5-day Marangu route
The "Coca-Cola route": the only Kilimanjaro route with hut accommodation.
The route at a glance
Marangu is the oldest route on Kilimanjaro and the only one with hut accommodation: you sleep in wooden huts, not tents. It is nicknamed the "Coca-Cola route" because soft drinks were once sold at the huts.
The 5-day Marangu is the short version. You go from Horombo Hut (3,720 m) straight to Kibo Hut (4,700 m) without an acclimatization day, which is faster but harder on your body. If you can add a day, it improves your chances.
You trek through rainforest with blue monkeys, heath with views of Kibo and Mawenzi, then the lunar desert of the Saddle between them. Your trip starts at Kilimanjaro Airport with a night at a hotel in Moshi.
Detailed itinerary
- DAY0
Arrival in Moshi: karibu Tanzania
You land at Kilimanjaro International Airport, where your Wildecho Exped driver is waiting with your name. Transfer to a hotel in Moshi for a hot meal, the pool and a full briefing with your head guide. We check your gear.
Overnight: Hotel in Moshi · dinner, bed & breakfast - DAY1
Marangu Gate to Mandara Hut
After breakfast, drive about one hour to Marangu Gate to register. Start hiking through beautiful tropical rainforest; near its upper edge, look for blue monkeys. The trail widens across green hillsides to Mandara Hut, with beds in wooden huts.
Altitude1,843 → 2,700 mDistance8 kmTime4–5 hrsHabitatRainforestOvernight: Mandara Hut - DAY2
Mandara Hut to Horombo Hut
Continue through the forest until the trail opens into high moorland, with your first views of Kibo and Mawenzi, two of Kilimanjaro's three volcanic peaks. Arrive at Horombo, the largest hut camp on the mountain, with about 120 beds.
Altitude2,700 → 3,720 mDistance12 kmTime6–8 hrsHabitatHeathOvernight: Horombo Hut - DAY3
Horombo Hut to Kibo Hut
Climb gradually, then cross the lunar desert of the Saddle between Mawenzi and Kibo: dry, rocky, with no vegetation. Kibo Hut sits at the foot of the Kibo crater wall. There is no water here. Rest and have an early dinner to prepare for the summit.
Altitude3,720 → 4,700 mDistance10 kmTime6–8 hrsHabitatAlpine desertOvernight: Kibo Hut - DAY4
Summit day: Uhuru Peak, then down to Horombo
Wake around midnight for the hardest part of the climb. Wind and cold can be extreme as you ascend in darkness with short breaks. At Gilman's Point (5,685 m), watch the sunrise over Mawenzi, then continue to Uhuru Peak (5,895 m), the highest point in Africa. After photos, descend to Horombo Hut. A long day.
Altitude4,700 → 5,895 → 3,720 mDistance22 kmTime11–14 hrsHabitatArctic to heathOvernight: Horombo Hut - DAY5
Horombo Hut to Marangu Gate: celebration
Descend to Marangu Gate; the lower slopes can be wet and muddy. Receive your summit certificate at the gate, then drive back to Moshi for a hot shower, hot lunch and a cold Kilimanjaro beer, followed by the tipping ceremony with your crew.
Altitude3,720 → 1,843 mDistance20 kmTime5–7 hrsHabitatRainforest
6-day Machame route
Kilimanjaro's most popular route: great views every day, Lava Tower and the Barranco Wall, in six days.
6-day Marangu route
The classic hut route with an extra day at Horombo to acclimatize. Join a group departure and summit with new friends, or climb privately.
6-day Umbwe route
Short, steep and direct from day one, with near-total solitude until you join the other routes at Barranco.