Kimkim Trip Reviews for Switzerland

Our trip was carried out true to the plan except on Day 6.
First, we didn't have the correct meeting time. It says 8:00am on the sheet but the driver said it's 9:00am.
Then the local guide is a different person as it shows on the sheet. (But she's a very good guide)
The route is also different. We didn't go anywhere before riding the speed boat to visit places. We hop on directly onto the speed boat cruising around and stopped to visit an estate.
It would be nice if changes made and we are informed.

Our thanks to Clothilde for working with us to build a memorable trip. She was responsive and timely in helping us lock in an itinerary on relatively short notice. Our thanks also to Joel for stepping in to assist Clothilde while she was unavailable.

We were pleased with our main activities:
Funky Chocolate Shop - fun family activity, I don't remember our host's name but she was very good
E-Bike Tour - good outdoor activity, the Trummellbach Falls were the highlight. Pedro was an engaging guide and he helped us with medical attention when one of our sons took an unfortunate fall.
Trip to Jungfrauloch - maybe the highlight of the week, a unique and unforgettable experience
Riffelsee and Riffelberg Tour - Guide Herbie had the good idea to visit the mirroring lake to the Matterhorn first, before the crowds got there
Likewise, we were generally pleased with the accommodations.

A couple of items didn't meet our expectations:
After agreeing to our itinerary and paying the amount in full, we were notified that the E-Bike Tour we signed up for was not available. After some discussion, we were left with no choice but to pay an extra charge to secure the Tour we had already paid for. That still doesn't seem right to me.
For the private transfer from Zermatt to Zurich, we had instructions to meet our driver at our hotel. When he didn't appear, we had to contact him to find out that he was waiting for us in Tasch, as cars are not normally permitted in Zurich. We then had to get ourselves to the Zermatt train station and find a train to Tasch. This should have been avoided and in fact, I sent an inquiry that night prior asking for clarification on that issue.

But overall, a very enjoyable trip.

Hotel Reviews

Heart of Interlaken Apartments

INTERLAKEN

Hotel Alpenhof

Zermatt

Hotel Glärnischhof by Trinity

Zurich

Activity Reviews

Chocolate workshop in Interlaken!

Switzerland

E-Bike Adventure: Exploring Lauterbrunnen and the Enchanting Valley of 72 Waterfalls

Switzerland

Time at leisure in Interlaken!

Switzerland

Riffelsee and Riffelberg tour!

Zermatt

We enjoyed our e-bike tour with Yost. He was so friendly and fun to be around. This trip was well planned and only had one hiccup because of a weather scare but we still got to do all the activities we wanted to do.

Activity Reviews

Canyon Swing activity !

Switzerland

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

E-Bike Adventure: Exploring Lauterbrunnen and the Enchanting Valley of 72 Waterfalls

Switzerland

This was such a fun activity! Yost, our tour guide was friendly and fun to be around.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Our trip overall was amazing, the landscape was beautiful, and hikes were absolutely gorgeous!
Our guide Thomas definitely knew really great hikes to book for us!

One difficulty was the requirement to bring duffle bags which are harder to carry around (especially given all the public transit). If I went back, I would ask to use a regular wheeled bag.

One other thing is that the Mon Roadbook app provided great maps, but the written directions were harder to follow so I would recommend just using the phone app. It would have been great to have a bit more information provided about the amenities and what to expect at the mountain hut vs. other accommodations.

We really loved the trip and would love to go back!

We thoroughly enjoyed the trip to Luzern, Switzerland and Paris France. The excursion to Lindt Chocolate factory, Mount Rigi, Eiffel Tower, Louvre Museum, and MountMare, was worth every minute and very enjoyable. Travel Directions and Places to Visit Instructions provided by KimKim while visiting these countries were clear, concise and worthwhile. Having a designated driver to the airport was a convenient and useful perk. The hotel in Switzerland did not have AC which was an inconvenience and the bathroom was small. The Paris hotel was very small and breakfast food was sub-par.

