Mount Kilimanjaro

At 6 days this is one of the shorter routes. It used to be the most popular trek and has been named the Coca-Cola Route due to its relative low cost and popularity.

Here, you will sleep in huts, rather than tents.

The route is beautiful, but often considered to be too crowded. Success rates are as low as 50% as you do not have enough time to acclimatise. 

This 7-day tour has now overtaken the Marangu Route in popularity, but is still known by its older classification of being a more difficult and tougher route, giving it its nickname The Whiskey Route.

You will stay in tents along this route.

Machame has also gained a reputation for being quite crowded but due to the longer hike length, which affords more time for acclimatization, it boasts a much higher success rate (around 85%).

This 8-day route approaches the peak from the west. It is often considered the most scenic route, and is less crowded than the others.

You will stay in tents along this route.

The eight days allow for a particularly high success rate, making it one of the best routes if time (and money) permits.

The 6-7 days route starts from the north, taking you through breathtaking scenery. You will be camping on this route. 

The route allows for some flexibility in acclimatization days, so if you are worried about altitude sickness, it is definitely worth it to book an extra day.

The route has around an 80% success rate, going down to 65% if you decide to do 6 days. 

You will need decent fitness to tackle Kili. The toughest part is the acclimatization.

Those who fail to summit Kili do so from altitude sickness, or if they aren't physically fit enough.

A normal day includes 4-5 hours of walking (excluding the last two days which are more physically intense), while the rest of the day is spent acclimatizing at base camps.

Acclimatization can affect people differently, sometimes causing nausea or loss of appetite. Experience hiking at high altitude is recommended before taking on Kili. 

If you book with a good quality operator, and don't cut corners to reduce costs, then it is safe. 

Most people fail because they do not take the trek seriously enough and don’t give themselves enough time to acclimatize.

The park forces end up rescuing around 1,000 people each year.

There are long drop toilets at camps, but these are notoriously dirty. Your tour operator will sometimes bring their own toilets, but during day time you will just go behind a bush or a rock. 

No. There are no showers at all, but your tour operator will give you a bowl with water to freshen up at night. The shower back at the hotel will feel all the better for it!

Not if you leave enough time to acclimatize. The operators we work with will bring oxygen in case of emergencies.

A tour can cost between $1,000 to $4,000.

Generally, we would never pay less than $2,000.

Climbing Kilimanjaro is expensive due to the high rates that the national park charges in conservation, rescue and crater fees (over $100 per person per night), combined with all the equipment, personnel, and services required to safely make it to the summit.

It is unwise to cut costs here as it is the staff - the guides, porters and cooks - that tend to feel budget cutting first, creating unfair and unsafe working environments.