7 Days Kilimanjaro Hiking Tour via the Umbwe Route

Day 1: Umbwe Gate to Umbwe Camp (11km, 6 hours)

After an early breakfast, you will receive a briefing from your professional guide. At 9 o'clock. M., our staff will take you on a 1-hour drive from your hotel in Moshi/Arusha to Umbwe Village where your guides and porters will prepare your gear and supplies. Registration for Kilimanjaro Park will be completed here and you will also receive your packed lunch. After checking in you will start your climb at Umbwe Gate and follow a minor vehicular road until you reach sign which will tell you that you have reached the Umbwe Trail. You will then ascend through dense tropical jungle for 6 hours. The giant fig and gum trees are hard to miss as their roots have overgrown the road in some places. Although slippery at times, they can be a good foothold when the trail becomes slippery with mud after a rain. Located in the forest, Umbwe Camp will be your first stop. When you arrive, you will find your camp and tent already set by the porters who ran ahead in. They bring you boiled drinking water and water for washing for dinner.

Day 2: Umbwe Camp to Barranco Camp (6km, 4 hours)

Get up early for coffee or tea. After breakfast, pack for the day's hike. Your trek begins steeply through vanishing rainforest clearings before ascending into the drier air of Giant Erica and Heathland, where vegetation is sparse with small bushes. Continue on an exposed ridge that gives you a first glimpse of Uhuru Peak when the clouds have parted far enough. After lunch, enter the semi-desert terrain as you walk through a garden of Senecio plants. These odd-looking gardens resemble a prehistoric cactus. Once you arrive at Barranco Camp, your porters will boil water for drinking and washing before serving dinner. While waiting for your dinner you will have the opportunity to witness one of the most memorable sunsets you have ever seen as the sun sets over the valley.

Day 3: Barranco Camp Acclimatization

You will spend 2 nights near Barranco Camp to acclimatize. Use your handy camera to capture the scenery of the dirt-covered camp. Many hikers rank this as their favorite campsite on this trail, which is another reason this is the perfect spot for your acclimatization day.

Day 4: Barranco Camp to Karanga Camp (6km, 4 hours)

After breakfast just below the Great Wall of Barranco you will have the opportunity to overcome this obstacle. Keep going until you arrive just below Heimgletscher. Then drive down through the Karanga Valley. This is the last place your porters can go to fetch water. They collect all the water here for the memory of the ascent. You will settle here at Camp Karanga. After lunch, you can spend the afternoon exploring the area or resting while enjoying the view of the soaring spiers of Mawenzi.

Day 5: Karanga Camp to Barafu Camp (4km, 4 hours)

After breakfast, drive east crossing several ridges and valleys until you meet the Mweka route and turn left to walk along the ridge for an hour to reach Barafu Hut. You arrive at camp to find your tent pitched on a rocky ridge in strong winds. Have your headlamp/torch handy if you need to leave the store after dark. You will get your gear ready at 7pm before bed. and will try to sleep a few hours before your summit attempt!

Day 6: Barafu Camp to Uhuru Peak to Mweka Camp (6km up and 22km down, 7 hours up, 9-10 hours down)

At 23:30 m. for tea or coffee and biscuits and then leave Barafu Camp on your way to the summit. You hike 6 hours through thick boulders and follow several curves between the Ratzel and Rebmann glaciers until you reach Stella Point. You've just completed what most hikers consider the most challenging part of their trek. Depending on how fast you are up to this point, you may have the opportunity to enjoy the majestic sunrise during your short break here. Even if you get tired, it's important to get moving because of the extreme cold. At Stella Point you have joined the last stretch of the Marangu Route. You will walk along the rim for another 1-2 hours until you reach your final destination, Uhuru Peak. Congratulations, you are now on the roof of Africa! You will have time to take photos with the world-famous Uhuru Peak sign, but it is important to start your descent early so you have enough time to rest at Camp Barafu. After a 3 hours descent over slippery scree, you'll reach Barafu to rest a bit while collecting your gear, then continue the trek back to Mweka Forest Camp. It may rain a bit in the afternoon so make sure you have your rain gear in your backpack. Enjoy dinner and a well-deserved sleep. At Mweka Camp, the office sells bottled water, soft drinks and candy bars.

Day 7: Mweka Camp to Mweka Gate (10 km, 3-4 Hours)

Wake up as usual for breakfast, pack your bags and descend to Mweka Gate via a short and scenic 3-hour walk. Wait until you and your entire team have reached the door before tipping your employees. After checking in at the gate, wait to receive your summit certificates (green for those who've reached Stella Point and gold for those who've reached Uhuru Peak). If the road is too muddy for vehicles, walk 1 hour from the gate to Mweka village, 3km away. There you will enjoy a hot lunch before returning to Moshi/Arusha.