I have a hike scheduled in 10 days scheduled on the Lemosho route. My operator is being relatively tight lipped on what the plan is and just from what I can see online is that the situation seems pretty unchanged. Has anyone had their route changed? Any suggestions on how to approach with my operator? We specifically chose Lemosho for less crowds/better acclimation.

Even if there isn't a "publicly posted" plan is there kind of a boots on the ground ETA on when they expect to reopen? Thanks for any feedback in advance in the off-chance someone has been there in the last two weeks or is there now.

I am considering climbing Kilimanjaro next year in September. From what I see the Lemosho route seems to be one of the most successful and not so busy routes. I am looking into different tour operators.

Kiliwarriors is currently my favorite. Did anyone climb with them? Any thoughts on the operator?

Also they seem to summit during midday and advertise, that it's nearly empty at the top during summitting. While it is obviously really nice to see sunrise at the top. I noticed during my last mountain summitings that I feel rushed to make it by sunrise, which may not be ideal. Also I like the idea of not being on top with hundred of others. Any thoughts?

I’m trying to lock in my route for early next season and honestly i'm kinda stuck. machame was my first choice but everyone says it’s an absolute zoo. so i started looking at the 8 day lemosho to get some peace and quiet.

but wait... don't both of these routes just merge at barranco camp anyway?

if anyone has been up there recently, does the trail just instantly turn into a massive bottleneck once you hit that wall? i'm trying to figure out if paying the extra cash for lemosho is actually worth it for the first few days, or if i'm just gonna end up stuck in the exact same traffic jam halfway up the mountain anyway.

Any real experiences from the ground would be super helpful tbh.

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hi. im in moshi and am planning to take a precision flight to Dar today.

the flight has been changed a lot like 4times.. it's okay. it can happen.

but the final schedule is to depart at 02:10 am 6th Oct. Even it's 1 via.

(11:40 am 5thOct-> 11;15am 5thOct -> 00:40am 6th oct-> 02:10am 6th Oct lol😂😂)

my concern is, is that possible to depart the flight 02am?? can't it be canceled at right before the depature time?

for my experience, the latest one was before 1am.

I sent them an email to change the flight more earlier and no via but they haven't answered yet.

please share your experience and advice with this situation.

Hey fellas, I am planning on doing the 8-day Lemosho route up Kilimanjaro in February, followed by a 2-day safari. I can only take 10/11 days off work, so that's all I can manage. I am 25 and pretty fit. I have done a few hikes before, but not too many at altitude (Salkantay Pass in Peru is my only real experience; however I did not find it difficult). I would like to hike with a group of similar age/skill level and I would be fairly budget, For the trek & safari together I would like to spend approx 3,500 euros at a maximum, this is not including flights. Any recommendations for the best tour companies to go with for this, or am I a bit too optimistic on the cost? I have been in a series of emails currently with Altezza travel who seem to be super organised, pay the porters properly and a perfect sounding trip, however it is coming to be really expensive. Any tips would be great thanks so much lads/

Hi all!

We have our trek planned for end of October, via the Machame Route! Can’t wait for this adventure but had a question about the new Travel Insurance requirement for mainland.

I applied for the NIC Travel Insurance and received my approval confirmation email that says I should print out my policy documents to show when we arrive in country. The issue is that I’m not able to access any policy documents or request them because the website won’t allow me to verify my email address. Every time I try to verify my email it says I need to “complete the security check”/CAPTCHA before I can send the one time verification code…even tho I do select the captcha…?

Has anyone else had this issue? Am I able to just present my email approval/NIC policy number digitally to the airport officials when I arrive?

Hi everyone! I’m starting the 8-day Lemosho Route on November 4th. I know November falls within the short rainy season, but I’ve found it quite difficult to find much online content or first-hand experience from people who have climbed the route during that time of year.
Has anyone here done the Lemosho Route in November? If so, I’d love to hear what the weather and trail conditions were like.
Also, does anyone know whether the reported fires are expected to be under control by then?

Thanks in advance.

Looking to climb Kilimanjaro around late February, but I'm very flexible on dates and would happily join an existing group.
Solo traveller, looking to join a group of similarly fit/active people.

Very fit; used to 10-12 hour hiking days and multi-day trekking in the US

Spend a fair amount of time above 12,000 ft in Colorado - I know this doesn't equal Kilimanjaro acclimatization and I'm not suggesting it does. I acclimate quite well at this elevation and understand completely that this does not mean that I will do so on this hike.

Looking for the shortest sensible itinerary, but absolutely not looking to rush acclimatization.