My travel specialist, Margaux, put together a wonderful trip for me in Switzerland. I was amazed at how quickly she came up with a plan, after I filled out the questionnaire. I wanted to see more of the country after going to The Eras Tour in Zurich. I traveled, mainly by train, from Zurich to Montreux, Zermatt, and then on to Geneva, from where I flew home. Montreux is so beautiful! The Jazz Festival was happening while I was there, so I got to see some free live music and enjoy the general festivities. I really enjoyed visiting Chateau de Chillon. What an interesting place! Another highlight of my trip was taking the scenic train to see the Matterhorn. It was a cloudy day, so I was feeling less than hopeful about getting good views, but on the trip up, the clouds parted and we had amazing views of the mountains the entire day. It was breathtaking! The itinerary and vouchers that Margaux prepared for me made my solo trip much easier, because I had a plan for each day and the information I needed to make getting from place to place easier.

Friends of ours recommended using KimKim for the trip we were planning to Switzerland. Not ever having been there, there was so much we wanted to see and not enough time to do it. With the help of Clothide, our travel agent assigned through KimKim, she was able to help us plan an amazing trip. It took quite a bit of back and forth for us to get everything just the way we wanted it, but she was very patient and professional through it all. When we found out on our way to Zermatt on the train that we couldn't get there due to flooding, we reached out to Clothide who, with her colleagues, were able to get us checked into our next hotel in Montreux a day early, cancel our Zermatt hotel, and get us a partial refund on our excursion we were unable to use in Zermatt. Without their on-call support throughout our trip we would have been completely stressed and not sure what to do next. Thank you, KimKim (and Clothide!), we will most certainly be recommending you to friends!

Our guide, Nicole was great! She helped us to adjust our itinerary according to the weather. She helped us to understand the local train system.
Bastien was responsive when we were there, but we should not have trusted his judgement when it came to traveling with children. He often did not consider the ages and abilities of our children when planning our trip. A number of details were overlooked in planning transportation and lodging.
Our itinerary was lacking in detail and left quite a bit to be desired. We had no idea how to use the train system or even find the train station. Getting around was an obstacle and the amount of walking too much for our three year old. Perhaps on a trip with just adults and no small children, this would be fine, but was very difficult to have to navigate ourselves with our two small kids. I did mention my concerns multiple times during the planning process and it feels like my concerns were overlooked in favor of what was easiest for Bastien. We ended up relying quite a bit on our guide, Nicole. She saved our trip!

Amandine helped us plan a lovely 3 days in Switzerland!

Activity Review

Folklore evening show - Fondue & Swiss Music /advance booking and payment on site only

Lucerne

A very fun evening!

Switzerland was beautiful and the trip was great. Overall we enjoyed using the Swiss Pass and traveling by train. The trip felt a bit rushed and may have been my fault as I worked with Valentine to set it up. We got to Montreaux too late to see the castle or anything else, so it would have been nice to bypass Montreaux and spent the night in Zermatt. It was a little confusing when we were trying to check in to ride the train to the Matterhorn. We didn't realize there were two sets of tickets per person and the operator was getting a little flustered with us. We had a great time once we were able to get on the Matterhorn Railway. Grindelwald was beautiful and amazing. We loved, loved the Schilthorn-Piz Gloria. So beautiful! We loved riding the cable cars. The little village of Thun was okay but we could have skipped this visit. It would have been nice to visit Jungfraujoch as well, now that I know more about this area. Also, we missed seeing the Trummelbach Falls because of all the excitement of Schilthorn. Maybe the Falls could have been part of the trip details when going to/from Schilthorn. Luzern was nice but we were there less than 18 hours. Our tour guide (Adrian) was very enjoyable, likable, and knew the city. He was an okay guide. Lugano was beautiful and our tour guide (Patricia) was amazing and incredible. She recommended a small village, Ascona, for us to visit on the second day and it was perfect! We loved Patricia! Zurich was nice but we were there less than 14 hours. It would have been nice to spend an extra night there. Our tour guide was nice and had interesting facts about the city. Also, Valentine put together a nice trip for our family. She was very responsive on all our questions. If she was not available someone else assisted us.

Hotel Reviews

Hotel Excelsior

Zermatt

Quaint hotel with a view of the Matterhorn.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Great view of the Matterhorn.

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Hotel Hirschen - Grindelwald

Grindelwald

Beautiful, quaint hotel. Loved our room! Beautiful view of the mountains from our balcony.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Wonderful location. Beautiful view of the mountains.

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Very clean.

Hotel Felix

Zürich

Very nice, but the rooms were just a little too small.

