Ethical Private Mount Kilimanjaro Climb (Machame Route) & Safari

From $4,750 pp

  • Duration

    13 days
  • Bookable From

    June - October December - March
  • Trip Style

    Privately Guided
  • Country

    Tanzania
  • Physical Rating

    Mildly Strenuous

Overview

This privately-guided, ethical, and carbon-offset climb takes you up to the summit of Mount Kilimanjaro and then back down to reward you with a leisurely safari.


On this trip, you’ll first spend 7 days climbing Mount Kilimanjaro via the popular Machame Route and then relax afterward with a classic 4-day safari in the Serengeti National Park and the Ngorongoro Conservation Area. The Machame Route, also known as the Whiskey Route, is one of the most popular paths up Mount Kilimanjaro. This is a difficult route better suited for adventurous travelers with some hiking or backpacking experience.

The total trip length is 13 days: arrival day, 7-day climb, 4-day safari, departure day.

There are many routes by which you can conquer Kili! If you're looking for a specific length or difficulty of climb, contact us about the best route options.

  • 6-7 day climb routes: Machame, Lemosho, Rongai, Shira, Umbwe, and Marangu.
  • 8-10 day climb routes: Lemosho, Northern Circuit.

Safaris can range from 2-6 days. Depending on the length, you can visit Serengeti, Ngorongoro, Manyara, and Tarangire National Parks. Contact us to customize your Climb & Safari package.

Highlights

  • Summit the tallest mountain in Africa
  • Trek through jungles and ravines
  • Soak in incredible panoramic views
  • See fabulous moorland views
  • Enjoy healthy, fresh-cooked meals designed for climbers
  • Support an ethical climbing company
  • Visit the Serengeti National Park
  • Visit Ngorongoro Conservation Area
  • See the Big 5 safari animals

The Machame Route is scenically beautiful and varied. You’ll go through the jungle, see a fabulous view of the moorland, and have a panoramic view of the Shira Plateau. You’ll be able to see Mt. Meru, ravines, and glaciers before finally reaching the spectacular summit of Uhuru (which means “freedom” in Swahili).

As you climb, you'll be nourished by three full meals daily. We provide plentiful, fresh food on the mountain and it’s well prepared by skilled professional chefs who join us on the trek. We also consider the choice of food that you would prefer (vegetarian and non-vegetarian). The menu is specially designed for climbers.

On our 4-day safari, we will visit both Serengeti National Park and the Ngorongoro Conservation Area, both of which are UNESCO World Heritage Sites. The Serengeti is also classified as a Biosphere Reserve and is one of Tanzanaia's main attractions for visitors looking to view big game animals. The Ngorongoro Conservation Area is home to the Ngorongoro Crater, well-known for being the biggest undisturbed volcanic crater in the world and attracting many popular animals. You should see all Big 5 safari animals on this safari: lions, leopards, rhinoceroses, elephants, and buffalo.

We respect the animals on our game drives by not feeding them and informing our guests about the consequences of feeding the wildlife. We never lead hunting safaris; and we never participate in off-roading, which can kill some species.

Seasonal Notes

The best time for this ethical Mount Kilimanjaro climb is June through October and December through March. The best time for big game viewing on a safari is June through October, January, and February.

June through October will have less rain than December to March. Temperatures are relatively consistent year-round (around 75-80°F / 24-27°C), being on the warmer end from December to March. Please note that this route is very popular, which means it can be crowded at times - this can cause it to lose some of its splendor. Unfortunately, traveling during the shoulder season during April, May, and November is not advisable due to bad weather that can cause safety hazards.

Please ask us about less-trafficked routes, which help promote tourism dispersal, for a different and more off-the-beaten-path climbing experience.

Please ask us about safaris to Manyara and Tarangire National Parks. Visiting these parks can help with tourism dispersal and provide a more tranquil, unique safari experience.

Itinerary

Day 1 Moshi [Tanzania] (arrival day)

Arrive at the Kilimanjaro International Airport. You will be met by our guide at the airport and transferred to the hotel in Moshi. Hotel accommodation includes storage facilities for excess luggage during hikes.

