5-Day Marangu Route

After a briefing with our climb managers the day before, the guide and a mountain support crew will arrive at the hotel in the morning in order to meet you and hold another briefin. Then you will travel by vehicle to Kilimanjaro National Park's eastern entrance: Marangu Gate (1,860 m). After the quick formality of acquiring climbing permits and registering with the search and rescue service, the group will start trekking up to Mandara Hut (2,700 m).

The trekking route includes passage through the rainforest (where tropical showers are highly probable), so we recommend you take not only spare clothes, but also your raincoats.
When you reach the camp, our mountain support crew will take care of the necessities, pitch the tents, and prepare lunch.
Throughout the entire Marangu route, you will be spending your nights in special huts. They offer a great alternative to those who do not want to sleep in tents.

We will start heading towards Horombo Hut after breakfast. The environment will shift drastically as the 5-day Marangu Route requires us to travel through Mount Kilimanjaro’s moorland, a rock-strewn desert plain with succulent plants. There will be a picnic lunch at Kambi ya Taabu during the hike. If the skies are clear, you will have a chance to witness the scenic views of the Mawenzi and Kibo peaks. We will arrive at the Horombo Huts at approximately 3:00 pm and the afternoon can be spent relaxing. The Horombo Huts are exceptionally busy but they’re considered to be the finest huts on Mount Kilimanjaro. The little, A-frame huts can house a maximum of eight people and provide suitable lodging for hikers ascending, descending, and acclimation. They can accommodate a maximum of 120 hikers with additional room for porters, chefs, and guides.

After breakfast, we will hike through the moorland and the alpine desert region of Mount Kilimanjaro. After hiking for about an hour, we will encounter a small mountain stream called the Maua River. Once you pass Maua, you will notice that the terrain gets smoother and the vegetation starts to diminish. We will have an appetizing lunch at the Middle Red Hill. We will continue our trek shortly after lunch and spend the next four hours travelling to Kibo on a steady incline through Mount Kilimanjaro’s saddle. The silver lining to travelling through a baron dessert is the breathtakingly stunning vista of the Kibo and Mawenzi peaks. You will reach the Kibo Hut in the afternoon. It is recommended that you rest and prepare for your midnight climb.

The final leg of your journey is the ascent to Uhuru Peak which has been awarded the title of the Roof of Africa. We will leave shortly after midnight and begin with the strenuous 5-hour hike to Gillman’s Point on the crater rim. This is considered to be the least challenging of the three crater ascent paths but it is still an arduous hike. After thirty minutes of hiking, you will reach the rocky bends and twists that continue for over 600 meters or until you reach Gillman’s Point. The crater rim hike will last about 2 hours. Once you reach the summit, we have allocated time for you to take some photographs and celebrate your triumph. We will start descending to Horombo Hut, our final stop on the route. The route down the summit has magnificent views that you could not see when you were climbing the mountain. We will reach the Horombo Huts in the afternoon and you can spend the time enjoying your last moments on the mountain.

We will finish the trek by descending the Marangu Gate after breakfast. The final hike is simply magical. You will hike amid the gods in Mount Kilimanjaro’s tranquil cloud forest. We advise that you watch your step as the trail can be fairly slippery. Our vehicles will be waiting at Marangu Gate to drive you back to Arusha. You will have an opportunity to buy sodas and souvenirs to prove that the Marangu Route was conquered. You can extend your Tanzania stay by witnessing the Big Five in Tanzania national parks for wildlife safari.