Kilimanjaro
Seven routes, our own mountain crew, and the acclimatisation days that separate a summit photograph from a story about the weather.
The mountain
Kilimanjaro is the highest free-standing mountain in the world and the highest point in Africa. There is no rope work, no ice axe and no technical skill required on any of the standard routes. What there is, is altitude — and altitude is the entire game.
You will walk from farmland at 1,800 metres through rainforest, heather and moorland, alpine desert and finally the arctic zone at the crater rim: five ecological zones in under a week, the rough equivalent of walking from the equator to the Arctic Circle. Summit night begins around midnight and ends with sunrise over Mawenzi from Stella Point.
The variable that decides whether you stand on Uhuru Peak is not fitness or willpower. It is the number of nights you spend acclimatising on the way up. Six-day climbs average a 65–70 per cent success rate. Eight-day climbs run above 90. We will always push you towards the extra days.
Choose your route
Success rates below are ours, not the mountain's average. The national park figure across all routes and operators is closer to 65 per cent.
8 daysWest, via Shira Plateau
Our most-recommended route. Eight days gives you two proper acclimatisation days, and the western approach is the most beautiful walking on the mountain before it joins the southern circuit.
$2,690per person, from
Profile
7 daysSouth, the 'Whiskey Route'
The most popular route on the mountain for good reason: excellent acclimatisation profile, huge scenic variety, and the Barranco Wall on day four. Take the seven-day version, not the six.
$2,290per person, from
Profile9 daysWest then anti-clockwise around the northern slopes
The newest and longest route, and statistically the one you are most likely to summit on. Nine days, the most gradual acclimatisation available, and northern slopes you will have almost to yourself.
$3,150per person, from
Profile
7 daysNorth-east, from the Kenyan side
The only route that approaches from the north. Drier than the southern routes, so it is the sensible pick in the shoulder rains, and the descent down Marangu means you see two sides of the mountain.
$2,490per person, from
Profile6 daysSouth-east, the 'Coca-Cola Route'
The only route with sleeping huts rather than tents, and the same path up and down. Cheaper and drier underfoot, but the fast ascent profile gives it the lowest summit rate on the mountain. Add the seventh day.
$2,090per person, from
Profile6 daysSouth, steep and direct
The steepest, most direct line on Kilimanjaro. Spectacular ridge walking through the forest, minimal acclimatisation and a poor summit rate for anyone who has not been high before. We only run it for experienced parties.
$2,190per person, from
Profile
4 daysArusha National Park, east ridge
At 4,566m, Meru is a serious mountain in its own right and the best acclimatisation walk in Tanzania. An armed ranger walks with you through the lower forest because there are buffalo and elephant on the route.
$1,150per person, from
ProfileDay by day
Our most-recommended route. Eight days gives you two proper acclimatisation days, and the western approach is the most beautiful walking on the mountain before it joins the southern circuit.
Day 1 — Londorossi Gate to Mti Mkubwa, 2,780m
Day 2 — Shira 1 Camp, 3,505m
Day 3 — Shira 2 Camp, 3,850m
Day 4 — Lava Tower 4,630m, descend to Barranco 3,960m
Day 5 — Barranco Wall to Karanga, 3,995m
Day 6 — Barafu Camp, 4,673m
Day 7 — Uhuru Peak 5,895m, descend to Mweka 3,100m
Day 8 — Mweka Gate, 1,640m
The most popular route on the mountain for good reason: excellent acclimatisation profile, huge scenic variety, and the Barranco Wall on day four. Take the seven-day version, not the six.
Day 1 — Machame Gate to Machame Camp, 2,835m
Day 2 — Shira Camp, 3,750m
Day 3 — Lava Tower 4,630m, descend to Barranco 3,960m
Day 4 — Karanga Camp, 3,995m
Day 5 — Barafu Camp, 4,673m
Day 6 — Uhuru Peak 5,895m, descend to Mweka 3,100m
Day 7 — Mweka Gate, 1,640m
The newest and longest route, and statistically the one you are most likely to summit on. Nine days, the most gradual acclimatisation available, and northern slopes you will have almost to yourself.
