5-Day Kilimanjaro Climb - Marangu Route

Day by day

5 days in East Africa.

1. Day 1

   Arusha – Mandara Hut

   After breakfast and a briefing, drive about 45 minutes from Arusha to the Marangu Gate of Kilimanjaro National Park, register and start the climb. The first stage walks seven kilometres through montane rainforest, gaining about 1,000 metres over four to five hours to the Mandara huts at 2,740 metres. Look for towering trees, birdlife and colobus monkeys under the canopy, and if there is energy left, the short side trip to Maundi Crater gives a view over northern Tanzania and into Kenya. Dinner and overnight at Mandara.

   Overnight

   Mandara Hut (2,740 m)

   Meals

   Breakfast, lunch and dinner

2. Day 2

   Mandara Hut – Horombo Hut

   About an hour after leaving Mandara the rainforest glades end and the path climbs onto open moorland, heading for the Horombo huts at 3,700 metres. The day covers 11 kilometres in six to eight hours, with the jagged peak of Mawenzi and the snow-capped summit of Kibo coming into view and giant lobelias and groundsels lining the trail. Most people start to feel the altitude here, so the pace is deliberately slow. Dinner and overnight at Horombo.

   Overnight

   Horombo Hut (3,700 m)

   Meals

   Breakfast, lunch and dinner

3. Day 3

   Horombo Hut – Kibo Hut

   The trail passes the last watering point and crosses the Saddle, the high desert between the peaks of Kibo and Mawenzi, to reach the Kibo huts at 4,700 metres. The ten-kilometre walk takes six to eight hours; upper heathland gives way to a bare, moon-like landscape of rock and dust. Arrive in the afternoon for an early dinner and rest, with gear laid out ready for the summit climb, which starts around midnight.

   Overnight

   Kibo Hut (4,700 m)

   Meals

   Breakfast, lunch and dinner

4. Day 4

   Kibo Hut –Summit – Horombo Hut

   The summit push begins between midnight and 2am by headlamp, climbing steep scree or snow to Gilman's Point on the crater rim at 5,861 metres, which takes four to seven hours, then another one to two hours around the rim to Uhuru Peak, the highest point in Africa at 5,895 metres. It is bitterly cold until the descent starts and every warm layer is needed; the switchbacks below Gilman's are the hardest part of the whole trek, taken pole pole. From the summit, descend to Kibo for lunch and a rest, then continue to Horombo for dinner and a well-earned night. Total walking time is 10 to 15 hours.

   Overnight

   Horombo Hut (3,700 m)

   Meals

   Breakfast, lunch and dinner

   

5. Day 5

   Horombo Hut – Arusha

   After breakfast, a steady 18-kilometre descent of five to seven hours through the moorland to Mandara and on through the forest to the Marangu Gate at 1,830 metres. The lower trail can be wet and muddy, so gaiters and trekking poles help, and at these altitudes shorts and a t-shirt are usually enough with rain gear to hand. A vehicle meets you at Marangu village for the drive back to your hotel in Arusha, where dinner is on your own account.

   Meals

   Breakfast

Your questions, answered.