7-Day Kilimanjaro Climb Machame Route

Meet and greet upon your arrival at Kilimanjaro International Airport and drive you to Keys Hotel where all our clients meet for briefing and overnight prior to starting the climb.

The Kilimanjaro National Park gate is only a 1-hour drive from Stella Maris Lodge. You will be picked up after breakfast and make your way there for the start of your climb. Once you have arrived your guide will get started with the formalities (entrance forms) while you observe all the different teams and mountain crew getting ready for their expedition. It’s always a fascinating experience for clients to watch them load all the different items for the trip. As soon as everything is prepared your adventure will begin. The destination for today will be the Machame Camp which you should reach in about 5 – 6 hours. On route, you will experience a wonderful rainforest with ancient trees, primeval ferns, liana & lichen to mention but a few. Another favorite to look out for on this day is the black and white thumbless colobus monkeys. Once you arrive at your campsite for the night you have time to relax before enjoying a well-deserved dinner prepared by our cook.

Although today is a shorter stretch than yesterday you will still have an early start which will allow you to reach today’s destination around mid-afternoon. The landscape changes dramatically from the green mountain rainforest to moor and heathland. You will have a beautiful view of the mountain range from your campsite which is situated at the Shira Plateau. The glacier of Kibo also lights up as the sun sets for the evening.

Today is a good day for the body to acclimatize for the days to follow. You will climb roughly 700m but will sleep on a level not much higher than the night before. We will start at Shira Plateau and make our way up to Lava Tower at around 4640m, after a rest, we will continue through the Barranco Valley until we reach our destination for the day the beautiful Barranco Camp. Today’s trek will be approximately 6 – 7 hours, during which time you will experience the alpine desert as well as the Barranco Valley with its small lobelia plants and giant Senecio’s. You will sit down for a well-deserved dinner before it’s time to rest in preparation for the next day.

Just after breakfast, we concur with the famous Barranco Wall. You might need your hands once in a while for better grip, but with that being said, there are no climbing passages, and as safety is very important please listen to our guides who will ensure you get to the top safely. There will be a lot of ascents and descents today followed by a walk along the mountain ridge. This will reward you with a great view of the glacier of Kibo. Walking time today will be 3 – 4 hours with the Kibo summit all the time on your left accompanying you to your camp for the night.

Barafu Camp is our destination for today and will be reached after 3-4 hours. Most of this time you will be walking through the moon-like alpine desert. After a satisfying dinner, you will have an early night and a good rest. The highlight of your trip is now only some hours away.

The climb will start at midnight. You will be woken up just before that to have some tea and biscuits. Around 5 – 7 hours later you will reach Stella Point which is the crater rim of Kilimanjaro. After another 1 – 2 hours you will reach Uhuru Peak at a height of 5895 m. This is truly a magnificent sight standing on top of Africa’s Highest Mountain and watching the sunrise. This view will be one to remember and will make every minute of the last couple of days' trekking worth your while. You will descend along the same way back to Barafu Camp which you will reach after 1 – 2 hours. The rest of the mountain team will be there waiting for you with some well-deserved snacks and refreshments. You will rest for an hour or two before making your way to Mweka Camp where you will spend your last night on the mountain.

After breakfast, you will have a traditional farewell ceremony from all your mountain crew. After a short 2 – 3 hours walk through the rainforest our driver will be waiting for you at the Mweka gate. You will then be transferred back to Keys Hotel for a well-deserved shower, a cold drink, a debrief, and the awarding of your certificate of achievement. The rest of the day is yours to relax and reflect back on this once-in-a-lifetime experience.