The best times of year for climbing Kilimanjaro are January to early March and July to mid-October. The predictable patterns of weather and lack of rain make it a good time to climb.
The main rainy season lasts from the beginning of March to mid-May. Then there is a short rain season between the end of October and end of December. During these months, dense cloud formations hang low over the mountain, reduce visibility, and make climbing Kilimanjaro difficult. You can expect frequent snowstorms on the summit of the Kilimanjaro trek and heavy rains on the lower slopes.
While Kili Treks Tanzania runs treks on any route, we strongly recommend the less-travelled, most scenic and most non-technical options. Our preferred routes for climbing Kilimanjaro give trekkers plenty of acclimatization time, stunning views, and more intimate experiences of the mountain.
Our 8-day Lemosho route Kilimanjaro trek offers ample acclimatization and beautiful scenery all the way up the mountain.
The Northern Circuit is a 9-day climb along one of the least-travelled routes of the Kilimanjaro trek, with maximum acclimatization.
The Umbwe, Rongai, and Machame aroutes also offer beautiful scenery, are fit for beginners and experts, and have good acclimatization days.
By far, the best and most convenient way to get to Kilimanjaro is to fly to Kilimanjaro International Airport (JRO). This airport is served by airlines such as KLM, Ethiopian Airlines, Qatar Airlines, Turkish Airlines and Kenya Airways. From the airport, we will transfer you to your hotel (which, as with the transfer back to the airport at the end of your trek, is included in the price of your trek).
Flying to Nairobi or Dar es Salaam is inconvenient as you will be required to catch a bus or local flight to Kilimanjaro, Moshi or Arusha from there.
On most routes while climbing Kilimanjaro, you’ll trek between 3 – 7 hours most days. The summit day can be a bit longer day (between 8 – 12). Depending on the route you choose, you’ll cover anywhere from 45 – 90km (45 – 62 miles).
We carefully handpick and train our guides. Your Tanzanian head guides are Wilderness First Responders. Most of these Kilimanjaro experts each have 100-200+ personal summits under their belts. They speak English and Swahili, have extensive experience leading treks from different parts of the world.
We advise you to spend at least one full day in Tanzania before beginning your trek. Arriving by plane one day and then climbing the next is not the best way to begin a trek. This is particularly true if you’re coming from North America, Australia, New Zealand, or the Far East, where journey times to Tanzania are much longer.
Yes, we insist that you are fully insured for your trek. In fact, get both travel and trek insurances. When buying insurance for your Kilimanjaro trek, make sure the insurer covers everything up to 6,000 meters. Also, do not forget to clarify the location of your climb to the insurer (Kilimanjaro in this case!).
Filming while climbing Kilimanjaro does require written permissions. Filming Permits are issued by Ministry of Tourism in collaboration with all relevant Government offices. The process of acquiring a valid Kilimanjaro filming permit can be a daunting task without experienced help.
Kili Treks Tanzania is more than just a tour operator. We have the expertise to handle all the important documentation and get it to the appropriate locations. We also have the experience in importing filming equipment through customs upon arrival and getting drone permissions to shoot in the national parks. Reach out to us and we will be glad to help.
It is customary to tip your mountain porters, cook, waiters, and guides. Some may choose to tip more or less, but a tip should always be at the discretion of the customer and should take into consideration the quality and type of service rendered. Our staff will never ask for a tip.
Kili Treks Tanzania strong advocates for fair and transparent tipping on Kilimanjaro, and as one of the leaders shaping responsible practices on Kilimanjaro, we recommend that our clients follow the tipping recommendations listed by the Kilimanjaro Porters Assistance Project (KPAP). Read more about KPAP and tipping recommendations here. We will also provide tipping guidelines during your booking procedure.
Yes. Of course, we are. We are keen supporters and advocates of KPAP and admire the work that they do to ensure that porters are fairly treated and properly paid for their work on the Kilimanjaro trek.
As you might expect, cellular service is neither consistent nor reliable on the mountain. However, there are a handful of locations where you might be able to get a signal. These areas are limited usually to one or two chances per day. Your guide can let you know where you can turn your phone on and give it a try. Or, when you notice the porters checking their cell phones, you can assume that they are in a good spot.
Climbing Kilimanjaro should and can be one of the greatest experiences you’ll ever have. But the big deal with this experience is that you can gain a lot of altitude in a comparatively short space of time. That doesn’t mean that your adventure is doomed to failure because of altitude sickness; far from it. The right combination of preparations and precautions will see you admiring the spectacular views from the top of Africa’s highest mountain, (hopefully) laughing in the face of altitude sickness and wondering what all the fuss was about.
There are several practical steps that you can take to minimize the chances of having to abandon your Kilimanjaro trek because of altitude sickness:
In case you do suffer from altitude sickness while climbing Kilimanjaro, there are medicines that you can bring to help you deal with the symptoms. Basic painkillers (paracetamol, ibuprofen) can take care of low-level headaches and relieve basic aches and pains, while the drug Acetazolamide (brand name Diamox) is widely considered to be effective in managing altitude sickness as a whole.
During your Kilimanjaro trek, as you pass through the rain forest, you’re likely to spot black-and-white Colobus monkeys, tropical birds and more.
It is said, climbing Kilimanjaro is to walk through four seasons in four days. It is true, of course, and nowhere is this phenomenon more apparent than in the flora of Kilimanjaro. The sheer variety of flora on the Kilimanjaro trek can be ascribed in large part to the mountain’s tremendous height. It’s also in part due to its proximity to both the equator and the Indian Ocean. Kilimanjaro’s number of distinct flora are staggering. According to Lambrechts et al. (2001) there are 2,500 plant species on the mountain, 1,600 of them on the southern slopes and 900 within the forest belt. There are 130 species of trees with the greatest diversity being between 1,800 and 2,000 meters. There are also 170 species of shrubs, 140 species of epiphytes, 100 lianas and 140 pteridophytes. Countless of these are endemic to Kilimanjaro itself.
