$5,770 pp (USD)
2 travelers on Start dateArrival
Arrival
Day 1
Arrival Arusha
Arrival Arusha
Upon arrival at Kilimanjaro International Airport, our official airport team will meet and greet you and assist you with your visa and luggage. You will have some welcoming refreshments and your driver guide will drive to the hotel for dinner and overnight.
Arusha is a city in Northern Tanzania and the capital of the Arusha region with a population of 416,442 as well as 323,198 in the surrounding Arusha district. It is located below Mount Meru on the eastern edge of the eastern branch of the Great Rift Valley. Arusha has a temperate climate. The city is close to the Serengeti National Park, the Ngorongoro Conservation Area, Lake Manyara National Park, Tarangire National Park, Mount Kilimanjaro, and Arusha National Park on Mount Meru.
- Main Destination:
- Arusha (City)
- Accommodation:
- Arusha Planet Lodge
- Meals & Drinks:
Day 2
Machame Gate - Machame Hut
Machame Gate - Machame Hut
We pick you up from your hotel and drive you to the Machame gate (10,000ft) for registration. Here, you will meet the rest of the crew (cooks and porters) and prepare for the climb. We will start the 6-hour climb through the rainforest and the giant heathers to our first overnight camp.
- Main Destination:
- Mount Kilimanjaro
- Accommodation:
- Budget camping
- Meals & Drinks:
Day 3
Machame Hut - Shira Hut
Machame Hut - Shira Hut
Enjoy breakfast at the camp. This is a short day with rather steep, rocky, and dusty trails. It's a slow hike with plenty of breaks and enough time to acclimatize. Most of the route is quite bare of vegetation, providing little shade from the heat. You will cross many ridges and see the first of many senecias up to Shira 1 where you arrive at the camp in time for lunch. Acclimatize for the late afternoon, and in the evening, have dinner and overnight at the camp.
- Main Destination:
- Mount Kilimanjaro
- Accommodation:
-
Budget camping
- Meals & Drinks:
Day 4
Shira Hut to Barranco Hut
Shira Hut to Barranco Hut
Breakfast will be served at the camp. You will then start climbing over boulders and very few rocks. It is a steady, uphill climb to Lava Tower. You will stop for lunch at around noon. For those who are interested, you can climb up the Lava Tower which is 14,850ft. You may start to get a mild headache due to altitude change. From Lava Tower, we will go down for about 2 hours through dusty and rocky trails to the Barranco Camp at 13,000ft.
- Main Destination:
- Mount Kilimanjaro
- Accommodation:
-
Budget camping
- Meals & Drinks:
Day 5
Barranco Hut - Barafu Hut
Barranco Hut - Barafu Hut
After spending a night at the great Barranco Wall (a very imposing sight at first), you make your way up this awesome-looking obstacle, which in the end normally turns out to be easier than anticipated. Topping out just below the Heim Glacier, you will now appreciate just how beautiful Kilimanjaro really is. The route then heads down through the Karanga Valley over intervening ridges and valleys, and then joins up with the Mweka route. This is the preferred route down from the summit, so remember it. The last water stop on the route is the Karanga Valley, as there is no water available at Barafu Camp where you will enjoy dinner and overnight.
- Main Destination:
- Mount Kilimanjaro
- Accommodation:
-
Budget camping
- Meals & Drinks:
Day 6
Summit - Mweka Hut
Summit - Mweka Hut
You will get up at around 23h20, and after some tea and biscuits, you shuffle off into the night. You will head in a north-westerly direction and ascend through heavy scree toward Stella Point on the crater rim.
For many climbers, the 6-hour walk to Stella Point is mentally and physically the most challenging on the route. At Stella Point (5,739m), you will stop for a short rest and will be rewarded with the most magnificent sunrise you are ever likely to see (weather permitting). From Stella Point, you will normally encounter snow all the way on your 2-hour ascent to Uhuru Peak. The time you will spend on the summit will depend on the weather conditions. Do not stop here for too long, as it will be extremely difficult to get going again due to cold and fatigue. Head down to Mweka Hut (3,090m). Dinner and water for washing will be prepared.
- Main Destination:
- Mount Kilimanjaro
- Accommodation:
-
Budget camping
- Meals & Drinks:
Day 7
Mweka Hut - Arusha
Mweka Hut - Arusha
After an early and well-deserved breakfast, it is a short 4 to 6-hour scenic hike back to the park gate. Some hikers do experience knee problems which could make the descent longer than planned. It is strongly recommended not to pay your porters any tips until you have reached the gate safely with all your gear. Visit the tips page for more info.
At Mweka gate, you sign your name and details in a register. This is also where successful climbers receive their summit certificates. Those climbers who reached Stella Point (5,739m) are issued with green certificates and those who reached Uhuru Peak (5,895m) receive gold certificates.