Authenticity & Character

Felt like a hotel in America.

Location

Location was good; 5 or so minutes from the train and close to cute stores and shops.

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Hotel Rebstock

Luzern

Did not care for this hotel. It was confusing to find the room, the room felt dark and victorian, and had to use an actual key to lock and unlock the door.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Private Walking Tour - History & Mystery of Zurich

Zürich

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Swiss Travel Pass

Switzerland

Gornergrat panoramic train (return day-ticket)

Switzerland

Schilthorn - Piz Gloria

Switzerland

Bellinzona – Castelgrande, Montebello, Sasso Corbaro (private tour)

Lugano

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Luzern City Tour Private Walking Tour with Lake Cruise

Lucerne

Boat Cruise to Gandria & return by walking

Lugano

Valentine did the planning of my trip and everything goes well. Top of Europe, Mt Rigi, Oeschinensee lake, Lavaux vineyard, burano island are excellent recommendations to visit /hike. Valentine and her team also track and follow through my journey. Very responsible team.

Hotel Reviews

Romantik Hotel Wilden Mann

Lucerne

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Metropole Hotel Interlaken

Interlaken

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Hotel La Rouvenaz

Montreux

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Liassidi Palace

VENEZIA

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Relais Sul Mare Boutique Hotel

Naples

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Marcella Royal Hotel

Rome

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Self-guided day to Mount Rigi, the Queen of Mountains

Switzerland

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Panorama Hike from Männlichen to Kleine Scheidegg

Switzerland

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Jungfraujoch, Top of Europe (tickets and seat reservation)

Switzerland

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Early Morning Access Vatican Tour (small group tour/3,5 hours)

Rome

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Doge's Palace & St Marks Basilica Tour at Night (Small Group/3,5hours)

Switzerland

Quality of Experience

Pop

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

The Best of Colosseum & Ancient Rome With Exclusive Arena Access | Semi-Private Tour

Rome

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

We loved our trip to Switzerland and Valentine did a fantastic job planning the trip and supporting us.

Our favorite was a six hour e-bike trip from Interlaken to the Lauterbrunnen Valley known as the valley of 72 waterfalls. Effortless pedaling and non stop beautiful scenery.

Also Grindelwald was amazingly beautiful. The country is so clean and the engineering is incredible. Swiss buildings actually enhance not detract from the natural beauty of the country.

Activity Review

E-bike tour Lauterbrunnen & Valley of 72 Waterfalls (small group/6 hours)

Switzerland

Do this for sure!!

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Amandine was absolutely the best when it came to planning our trip! We are so thrilled in our experience with her and the KimKim team, their attention to detail, and ability to work around our ideas to create the perfect honeymoon. Everything from our formal group tours to the days where we had self-guided experiences were outlined and given to us in our minute-by-minute itinerary. Amandine and her colleagues were also kind enough to check in on us during our trip to make sure everything was going to plan. All of our hotel stays and events matched and exceeded our expectations!

Really wonderful experience. Wealth of knowledge and resources. I should have started here and let them do all the planning. I typically research and try to make best travel decisions from internet. Don’t waste your time. This group knows every area, interesting sites, hotels, restaurants and travel modes. Amandine was always available and other consultants chimed in on ideas. We had an awesome adventure.