Despite being one of the seven summits, Kilimanjaro is non-technical mountain. No specialty mountaineering gear is needed (i.e., ice axe, crampons, helmet, etc.), hence most active guests find they already have some of the items we recommend — hiking boots, base layers, fleece hats and gloves, a fleece sweater, etc. Once you’ve joined a Kilimanjaro trek, you’ll receive a detailed packing list and rental gear list to help you prepare.
Yes, you will need to buy all your personal gear. However, you may be able to rent from us some of the gear that you’ll need for climbing Kilimanjaro, for instance, down jackets, sleeping bags with liners, trekking poles, backpacks, etc. You can let us know in advance and we will send you a rental form to fill in.
You can rent top-quality equipment for no more than a few dollars per item for the whole Kilimanjaro trek – though do make sure you contact us early with your requirements (including, where necessary, the required sizes), to ensure that we can reserve the items for you.
Inside your daypack during your Kilimanjaro trek, you should carry waterproof gear, sun hut, extra warm clothing, water, snacks, gloves, sunglasses, sunscreen, bug repellent and camera. When you’re on the mountain, most of your gear will be packed in your large duffel bag, which our porters will carry. Over the course of climbing Kilimanjaro, you’ll be trekking through five different climate zones, from the warm humid forest to the ice and snow of the glacier-covered summit so you’ll need a variety of items to cover the varying Kilimanjaro weather conditions . Our porters will take your 16kg (max) duffel bag after breakfast and you won’t see it again until you reach camp in the afternoon. You’ll be carrying a daypack (25-35 liters is ideal) containing everything you’ll need for the day’s hiking.
No specialty technical mountaineering skills are required, nor you don’t need to be an athlete for climbing Kilimanjaro. Before your trek, we recommend strength training exercises and regular hikes to familiarize your body with the rigors and nuances of trail-hiking.
Most people will need to train before climbing Kilimanjaro for at least 3 to 4 months. The purpose of training is to build stamina and endurance. During your training, you will need to include hiking up and down hills with weight to make your body accustomed to different terrains and hiking with a full backpack. Try to build up from 3 hour to 8 hours hikes once a week. Taking regular and increasingly longer hikes will help develop the muscles that you need when the day comes for climbing Kilimanjaro.
Write to us at info@kilitrekstanzania.com or visit our preparation page for more training recommendations.
Absolutely! People from all walks of life are eligible for climbing Kilimanjaro. To have the best Mt. Kilimanjaro trekking experience as a beginner, you should be fully aware of the conditions, seasonal climates, and requirements to prepare yourself for this challenge. Kilimanjaro is doable for beginners; they do very well. The best advice is for everyone to arrive in great shape.
Don’t worry! Kili Treks Tanzania treks have one guide for every three trekkers, so you can move at your own pace. Besides, guides will remind you to move pole, pole (“go slowly”) anyways; hiking at a slow and steady pace gives your body a chance to properly acclimatize to the altitude.
If you need to descend early for any reason, a medically trained Wilderness First Responder Mountain Guide will escort you down the mountain. Your guides know a network of shortcuts to help you reach your next campsite as efficiently and safely as possible.
Our highly trained chefs prepare three hot nutritious meals daily, as well as trail snacks and afternoon tea each day. You’ll eat all your meals in our customized dining tent with your fellow trekkers and head guide. Delicious vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free and other specialty meals can be provided (with advance request). We’re happy to send you a sample menu—just ask!
Our chefs can carter for all dietary requirements. Let us know and we will be able to accommodate your requirement – vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, nut allergies, etc.
You will have enough drinking water during the trip. To keep your system running normally, we recommend you bring two to three 1-ltr bottles for carrying drinking water during the Kilimanjaro trek. Drinking water will be brought to you in the mess tent each night (and morning if necessary) in a jerry can(s). A trained porter will purify and filter water for you. If you have any questions about this, please ask the head guide.
During the Kilimanjaro trek, your mountain camps are set up and broken down each day by expert tent crews. You’ll stay in double occupancy all-weather tents with full-ground sheets to keep you and your gear dry. Private toilet tents, dining tents with tables and chairs, and basins of hot water for washing are provided in every camp.
There are no permanent shower or bathing facilities available on the Kilimanjaro trek. However, we will provide you with a daily hot bowl of washing water and a hand wash station at each camp. If you need a shower facility, we can organize it at additional costs.
There are public toilets throughout all routes and campsites on Kilimanjaro. But sometimes, they are in a dreadful state.
On all Kili Treks Tanzania Kilimanjaro climbs, a portable toilet is included in the quote. Portable toilet ratio is one for every four clients. Please note, portable toilets are not available on Marangu route.
There are no known medical conditions which can restrict one from climbing Kilimanjaro. However, the best move is to discuss your medical condition with your doctor before commit to Kilimanjaro.
We highly recommend discussing your travel plans with your physician to learn more about recommended vaccinations.
To minimize the risk, Kili Treks Tanzania recommends the precautions and preventive medications & vaccinations below:
It is important to consult your doctor before you leave for the Kilimanjaro trek for the types of medications you need to carry with you. Each person has different need for different medications. Furthermore, all our guides carry a first aid kit. Make sure you carry any prescription medicines you need. Carry enough to last you the duration of the trek and a few extra in case your trip gets extended.
255 75 447 3515
info@kilitrekstanzania.com