Day 1 — Londorossi Gate to Mti Mkubwa, 2,780m
Day 2 — Shira 1, 3,505m
Day 3 — Shira 2, 3,850m
Day 4 — Lava Tower, then Moir Hut 4,200m
Day 5 — Buffalo Camp, 4,020m
Day 6 — Third Cave, 3,870m
Day 7 — School Hut, 4,800m
Day 8 — Uhuru Peak 5,895m, descend to Millennium 3,820m
Day 9 — Mweka Gate, 1,640m
The only route that approaches from the north. Drier than the southern routes, so it is the sensible pick in the shoulder rains, and the descent down Marangu means you see two sides of the mountain.
Day 1 — Nalemuru Gate to Simba Camp, 2,625m
Day 2 — Second Cave, 3,450m
Day 3 — Kikelewa Camp, 3,600m
Day 4 — Mawenzi Tarn, 4,330m
Day 5 — Kibo Hut, 4,700m
Day 6 — Uhuru Peak 5,895m, descend to Horombo 3,720m
Day 7 — Marangu Gate, 1,860m
The only route with sleeping huts rather than tents, and the same path up and down. Cheaper and drier underfoot, but the fast ascent profile gives it the lowest summit rate on the mountain. Add the seventh day.
Day 1 — Marangu Gate to Mandara Hut, 2,700m
Day 2 — Horombo Hut, 3,720m
Day 3 — Kibo Hut, 4,700m
Day 4 — Uhuru Peak 5,895m, descend to Horombo 3,720m
Day 5 — Marangu Gate, 1,860m
Day 6 — Moshi and a very long shower
The steepest, most direct line on Kilimanjaro. Spectacular ridge walking through the forest, minimal acclimatisation and a poor summit rate for anyone who has not been high before. We only run it for experienced parties.
Day 1 — Umbwe Gate to Umbwe Cave Camp, 2,940m
Day 2 — Barranco Camp, 3,960m
Day 3 — Karanga Camp, 3,995m
Day 4 — Barafu Camp, 4,673m
Day 5 — Uhuru Peak 5,895m, descend to Mweka 3,100m
Day 6 — Mweka Gate, 1,640m
At 4,566m, Meru is a serious mountain in its own right and the best acclimatisation walk in Tanzania. An armed ranger walks with you through the lower forest because there are buffalo and elephant on the route.
Day 1 — Momella Gate to Miriakamba Hut, 2,514m
Day 2 — Saddle Hut, 3,570m, with an afternoon on Little Meru 3,801m
Day 3 — Socialist Peak 4,566m at sunrise, descend to Miriakamba
Day 4 — Momella Gate and back to Arusha
Safety
Above about 2,500 metres, thinner air causes headaches, nausea, poor sleep and breathlessness. It affects the fit and the unfit alike, and there is no way to predict who it will hit.
If a guide tells you to go down, you go down. That call is not negotiable and it is not up for discussion at 4,900 metres. It is also the reason we have never had a serious altitude incident.
Our crew
A seven-day climb for two trekkers involves around fourteen people: two guides, a cook, and eleven porters carrying tents, food, water, cooking gear and your duffel bag. How an operator treats that crew is the clearest signal you will get about how it operates generally.
We are a partner of the Kilimanjaro Porters Assistance Project, which independently audits wages, loads and conditions. Loads are capped at 20kg. Every porter is paid above the KPAP-recommended rate, in full and directly. Three meals a day, proper sleeping tents, and boots, jackets and gloves from our gear store for anyone who arrives without them.
Ask any of our crew about this at the gate. They will tell you the truth, and we would rather you checked.
Included
Not included
We keep a full rental store at the office: down jackets, four-season sleeping bags, poles, gaiters, headtorches and duffels. Nobody needs to buy a US$600 jacket for one week on a mountain.
Timing
January to mid-March is warmer and quieter, with a good chance of snow on the crater rim and clear mornings. June to October is the driest and busiest window, with the most stable summit conditions of the year.
Avoid the long rains from late March through May, when the southern routes turn to deep mud. November's short rains are more forgiving, and the Rongai route on the northern side stays workable throughout.
Climbing conditions on Kilimanjaro through the year.
Uhuru Peak
Tell us your dates and your walking background and we will tell you honestly which route to take — and how many days you need on it.