The best safety precaution you can take for your Kilimanjaro dream climb is to have time to become properly acclimatized to high altitude. If you have been unable to benefit from a preliminary practice tour of Mount Meru, you can still choose a route which allows you an extra day(s) to adjust. Some trails are gentler than others with diversions to allow you to gain height during the day and sleep lower down, by using the ridges and valleys along your route. The primary six ascent trails are Marangu, Machame, Rongai, Shira, Lemosho and Umbwe. They enter the cone area from different directions over trails of differing lengths, covering different terrain of different gradients and starting at different altitudes. Some offer ascents in 6 days or less, but success rates drop by 50% compared with longer routes, some of which now have extremely low failure rates. For anyone unable to acclimatize in advance on their African mountain safari, the best choice is the longest route, with the greatest possible variation between altitudes reached during the day and lower overnight camps. Of these trails, Lemosho, Machame and Rongai provide the best options, both easy climbs with superb distinct scenery, but Rongai is the quietest. Uhuru Trails by AfricanMecca will be happy to take all your needs and preferences into account when advising you of the best route to choose.

An extra acclimatize day is offered on all our routes as standard in order to be sure of avoiding severe altitude sickness and to maximize your summit chances, and as also recommended by the Expedition Advisory Centre of the Royal Geographical Society. They advise sleeping no more than 300 meters higher than the previous night’s camp and spending two nights at every third camp site or detouring an extra day to acclimatize before the summit attempt. These treks take seven to eight days on the actual mountain, giving you ample time to enjoy your Kilimanjaro adventure trip, rather than hauling yourself to the summit in a miserable endurance test. You will be fitter and happier for investing more time in your ascent, and will have been able to explore many of the unique aspects of this Tanzanian trekking vacation, from unique flora and fauna to geological wonders and spectacular views. These longer routes are especially suitable to parties containing children and older people who can often perform better at a slower pace than trained athletes and mountaineers who try to push their limit, some that have failed too. Kilimanjaro is a unique mountain, needing no special training nor mountaineering skills. It is within the reach of most reasonably fit trekkers over seven years of age and under eighty. But it is also a mountain to relish and take your time, rather than rushing the steep ascent to the top and risking altitude sickness by climbing too high, too fast. Uhuru Trails by AfricanMecca can offer a special twin program for the successful conquest of the highest non-massif mountain in the world, by including a hiking trip to Mount Meru preceding your Kilimanjaro climb tour. It is not designed as a definitive two-summit attempt, although that is possible, but a leisurely, enjoyable acclimatizing trek through incredible mountain wilderness scenery as a delightful source of extra memories to enhance the achievement of your life.