Kilimanjaro Guide Reccomendations

[R3Girls]

I'm currently booked in with GM Expeditions @ www.gmexpeditions.com

I've seen other recommendations for this group, and have been following both GM and the owner, Godlisten Moshi G on Facebook.

They have a very favorable cancellation and deposit policy.

Leaving August 30th, and starting to hike on 9/1. No safari for me, only the climb.

[Traveler]

I'm currently booked in with GM Expeditions @ http://www.gmexpeditions.com

I've seen other recommendations for this group, and have been following both GM and the owner, Godlisten Moshi G on Facebook.

They have a very favorable cancellation and deposit policy.

Leaving August 30th, and starting to hike on 9/1. No safari for me, only the climb.

Great choice! Godlisten usually comes to America during the rainy season (April/May), you should try to meet him before the trip if you can. September should be a great time to go.

What route are you doing?

[Tim Edinger]

I used climb Kili and was very pleased with them and their service. I took the Machame Route.
http://www.climbkili.com/
Good luck.

[two lunches]

does anyone have any updates here? i'm looking at the Lemosho route + Safari in Oct 2020.

[I Man]

Hey all,
First off, if I failed to see a recent thread on this, just point me in the right direction. Still getting used to the updated site

My fiancé and I are looking to climb Kilimanjaro for our honeymoon but are having a bit of difficulty working through the logistics. Just wondering if anyone on here has done the climb semi-recently and could recommend some directions on the following questions:
- Research is showing that you need a guide to climb. What are the best guide companies that we should consider? (more concerned with experience/quality vs. price)
- There are many different routes. Which would you recommend? We have no problem with technical climbing and exposure on the 14ers here in Colorado and are generally in good shape (marathon runner and triathlete) but out biggest goal would obviously be to summit. Given the extra altitude, would it be best to just take the "easiest" route or are there others we should consider?
- Which times of the year would give us the best experience climbing? It seems like the fall is a popular time from some of my research but just wondering if others have different perspectives.
- Any travel recommendations? It seems like no matter how you get over there it is going to be a chore. Any advice on how to make the trip quicker? or how to get the most out of the journey?

Thanks in advance for any help you can offer!
Jake

My wife and I did Kili for our honeymoon this past January, which was a great time of year. We used a local service which was really just a 1 man show. He was recommended by a friend/pro climber I know from Turkey. It was great because he was hands off and allowed us to do our own thing, which was what we wanted. Kili is extremely easy and given our level of experience, we knew we wouldn't tolerate a traditional guided climb.
We did the Machame Route which was very enjoyable. Took us 5 days total, but 6 is more reasonable (We summitted and hiked out 20+km in a a single day)

After the climb, we went to Nairobi, then to Masai Mara for Safari and finally to Zanizabr for a beach resort to end the trip. The entire trip took a little under 3 weeks and the cost was quite reasonable.

Let me know if you want any info. I highly recommend our "guide."

EDIT: Just realized OP was from 2017

[Woodie Hopper]

Took Machame route in 5 days with Zara and was happy with my decision. I had a little less than two weeks, so I was also able to get Meru (day and a half), visit a Masai village, Lake Manyara and Ngorongoro Crater.

Good times!

Woodie

[dhagan]

Tusker Trail did an awesome job with our 5 person group 5 years ago for a September trip. I would highly recommend them.

[jbealer]

https://www.14ers.com/php14ers/triprepo ... trip=19304

Its 3:40am.... let me know if you have any questions from my TR

[markhingston]

REI Adventures 8-day Lemosho route.

We flew on KLM from Washington-Dulles to Amsterdam to Kilimanjaro International and back. Smooth, much less painful than I feared. No doubt there are less expensive flights.

Things I looked for:

Lots of time to acclimate. (My hiking partner and I live in the mid-Atlantic area and had no chance to go high before the trip. We did lay down 100 winter trail miles before going. It helped. We also used Diamox, but couldn't tell if it helped.)

Water filtration system. Toilet tents. (The alternatives are still unpleasant, though improving.)

No worries about porter treatment.

Nightly check of pulse and blood oxygen levels and oxygen and a Gamow bag for emergencies.

Lots of detailed advance information, including a tip schedule for each employee group. We over-tipped because of the extra effort required by wind storm and specific assistance provided to my hiking partner who sprained his foot. (I also read the very helpful trip reports here.)

Things you might not like: We were a group of 12. The schedule was pretty tight. Average age was just over 60. Not much interaction with Tanzanians. On the expensive side.

Things that impressed me: The guides were first-class, calm and attentive professionals. Clients and the large support crew got along well.

It was strange having big tents with 2 cots, porters carrying the gear, meals served while sitting at a table, no route or weather concerns. One nitpick: summit porters will carry your day pack on summit day, but they don't like being told to go away.

The team handled a 36-hour wind storm just before the summit day impressively. The wind knocked over and damaged the big tent and wrecked some other tents nearby. The team barely missed a beat.

Four members of the group had difficulties on the approach because of altitude and fitness problems. Two more had altitude issues on the summit morning. Everyone reached the summit and got down safely.

It was not an easy stroll. It felt and looked like a class 2 Colorado 14er. Summit day was long and cold (water will freeze in your Nalgene; bring a parka to keep you warm for 10 hours at 23F). The details are available on the REI Adventures website.

We also took the safari extension. Fabulous experience, especially Ngorogoro Crater. Thoroughly enjoyable visit to one of our planet's most wonderful places.

[bramasoleiowa]

Just got back to the states this morning from my Kilimanjaro trek and post-trek safari. We used Altezza (https://altezza.travel/en ). Great company, amazing guides.
Did the 7 day Machame route (summit on Day 6).
Other than American Airlines trying to strand me in Des Moines 2 days in a row on my way out and having to drive to Kansas City to get to my rebooked Qatar flight in Dallas, everything went smoothly on traveling overseas.
Protip: check out how many billions each US airway spent on stock buybacks pre-pandemic to determine how horrible their service will be.

[Joygo]

Congratulations on successfully summiting Kilimanjaro!

[TAMU85]

How was flying Qatar Airlines? Did you layover in Doha, Hamid? If so, is it worth getting a hotel room in the airport to catch up on sleep during the layover?