This day is spent relaxing and recovering from your travels. You will have an opportunity to meet the rest of the Kilimanjaro team and our mountain guides.

Morning 

This is your time to relax and explore a bit as you stroll around Moshi downtown.

Afternoon – ORIENTATION

We’ll meet as a group this afternoon. Your guide will have a trip briefing and review your equipment. You’ll be responsible for packing your own mountain gear into a duffel bag (up to 39 pounds/ 18 kilos) that the porters will carry. You’ll also leave one bag with travel and safari clothes, etc. at the hotel in storage.

9,498-ft/2,895-m 2.5 miles/4 km

We enter Kilimanjaro National Park and check in at the Lemosho Gate located on the western side of Kilimanjaro. After your guide takes care of the paperwork, and you signing up we start our climb. Our trek today will be along a little used track through the Montana forest. In places the vegetation is so untouched that it grows right across the trail. The flora and fauna are richer here than on the other more popular routes through the rain forest. Lunch is taken on the trail and camp reached midafternoon. Our first camp is in the rain forest at Mti Mkubwa. Takes 3 to 4 hours. Dinner and overnight at Mti Mkubwa.

11,500-ft/3,505-m 5 miles/8 km

Your waiter will greet you at your tent as you awaken with hot drink of your choice, followed by water for a quick wash before breakfast. We start out at about 8 a.m.  After the first hour we leave the rain forest, and start the climb towards the heath and moorland zone. A couple hours after lunch we cross into the Shira Caldera, a high-altitude desert plateau, very different from the rain forest. Shira is the third of Kilimanjaro’s volcanic cones, and is filled with lava flow from Kibo Peak. Weather and volcanic action have decimated the crater rim. Picnic lunch on the way. Today you’ll get your first close views of Kibo – the summit of Kilimanjaro. Dinner and overnight at Shira one camp.

11,500ft / 3,505m -6m/10km

After a relatively long hike and significant altitude gain, today is an easy day and you arrive at Shira 2 camp in time for lunch. A good day for acclimatization with the option of an afternoon walk with your guides.

13000ft / 3950m – 8 miles/12km

We hike uphill, past the Lava Tower 15000ft/4600m, and slowly trek downhill past our first Lobelias and Giant Senecios, around Kibo’s spectacular south-facing glaciers. The views of the towering peaks are spectacular. We stop at the Lava Tower for picnic lunch.

After descending through the heather and lobelias we arrive at Barranco Camp. Dinner and overnight at Barranco camp.

13104ft / 3995m – 3 miles/5km

We spend this extra day to help acclimatize to the altitude. Our first challenge of the day is to breach the Barranco Wall – not too tough, but a challenge nonetheless. Most of the day is spent skirting the base of Kibo peak over our left shoulder. We descend down into the Karanga Valley, and climb up the other side, where we rest up for the night before the climb up to Barafu camp.  Lunch, dinner and overnight at Karanga camp

15,088-ft/4,600m – 2m/4 km

It’s all uphill to the rocky, craggy slopes at Barafu camp. Barafu means “ice” in Swahili, and it is windy and cold at this altitude. There is a buzz of excitement in the air, as climbers anticipate our toughest summit day just ahead. Lunch, dinner and overnight at Barafu camp.

19341ft /5895m – 4 miles/6km – 12490ft/3808m – 1.5miles/2.5km

We will follow a picturesque back route for our final ascent accessing an exclusive and rarely utilized summit footpath that offers access to isolated and undefiled natural areas and remarkable views of east Africa’s peaks and plains. The summit leg of the journey is timed to reveal views of a new dawn over Africa.

At the midnight, we climb up towards the crater rim – a non-technical climbing route to the edge of the crater floor at Stella point. We will leave the crater rim Stella point and hike to the top of Uhuru Peak. From here it is forty-five minutes to an hour hike to Uhuru Peak, the highest point in Africa at 19,340ft! We arrive at the summit and are rewarded with clear views before midmorning clouds roll in. We will bask in the glory of our accomplishment, grab a bite to eat and enjoy the breathtaking views. This is a great opportunity to take lots of photos. After our summit celebration we will begin our descent past Barafu camp, where we stop for lunch and pack our gear ready to descend down to Millennium Camp/Mweka.  A celebratory feast will be served. After descending 7000/9,000 feet, you will feel intoxicated by the oxygen-rich air!

Here we wash and have evening tea then you will meet the team for Tipping ceremony. Dinner and overnight at Millenium/Mweka camp.

5400ft/1650m – 6miles/10km

Hiking time will vary depending on the trail conditions while traveling through the lush vegetation at this elevation. Rain can occur any time of year at this location and can make the trail muddy. Moving at a slower pace has its benefits and offers opportunities to have a good look at our incredible surroundings. Once we have descended the 4,500 feet to the road head, we will have our lunch and say good-bye to our mountain staff before heading off to the hotel. At the Hotel you can shower, relax and enjoy the serene setting. A Celebratory Dinner at the Hotel will complete this amazing adventure!

Summiting Kilimanjaro marks the end of one adventure and the start of another – you can choose to extend your stay by adding a safari and/or trip to the Island of Zanzibar.

Transferred to Airport fly home, safari, or a relaxing trip to Zanzibar.