13 Days- Kilimanjaro Trekking And Wildlife Safaris
Introduction
This tour is a combination of Mountain climbing and Wildlife Safari. The tour gives you a chance to make the top of Mount Kilimanjaro through Marangu route (The “Coca Cola” Route) which is Kilimanjaro’s easiest, shortest, and most popular route, and there after you will experience the ‘Big Five’ areas of Tanzania on 6 days, 5 nights safari.
Highlights
- Kilimanjaro National Park
- Tarangire National Park
- Lake Manyara National
- Ngorongoro Crater
- Serengeti National Park
- Game Drive
- Cultural tour
- Mountain Hiking
Day 1: Arrival Day:
Arrive at the Kilimanjaro International Airport. You will be met at the Airport and transferred to the hotel in Arusha or in Moshi for your overnight and briefing by our mountain guide. You can start your trek any day of the year!
Day 2: Arusha/Moshi to Marangu Gate to Mandara Huts
Elevation: (915 m/3,000 ft) to (1,830 m/6,000 ft) to (2,740 m/9,000 ft)
Distance: 7 km
Hiking Time: 4-5 hours
Habitat: Montane Forest
After breakfast and a briefing from your guide, leave Moshi at 9 AM, drive for 45 minutes (or if driving from Arusha leave the town at 7 AM, drive for one and half hours) to the Marangu Gate on the eastern side of Kilimanjaro, register with the national park, and begin hiking at 10:30 AM. In the rainforest, look for towering Eucalyptus trees, bird life, and Colubus monkeys. At these lower elevations, it can be wet and muddy, so gaiters and trekking poles will help. Shorts and t-shirts should be sufficient, but keep your rain gear and warmer clothing handy. Stop halfway for lunch, and reach the Mandara Huts at 2 or 3 PM. Unpack, rest, and have some tea or coffee. A 15 minute side trip to Maundi Crater is a good way to see the surroundings including Northern Tanzania and Kenya. Dinner is served during the early evening at 7 PM. Bathrooms with running water are available.
Day 3: Mandara Huts to Horombo Huts
Elevation: (2,740 m/9,000 ft) to (3,690 m/12,100 ft)
Distance: 11 km
Hiking Time: 6-8 hours
habitat: Heathland
Wake to a 7:30 AM breakfast, and pack for your next trek. Break camp by 8:30 AM, hike for an hour through rainforest glades, and then follow an ascending path through heath land where you can look for giant lobelias and groundsels. Continue up into open moorlands where small shrubs are the main vegetation. Stop halfway for lunch, where you can enjoy amazing views of Mawenzi. Arrive at the Horombo Huts by 3 PM, where you can see Kibo’s summit. Rest, unpack, and prepare for dinner. Bathrooms with running water are available.
You may start to feel the effects of altitude here, and to aid your acclimatization, you can choose to spend an extra day resting at Horombo or climbing to a base camp below Kibo’s sub peak Mawenzi.
Day 4: Horombo Huts to Kibo Huts
Elevation: (3,690 m/12,100 ft) to (4,695 m/15,400 ft)
Distance: 10 km
Hiking Time: 6-8 hours
Habitat: Alpine Desert
Wake to breakfast as usual, but if you wake early you can get some great photos of the sunrise. The first part of the day’s hike climbs through the dwindling heath land that blends into a moonscape as you enter the sweeping saddle connecting Mawenzi and Kibo. When you stop for lunch, and later when you cross this surprisingly large saddle, you can examine the summit climb up Kibo that you will be starting in just a few hours. Be careful to notice any signs of altitude sickness. There is no running water at the Kibo Huts.
Day 5: Summit Day! “Kibo Huts to Uhuru Peak to Horombo Huts
Elevation: (4,695 m/15,400 ft) to (5,895 m/19,340 ft) to (3,690 m/12,100 ft)
Distance: 4 km up, 14 km down
Hiking Time: 10-15 hours
Habitat: Alpine Desert
Wake at midnight to a light breakfast, then prepare for your summit ascent. The goal is to climb before dawn so that you can reach Uhuru Peak shortly after sunrise. Leave at 1 AM, switchback up steep scree or possibly snow, and reach Gilman’s Point on the crater rim at 5,861 m/18,640 ft between 5 and 7 AM. Here, views of the fabled crater and its icecaps greet you. Another 2 hours of hiking along the crater rim near the celebrated snows takes you to Kilimanjaro’s true summit, Uhuru Peak, by 9 AM. This is Africa’s highest point, and you would have to travel more than 3,000 miles toward the Himalayas to find a higher
peak! Be sure to have your picture taken at the summit to show your friends. After your summit stay, descend back to the Kibo Huts, have lunch, rest, collect your things, and re cross the saddle to the Horombo Huts. Eat dinner and get some well-deserved sleep!