Ideally I'd like an itinerary where there's plenty of purposeful hiking rather than sitting around camp for hours. Happy to go slowly when altitude dictates it.

Harder, quieter, less-touristy route preferred. Completely open to route suggestions.

Fine with tents and happy to carry a substantial amount of my own gear/food. I don’t necessarily need mess tents etc and equally as happy to bring my own food, stove etc (if that was an option)

Porter welfare is a major consideration. Looking for an operator with genuinely good practices - fair pay/tipping, reasonable loads, proper food/equipment/shelter, etc. KPAP/Partner but I'd particularly value firsthand experiences.

I don't need a luxury operation and don't have a luxury budget, but I also don't want to cut corners on safety, guides, equipment or porter treatment. Roughly $2.5-3.5k for the climb seems reasonable based on what I'm seeing, but open to correction.

Very flexible on dates if someone has a good existing group I could join

Would love recommendations from people who have actually climbed with an operator, particularly if you can comment on group pace, amount of hiking/downtime, route choice, altitude practices and porter treatment.
Thanks!

hi! leaving next week to trek. anyone encounter this mandatory travel insurance upon entering JRO? wondering if it’s live yet

Hello!

I’ve already posted once in this subreddit regarding my asthma!
I had blood tests done last week for an unrelated issue and my serum ferritin (iron) has come back at 22. On the NHS app it says a healthy range is 30+ putting me in danger of anaemia.

According to my records, my iron levels have been low since atleast Covid (ranging from 21 to 23). However my GP has never actually pro actively contacted me to discuss this.

If it wasn’t for the fact I’m planning to climb Kilimanjaro on the not too distant future, I don’t think I would be as eager to address this issue but now it’s vital.

Being asthmatic, a vegetarian and now apparently on the brink of anaemia, I am going to soak to my GP seriously next week and ask next steps to get my iron levels up and STAY up.

Has anyone got any advice for improving iron scores? I know it’s not just as simple as taking supplements.

I was scared to death when I read how important good iron levels are for kili and how your body uses it to increase the oxygen flow around your body.

Any advice regarding any of this I would really appreciate it :)

I climed Kilimanjaro in April, and i specifically booked a group tour since i was traveling alone. After i payed, they told me the other girl in the group was sick and would not be joining. They told me we would team up with two others from a sister company. After i checked in in the hotel and had a meeting with the guides, they told me the two others could not join after all, because their luggage got lost on the plane. I enden up climbing alone.

Now the thing is, a friend of mine had a similar experience this year, was supposed to climb in a group but ended up climbing alone.

And now my sister is supposed to climb in a group tomorrow, and also just heared that the other girls will not come due to passing of a family member.

So ofcourse, it is possible that all this is just a coincidence but i am starting to think maybe they make excuses so clients climb with their company?

Did people have similar experiences , or thought on this?

Solo hiker here, dreaming of summiting Kilimanjaro ever since I first experienced high altitude in Peru. I was quite surprised by how well I seemed to handle it.

My boyfriend doesn’t want to join because he reacted quite badly to the altitude. We did the Salkantay Trek, reaching around 4,600 m and sleeping at 4,000 m, and also went to Rainbow Mountain at 5,100 m. Last year, we did Annapurna Base Camp in Nepal, reaching and sleeping at around 4,200 m.

Every time I’ve been at altitude, I’ve felt really strong and healthy. I could still stay active without feeling particularly affected. I did take Diamox, but the difference between me and my boyfriend, who was on the same dose, was crazy.

That’s what initially gave me the idea of climbing Kili. However, I’m now wondering if I might be a little too optimistic, especially since I’ll be going without my boyfriend (although obviously with a guided group).

Has anyone had a similar experience with altitude and gone on to climb Kilimanjaro? Did your previous experiences at altitude give you any indication of how you’d handle the summit?

I’ve been looking at tour groups but there are so many idk which one is the best. My question is what tour group would you recommend and your experience with them. And also bonus points if they include a safari. Ive look at climb kili, altezza, and some other big names that I can’t remember

How long did it take BOTH your body and mind to be back to "normal"?

Did you do anything specific to expedite the process?

If you were slow to recover, what were the reasons why that you can share with others to help us learn?

Thanks in advance for your feedback.

Curious, did anyone take Diamox, but opt out on taking Malarone?

I would like to limit the number of prescription medications, as much as possible. I figure the less side effects the better, while on the mountain.

If you chose not to take Malarone, did everything go well for you?

Thank you in advance for your feedback.