Accommodation: Panama Garden Resort
Room plan: Double Occupancy

Day 2 Start Trek. Moshi (1890m) - Machame Hut (3100m)

A one-hour drive from Moshi lays the gate to the Machame Route, where you will complete park formalities, meet your crew of porters, and start to climb! The first section of the route climbs steadily and involves real jungle bashing through magnificent forests.

This path is less well-trodden and is often wet and muddy underfoot.

  • Trekking Time: 4-6 hours
  • Distance: 9 km (5.6 miles)
  • Altitude Gain: 1210 m

Accommodation: Camping at Machame Hut (3100 m)
Room plan: Double Occupancy (2 people will share 1 tent)
Included Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner

Day 3 Machame Hut (3100m) - Shira Caves (3840m)

The route continues up through the forest until reaching the steep ascent on the Shira Plateau, where there are rewarding views of the mountain. Looking back, you will be able to see Mt. Meru rising high above Arusha town.

  • Trekking Time: 4-6 hours
  • Distance: 5 km (3.1 miles)
  • Altitude Gain: 740 m

Accommodation: Camping at Shira Caves (3840 m)
Room plan: Double Occupancy (2 people will share 1 tent)
Included Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner

Day 4 Shira Caves (3840m) - Lava Tower (4600m) - Barranco Camp (3900m)

Walking now on high moorland, the landscape changes the entire character of the trek. You will traverse the southwest side of Kilimanjaro, passing underneath the Lava Tower and the final section of the Western Breach, finally reaching Barranco Camp (3900 m).
The day has been spent at altitude (up to 4600 m), but you will have followed the mountaineering code of ‘walk high, sleep low’ to avoid altitude sickness by aiding your body in acclimatization.

  • Trekking Time: 6–7 hours
  • Distance: 10 km (6.2 miles)
  • Altitude Gain: 60 m

Accommodation: Barranco Camp
Room plan: Double Occupancy (2 people will share 1 tent)
Included Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner

Day 5 Barranco Camp (3900m) - Karanga Camp (4000m)

Start the day by descending into the start of the Great Barranco, a huge ravine. Then exit steeply, up what has been termed the Breakfast Wall, which divides you from the southeastern slopes of Kibo. It is a climb over rocks, although not technical. Passing underneath the Heim and Kersten glaciers, head towards the Karanga Valley (4000 m) to camp overnight.

  • Trekking Time: 4-5 hours
  • Distance: 5 km (3.1 miles)
  • Altitude Gain: 100 m

Accommodation: Karanga Valley
Room plan: Double Occupancy (2 people will share 1 tent)
Included Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner

Day 6 Karanga Camp (4000m) - Barafu Camp (4600m)

The day is characterized by a short hike on terrain formed by scree. Walk through arid land towards Barafu Camp (4600 m) where you have the entire afternoon to rest before ascending towards the summit.

  • Trekking Time: 2-4 hours
  • Distance: 4 km (2.5 miles)
  • Altitude Gain: 600 m

Accommodation: Barafu Camp
Room plan: Double Occupancy (2 people will share 1 tent)
Included Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner

Day 7 Barafu Camp (4600m) - Uhuru Peak (5895m) - Millennium Camp (3000m)

We avoid walking too long in the heat of the sun today by starting around midnight and walking steeply upwards to the summit glaciers.
You will be climbing scree for 5 to 6 hours, but you gain incredible height over a short distance. The views are spectacular. You should be on the crater rim at Stella Point (5750 m) as the first rays of the sun emerge. Spectacular ice cliffs within the crater surround you and the views to Mawenzi Peak and beyond are breathtaking. Another hour’s walk takes you to your goal, the summit of Uhuru (5896 m), the highest point. Uhuru means freedom in Swahili.

