Kilimanjaro 6-day Machame route

You will be picked up from the Airport (JRO) and transferred to your hotel in Moshi, where you will meet your mountain guide and office representative for meet & greetings followed by your pre trek briefing and kit check. This day, our team will be answering any question about your upcoming adventure to make sure everyone is ready to go!

After breakfast at your hotel, we transfer to Machame gate where we register and complete the National Park formalities. We then start trekking; steadily ascending through stunning rainforest which can be quite muddy and wet underfoot, but it’s a magnificent way to start our challenge! Night Camp: Machame Camp (3,010m/ 9,875 ft).

Altitude Change: ↑835 m/ 2,740 ft
Trekking Distance/ Time: 7 km/ 4.4 miles (5-6 hr)

Following breakfast at the Camp, we push on with our ascent. Today is a short day but rather steep and rocky in some areas on the trail. It’s a slow hike with plenty of rests and enough time to acclimatize. We push on trekking until we reach the Shira Plateau, where we will be rewarded with great views of the mountain and if we look back, we see the magnificent views of Mount Meru rising above the skies. Night Camp: Shira Camp (3,845m/ 12,615 ft).

Altitude Change:↑1,220m/ 4,003 ft
Trekking Distance/ Time:9 km/ 5.6 miles (6-7 hrs)

Our day starts with trekking over high moorland with the scenery now changing the whole character of our challenge. We trek steadily uphill to the Lava Tower, where we stop for lunch around noon. From the Lava Tower we start our descent for about 2 hours to our camp at Barranco. Today is good for acclimatisation, as we climb up to 4,600m and sleep at 3,950m – the golden altitude rule is, “walk high, sleep low”. Night Camp: Barranco Camp (3,960m/ 12,992 ft)

Altitude Change:↑795 m/ 2,608 ft
Trekking Distance/ Time: 10 km/ 6.2 miles (6-7 hr)

We set off to conquer what the locals call ‘breakfast wall’, The Barranco Wall! It is a scramble using our hands and feet, (not technical like rock climbing) but certainly adds to our adventure. Once we take in our achievements at the top, we will be able to witness stunning views across the mountain towards the Barranco Valley and The Karanga Valley across the barren landscape but will be rewarded with breathtaking views of the Decken Glaciers. We will be keeping our pace to a slow rhythm as we need to conserve as much energy as we can for the summit attempt later this evening. We reach our camp late in the afternoon for an early dinner before getting our heads down, as we will be woken at 11pm for our summit attempt! Night Camp: Barafu camp (4,640m/ 15,223 ft)

Altitude Change:↑680 m/ 2,280 ft
Trekking Distance/ Time: 8km/5 miles (7-8 hr)

We aim to leave camp at 12am using our head torches to light the way. The next 4 hours are spent trekking to Stella Point (5,750m) over scree and rock, where we will be rewarded with magnificent and spectacular views of the ice cliffs which surround us, and the majestic views to the Mawenzi Peaks – trekking just does not get any better than this! We now make regular rest stops every 15 minutes or so, to aid our chances of reaching Uhuru Peak at 5,895 m/ 19,341 ft. We push on to the summit with the sun rising over the stunning Mawenzi Peaks and aim to reach the summit by about 6 or 7 am. We start our long descent via Stella Point and back to Barafu Camp, where we will enjoy some lunch and a good rest. Our descent then continues down to Millennium or Mweka Camp (3,730m) – today is a very long, emotional day, but at the same time, so memorable and exhilarating. Night Camp:  *Mweka Camp (3,080m/ 10,105ft).

Altitude Change:↑1,255 m & Then, ↓ 2,815 m
Trekking Distance/ Time: 19 km/ 12 miles (12-14 hr)

Our final descent start with a nice breakfast followed by tipping ceremony; then we continue trekking for about 5 hours to make the 1,880 meters descent back to Mweka gate (1,680m/ 5,512 ft). Lunch will be served either at Mweka gate or at your hotel in Moshi. We take the vehicle transfer back to our Lodge in Moshi for a well-deserved hot shower or cool soak in the pool! This evening, we meet as a group to contemplate our achievements at our Great Dinner at the Lodge followed by Celebratory Party. Accommodation: Panama Garden Resort

Altitude Change:↑1,400m/ 4,593 ft
Trekking Distance/ Time: 10 km/ 6.2 miles (3-4 hr)

After breakfast there may be some free time to relax at the lodge or go shopping in Moshi and then leave your hotel in Moshi for your transfer to the airport to catch your departure flight