Day 1: Arrive at Kilimanjaro International Airport and transfer to a hotel in Moshi for dinner and overnight.

Day 2: After breakfast, you drive to the starting point, from the gate, you ascend a cleared ridge trail to Mandara Hut.

The trail is the fastest way to Mandara but opportunities to see wildlife or enjoy the forest are very limited due to the heavy foot traffic.

An alternative is to 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 one and a half hours from the gate, you can 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 at 2,700 meters. Here you will spend the night in huts.

Day 3: From Mandara Hut, the trail passes through a short stretch of forest, skirts the base of Maundi Crater, crosses a meadow and a wooded stream and 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 at 3,720 meters, and set in a rocky valley with collections of giant senesces or groundsels.  You will then stay overnight at Horombo Hut.

Day 4: 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, there are trails to Mawenzi Hut or Mawenzi Turn Hut and across the length of the Saddle to Kibo Hut. The left fork from Horombo Hut is an easier trail and emerges on the Saddle much closer to Kibo and about one kilometer from Kibo Hut at an altitude of 4,700 meters. You will stay overnight at Kibo Hut.

Day 5: The trail to the summit lies directly behind Kibo Hut to the west. It is normal to start this day's climb at 2:00am or earlier so you can see the sun rise over Mawenzi from the top of Kibo, as the loose stone scree is frozen, it is easier to climb and gives you time to get back to camp.

The first part is an uneven trail that leads to the Hans Meyer Cave which is a good resting place, after that the trail makes regular switchbacks most of the way to the top with a last scramble over rocks to Johannes Notch and Gilman's Point.

From there, the trail continues along the rim past Stella Point to Uhuru Peak at 5,895 meters. The return to Horombo Hut will seem surprisingly fast compared to the ascent.

You will stay overnight at Horombo Hut.

Day 6: Descending from Horombo Hut, you can easily make Mandara Hut by lunchtime and continue to the park gate in the afternoon.

 You then proceed to Moshi or Arusha for a well deserved hot shower, dinner and overnight stay.

Day 7: Transfer to Kilimanjaro International Airport or to your next safari destination.
 

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