My husband and brother in law teamed up on planning this trip with KimKim support and their close coordination with Clothilde was essential. The hotels were well located and for the most part the service staff were charming and kind. Our guides and drivers: Fernando in Zurich, Mateo in InterLaken, and the 2 gentlemen from Zermatt to Geneva (from Alps transfer) were prompt, knowledgeable, and engaging, as was Aude who was beyond kind. The concierges at Lucerne- Patrick, Isabelle and their colleagues gave us excellent recommendations to spend our time in the lovely city and where to dine for an authentic experience.
Some suggestions on improved communication:
1. emails - when informing customers of changes, it would help to specify what items have been changed in the body of the email itself, rather than have the customer check the 11 page itinerary against the last version, for what could possibly have changed. for example, "Dear Customer, we are enclosing an updated itinerary with the following changes:
page 1 paragraph 2 line 4, Please note that pick up time has changed as the local tour company does not have availability at 10:00 am. Instead, your local city tour will start at 2:00 PM pm on the same day."
2. for airport pickups it might help to instruct travelers about specific locations to meet drivers - our pickup was on the lookout at one end of the airport and we were at another. It could help to be specific - "upon exit from the double doors take the exit to the left where your pick up will meet you next to the cafe illy sign (example)". It would save time and the cost of calls.
3. Inconsistencies between itinerary and vouchers based on last minute changes between the company, its distributors or local contacts need to be coordinated by you and not your customer as that is an expected part of service.
4. The hotel Bristol was wonderfully located and was clean and offered excellent value. The lady in registration expected us to have signed in online but that expectation was not communicated to us ahead of time. The pad offered to accomplish the online check in was nonfunctional and the staff's frustration with the technology reflected in their treatment of the guests. Our pick up was scheduled for 9 am, but we were told we were late at 8:30 - it turns out our driver had also just called them to inform them they would be at the pick up at exactly 9 am. We objected to a drop off at the train station as we needed to meet our driver at the pick up for private vehicles. This showed a clear lack of coordination unexpected of a professionally run travel outfit.
These minor irritations are all fixable with personal attention, interest and care. We are hopeful KimKim can address these issues .

We had an amazing trip with short stays in Zurich, Lucerne, Grindewald, Lugano, Stressa, Chamonix, Montreux and Zurich. Each city had its own character and April was a great time to visit with the spring blossoms! Our activities ranged from city tours, bike tour, hiking, mountain and glacier tours, relaxing spas, vineyards with wine tasting to free time where we explored on our own.

My wife and I had round trip plane tickets to Geneva with no particular plans. KimKim put us in touch with Valentine who knows all about Switzerland first hand. She asked us a few questions about our budget and what we liked to do and see. Valentine put together an incredible itinerary covering Geneva, Zermatt, Interlaken, Lugano, Luzern, Bern, and Montreux. All hotels were within walking distance of train stations, and getting around with the handy Swiss Travel Pass was no problem.

Switzerland is such a diverse and beautiful country. The Swiss Alps are breathtaking. Especially memorable was our view of the Matterhorn in Zermatt. Valentine set us up with a private guide, Patricia, in Lugano. Patricia put together a food tour highlighting the local Italian cuisine. The next day, she took us on a hike along the shore of Lake Lugano to Gandria, a charming little village, followed by lunch at one of the grottoes across the lake (Grotto Descanso) where we had an amazing meal with a stunning view.

All of these cities were wonderful in their own unique ways. This trip far exceeded our expectations. Thank you, Valentine!

Switzerland was the most beautiful country we’ve seen! It was simply breathtaking. Our local expert Clothilde worked with us to find the perfect hotel and excursions. She was always timely and courteous and we appreciated her knowledge.
The hotel was lovely and we liked the convenient location. We really enjoyed the complimentary breakfast each morning. It was always delicious and the staff were very nice and helpful. Only downsides were the street construction in front of the hotel. At night it was quite loud when cars drove over the metal covers on the ground. They also seem to not have enough towels. Oddly we kept having to ask and they kept running out. Otherwise this hotel was perfect for us.
I cannot say enough about our guide Celio and his knowledge about all things Switzerland. He was funny, engaging and just a fantastic guide. We had no idea what we would be seeing and he showed us some little known spots that were just…. Awe inspiring. We could have sat there all day. We really enjoyed our time with him. The trips to Lucerne and the glacier are not to be missed!! I’m so glad we made the last minute change in plans. Big thanks to Clothilde and her local contacts for making it happen on such short notice! Also a shout out to our airport transportation. They were on time and courteous; the cars were spotless. Overall our vacation was just outstanding!

Hotel Review

Boutique Hotel Wellenberg

Zurich

We really enjoyed their location in the heart of things. It was an easy walk to everything. The room was big and lovely. We appreciated the hot showers. The complimentary breakfast was really good and the staff was so kind and helpful. The only downsides were the street construction in front of the hotel. Primarily the metal plates that cover the ground. It was really loud at night when cars drove over them. Also they seem to not have enough towels. We kept having to ask for them and they kept running out. The staff though was very courteous and helpful.

Authenticity & Character

I loved the history of this hotel

Location

Many good restaurants and shops within a 5 minute walk. Also close to the public transportation

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Spotless- we enjoyed the convenience of the fridge and the hot showers

Activity Reviews

Rhine Falls & Stein am Rhein medieval village!

