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I'm going to Kili this september, bud I'm on quite a tight leash money-wise.. Which operators are the cheapest, but still "good" way to go? I'm not into squeezing the porters and guides for money, I just want it as cheap as possible but still supporting the locals.. I would very much like to see the whole show somewhere between 1000$ and 1500$ - is this possible?

just as additional information; I would like to go lightweight, very much prepared to carry heavy loads myself.. preferably alone or in a small group, but wouldn't mind going with others if that makes it cheaper.. I would also like to go the western breach-route, with Machame as a good second option..

any pointers?

alex.

Two of us from Slovenia but currently now we are lives in Tel aviv Israel climbed kili via the machame route with a budget operator based in moshi Tanzania named mar tours & safaris(www.martoursandsafaris.com), They were an excellent tour group - budget trek cost us USD$1122 each including every thing such as two nights accomodation(before and after trek), Picking us from the air port and return. not including tip (we tipped $185pp). They are a locally owned budget style company and i highly recommend them.


On the mountain We had a great guide who spoke perfect English and was very knowledgeable about plant- and wildlife. He was also pro-active which resulted in climbing to the summit during daylight because of strong winds (a lot colder in the night). We climbed from Barafu to Uhuru peak in 5 hours (a group that climbed during the night took 9 hours to the summit).
One thing though, you might as well do the 6 day climb which is really ok if you're reasonably fit, after the Kili song and $TIP presentation, we had to hike out a few more hours. Our porters that passed us on the way down were really happy and saying Hi to us... So, it seemingly went well. Although I can see this going bad if you do not get a good vibe from your lead guide.

Also, by the end, we felt so greatful for their help and hard work, all of us gave away almost everything we had (I gave away my coat, balaclava, gloves, boots...).


Have a great time.

great tip, thats one of the most reasonable outfits I've come across. nice to have your personal experience as a reference..

I just sent the company an email, seems I might be doing Mt Meru as well, if they can offer me all this in 10 days.

thanks alot

Alex.

axelandr wrote:great tip, thats one of the most reasonable outfits I've come across. nice to have your personal experience as a reference..

I just sent the company an email, seems I might be doing Mt Meru as well, if they can offer me all this in 10 days.

thanks alot

Alex.

For sure do both Mt Meru (ask the guide to take the longer route as better chance of animals) and also take the Western Breach route via Lemoshi. For my money the Western Breach is best during the day and also staying in the Crater rim the night before the summit is special.

So, I just ordered with Mar Tours and Safaris..

Been exchanging emails with them the last couple of days, they seem like a very serious outfit indeed. They have emailed me back within hours each time with extensive answers to all my Q's. So far I'm VERY satisfied.

They even let me choose my own Route on Kili, so I'm now starting off on the Machame and finishing trough the Western Breach. I will be climbing Meru in 4 days before my Kili-climb.. Total trip Cost; 1863 USD. thats for both mountains. Very cheap indeed, as far as I can see..

thanks again for pointing me in the direction of Mar Tours..

Alex.

Good luck Axelandr and don't forget to post your trip when you get back.

Finally Try and do at least a short safari while you are in Tanzania, it's a great experience.

We offer all-inclusive trips for $1475 (7 days on mountain, only tips are not included). One day less is $175 less.

Whatever you choose, make sure it is legit, see our FAQ about 'cheap' operators. As the park fees are more than $110 per person per day and you have to have a guide (porters definitely recommended), you can see that a 7 day trip under $1000 is impossible with a legit company, they will probably steal your money and not show up or leave you on the mountain, charge extra for permits, food etc.

Always check customer's feedback, both on the operator's site as well as elsewhere online.

Enjoy Kili, let me know if you need a good trip.
Cheers, H

axelandr wrote:So, I just ordered with Mar Tours and Safaris..

Been exchanging emails with them the last couple of days, they seem like a very serious outfit indeed. They have emailed me back within hours each time with extensive answers to all my Q's. So far I'm VERY satisfied.