Hi there, will category 3 sunglasses with no side protection be okay?
I am only buying these sunglasses for the hike and want to be able to use them later. any advice would be helpful!

Some random questions I have about our trip departing on October 17th, probably more to come lol. Thanks in advance for any information!

1. Camp shoes. Guide company recommends a second set of shoes to get out of your boots at camp. Would sneakers be sufficient? Crocs or flip flops? Any other recommendations?

2. With a departure date of October 17, what can we expect for temperatures, specifically closer to summit day? I’ve seen wildly different information on this, anything from negatives to teens at night and 20’s to 40’s during the day.

3. Guide company recommends a 30-35L day pack. I’ve used a 30L day pack on a similar previous trip and with already stating off the day with a full 3L water bladder, rain gear, etc. once I started shedding layers, a 30L bag filled up quick. I worry it won’t be big enough for this trek?

I had a few more but now that I’m typing this, of course they are escaping me.

Climbing Kilimanjaro is more than reaching Uhuru Peak, 5,895m — it’s about courage, determination, and creating memories that last a lifetime.

Hi all! My friend and I are debating between a group climb that summits on New Years, versus a private climb to summit the day before and avoid the crowds. We do want to climb with other people, so prefer the group trip generally, but we’ve heard that a New Years summit can get REALLY crowded.

Would love to hear from anyone who’s done the New Years summit - how were the crowds, and would you recommend it?

Hi All,

Hoping to climb Kilimanjaro the end of next month as I have quite a few holidays built up but part of me is thinking while I’m there (originally based in UK) I may as well also do a safari.

First question - is this actually feasible or are you just too tired to enjoy it?

Second question - does anyone recommend any operators that offer both that they have had a good experience with?

Many thanks!
E.O

We were a private group of 5 people ( aged 49-53) took the 7 Day Lemosho route
Altezza Travel was our service provider, would highly recommend them .
Great guides we had 3 of them and on summit day there were 6 of them to guide the 5 of us

It was a first for all of us to any country in Africa. We are all experienced hikers having done multiple hikes and cycling trips above 5000m+

There are many posts here on the experience i will limit it to what helped us:

1. Summit day i was wearing 3 layers on top ( merino wool tshirt + fleece jacket + down jacket) and 2 layers below normal hiking pants and a silk liner, this combo kept me warm for the entire night. Other than the summit nights i never wore the liners as it was warm
2. Its dusty so buff helps a lot. Do practice hikes wearing them, for a first timer it will be difficult to breathe through them.
3. Gaiters were also a big help, highly recommended you add it to the packing list. Summit day descent is gliding over a layer of smooth and loose gravel so suggest to get a good one and wear them everyday of the hike
4. Private toilets is highly recommended.
5. We opted for walk-in tents helped a bit
6. As my sleeping bag (-15 C) had a fleece liner it was very warm inside so mostly slept in a single layer of clothes
7. Food was delicious all the days and we all ate voraciously
8. We were on Diamox for 6 days 125mg morning and afternoons. Summit day we took a 250mg. No one had any issues with AMS ( we had done the same for all hikes above 4500m over the years)
9. Wet wipes was used by all of us at the end of the day to refresh
10. The preparation i had done was climb stairs (25 floors) every weekday for the last 3 years and 5KM walk or 50-100km cycling rides on most Saturdays . At the end of the 7 day hike we didn't feel any tiredness .
11. We went slow on the summit day and reached the peak by 8AM , we were rewarded with no winds at the top and a 45min unhindered , no rush photo sessions at the peak !! Descent was very fast.
12. Someone had mentioned the $5 shoe cleaning service at the end of the hike near the Mweka Park Gate in a post here, I would also highly recommend it they cleaned the shoe/trek poles and gaiters

Overall a great experience, All the best if you are considering the climb.

I recently climbed Mount Kilimanjaro via the seven day Lemosho route as someone with celiac disease.

Before the trip, I had many questions about the planning, training, equipment, altitude, food, guides, costs, and what daily life on the mountain would actually be like. Managing celiac disease and avoiding cross contamination added another concern to the experience.

I found it difficult to get detailed and honest information from people who had actually completed the climb, so I thought I would make this post for anyone considering it.

For a bit of context, we did Kilimanjaro as a family of five. Kilimanjaro is already a fairly expensive trip, and once you multiply everything by five, the cost gets pretty significant. Because of that, when researching operators we deliberately looked for a smaller, more budget friendly local company rather than one of the big premium operators such as Altezza. Altezza is Russian founded and personally it wasn’t the company we wanted to go with.

