Tanzania

Karibu Kilimanjaro! Meet your Program Leaders and your Tanzanian mountain guides. Check your gear thoroughly and listen closely as your guides brief you on the week ahead.

• Customisation Example: Learn about the local cultures of the Kilimanjaro region and participate in a community- centred conservation project before your climb.

Trek from the gate through rainforest to Machame Camp. Check in each morning and evening with your trip leaders who will monitor your health and encourage you to hydrate and fuel up each day. (Distance: 6.8 miles; Altitude: 5,380 to 9,350 feet; Hiking time: 5 to 6 hours).

Practice your Swahili hiking songs as you trek out of the rainforest and into the open moorlands to Shira 2 Camp. (Distance: 6.8 miles; Altitude: 9,350 to 12,500 feet; Hiking time: 4 to 6 hours).

Hike between 13,044 and 16,000 feet over the couple of days following the “climb high, sleep low” wisdom to acclimatise. Trek through alpine desert to Karanga Camp on Day 5.

Continue through alpine desert to Barafu Camp to complete the South Circuit. (Distance: 2.5 miles; Altitude: 13,107 to 15,331 feet; Hiking time: 4 to 5 hours).

Ascend through the most challenging portion of the trek toward Stella Point on the crater rim, hopefully in time to see a breathtaking sunrise. Continue another hour or two through the arctic zone to Uhuru Peak for a group photo and brief celebration. Descend to Mweka Camp for the night. (Distance: 3.2 miles ascent, 7.5 miles descent; Altitude: 15,331 to 19,341 feet ascent, descent to 10,068 feet; Hiking time: 7 to 8 hours ascent, 4 to 6 hours descent).

Reflect on your experience in Moshi, the challenges you faced and what you learned about your potential. (Distance: 6.4 miles; Altitude: 10,068 to 5,380 feet; Hiking time: 3 to 4 hours).

Take a drive in the afternoon down gravel roads to the Moshi hot springs, locally popular but largely off the beaten path for a relaxing soak.

Awake early for one last adventure in Arusha National Park, an oft-overlooked gem in Tanzania’s famed Northern Circuit, full of giraffes and buffaloes.

• Customisation Example: Add a three-day safari starting with Tanzania’s famed Serengeti National Park for two days before finishing your adventure with the Ngorongoro Crater.

Kwaheri na safari njema! Goodbye and safe travels!