  • Trekking Time: 6-8 hours
  • Distance: 7 km (4.3 miles)
  • Altitude Gain: 1296 m

After a quick celebration and photos at the top, you will begin the descent by returning to Stella Point and then descending on Scree Slope back to Barafu Camp for breakfast and a short rest before finally heading down to Millennium Camp (3000 m) for a well-earned rest. On the descent, you will have fabulous views of the plains and Mawenzi Peak.

  • Trekking Time: 6-8 hours
  • Distance: 12 km (7.5 miles)
  • Altitude Loss: 289 m

Accommodation: Millennium Camp
Room plan: Double Occupancy (2 people will share 1 tent)
Included Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner

Day 8 End Trek. Millennium Camp (3000m) - Mweka Gate (1640m)

A gentle trek takes you down through the rainforest to the Mweka Gate (1640 m), where park formalities will be completed, you will be met by our vehicles, and receive your certificate of ascent courtesy of the Kilimanjaro National Park Authority. Thereafter, drive back to Moshi where you can treat yourself to a well-earned shower and a cold beer or two.

  • Trekking Time: 4-5 hours
  • Distance: 10 km (6.2 miles)
  • Altitude Loss: 1360 m

Accommodation: Panama Garden Resort
Room plan: Double Occupancy
Included Meals: Breakfast and Lunch

Day 9 Start Safari. Moshi - Serengeti National Park

After breakfast we head towards the central Serengeti National Park, also known as the Seronera. We descend into the heart of wild Africa with its endless plains rolling into the distance as far as the eye can see. The Seronera area, one of the richest wildlife habitats in the park, features the Seronera River, a valuable water source to this area. Thanks to this water source, the area attracts wildlife that represents most of the Serengeti’s species very well.

Accommodation: Embalakai Tented Lodge or similar tented camp in the Central Serengeti
Room plan: Double Occupancy
Included meals: Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner

Day 10 Serengeti National Park

On this day you will spend your time on the plains of the Serengeti doing game drives. Here you have the choice to do the early morning game drives if you so wish. This will give you the chance to see nocturnal species retire from a night out as well as the diurnal majority waking up for a new day.

Accommodation: Embalakai Tented Lodge or similar tented camp in the Central Serengeti
Room plan: Double Occupancy
Included meals: Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner

Day 11 Serengeti National Park - Ngorongoro Conservation Area

After breakfast in the morning, we drive back slowly through the Central Serengeti with game viewing on the way until we reach the Naabi Hill Gate where we will check out of the Serengeti National Park.

From there, we will drive to the Ngorongoro Crater rim. The Ngorongoro Crater is famous for being the largest, fully intact volcanic crater in the world. It’s also well-known for attracting lots of big-game animals.

You will have a chance to visit the Olduvai Gorge or Maasai Village (at extra costs) if you wish. After arriving at the Rhino Lodge, we’ll drive to the starting point on the Crater rim about 5 kilometers away from the lodge. We’ll walk along the western rim of the Crater past the Oloirobi viewpoint. There are patches of forest to begin with, and later it opens up into thicket and grassland, giving beautiful views down into the Crater on your right and eventually equally good views towards Olduvai Gorge, the Serengeti, and the Gol mountains to your left. This is an easy-paced walk with no arduous climbs, just a few short gradients. It lasts about 2 hours and can be done at any time of day.

Accommodation: Rhino Lodge
Room plan: Double Occupancy
Included meals: Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner

Day 12 End Safari. Ngorongoro Crater - Moshi

Very early in the morning, we’ll drive down the Ngorongoro Crater walls to the Crater floor where we will spend the better part of the day doing game drives in this 8th wonder of the world, also referred to as the Eden of Africa. Here we will get the chance to spot the animals that we might have missed at Serengeti. With a little luck, you can spot the Big 5 (elephants, lions, leopards, buffaloes, and rhinos) in a single day’s game drive. In the late afternoon, we will head to Moshi and this will conclude our safari time.

Accommodation: Panama Garden Resort or similar accommodation in Moshi
Room plan: Double Occupancy
Included meals: Breakfast and Lunch

Day 13 Moshi (Departure day)

We will transfer you from the hotel in Moshi to the Kilimanjaro International Airport (JRO) where you will fly back home. If you have more time you can extend your tour to Zanzibar for an additional cost.