From the Mweka gate, you will continue down into the Mweka village, normally a muddy 3km (1 hour) hike. In Mweka village, you will be served a delicious, hot lunch. You then drive back to Arusha for a long-overdue hot shower at the lodge.
- Main Destination:
- Arusha (City)
- Accommodation:
- Arusha Planet Lodge
- Meals & Drinks:
Day 8
Arusha - Tarangire National Park
Arusha - Tarangire National Park
Breakfast at the lodge is followed by a morning walking safari in Tarangire National Park, escorted by an armed ranger. Go on an afternoon game drive until lunchtime when your driver will set and prepare a table for a full, hot lunch (soup, bread rolls, main dish, and fruit salad) followed by a glass of wine, tea, or coffee. In the evening, check in at the lodge or camp for dinner and overnight.
Tarangire National Park covers approximately 2,600 square kilometers and, in the dry season, is second only to the Ngorongoro Crater Conservation Area in concentrations of wildlife. Tarangire lies to the south of the large, open grass plains of southern Maasai land, and derives its name from the Tarangire River which provides permanent water for wildlife in the area.
- Main Destination:
- Tarangire National Park
- Accommodation:
- Acacia Tarangire Luxury Camp
Wildlife in Tarangire NP
- Meals & Drinks:
Day 9
Tarangire - Serengeti National Park
Tarangire - Serengeti National Park
After breakfast, we will drive to Serengeti to try to catch a view of the great migration. In the afternoon, your driver will set and prepare a table for a full, hot lunch (soup, bread rolls, main dish, and fruit salad) followed by a glass of wine, tea, or coffee. Here, you will meet guests from other companies. After lunch, we continue with the afternoon game drive viewing the great migration. In the evening, we check in at the lodge for dinner and overnight.
Serengeti National Park is well known for its healthy stock of other resident wildlife, particularly the "Big Five" named for the 5 most prized trophies taken by hunters. The Serengeti is believed to hold the largest population of lions in Africa due in part to the abundance of prey species. More than 3,000 lions live in this ecosystem.
- Main Destination:
- Central Serengeti National Park
- Accommodation:
- Acacia Seronera Luxury Camp
Wildlife in Serengeti NP
- Meals & Drinks:
Day 10
Serengeti National Park
Serengeti National Park
After breakfast, we will continue with a full-day game drive in the Central Serengeti (Seronera area) until lunchtime. In the afternoon, your driver will set and prepare a table for a full, hot lunch (soup, bread rolls, main dish, and fruit salad) followed by a glass of wine, tea, or coffee. Later, you will drive back to the lodge for dinner and overnight.
Even when the migration is quiet, the Serengeti offers arguably the most scintillating game-viewing in Africa. See great herds of wildebeest, zebra, buffalo, smaller groups of elephant and giraffe, and thousands upon thousands of eland, topi, kongoni, impala, and Grant’s gazelle. Explore the range of different habitats that include swamps, woodland, soda lakes, and the world-famous Serengeti short grass plains.
- Main Destination:
- Central Serengeti National Park
- Accommodation:
- Acacia Seronera Luxury Camp
- Meals & Drinks:
Day 11
Serengeti - Ngorongoro Conservation Area
Serengeti - Ngorongoro Conservation Area
After breakfast from the lodge, you will have a game drive in Central Serengeti National Park searching for big cats and the Big Five. In the afternoon, your driver will set and prepare a table for a full, hot lunch (soup, bread rolls, main dish, and fruit salad) followed by a glass of wine, tea, or coffee. In the late afternoon, head to Ngorongoro to the camp for dinner and overnight.
Today, Serengeti National Park, Ngorongoro Conservation Area, and the Masai Mara National Reserve, protect the greatest and most varied collection of terrestrial wildlife on earth, and is one of the last great migratory systems still intact.
- Main Destination:
- Ngorongoro Highlands
- Accommodation:
- Rhino Lodge
- Meals & Drinks:
Day 12
Ngorongoro Crater - Arusha
Ngorongoro Crater - Arusha
After breakfast at the lodge, go on a game drive in the Ngorongoro Crater for a crater tour. Your driver will set and prepare a table under the car's shade for a full, hot lunch (soup, bread rolls, main dish, and fruit salad) followed by a glass of wine, tea, or coffee. After lunch, proceed with a game drive until the afternoon when we drive you back to Arusha to drop you off at the airport.
The jewel in Ngorongoro's crown is a deep, volcanic crater, the largest unflooded and unbroken caldera in the world. About 20km across, 600m deep, and 300 sq. km in area, the Ngorongoro Crater is a breathtaking natural wonder. We will visit Lake Magadi, a large but shallow alkaline lake in the southwestern corner which is one of the main features of the crater. A large number of hippos, flamingos, and other waterbirds can usually be seen here.
- Main Destination:
- Ngorongoro Crater
- Accommodation:
- No accommodation (End of tour)
Wildlife in Ngorongoro Crater
- Meals & Drinks:
