Pick up from the hotel drive to Taveta border via Voi town then Taita wildlife sanctuary with a chance to see elephants entlopes, buffaloes on way to Taveta border change vehicles/driver and then cross to Tanzania transfer to Keys Hotel Afternoon relax at the hotel ready for climbing trails.

Starts with an early breakfast at the hotel. After your gear has been loaded onto the vehicles you’ll be driven to the park’s gate where spring water is available and should be purchased before you head into the rainforest. You’ll be introduced to your guides and depending on the size f your group assistant guides and porters will be waiting at the park’s gate to sort out the food and bags to be carried up the mountain. The journey from Moshi (900 m) to the Marangu Park’s gate (1800 m) takes about 45 minutes. At this stage you could also take time to get to know your porter who will carry your baggage on the climb. You can also buy maps, books, postcards, camera film, snacks and drinks from the curio shop. You’ll be given a lunch pack and then you will start your trek to the first camp on the route, Mandara Hut (2727 m). Walking through the rainforest can be very wet if weather conditions are less than pleasant. Overnight at Mandara hut.

Breakfast then day starts with a short walk to the border of the forest where, on a clear day, you can get the first gorgeous views of Mawenzi (5149 m) and the south-eastern slopes of Kilimanjaro. The footpath heads into the moorland. It is in fairly good condition and at a gradual gradient. Grass, shrubs, bus and a few flowers dominate the landscape on this section of the climb. The halfway mark between the camps is a designated area for resting and lunch. By now the south-eastern slopes of Kilimanjaro and the south-western slopes of Mawenzi (5149 m) are in full view for most of the route. You’ll arrive at Horombo Hut (3720 m) during the early afternoon and must report to the camp office for accommodation arrangements. Although becoming increasingly expensive, spring water, beer, soft drinks and snacks are available at the camp. This is one of those afternoons that you can use explore the area, rest, or to climb the ridge obscuring the breathtaking views of Mawenzi (5149 m).

The walk to Kibo hut (4703) heads up a footpath into the semi-desert landscape of the Saddle. When walking through the Saddle you get to see the Middle Red Hill, West Lava Hill and East Lava Hill to the east and the Barafu hut (4600 m) camp to the west. Halfway through the Saddle you stop for lunch and then carry on to the Kibo hut (4703 m). Here you are required to report to the camp office for accommodation arrangements. Note carefully that drinking water is not available at this camp but some can be bought from the office along with beer and soft drinks. When you’re stocked up on fresh drinkable. A sense of energy and calm always prevails among climbers; they are true playmates of nature when climbing. Whether they have expert skills or not, they are filled with desire and that is the driving force. Gambling with life at every step, the human spirit illustrated the resplendence of creation through risk and danger.

This is when the going really gets tough; you’re tired, maybe even slightly nauseous and suffering from headaches due to the extreme changes in altitude. The team size will determine how many assistant guides are needed. Ensure that the batteries in you headlamp and camera are replaced with a new set and carry adequate spares. The first section of the ascent follows a winding rocky footpath to Hans Meyer cave (5150 m). Temperature on the summit can be as low as minus 30 degrees Celsius with wind-chill taken into account. About an hour past Stella Point you’ll be rewarded with the summit of Mount Kilimanjaro, Uhuru Peak (5895 m) – the highest point on the African continent. Summit night on Kilimanjaro is slow, arduous and cold. But it is also refreshing, invigorating and simply awe-inspiring. On the summit you’ll be rewarded with the ultimate show stopper – stunning aerial views of the spectacular glaciers illuminated by a hypnotic sunrise experienced only on the roof of Africa.

When you finally drag your weary body from the sleeping bag, you’ll have breakfast in the dinning hall, and then walk to Mandara Hut (2727 m) for lunch. Thereafter you’ll head through the forest to the Marangu Park’s gate (1800 m) where on arrival you much enter your particulars in the register. Now for the ‘awards ceremony’. Those climbers who reached Gillman’s Point (5685 m) are issued with green certificates and those who reached Uhuru Peak (5895 m) receive gold certificates. Unfortunately there is no documented recognition for those who did not make it to the crater rim at all. Transport will be ready and waiting at the gate to take you to your hotel. The hunt to reach the tip of the frosty pinnacle by any means necessary is arguably the most hazardous, yet at times also the most strangely pleasant, climbing pursuit. But whatever you may have experienced atop Mount Kilimanjaro will, in time, leave behind precious memories, which you’ll thumbtack to your life as a badge of courage.