Included Meal: Breakfast

Route Map

A route map for Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania, showing all of the possible climbing and trekking routes, color-coded by route.

Inclusions & Exclusions

  • 2-way transfer to/from Kilimanjaro Airport.

  • 3 nights in a Moshi hotel.

  • 2-way transfer to and from the route gate(s).

  • 12 breakfasts, 11 lunches, and 9 dinners.

  • 3-4 liters of mineral water (per climber) provided daily during the climb.

  • Hot drinks and hot water for washing are provided daily during the climb.

  • All park, camping, & team fees.

  • Guides, cooks, & mountain support crew for your trek.

  • Crew's equipment for the trek.

  • Pulse Ox meter for blood-oxygen level readings, carried by the chief guide.

  • Porter to carry your duffel bag.

  • Sleeping mattress pad(s) and tent(s).

  • Dining tent(s).

  • Portable toilets with a tent.

  • Emergency oxygen (for use in emergencies only – not as summiting aid).

  • Basic first aid kit (for use in emergencies only).

  • Emergency evacuation with the Kilimanjaro SAR helicopter (see Health & Safety section).

  • Kilimanjaro National Park rescue team fees.

  • Carbon offset certificate.

  • Kilimanjaro National Park certificate for your successful summit attempt.

  • Professional, licensed, English-speaking safari guide.

  • Full boarding at safari lodges or tented camps as per itinerary.

  • Wine & beer during the safaris.

  • 03 x 0.5L mineral water per person per day during game drives.

  • All wildlife reserve entry fees.

  • Concession fees.

  • Government taxes.

  • Tanzania 18% VAT on tourism activities and park fees.

  • International flights to/from Tanzania.

  • Travel insurance.

  • Extra nights at the hotel (ask for pricing).

  • Any meals not mentioned in the itinerary.

  • Drinks and beverages in the Moshi hotel.

  • Drinks and beverages at the safari lodge.

  • Airport taxes (amount depends on where you’re flying from).

  • Tipping for the Mountain Crew.

  • Visa fees, to be paid upon arrival (ranges from $50 to $100 USD).

  • Personal hiking/trekking gear – you can rent some gear in Tanzania.

  • Snacks, personal medicine, and water purifying tablets.

Pricing

Prices exclude flights to/from the destination.

Prices are for double room occupancy unless indicated otherwise.

TIPPING RECOMMENDATION

  • Climbing Guide - $15 to $20 per day.
  • Climbing Assistant Guide - $10 to $15 per day.
  • Climbing Cook - $10 to $15 per day.
  • Climbing Porters - $5 to $8 per day per porter.
  • Safari Guides & Lodge Staff - please tip ~$30-50 USD per day per car. Cars hold 4-7 passengers.
  • Deposit per person

    30% of trip price

  • [Private Climb] Shared room - sleeps 2 - price per adult

    $4,750 pp

  • Single Supplement

    $250 for Climb only $550 for Safari only

Optional Add-ons

Climb:

  • Sleeping bag rental (Mountain Hardware Lamina, synthetic -30F): $50 per person.
  • Telescopic trekking poles rental: $20 per trip.
  • Extra porter (personal porter) for excess gear: $30 per day.
  • Extra night at the hotel in Moshi: $90 for double occupancy, $70 for single occupancy

Safari:

  • Visits to the Olduvai Gorge or Maasai Village: ~$30-50 per person.
  • Hot Air Balloon Safari: ~$650 per person; typically starts around sunrise and lasts for 3 hours. Can be done on the first safari day, in the early morning, and then travelers can meet up with the game drive.

Sustainability

We pride ourselves on taking good care of our mountain crew, who make our climbs possible, and also giving back to our local community in Moshi.

