Rongai Route

Get the chance to see Africa from a different perspective, right from the peak of Mount Kilimanjaro. If you want to take a less popular route to the summit, then take the Rongai route. Approach the striking mountain from the north and get the opportunity to see mountainside animals such as colobus monkeys, baboons and many more. Traverse through the rich forests along the north-eastern side of Kilimanjaro and embark on a trek to the summit. Take this opportunity and discover an enticing array of wildlife and gorgeous scenery along the way and enjoy the reward of incredible views from Uhuru Peak. You will need tried and tested all-purpose hiking equipment. Warm clothing and sleeping bag are essential because the temperature at night can get low when we get to 3,500 meters. You can actually hire this equipment if you need to do that.

Itinerary: 6 Days on the Mountain

Day 1

Our representative will pick you from the airport and transfer you to your hotel where you will rest for the day. The Kilimanjaro Mountain Resort in Marangu is a short walk from the village market and also some excellent coffee shop. The hotel is actually close to the beautiful waterfalls and ancient Chagga caves. Ensure that you’re at the hotel by early evening because your trip commences with a full briefing and kit inspection by an experienced Mt Kilimanjaro climber. This checkup and briefing will take place after dinner.

All your insurance details including your next of kin information will also be collected at the meeting. Please check the hotel reception for the location of the meeting. Consider arriving a day early if you think you can’t arrange a flight that will arrive on time so that you can attend the meeting. In the event that you’re going to be late, please inform the hotel reception and note that the meeting may be rescheduled for the next morning if someone is late. At the end of the day, we’ll do a trek briefing, complimentary equipment hires such as sleeping bag, walking poles and sleeping mat.

Day 2 Simba Camp

Enjoy your breakfast and meet your mountain guides and porters. Each trekker has equivalent ratio of 3 up 4 porters who are responsible for carrying camping equipment and food. You’ll move to the northern side of the mountain and village of Nale Moru (1,950). While walking up from the gate, you’ll go through cultivated farmland and pine forest plantation before you enter the lush forest. Watch out for several species of bird that hide in trees and you might even see monkeys or larger game. The first mountain camp is on the edge of the moorland zone which provides great views back down the plains and into Kenya. The total walking time is approximately 3 to 4 hours.

Accommodation- Camping with facilities for a night

Included Activities

Fully catered trek including National Park entrance fees, tented camps, climbing fee and rescue services for 6 days
Mt Kilimanjaro- The services of expert English-speaking mountain guides (first-aid qualified), porters and cooks (Minimum of 1 mountain guide to every 2 clients)
Mt Kilimanjaro- comprehensive first aid kits
Mt Kilimanjaro- Summit Emergency Oxygen if the size of group is above 5+
Mt Kilimanjaro- Porterage of 1 bag (max 15kg)
Mt Kilimanjaro– Return transfers from hotel to park gate.

Meals included- Breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

Day 3 Kikelewa Caves

Rise up early for a hearty breakfast with a hot drink. Your walk today commences with a steady uphill ascent that will bring you to the second cave (3,450 m). When you look up from this point, you will see the beautiful Kilimanjaro looming large. Down below, the slopes sweeps away down to the forest and the eastern ice fields cling to the mountain’s crater rim. Our goal for today is the Kikelewa caves so we will head further up Mt Kilimanjaro and reach the camp in the late-afternoon. The total walking time for today’s trek is approximately 5-8 hours.

Accommodation- Camping with facilities for 1 night

Meals Included- Breakfast, lunch, and dinner

Day 4 Mawenzi Tarn

This morning, we have a steady but steep ascent right under the jagged peaks of Mawenzi. While leaving the grassy slopes and vegetation zone behind, we’ll enter the high-altitude desert and make the journey to Mawenzi Tarn which is the location of tonight’s camp. This happens to be the only permanent lake on Mt Kilimanjaro. You’ll get the chance to see the cirque of the 5,149-meter peak towering above you while you complete your hike. Take a break and enjoy free time in the afternoon and relax. As part of the acclimatization process, it’s important to pace ourselves. The total walking time today is approximately 4-5 hours.

Accommodation- Camping with facilities for a night

Meals Included- Breakfast, lunch, and dinner

Day 5 Kibo Hut/Uhuru Peak

Today, we’ll head out into the lunar landscape of The “Saddle” which is a broad tundra desert that lies between the two peaks of Mawenzi and Kibo. From here, you can get a fantastic view of the upper reaches of Kilimanjaro. Continue to Kibo Hut (4,703) which has limited facilities and we’ll prepare for tomorrow’s final adventure. This provides you with an opportunity to re-pack your bag and leave the items that are not essential with the porters. You’ll need all your energy for tomorrow’s hike to the summit so there won’t be any need for you to carry anything that you don’t really need. So for this reason, it’s important for you to retire early tonight and get as much sleep as you can. We’ll be starting at midnight because this allows us to reach the summit in the morning before the cloud cover settles and also this gives us time to get back down. We walked for approximately 4 to 6 hours today.

Accommodation- Camping with facilities for 1 night

Meals Included- Breakfast, lunch, and dinner

Day 6 Uhuru Peak/Horombo Hut

Get ready for a demanding but also very rewarding day. Just before midnight, your guide will wake you up and our walking starts in darkness as we zig-zag up a long scree slope using the light provided by the head-touch. By this time of the night, the scree is still frozen making it easier to walk on. After approximately 2 hours, we should reach Hans Meyer’s Cave, the cave is named after the German geologist who made the first successful ascent in 1889. At this point, the gradient will get steeper and three hours on (this happens to be the hardest stretch of the ascent) we should be able to reach the crater rim at Johanne’s Notch.

It’s a short scramble to Gillman’s Point (5,680m) in time for dawn. The reward for your effort is the dramatic spectacle of the sun rising over the ice fields and craggy peaks of Mawenzi. The profusion of colors and also the shapes make all the exertion seem worthwhile. For climbers that have some energy left, they can take another couple of hours to hike along the crater rim to Uhuru- Freedom Peak (5,895m). Our descent retraces the route to Kibo Hut where we get some food and recharge a little before we proceed with the descent down to Horombo Hut for a well-deserved rest. The total trekking time is approximately 13-15 hours.

Accommodation- Camping with facilities for a night

Meals- Included Breakfast, lunch, and dinner

Day 7 Marangu Gate

The descent from Horombo to Mandara Camp requires about 3 hours and the final part of the descent through the forest to Marangu Gate which also takes another two hours. The vehicles will be waiting at the gate to take you and your crew to the hotel where you will enjoy an invigorating hot shower which is a real treat after the intense physical activities of the last few days. Pamper yourself to a celebratory meal and share your experiences of the past six days on Mt Kilimanjaro

Accommodation- Hotel for one night

Meals Included- Breakfast, lunch, and dinner

Day 8 Departure

After having a wonderful time, you’re free to depart on the final day of the trip as our representative transfer you to Kilimanjaro Airport.