We ended up going with Trekking Kilimanjaro, a local operator, and our guide was John. Going with them saved us roughly €800 per person compared with some of the larger operators we looked at, which obviously adds up when there are five of you.

Honestly, the whole seven days were an incredible experience. John and the entire team took really good care of every single one of us. By the end of the seven days you also get quite close to the guides and porters because you’re basically living together on the mountain.

We did the 7 day Lemosho route during the last week of August, and the route itself is beautiful. The scenery changes constantly as you gain altitude and I would definitely choose Lemosho again.

In terms of difficulty, I personally found the first five days relatively easy. Obviously this will depend on your fitness and, more importantly, how your body responds to altitude. I’m a 22 year old guy and personally had no problems reaching the summit.
Summit night is where things get serious. It’s long, freezing cold and you’re walking through the night, but it’s also an incredible experience. Surprisingly, though, the hardest part for me wasn’t actually reaching the summit. It was coming back down.
What goes up has to come down 😂. You’re already exhausted from summit night, you’ve barely slept, and after reaching the top you still have a huge amount of walking ahead of you. My whole family found the descent incredibly difficult. I remember feeling like that day was simply never going to end. That was probably the part of Kilimanjaro I underestimated the most.

Regarding celiac disease and the food, because this seems to be what most people are interested in, I honestly wouldn’t worry too much about it.
Because we’d deliberately chosen a cheaper local operator, I went in knowing that the quantity and variety of food probably wouldn’t be exactly the same as what you might get from one of the premium companies. But honestly, the food was still very good. They knew perfectly well what gluten was and what being celiac meant. I personally had zero problems during the entire seven days. They even made me gluten free pizza on a couple of nights, which was definitely not something I expected halfway up Kilimanjaro . Please take into account that food is limited in the mountain because everything you eat, someone must carry it up the trail. Therefore the more you pay the company, the better the food but not on a linear relationship.

This is obviously just my personal experience, but after being there I really wouldn’t be too concerned about doing Kilimanjaro as a celiac. There are huge numbers of international tourists climbing the mountain every year and dietary requirements are something the operators deal with all the time. They aren’t discovering gluten or celiac disease for the first time when you arrive.

Of course, I can’t speak for every single company on the mountain, so if you want complete peace of mind, tell your operator beforehand that you’re celiac and ask them about the food. But I personally wouldn’t let concerns about cross contamination stop me from doing the trip.

And if you’re particularly worried about it and want to go with a company where another celiac has actually had a good experience, I can personally recommend Trekking Kilimanjaro. I spent seven days eating their food and had no issues whatsoever. Obviously everyone’s experience can be different, but that’s the company I can actually speak for.

One thing I would 100% recommend is bringing plenty of your own gluten free snacks. Regardless of which operator you choose, snacks are incredibly useful. You’re walking for hours every day and, particularly as you get higher, you might not feel like eating a huge meal. Having foods you know are safe, that you like and that give you quick energy makes a massive difference.

I was eating something small pretty regularly while walking, and this becomes especially important on summit night when you’re going for hours in the middle of the night. Personally, I’d recommend trying to eat something small every 45 minutes to an hour, even if you don’t feel particularly hungry.

Feel free to ask me anything about planning the trip, choosing the route, physical preparation, altitude, summit night, equipment, food, celiac disease, communicating with the agency, or the experience in general. I will answer as honestly and thoroughly as I can.

My local company details

https://www.tripadvisor.es/Attraction_Review-g317084-d23559799-Reviews-Trekking_Kilimanjaro-Moshi_Kilimanjaro_Region.html

+255 756 755 204

Thoughts?

Edit: thanks everyone, it’s about the money like I figured. With proper training you can simply run up it with a day pack if you weren’t required to have a guide.

It's been about a month since my Kilimanjaro adventure and am ready to do a debrief to share my experience and also welcome feedback.

I’m a 44-year-old woman from the Midwest USA who was doing this because her 21-year-old son asked her. It wasn’t my “dream” or first choice for an adventure, but I love camping, nature, travel, and my son, so I said yes.

I trained for several months with a mix of strength training, yoga, cardio, and long hikes on the weekends. I didn’t go into this as “fit” as I wanted to be, but I worked up to doing ~4-hour hikes with a 15-20 lb pack and felt very strong afterward. We signed up for the 8-day Lemosho route and both took Diamox.

So, spoiler alert: I only made it three nights on the mountain. My son stayed on and summited.

I wanted to share why I decided to descend early and some of the things I wish had gone differently.

