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_1433935461.jpg "Share Adventure with kilismiletrails & Safaris.")
Share Adventure with kilismiletrails & Safaris.
KiliSmile Trails and Safaris
- Located In:
- Size:
- 10-20 employees (Founded in 2011)
- Member Of:
- TALA & KIATO
- Tour Types:
- Custom budget & mid-range tours that can start every day
- Destinations:
- Price Range:
- $170 to $470 per person per day (USD, excl. int'l flights)
Reviews
Safari
We did a 3 day safar. What an amazing experience! We were provided with a driver and cook who ensured we had the best time possible.
HU
Email Lutof | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Very recommended! relatively good price and an amazing tour guide!
We had a 3 day safari and he had a great time with a team of a really nice tour guide called emmanuel and a nice cook called salim! I would recommend it as everything went great and tour guide has a lot of knowledge, drives carefully and very kind!
Hamadi the manager also helped us alot arranging the trip and putting us in a nice place to sleep
FR
Email Fabian | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
An unforgettable experience climbing Mount Kilimanjaro
We booked our six day climb via the Machame route on Mount Kilimanjaro with Kili Smile Trails & Safaris and we can only recommend them. Even before we left for Tanzania, they were very helpful and quick in answering our questions about the necessary gear and the planning. We flew via Dar-es-Salaam to Kilimanjaro airport with Fastjet where we were picked up and brought to Keys hotel in Moshi, which is a quiet and clean hotel.
On the night of our arrival, our guide (Bakari) checked our gear for the hike and recommended additional things to rent out for the hike, for example warmer sleeping bags. There is a lot of stuff that you carry up the mountain but only use during the last day, such as warm gloves, hat, trouser and jacket. But it is well worth it because you do not want to feel cold during the last bit of the ascent. It was no problem to rent out the additional gear on the morning of the first day. It was also possible to leave some of our stuff, which we did not need on Mount Kilimanjaro, in the hotel. Ezekiel from Kili Smile was kind enough to pick up our stuff and bring it to the gate after we finished our hike on the sixth day as we went straight on for Safari.
On the morning of our climb, we paid the outstanding sum (as we had transfered part of the whole amount beforhand). It was no problem to pay some of the amount in Tanzanian Shillings, although normally in Tanzania you pay larger sums in US Dollars.
During the late morning we arrived at the Machame gate and around lunchtime we could start our ascent. There is always some waiting time involved as some administrative procedures need to be done and the porters need to weigh their lugagge as they are only allowed to carry up to 20 kg. We had to guides (Bakari and Edi) who were very helpful and explained us many things along the way. While the first day of hike is through the rain forest, the vegetation is quickly becoming less dense at the end of the first day and from then one you will not see that many trees any more. The ascent is in generally technically not very demanding, but the Baranco wall on the fourth day is certainly more challenging.
Every evening we were cooked a nice dinner with a soup as a starter, a main (very varied including meat, fish, potatoes, rice, pasta) and some fruits. We also drank a lot of tea as it is very important to stay hydrated during the hike. After dinner, our guide would come into our dining tent and explain the next day, how long we would hike and what to wear. Every morning we were woken up around 6.30 am with a fresh ginger tea and then after a quick wash, had an excellent breakfast, including omelette, pancakes and fruits. Before breakfast we also packed our stuff as the porters would already start to load their stuff and dismantle the tent.
You normally walk about four to five hours a day and enjoy a beautiful landscape with great views on the cloud cover. If I had to do it again, I would certainly enjoy this unique experience more, as I was quite a bit worried about altitude sickness. Already during the first night at 3000m I suffered from headache and did not sleep very well. But from then on, I did not have any problems with headache again except for a short time at the Lava tower on the third day at 4800m. The both of us were very lucky not to suffer from strong symptoms of altitude sickness, but this can be very different from one person to the other. It is certainly important to drink a lot.
After four days of hiking Mount Kilimanjaro, the most exciting part came on the fifth day, the day of the hike to the summit. We started around midnight from Barafu hut (4600m) in a pretty cold and completely dark night. Equipped with a head torch we went up the last 1300m, which except for the first bit, is not very challenging but steep. Surrounded by many lights from other head torches you go up very slowly (one of the first words in Kiswahili you will learn is pole, pole, i.e. slowly, slowly). After walking up a few minutes, our guides offered us to carry our backpacks, which made the ascent even easier. During the ascent on the last day it is important to keep drinking and also eat a bit, but the breaks are relatively short as you get cold very quickly. Six hours after we left the base camp, we reached Uhuru peak at 5895m and were rewarded with a spectacular view of the rising sun.
Having just made it to the top of Africa, the following descent of about three hours to Barafu camp and then another three hours to the last camp are certainly less enjoyable as the first bit is on loose gravel and very dusty.
All in all, it was a great experience going up Kilimanjaro and we can only recommend Kili Smile as we always got the necessary support. We are also grateful because they arranged for us to be picked up at the gate on the last day in order for us to start straight away with our Safari.
IN
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Awesome experience, great guide Hamadi
Me and My friend Narsi took the tour to kilimanjaro and safari to serendipity with Hamadi and group. They are excellent host and very helping. They are cheerful lot with many people trying to make good conversations. They are reliable and trust worthy. They pushed us when we were thinking that we cant make it to the top. They gave us best food available. They provided us guidance as well to shop in Tanzania. The Safari was awesome and very neatly organised. They are very hygienic and professional in there approach.
I would recommend them for best safari personalised trip in Kilimanjaro. I would like to travel with them again some time soon.