Switzerland

So beautiful and powerful

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Celio is the best!

Transport

Titlis - Eternal Snow and Glacier!

Switzerland

Although it was cloudy and we couldn’t see at the very top, The ice cave was very cool! We also loved the ride up and down the mountain. On the way down, it cleared up and made it all worth it!

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

THE HEART OF THE BERNESE ALPS ! (Interlaken)

Switzerland

I just can’t say enough about how beautiful the countryside is. The knowledge of our guide Celio was everything .

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Lucerne Full-day trip

Zürich

We almost missed out on this beautiful city. We loved everything about our day. Celio recommended a restaurant and the food was outstanding. The transportation's museum was really fun and the lake cruise was not to be missed. It was probably our favorite part of the day!

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Overall, had a very memorable trip with my daughter to Switzerland and Milan. Clothilde was great to deal with, and very responsive to any hiccups along the way. There were a couple of issues that didn’t go as smoothly as planned, but she was responsive when that happened.

Hotel Reviews

Grand Hotel National Luzern

Luzern

The location of this hotel was ideal. It was beautiful and the rooms were amazing.. breakfast each morning was great.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Beds were a little hard for my taste.

Hotel Spadari Al Duomo

Milan

Overall, the location of this hotel was great. This was not my favorite hotel. The rooms were very very small. The beds were not as comfortable. The bathroom was small. This is considered a small boutique hotel. when I requested to upgrade to a larger room they said they were full. Breakfast was good.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Review

Jungfraujoch – Top of Europe

Switzerland

Amazing sites. And the multiple trains that took to get there were executed effortlessly..

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

We enjoyed all parts of our trip to Switzerland! Our travel agents, Tomaz and Zala, did an amazing job helping us to identify different sightseeing options and how to make it all happen.

Hotel Reviews

Hotel Edelweiss Manotel

Geneva

We very much liked this hotel, the lobby was cozy, the location was great, the rooms and breakfast were much to our liking. The hotel staff was very helpful. The only reason I didn't give it a 5 Star is because the bathroom had an unpleasant odor to it. It could have just been our two rooms, I'm not sure.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Hotel Artos Interlaken

Interlaken

It was a good location. The hotel didn't have a particularly nice lobby. It didn't have any ambiance of Switzerland. We weren't told before hand that the hotel is also a place for senior citizens. It was fine, but would have been helpful to have a heads up on that. The rooms were nice and comfortable and the breakfast was fine.

Authenticity & Character

It had no character of Switzerland at all.

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Hotel Ambassador - De la Paix

Luzern

Not much of a lobby but the rooms were spacious and very nice. We had an amazing balcony with an awesome view. The location was perfect, right in the middle of where we wanted to be. The breakfast was fine but not as extensive as the other places we stayed.

Authenticity & Character

Loved the balcony!!!

Location

Cleanliness & Comfort

The rooms were big and nice.

Activity Reviews

Chocolate Flavours small-group tour

Geneva

Our tour guide was wonderful! She was so knowledgeable and willing to answer all of the questions of the group. The best part of this tour was of course the delicious chocolate and the shops she took us to but also that with the walking, we got to see a lot of Geneva and she gave us so much history along the way. I definitely recommend this tour!

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Visit Patek Philippe Museum

Switzerland

We didn't get to go to this museum as it was closed Sundays and Mondays when we were in Geneva.

Guided tour of Montreux

Montreux

We liked our guide, she was extremely helpful in guiding us to the bus and train station and taking care of our luggage on our tour. Honestly, we didn't think the area was that interesting. The lake was pretty and we did like seeing where Queen recorded but that's all.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Cheese Tuk-tuk tour

Lucerne

This was another great tour we loved! The guide/driver was very sweet and made sure we're comfortable and had lots of delicious cheese fondue and while we ate, he gave us a ride around the city and shared interesting information.

Luzern Chocolate tasting

Lucerne

We liked it but not nearly as much as our first Chocolate tour in Geneva. This one was in the back room of a chocolate store. The woman shared with us about the history of chocolate and their company and we tasted delicious chocolate.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Dinner Swiss Folklore Show in Stadtkeller

Lucerne

This didn't happen. Apparently the show takes places during the warmer montjs