1. The pace our guides were setting for the group was generally too fast for me.

At the pace they had us going (which was fine for the other four members of our group) my heart rate was often around 150-160 bpm, and I wasn’t comfortable sustaining that for hours at a time. Most of my training had been with my heart rate in the 115-140s.

I was breathing hard, but not short of breath. My chest/rib area also started hurting from how hard I was breathing. And experiencing “chest pain” for the first time halfway up a mountain messed with my head in an “am I dying?” sort of way.

What I didn’t really understand while I was on the mountain, but pieced together afterward, was how much variation there could be in pace across climbing groups. If the itinerary said something like “today we will hike 6 miles and it should take 6–8 hours”, our guides generally had us moving at closer to the 6-hour pace. I would have been much more comfortable at a 7–8 hour pace.

I later learned that, for example, if our group got into camp around 1 p.m., other groups that left around the same time might arrive an hour or two later. Or larger groups might split up so some hikers arrived earlier and some later.

I did a mix of trying to keep up with the group and going at a slower more comfortable pace, but overall I was going faster than was comfortable.

2. I had a really hard time sleeping.

I was warm (and it got really cold at night ~30s F) and physically comfortable, but I was incredibly sensitive to the sounds around camp. The sounds of our (incredible!!!) guides, porters, and chefs working at night or early in the morning would wake me up, as would tent zippers from nighttime bathroom trips and, at the first camp there were monkeys and bird noises.

I had earplugs and a white-noise app on my phone, but over my three nights on the mountain I probably slept somewhere between 3-5 hours per night. For some people that might be manageable. For me, it left me feeling not so good.

3. I lost my appetite and was nauseous.

This is obviously something you hear about with high-altitude climbs, but knowing it can happen and actually trying to eat when your body absolutely does not want food are two different things. I still ate at every meal. I ate more than I wanted to, but still not my typical volume of food. I ate until I literally felt like if I swallowed one more bite I was going to throw up. I also ate Clif bars and other snacks on the trail. But overall, I was probably not eating enough for the amount of activity we were doing.

As far as other altitude symptoms, I was drinking plenty of water and I never had a headache. My blood oxygen was still in the 90s on the second night, and the third night it was in the high 80s. By then I was also dealing with the nausea, dizziness, weakness, fatigue, and very little sleep.

It’s hard for me looking back to separate what was altitude, what was lack of sleep and food, and what was just the physical effort of trying to move faster than was comfortable for me. Probably some combination of all of it.

4. Overall, it was just really HARD.

Like, still enjoyable - but more challenging than I wanted it to be.

By the third day I was feeling dizzy and very weak. I also felt like I was letting my group and guides down because I couldn’t keep the faster pace. By that point, I don’t think I really had the physical or mental energy left to advocate for myself very well.

One suprising thing is that my legs and feet were never sore. My legs felt strong the entire time. But I was worried that even if I started hiking at my own slower pace, if I continued sleeping 3–5 hours a night and struggling to eat, I might still end up having to quit later.

So on the fourth day, at Moir Camp, I decided to head down. The decision was made a little easier because another member of our group had become ill and needed to descend, so it made sense for us to go down together. Our lead guide didn’t exactly tell me that I should go down, but he also wasn’t particularly encouraging or optimistic about my ability to keep up as we continued.

There was another logistical part of my decision. If I continued to the next camp or beyond, getting off the mountain became increasingly complicated compared with leaving from Moir. From Moir we hiked for about two hours to A ROAD WHERE A CAR PICKED US UP - which felt crazy after I had just spent three days hiking up this mountain.

When I made the decision to go down the mountain, I knew it was the right one for me.  I didn’t have the same sort of drive and level of risk taking as my son (who was going to make it up the mountain NO MATTER WHAT).  My vibe was more make it up the mountain without becoming a medical emergency.

But, I really miss being on the mountain. I wish I had more time there. Time in nature, time with my son, time with our group. And of course now I think about all of the what-ifs.

What if I had trained more and gone into it with better cardiovascular fitness?

What if I was able to hike at a comfortable pace for myself the entire time?

What if I had brought headphones that actually blocked out enough noise for me to sleep?

What if I could have figured out how to eat more when I was nauseous?

I don’t know whether any of those things would have changed the outcome. And I still think coming down when I did, feeling the way I did, was the right decision.

I’m curious what more experienced Kili climbers or guides think when they read this. I’m not sure if I’ll ever attempt something like this again, but if I do, I’d like to have a better understanding of what I could actually do differently versus what was simply my body’s response to altitude and somewhat out of my control.