9-Day Kilimanjaro Climb via Machame Route with Signature Camping

You will be picked up at Kilimanjaro International Airport and transferred to your hotel in Moshi town. There, you will meet your guide, who will brief you on your upcoming trek and carry out an equipment check to make sure you have all the necessary mountain gear. Any missing gear can be rented on this day.

After breakfast, transfer to Machame Gate. From the gate, the recently repaired path leads through the last foothills of the fertile cultivated land. Shortly afterwards, the trail rises and continues through the dense, deep green, and still moist mountain rainforest up to Machame Camp.

The trail leads through bush forest and moorland, passing powerful lava bridges along the way. A little later, the first senecios and lobelias can be seen. Around noon, this section is mostly shrouded in dense fog.

The ascent continues through the dark, almost vegetation-free gravel desert of lava rock. With a bit of luck, Kili shows itself up close here for the first time. The path leads up to just below the Lava Tower, at about 4450 m, and then descends into the Barranco Valley. This area, with its alpine vegetation, is one of the highlights along the Machame Route.

After breakfast, we leave Barranco and continue along a steep ridge, passing the Barranco Wall, to the Karanga Valley campsite. This is a short day meant for acclimatization.

After breakfast, we leave Karanga and reach the junction that connects with the Mweka Trail. We then continue up to Barafu Hut. At this point, you have completed the South Circuit, which offers views of the summit from many different angles. Here we make camp, rest, enjoy dinner, and prepare for summit day. The two peaks of Mawenzi and Kibo can be seen from this position.

Very early in the morning, between midnight and 2 am, we continue our way to the summit between the Rebmann and Ratzel glaciers. You head in a northwesterly direction and ascend through heavy scree towards Stella Point on the crater rim. This is the most mentally and physically challenging portion of the trek.

At Stella Point (18,600 ft), you will stop for a short rest and, weather permitting, be rewarded with the most magnificent sunrise you are ever likely to see. From Stella Point, you may encounter snow all the way during your 1-hour ascent to the summit. At Uhuru Peak, you have reached the highest point on Mount Kilimanjaro and the continent of Africa. Faster hikers will see the sunrise from the summit.

From the summit, we begin our descent, continuing straight down to the Mweka Camp site and stopping at Barafu for lunch. You will want gaiters and trekking poles for the loose gravel on the way down. Mweka Camp is situated in the upper forest, and mist or rain can be expected in the late afternoon. Later in the evening, we enjoy our last dinner on the mountain and a well-earned sleep.

The trail leads steeply downhill along a mostly wet and slippery path through the dense cloud forest to Mweka Gate. From there, transport takes you back to your hotel or lodge.

Today you have a dayroom to pack, freshen up, and get ready for your flight home or your onward adventures in East Africa.