We focus on organizing responsible and ethical tours that make places better for people to both live in and visit. Our dream is to combine community development with cultural tourism and conservation. We believe that the tourism industry has an obligation and a great opportunity to protect the world's natural habitats, cultural heritage sites, and communities.

We are a member of Carbon Offsetting Tanzania and for every climbing trip done with us, we offset the carbon impact and travelers will receive their carbon offset certificate. We provide Leave No Trace Tanzania training to our workers and donate some of our profits to planting trees in Moshi.

We do not indulge in animal slavery, cruelty, or luring through bait during the wildlife experiences. We stay at hotels that use or are trying to use renewable energy and eco-friendly cleaning products. We also stay in tents during the climb.

Our company has created employment opportunities for more than 400 locals (porters, guides, chefs), which helps with Tanzania's unemployment problem. We do not believe in "cheap climbs." Our prices reflect fair and ethical wages for all. We do not exploit any of our Mountain Crew (porters, guides, and chefs), without whom our climbs would not be possible. To ensure this, we are a member of the Kilimanjaro Porters Assistance Project (KPAP) which requires that our Mountain Crew are paid fair wages, receive proper equipment and sleeping conditions, and are fed well. KPAP audits our climbs raises public awareness of fair treatment of porters.

We also collaborate with KPAP to provide financial education to our Mountain Crew about saving, spending, and investing their money. We profit share with our community to ensure they benefit from the tourism revenue as well (for example, we support disabled children and help fund the building of schools.)

For every client, we ensure one child in Moshi gets health insurance for 1 year.

Health & Safety

Be sure you have traveler's insurance that covers up to 6000 meters above sea level! Insurance partners like World Nomads can provide this. Proof is required before arrival. This is needed in case an emergency evacuation with the Kilimanjaro SAR helicopter is required.

FAQs

What does the Physical Rating of "Mildly Strenuous" mean?

Kilimanjaro climbing involves physical training. You will have to be fit for this trip as it involves hiking for long hours. The safari portion is easy as it involves sitting in the car and watching animals during game drives.

What are the accommodations like?

This is a mid-range tour that includes 3 to 4-star hotels at Moshi. While on the climb you will be sleeping in a four-season tent. During the safari you will be staying in tented lodges or camps. If you want a more luxurious safari stay, contact us for pricing.

Is this tour fully escorted?

Yes, this trip is fully guided by a professional Mountain Guide who will escort you throughout the climb, as well as the adequate and appropriate number of guides, porters, and cooks. Your safari will include an English-speaking guide.

Is this trip safe for solo travelers?

Yes, it is safe and feasible for solo travelers. Solo travelers can book this as a private tour.

Do I need a visa?

Yes, you will need a visa upon arrival in Tanzania.

How much can my bag weigh? (For the climb)

Your bag that a porter will carry for you from one camp to the next can have a maximum weight of 15kg / 32 lbs.

How frequently will our blood-oxygen levels be checked? (For the climb)

The Pulse Ox meter, carried by the chief guide, will be used to take blood-oxygen level readings twice a day.

Reviews

A group of 6 women (2 are Black, on the far left and right, with 4 Caucasian women in the middle) stand atop a snow-capped Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania, with three Black men sitting in the front. They are holding a sign that reads "Women Climb Kili" and they are in front of the "Mount Kilimanjaro: Congratulations" sign post - the text is bright yellow. It's a sunny and cloudy day.

Maddi S.

Jul 29, 2024

Unforgettable, environmentally conscious experience

Amazing experience with Yugen Earthside for my Kilimanjaro climb and safari! An unforgettable experience in Tanzania with extremely attentive and kind staff. The practices were ethical and environmentally conscious. I would highly recommend!

Kris B.

Mar 13, 2023

8 Days Kilimanjaro Climb (Lemosho Route) + 4 Days Safari

Hilary assisted me in finding the perfect Kilimanjaro climb and safari! The trip was everything we dreamed of.

Guides and Porters were amazing and friendly and helped us make it to the top as well as see every African animal! Food was good and energizing but repetitive. We were eating for sustenance.

Would recommend Yugen Earthside.

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