple of literature, water puppet show, tailored clothes, Hoi An at night among others to do.
Highlights of our custom itinerary included Hanoi Street food tour, a day trip to Ninh Binh, an overnight cruise on Ha Long Bay (kayaking and incredible views), cooking class, basket boat, ba na hills, etc. Our tour guides, Long (Hanoi) and Han (Hoi An) were fantastic – very friendly, helpful and knowledgeable of their cities and cultures. They gave us recommendations for the best pho, bahn mi, cafes and restaurants for an incredible dining experience. Activities like spa and lantern making were perfectly suggested for a rainy day in Hoi An. The drivers were always on time. Having KimKim take care of all the hotel reservations, airport/road transfers, some meals, domestic flights, etc. made our trip so much more enjoyable and stress free. Highly recommend that to anyone planning a vacation to a foreign country or want a worry-free experience.
There were some miscommunications about dietary restrictions which led to our guides believing we required vegetarian meals which wasn’t true. We wish we had been able to try more of the local cuisine rather than catering to something we didn’t want.
Our thanks to KimKim for so many memorable moments. We enjoyed it all!
Cecilia B.