You do the beginning of this climb in the dark with headlamps or flashlights. It will be very cold until you start descending, so you will need all of your warm layers. This is, by far, the most difficult part of the trek. Slowly slowly, or, “pole pole,” and an optimistic attitude will get you there!
Day 6: Horombo Huts to Marangu Gate to Arusha
Elevation: (3,690 m/12,100 ft) to (1,830 m/6,000 ft) to (890 m/2,920 ft)
Distance: 18 km
Hiking Time: 5-7 hours
Wake as usual, pack, and descend through the moorland to the Mandara Huts. Have lunch there then continue your triumphant recessional down through lush forest to the park gate, which you should reach around 2 or 3 PM. Remember to tip your guides, cooks, and porters, since you will be leaving them here. A vehicle will take you back to the Hotel in Moshi/Arusha, where it is definitely time for celebration! H.B (Half Board)
Day 7: Rest Day at your hotel,
Spend a relaxing day by the pool or have a stroll around. A walk to this small town with view of the mountain is as good as it reveals. Dinner and overnight at hotel. H.B (Half board).
Day 8: Tarangire National Park:
In the morning at 0830hrs pick up from your hotel in Arusha and drive on tarmac road 120km to Tarangire National Park for game drives. Lunch picnic and there after lunch continue with afternoon game viewing in the park to look for Lion, Leopard, Elephant, buffalo, Python, Zebra, Oryx, Impala and more… Over 450 species of birds have been observed. Late in the afternoon the driver will take you for dinner and overnight at campsite, Tarangire. FB
Day 9: Manyara National Park
After breakfast, drive to Lake Manyara National Park for game viewing. Stay overnight at Campsite, FB.
Day 10: Serengeti National Park /Olduvai
After breakfast leave Lake Manyara National Park to Serengeti National park with picnic Lunch on route passing through Olduvai Gorge a historical site whereby the early man lived and can also pass by the Maasai boma if you are interested in the real African life tradition and culture, Dinner and overnight at Campsite, FB.
Day 11: Serengeti National Park
After breakfast leave with your packed lunch for full game drive on the Serengeti Park acacia Savannah in the central to the east region. Around 12.30pm and 13.00pm break for your picnic lunch; thereafter proceed with tour afternoon game drive. In mid January to February, much too mid April, 95% of females of wildebeest mate to a total of 60000 then 8 to 8.5 months later those females that conceived give birth on the same southern plains after a long travel. Evening drive to your lodge for dinner and overnight.
Day 12: Serengeti/Ngorongoro
After break fast with your picnic lunch half game drive in Serengeti, at 1230hrs breaks for lunch. After lunch drive to Ngorongoro Conservation Area, one of the natural wonders of the world. Dinner and overnight at Campsite, FB.
Day 13: Ngorongoro/Arusha
Descend in to the Crater for 6 hours Crater tour. This 100 square mile natural amphitheatre is host to an astonishing array of wildlife and you may be lucky enough to see rhino, elephant, lion, buffalo as well as large herd’s zebras and wildebeest. A picnic lunch will be taken in to the Crater. Later in the afternoon drive back to Arusha or Airport.
Price above includes:
- Transport to and from mountain gates.
- All parks entry fees.
- All camping fees.
- Rescue fees.
Accommodation on the first night upon your arrival before climb - Guide and porters fees.
- Guide and porters salaries.
- All accommodations on the mountain and safari based on three meals a day.
- Cook and all kitchen utensils.
Price Above Excludes:
- International and domestic flights (we can arrange on request)
- Accommodation on the last day after Safari (book with us)
- Tips, drinks and all items of personal nature
- Hard and soft drinks and tips
- Sleeping bags but we can provide for hire on request.
- All Mountain Gears (we can arrange hire of this)
PRICE: Per person sharing
No. of Pax | Lodge/Tented Camp |
1 Person | US$ 5,120 |
2 People | US$ 4,550 |
3 People | US$ 3,990 |
4 People | US$ 3,732 |
5 People | US$ 3,660 |
6 People | US$ 3,540 |
All of our itineraries are custom-made which means that they are tailor-made for your own specific group, taking into account your interests, your budget and so on…Contact us for any changes for this Itinerary.