Compare Summit Kilimanjaro by MT Sobek (Mountain Travel Sobek) vs Off the Beaten Track by Zama Tours & Safaris

Day 1: Arrive at Kilimanjaro International Airport – Arusha National Park

Meals: Dinner

Accommodation: MTS Deluxe Camp — Itikoni Camp

Your trip leader (or a Mountain Travel Sobek representative) will meet you outside the customs and immigration area at the airport. Transfer 1½ hours to Arusha National Park, and then another 30 minutes through the park to our deluxe camp situated at the base of Mount Meru, a 14,900-foot volcano. Along the way we’ll spotlight for nocturnal wildlife. The camp is at an elevation of about 6,000 feet, which aids in acclimatization for the Kilimanjaro climb and is a major advantage over staying at an Arusha hotel. Hot showers, cold drinks, and a buffet dinner await us!

Day 2: Mount Meru

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner

Accommodation: MTS Deluxe Camp — Itikoni Camp

Today we’ll have a chance to recuperate from the long flight, check our equipment, and have a thorough trip briefing on what to expect on the climb. There will also be time to hike along the forested slopes of Mount Meru, which has a history similar to that of Mount St. Helens in Washington, in that half the mountain was blown away by a violent volcanic explosion. Meru’s eruption occurred some 250,000 years ago, though, and great forests of African cedar and podocarpus have since grown up to cover its crater and slopes. On our hike, we have the chance to see colobus monkeys, bushbuck and duiker, buffalo, giraffe, and perhaps elephant or even the elusive leopard. The forest bird life is excellent and includes touracos, hornbills, and parrots. Weather permitting, we can enjoy the sunset from a small hill beside camp and watch the alpenglow descend on the slopes of Kilimanjaro.

Day 3: Begin trek on Kilimanjaro

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner

Accommodation: MTS Camp — Kilimanjaro

In the morning, we'll drive 2½ hours to the starting point of the Machame Route, four miles past the village of Machame on the southeast side of Kilimanjaro (the trailhead varies from season to season with weather conditions). We begin hiking at about 6,400 feet and follow a winding trail up through montane cloud forest and into stands of giant heather, to camp near the Machame Hut at 10,000'. The forest can be wet at any time of the year, so we can expect a real tropical experience as we climb over roots and through giant fern forests with tangled vines and creepers. We'll stop for a buffet lunch en route to our first camp. (6-7 hours hiking, 8 miles)

Day 4: Shira Camp

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner

Accommodation: MTS Camp — Kilimanjaro

Today we climb up to our destination above the Shira Plateau at 12,650'. A steep trail leads out of the giant heather and onto a ridge that commands wide vistas of both the Shira Plateau and the plains to the west. From our camp we are treated to our first breathtaking views of the Western Breach of Kibo. (5 hours hiking, 3 miles)

Day 5: Barranco Camp

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner

Accommodation: MTS Camp — Kilimanjaro

Trekking east toward the Kibo Massif, we follow a ridge and climb toward the large rock outcrop of Lava Tower (15,100') before veering off and down toward camp. Our destination is the base of the Great Barranco, a steep canyon emerging from Kilimanjaro’s Great Breach Wall, which is filled with hundreds of outlandish giant senecio and lobelia plants. The afro-alpine scenery here is fantastic and the views of the Breach Wall and Kili’s southern glaciers are better than from any other point on the mountain. (The Barranco Valley and its stunning views were a main focus of the Kilimanjaro IMAX© film.) Our camp is at 13,000'. (6 hours hiking, 6 miles)

Day 6: Arrow Glacier Camp

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner

Accommodation: MTS Camp — Kilimanjaro

Today we leave the normal Machame Route and begin the climb toward the Western Breach ascent route. Rather than traversing farther around the southern slopes of the mountain we ascend up and slightly westward, climbing easy terrain through scree and rocky ridges. The ascent is about 2,300 feet and gives us stunning views of the Western Breach wall and the Breach Icicle. As we near Arrow Glacier and our campsite, the views open toward the west and the entire Shira Plateau lies below us. Camp is near the glacier at about 15,300'. (6 hours hiking, 3 miles)

Day 7: Arrow Glacier Camp

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner

Accommodation: MTS Camp — Kilimanjaro

Today will be spent mostly resting and rebuilding our strength for the rest of the climb, but there will also be an acclimatization hike along a portion of the next day's ascent route. This will not only get us to a higher elevation for better acclimatization but also give us a chance to familiarize ourselves with the beginning of the longest and most arduous hiking day of the entire climb.

Day 8: Crater Camp

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner

Accommodation: MTS Camp — Kilimanjaro

All the preparation, acclimatization, and hiking we’ve done to prepare for the Kilimanjaro climb will be put to the test today as we ascend the Great Western Breach, an imposing, steep wall of rock leading to the edge of Kibo’s crater. Shortly after reaching the top of the breach wall, we'll arrive at our camp within the crater at an altitude of 18,300'. The high altitude of Crater Camp makes it a physically demanding experience, but the reward is a radical scene of towering glaciers rising from the harsh rock landscape. (6-8 hours hiking, 2½ miles)

Day 9: Summit Day!