They even let me choose my own Route on Kili, so I'm now starting off on the Machame and finishing trough the Western Breach. I will be climbing Meru in 4 days before my Kili-climb.. Total trip Cost; 1863 USD. thats for both mountains. Very cheap indeed, as far as I can see..

thanks again for pointing me in the direction of Mar Tours..

Alex.

How was you trip with martours? I am booked with them in November for Kili and Meru.

My trip was overall good. I pointed out a couple of things to them as I left, but overall I'm very satisfied.

I might wanna consider upgrading the hotel if I were you - the Umoja Lutheran Hostel is quite simple, and breakfast wasn't very good. I stayed the last night at the Parkview Inn, and although 50-60 $ / night it was highly worth it. AC in every room, big bed, hot water and CLEAN!. the restaurant out back is also good and quite cheap. Internet café in the reception.

If you mind the guides and porters smoking weed in the evenings, you might wanna consider telling them before heading into the mountain. They also gave me more porters than what they me before coming, which might pose a problem on your tipping-budget.

What route are you doing, and how many days?

Alex.

Thanks for the beta. I am doing Western Breach. I was wondering about the Hotel they used. Did you bring much food with you? What type of stuff did they give you to eat on the mountain?

they put me in the Umoja Lutheran, which is perfectly OK if you're on a budget.. however, it wont cost you that much to upgrade to a really nice hotel like the Parkview Inn for example. I think the difference is about 20 US dollars a night.. I did that the last night after coming directly from the summit, and the clean shower, toilet WITH seat, big bed and AC was indeed worth the extra 20 bucks!

I brought along some freeze-dried food, just to be sure I had something I knew I liked when I got into altitude. I was kinda happy I did, but I would have managed without problems on what they gave me. The first days the food had a lot of meat, always soup before dinner, sometimes potatoes sometimes vegetables or rice. Breakfast was sausage, egg and bread(very dry though). The gave me food to eat on my way to the next camp, sometimes a whole chicken-leg or similar. If you have special preferences be sure to state these before going onto the mountain. As everybody else they serve you popcorn and biscuits when you get into camp, before dinner. I also brought along some sirup, since I'm no fan of powdered milk, coffee, tea or hot chocolate made on water. But they do provide you all of the mentioned. Be aware that the glacier-water has a certain taste which isn't very good. Bring something you like to mix into it and you'll be fine.

hope it helps.

alex.

Hi guys,

if just did Kili, Machame route, alpine style. Thus no porters or cooks. We carried and did everything by ourselves. If your on a thight budget and do have the interest to do it this way, it is cheap (for us it was a bonus, the style was the most important).

I payed 980$ (inkludin tips to the guides) for everything related to the mountain.
+ 1080$ for two way airline tickets from Sweden to Kilimanjaro International Airport.

In total with visas, vaccinations, hotels and meals, the trip to Kili costed me 2500$

I think that is quite resonable

/Joel

axelandr wrote:My trip was overall good. I pointed out a couple of things to them as I left, but overall I'm very satisfied.

I might wanna consider upgrading the hotel if I were you - the Umoja Lutheran Hostel is quite simple, and breakfast wasn't very good. I stayed the last night at the Parkview Inn, and although 50-60 $ / night it was highly worth it. AC in every room, big bed, hot water and CLEAN!. the restaurant out back is also good and quite cheap. Internet café in the reception.




Alex.

So excited that you had a great time with them too, we also stayed at Umoja Lutheran which was absolutely perfect for us since we were in a very tight budget.

Joljon wrote:Hi guys,

if just did Kili, Machame route, alpine style. Thus no porters or cooks. We carried and did everything by ourselves. If your on a thight budget and do have the interest to do it this way, it is cheap (for us it was a bonus, the style was the most important).

I payed 980$ (inkludin tips to the guides) for everything related to the mountain.
+ 1080$ for two way airline tickets from Sweden to Kilimanjaro International Airport.

In total with visas, vaccinations, hotels and meals, the trip to Kili costed me 2500$

I think that is quite resonable

/Joel

Joel, what's the name of flight agent did you use from sweden to JRO??

Joel are you there?? i just sent you a PM.