Itinerary

1. Day 1: Marangu Gate to Mandara Hut

   • From the gate, ascend a cleared ridge trail, formerly a vehicle track to Mandara Hut. The cleared trail is the fastest way to Mandara, but opportunities to see wildlife or enjoy the forest are limited due to the heavy foot traffic.

   • Alternatively, ascend along the parallel forest trail and descend on the main trail. The forest trail branches off to the left, a few minutes after the gate, and follows the edge of a stream through the undergrowth.

   • About halfway (1 hrs from the gate), choose to cross the stream and rejoin the main trail or continue on the forest trail. Both trails continue on opposite sides of the stream, merging about one hour before Mandara Hut. 

   • Transfer to Marangu Gate at an altitude of 1,860m. The path to Mandara Hut, the first overnight stop, passes through the rain forest and takes up to four hours.

   1830m-2700m; 3-4 hours trek

2. Day 2: Mandara Hut to Horombo Hut

   • From Mandara Hut, the trail passes through a short stretch of forest and skirts the base of Maundi Crater, crosses a meadow and a wooded stream, then emerges into grassland. It is well worth the short detour to scramble up to the rim of Maundi Crater for a superb view of the mountain and its surroundings. The trail crosses numerous moorland ravines before ending at Horombo Hut, which is set in a rocky valley with a fine stand of giant sceneries or groundsels.

   • Leave behind the forest and following the ascending path through alpine meadows onto the slopes of Mawenzi. Horombo Hut is reached after about six hours and is 11km from Mandara.

   2700m-3720m; 5-7 hours trek

3. Day 3: Kibo Hut

   • From Horombo Hut, there are two trails to the Saddle. The right fork is very stony and eroded and is the most direct route to the Saddle and Mawenzi. From the Saddle (about 2 hrs from Horombo), there are trails to Mawenzi Hut or Mawenzi Tarn Hut and across the length of the Saddle to Kibo Hut (3 hrs). The left fork from Horombo Hut is an easier trail and emerges on the Saddle much closer to Kibo and about one kilometre from Kibo Hut. The landscape now becomes more rocky and rugged until the Saddle is reached.
   • Reach Kibo Hut for an overnight stay.

   3720m-4703m; 5-6 hours trek

4. Day 4: Gillman's Point

   • Trail to the summit lies directly behind Kibo Hut, to the west. It is normal to start this day's climb at 2 a.m. or earlier. (The reasons for this are to see the sunrise over Mawenzi from the top of Kibo). The first part is an uneven trail which leads to the Hans Meyer Cave, a good rest point. After that, the trail makes more regular switchbacks most of the way to the top, with a last scramble over rocks to Johannes Notch and Gillman's Point.

   • From there, the trail continues along the rim past Stella Point to Uhuru Peak. An early (2:00 am) start to make the steep and demanding final ascent through the snow. By daybreak, you should be at the rim of the crater at 5,685m.

   • Time and weather permitting the final push to Uhuru Peak should take about 45 minutes. At the top, there are stunning views of the ice walls offset by rugged rocks.

   • After a fast descent to Kibo Hut for a meal and rest, continue to descend to Horombo Hut with Kilimanjaro guide.

   5680m-5892m; 10-12 hours trek

5. Day 5: Descent to Marangu Gate

   • Make an easy descent to Marangu Gate and then transfer to Moshi.

   10-12 hours trek