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner

Accommodation: MTS Camp — Kilimanjaro

Rise with the sun for our 1,000-foot summit bid (we should be at the summit by 9:00 a.m.). The rewards of seeing the summit crater glaciers and surreal views of the African plains nearly three miles below you are well worth the effort. After a short stop for summit photos and mutual congratulations, we descend on the Mweka Route past Barafu, a direct descent of the mountain. After lunch and a short rest at Barafu, we continue to our camp at Mweka (10,200') where a delicious dinner of fresh vegetables, bread, fish or chicken, and dessert await us. (8+ hours hiking; 8 miles)

Day 10: End trek

Meals: Breakfast and Lunch

Accommodation: Moivaro Lodge

We hike 5½ miles back through the rainforest to the Mweka Gate and transfer to the Moivaro Lodge. Dayrooms will be available for use until the early evening transfer to the airport for departure on homeward-bound flight, arriving home the following day.

Day 1: Arusha

Meals: Dinner

Accommodation: Arumeru River Lodge

Activity: Transfer to Arusha

On arrival at Kilimanjaro International Airport, you will be met by our office representative and transferred to Arusha for dinner and overnight.

Day 2: Arusha – Serengeti National Park by flight

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner

Accommodation: Nyumbani Serengeti Camp

Activity: Flight to Serengeti // Game drive

In a small bush plane, you delve directly into the heart of the Tanzanian wilderness with a flight to the Central Serengeti National Park, where you are met by your guide. You game drive for the rest of the day (with picnic lunch) and arrive to at your tented camp before sunset. Dinner and overnight.

Day 3: Serengeti National Park

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner

Accommodation: Nyumbani Serengeti Camp

Activity: Game drive in the Serengeti

Full day to spend on the vast plains of the Serengeti! You will have breakfast at the lodge or camp before we embark on an early morning game drive in the park. The Migration, consisting of around 2 million animals, is on the move all year round. Depending on the season you may see this impressive phenomenon. Naturally it also attracts a mass of predators and you may be able to see a band of lionesses gather for a hunt. You will return to your lodge for a sumptuous lunch to gather strength for the afternoon game drive. Dinner and overnight in the same accommodation.

Day 4: Serengeti – Olduvai Gorge –Esilalei Area

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner

Accommodation: Isoitok Camp

Activity: Game drive in the Serengeti // Visit of Olduvai Gorge

Early morning game drive to see also nocturnal predators returning from hunting and animals waking up in early morning light. After breakfast continue game driving on your way to Naabi Hill Gate and towards Ngorongoro Conservation Area. On the way you will stop at the Olduvai Gorge where anthropologists Louis and Mary Leakey made many significant discoveries, contributing to the theory that human life originated in Africa. After a picnic lunch you continue to the Maasai land of Esilalei for dinner and overnight in a tented camp.

Day 5: Esilalei

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner

Accommodation: Isoitok Camp

Activity: Visit of the Masai of Esilalei

Meet with your local Maasai guide who will introduce you to his village. Get a better understanding of the natural medicines still used on a daily basis with a Maasai medicine walk of the surrounding area. Then continue down to a Boma (mud dwelling) for an introduction into the Maasai way of life, beliefs and rituals. Freshen up and enjoy a real cultural experience around the fire place with traditional song and dance. Dinner and overnight in the same accommodation.

Day 6: Esilalei – Tarangire National Park

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner

Accommodation: Nimali Tented Lodge

Activity: Game drive in Tarangire

Short drive to Tarangire National Park, Tanzania’s third largest national park and sanctuary for an unusually large elephant population. Majestic baobab trees are an interesting feature of the park, dwarfing the animals that feed beneath them. Animals concentrate along the Tarangire River, which provides the only permanent water supply in the area. There is a great diversity of wildlife including lion, leopard, cheetah and up to six thousand elephant. Full game drive with lunch box, then continuation to your tented lodge for dinner and overnight.

Day 7: Tarangire – Arusha National Park – Marangu

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner

Accommodation: Marangu Hotel

Activity: Game drive in Arusha National Park

Today’s program is a visit to the less-known gem among the Tanzanian northern National Parks, the Arusha National Park. Once the site of the action packed Hollywood movie Hatari, starring John Wayne and Hardy Kruger, it shows you now a variety of landscapes and one of the few possibilities for a walking safari with an armed ranger on the slopes of the Mount Meru. You pass by herds of zebra, buffalo, and giraffe on the savannah. Enjoy a picnic lunch at Momella Lake, famous for huge flocks of colourful flamingos and its views at majestic Mt. Kilimanjaro. You continue in the afternoon with a game drive around the different habitats in this truly beautiful national park. There are black and white colobus monkeys (unique to this location northern Tanzania), Sykes’s and Vervet monkeys, shy forest duikers, elusive leopards and substantial herds of antelope. Later afternoon drive to Marangu (Moshi) for dinner and overnight.

Day 8: Marangu

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner

Accommodation: Marangu Hotel

Activity: Visit of the Chagga people

At the foot of Mount Kilimanjaro, outside the entrance to Kilimanjaro National Park, lie the beautiful towns of Mamba and Marangu. Here, local people of the Chagga tribe have planned walking tours through valleys and waterfalls depicting mountain village life. The day is filled with hikes, historical and cultural visits, including a local lunch. Together with a Chagga guide you visit the Chagga Museum, walk through fertile valleys with great waterfalls, densely planted coffee and banana plantations to panoramic viewpoints ideal for photographing Mount Kilimanjaro. You experience culture, traditions and daily life of the local Chagga people. Dinner and overnight in the hotel.

Day 9: Marangu – Kilimanjaro Airport/Arusha

Meals: Breakfast and Lunch

Activity: Transfer to the airport

Drive to the airport for your flight home or a further destination