Day 1: Mandara Huts

On the first day in the morning, you will have to drive about two hours through Kilimanjaro, the semi-tropical foothills, to the Marangu area situated on the south-eastern side of the mountain. As you drive, there is usually some admirable views of the snow-capped peak of the mountain.

Upon arrival at Marangu gate, you will meet your team of guides and porters, pick up any last minute supplies for the trek, and head to the entrance of Mount Kilimanjaro National Park to register for the climb. From the cluster of buildings at the gate, it will be about a four to five hours walk through patches of coffee plantation and dense rainforest to Mandara Huts.

The forest teems with brightly-colored bird life, colobus, and other varieties of monkey. The flora includes numerous mosses, lichens, and flowers, as well as delicate orchids. If the skies are clear, you may have fine views over the town of Moshi, lying on the boundary of the plain far underneath.

Overnight stay will be at Mandara Huts. Mandara Huts is a collection of a basic frame mountain huts with bunk beds, quite adequate for your needs, where you will inevitably meet up with fellow trekkers who are bent on the same goal.

Day 2: Horombo Huts (3720 meters)

Your second day on the mountain will begin with a steep climb all the way through the last rainforest. Soon, you will get to a rolling alpine pasture scattered with giant heather. Afterward, you will depart for the forest which covering Kilimanjaro twin peaks, Kibo and rocky Mawenzi, which lie straight in the front dominating the skyline.

Additionally, you will cross a zone of open heath with stunted vegetation before emerging onto a bleak moorland. On this day, you will gain roughly 1000 meters in altitude. Your walk can take anything from five to seven hours, depending on your pace. At night, you will stay at Horombo Huts, another collection of buildings offering shelter and basic accommodation for those on the mountain.

Day 3: Horombo Huts

This day will provide you with an opportunity to get to know yourself more and more from the altitude. Statistics show that an adaptation day like this effectively doubles the chance of making it to the summit, so this time will be well spent. The day will not be exactly wasted as there will be a few walks you can make in the surrounding area of the hut.

The most popular area is the base of Mawenzi Peak, the spectacular eastern summit of Kilimanjaro, which will take four to five hours on the tour and will get you to reach the altitude of 4600 meters. Afterward, you will return to the hut. This will give you a good stead later on. Overnight stay will be at Horombo Huts.

Day 4: Kibo Huts (4705 meters)

The countryside will be more rocky and uneven as you leave the everlasting flowers and other bizarre alpine plants behind. Giant groundsels and lobelias will appear in the sparse moorland. Today’s trail up to Kibo will again take anything between five to seven hours.

Skirting Mawenzi peak, you will cross a stark, almost lunar landscape onto “The Saddle”, a broad tundra desert between the two peaks of Mawenzi and Kibo. From there, you will get unbelievable views of the upper reaches of the mountain before arriving at Kibo Huts, a dry-stone-walled hut with dormitories and restricted facilities.

At night, you will prepare for the next day’s final beating, which is the summit. You will re-pack and leave any supplementary items with the porters. You will need to summon all of your energy to get to the summit, so there is completely no point in carrying anything you do not need.

An early night sleep is imperative as you must make a midnight start in order to reach the summit in the morning before the cloud cover settles. Afterward, you will have time to get back down to the hut. Overnight stay will be at Kibo Huts.

Day 5: Uhuru Peak (5896 meters)

This will be a long and demanding day. The guides will wake you soon after midnight and you will start out in the darkness, zigzagging up a long scree slope by the light of your torch in the extreme cold. At this time of the day, the scree is still frozen and will make it easier to walk on.

After two hours, you should reach Hans Meyer Cave, a cave named after a German geologist who made the first successful ascent in 1889, when he found the remains of a frozen leopard. The gradient will get steeper and these three hours will be the hardest stretch of the ascent. You should reach the crater rim at the notch.

From the notch, it will be a short hike to Gillman’s Point (5685 meters) and it will be the time for a crack of dawn. Your reward will be the dramatic spectacle of the sun, rising over the ice fields and craggy peaks of Mawenzi.

The profusion of colors and shapes will make all the suffering seem worth it. For those who still have the energy to drive, it will take another couple of hours along the crater rim to reach Uhuru Peak (5896 meters). You will retrace the route back down, passing Kibo Huts, reaching the Horombo Huts in approximately three hours for an adequate rest and overnight stay.

Day 6: Back to Arusha

The pace will quicken as you continue your triumphant way back down across alpine meadow and past Mandara Huts through the rainforest to Marangu Gate where you will board the vehicle for the journey back to Arusha. Breakfast and lunch will be included on this day.