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Kilimanjaro Frequently Asked Questions

Night time at Shira 1 Camp, Kilimanjaro Lemosho Glades trek

Written by Tom Briggs, January 2024

When is the best time to go?
The driest weather is June - September and December-February. The main rainy season is March-May and it can also be wet in October/November. In addition to our popular trips in the driest months, we have also had successful trips via trekking routes in October. It's busiest in the summer, even though international flights are at premium during this time.

What is the route with the highest success rate?
The most successful itinerary is the one which provides the most time to acclimatise. The shortest routes are the Marangu, Rongai and Machame routes, which are typically 6 or 7 days on the mountain. The Lemosho Glades route is 8 days and is our recommended route for those who do not have time to acclimatise elsewhere, before attempting Kilimanjaro. Our most successful itinerary overall is the Umbwe Route or Western Breach routes, which when combined with an ascent of nearby Mount Meru (4556m) provide a total of 10 days trekking (4 days on Mount Meru and 6 days on Kilimanjaro).

Will I be able to acclimatise?
For many people Kilimanjaro is their first experience of high-altitude trekking. Unless you have trekked above 3000m elsewhere, you won't know in advance how your body will cope. The vast majority of people who follow a slow ascent profile (either an 8-day Lemosho Glades itinerary or a 10 day Mount Meru + Umbwe/Western Breach itinerary) acclimatise well enough to be able to reach the summit.

How fit do I have to be?
We recommend that you train for at least 3 - 4 months before your trip, depending on how fit you are to begin with. You need to be fit enough to walk for 6 - 8 hours, recover and do the same again the following day. Summit day is typically a 12-hour round trip. Suitable training should focus on developing your aerobic fitness. Walking, cycling and swimming are the best ways of doing this. You might like to supplement this with some strength training, focusing on the legs and core. In our experience running isn't such a good training stimulus, unless you are running at a very 'easy' Zone 1 or 2 heart rate and are covering longer distances (read about Heat Rate Zones here). There's very little correlation between a 'Parkrun' time and how easy you might find Kilimanjaro summit day! Please contact us if you need advice on how to put together a suitable training programme.

What about washing and toilets?
At each camp you'll be provided with a bowl of washing water. There is not enough water available for showers. We have our own 'portaloo' toilets for our teams.

What boots do I need?
Kilimanjaro is characterised by being dusty, with loose 'scree' in places, especially on summit day. It can be very cold on summit day and occasionally there may be snow. We therefore recommend a '3 season' or '4 season' boot which has some flexibility, but is rigid enough to provide a platform to stand on when the ground underfoot is loose. Your boots need to be fully waterproof. We recommend taking gaiters to keep the dust and small stones out of your boots.

What other clothing and equipment is required?
The most important items of clothing and equipment are a warm sleeping bag (with a 'comfort' rating of at least -18c), a down jacket (box wall construction, with at least 300gms of down in it) and very warm mitts (made with primaloft or down insulation). Sleeping bags and down jackets are available to hire from us. You can download our detailed kit lists from our website.

What is the food like and do you cater for different dietary requirements?
Our cooks on Kilimanjaro are very used to catering for e.g. vegan/coeliac/halal - please just let us know in advance. The food on the mountain is quite varied and as it is relatively straightforward to re-supply our teams whilst on the mountain, you can expect lots of fresh fruit/vegetables, pasta/rice/potatoes and meat such as chicken or beef. We send out 'summit day snack packs' from the UK, designed by a sports nutritionist. These include a mix of high-energy drinks, Chia Charge bars, Clif Bar Shot Bloks and flapjacks.

What medical safety gear is provided?
Our teams carry a comprehensive first-aid kit which includes drugs to treat altitude sickness. In addition, we have a Portable Altitude Chamber (PAC), which is also used to treat altitude sickness, as well as medical oxygen for therapeutic use. Our UK leaders are experienced in dealing with altitude and mountain-related medical issues. They hold outdoor first aid certificates and receive additional training from our Company Doctors, all of whom hold the Diploma in Mountain Medicine (DiMM). Leaders carry a Satellite phone in case they need to consult one of our doctors in the UK.

What do you do to ensure the welfare of your porters?
We send out fleeces, waterproof jackets and sleeping bags to Tanzania, which are issued to porters working on our treks. Together with our Destination partner, we ensure that porters are paid a fair rate for their work on the mountain. Their maximum load is 20Kg.

Do I need a visa and what vaccinations are recommended for visiting Tanzania?
We recommend that British passport holders apply for an e-visa before travel. This is a straightforward process via https://visa.immigration.go.tz. For other nationalities please contact your Tanzanian Embassy. Standard vaccinations are recommended for Tanzania (check on the NHS Fit for Travel website). Malaria risk is high throughout the year in Tanzania below 1800m, so it is recommended that you take antimalarial tablets.

What about financial protection? How do I know if the money I have paid over is secure?
Jagged Globe (CLIMB TREK SKI) Ltd is a fully licensed and bonded tour operator. Our ATOL number is 10241. All the flights and flight-inclusive holidays on this website are financially protected by the ATOL scheme. When you pay you will be supplied with an ATOL Certificate. Please ask for it and check to ensure that everything you booked (flights, hotels and other services) is listed on it. Please see our booking conditions for further information or for more information about financial protection and the ATOL Certificate go to www.atol.org.uk/ATOLCertificate »

The Association of Bonded Travel Organisers Trust Limited (ABTOT) provides financial protection under The Package Travel and Linked Travel Arrangements Regulations 2018 for Jagged Globe (Climb Trek Ski) Limited, 5174, and in the event of their insolvency, protection is provided for the following:

1. non-flight packages and
2. flight-inclusive packages that commence outside of the UK, which are sold to customers who are not resident in the UK.

ABTOT cover provides for a refund in the event you have not yet travelled or repatriation if transportation was included in your package. Please note that bookings made outside the UK are only protected by ABTOT when purchased directly with Jagged Globe (Climb Trek Ski) Limited.

In the unlikely event that you require assistance whilst abroad due to our financial failure, please call ABTOT's 24/7 helpline on 01702 811397 and advise you are a customer of an ABTOT protected travel company.

You can access The Package Travel and Linked Travel Arrangements Regulations 2018 here: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2018/634/contents/made

You can find out more about ABTOT here: https://www.abtot.com

Our membership of these organisations means that you can book with Jagged Globe (CLIMB TREK SKI) Ltd in complete confidence that all monies paid to us for trips (not for insurance premiums) are protected.

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