Your tour operator will provide a list of things to bring, so definitely use the list as reference. If you forget something, such as hiking/trekking poles, sleeping bags, pillows, etc, your tour operator can procure for a nominal rental fee.

Our tour operator provided the sleeping mattress, sleeping tents, mess tent, and portable toilets (may be an extra fee).

Check out what we brought for our 7 days/6 nights (originally a 8 days/7 nights) trip:

Positive attitude! This is the most important. If you have the mindset to complete the Summit, then you’ll reach your accomplishment. Nothing will hold you back.

(Disclosure: The links below are affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases. If you click on them and make a purchase, we receive a small commission. There is no cost to you. Appreciate the support!)

Tops & Jackets

• Wool/moisture wicking t-shirts (quantity: 2-3)
• Wool long sleeve base layer shirt
• Light windbreaker
• Rain jacket (waterproof shell)
• Mid-layer fleece jacket (Patagonia R1 is awesome!)
• Secondary insulating jacket (We used the Patagonia Nano Puff )

*Tour guide recommended 5 layers for the upper body on Summit Day.

Pants

• Hiking pants (1-2 pairs)
• Rain pants
• Wool base layer bottoms (1-2 pairs)

*Tour guide recommended 4 layers for pants on Summit Day. We didn’t use snow pants as they would be too heavy and hard to walk in.

Socks and Shoes

• Gaiters
• Waterproof hiking boots
• Moisture wicking/wool hiking socks; thicker pair for Summit Day (2-3 pairs; ie: Smartwool Hiking Medium Crew)
• Walking shoes (Any casual shoes to walk around the campsite)

Accessories

• Moisture wicking underwears (2-3 pairs)
• Bras (Ladies, use sports bras for more comfort) (3 pairs)
• Hat
• Scarf, buff, balaclava, or something to cover the face (It is windy on Summit Day.)
• Large duffel bag for porters to carry (We used the Patagonia Black Hole 60L and packed light. You may want a Patagonia Black Hole Duffel 90L or larger.)
• Daypack/backpack (20L to 30L)
• Rain cover for the daypack/backpack
• Hydration pack, insulated water bottles, or water bladders (Anything that holds 3 liters of water and will not freeze on Summit Day. Single-use plastic water bottles are not allowed on the mountain.)
• Sleeping bag and sleeping bag silk liner
• Pillow
• Packing cube (Organizing clothes is easy!)
• Headlamp and batteries (Test your batteries before you leave. We used the rechargeable Black Diamond Iota Headlamp – Black.)
• Hiking poles (We rented these.)
• Gloves (Waterproof and warm for Summit Day and lighter gloves for morning hikes/rain.)
• Sunglasses
• Camera and back-up batteries
• External battery pack / power bank for charging (optional)
• Electronics and charging cables
• Small microfiber towel

Other

• Snacks
• Feminine products and pantyliners (Ladies, these are great if you can’t find toilet paper in the middle of the night to use the restroom and also prolongs your undies usage.)
• Water purification tablets or filtration system. We used Katadyn Micropur Purification Tablets. (Not necessary as the water is from the mountain and is clean, but it provides peace of mind.)
• Garbage bags or plastic baggies
• Locks for duffel bags for extra security
• Lip balm with SPF
• Sunscreen
• Face wash
• Toothbrush, toothpaste, and floss
• First aid kit
• Tissue and toilet paper (Place this in a plastic bag so it doesn’t become wet)
• Medication (ie: Diamox; malaria isn’t necessary on the mountain)
• Wet wipes and anti-bacterial hand gel
• Notebook and pen
• Extra luggage if storing at the hotel or at your tour operator’s facility
• Clock or a phone with an alarm
• Cell phone (If you want to make a social media post, there was data network access when descending the summit of Mount Kilimanjaro and at Mweka Camp.)

Have a great time!

If you’ve hiked Mount Kilimanjaro, what is one item that you couldn’t live without? 

The post How to Pack for Mount Kilimanjaro Climb appeared first on Life Of Doing.

(Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links. If you click on them and make a purchase, we receive a small commission. There is no cost to you. Appreciate the support.)

1. Explore the main area/downtown Moshi.

Depending on where you’re staying, your mode of transportation is either walking or taking a taxi to the main area. We stayed at the Key’s Hotel which was arranged by our tour operator. Our hotel was a 15-20 minute walk away from the main area with the local shops and restaurants. It was a nice way to leave the hotel and also experience life at Moshi. Our tour operator said to take a taxi if we leave the hotel after 6:30pm.

The best part was exploring each of the side streets to see what was available. Some streets were more residential than others. If you need snacks or water to stock up during the adventures, there are plenty of mini-markets. 1.5 liters of water is relatively cheap at 1000-1500 Tanzania shillings ($.50 – $.75 USD).

The Moshi bus station has random shops if you’re looking for specific items. There is a store for electronics, beauty and hair products, stationery, shoes, and more. You can easily peruse. Watch out for the crowds as many people hang out on the sidewalks to sell things or wait for the bus.

2. Eat delicious and cheap food.

We were impressed with the variety food options at Moshi. We saw burgers, Italian, Indian, Chinese, snack/drink places, and more. Plenty of vegetarian option available. You can either go for the local food or more high-end type places. The places that we visited were cheaper (compared to U.S. standards), tasty, and had good portions!  

Chrisburger (on Kibo Road)

The restaurant is open from the mornings to the mid-afternoons. In the evenings, it turns into a bar. Seating is limited to 6 tables outside and is often at capacity with locals. You can’t go wrong with ordering any of the meals with chips or burgers. We ate here twice for an early dinner and lunch.

Burger with Steak and Chips

Fish and Chips

Steak and Chips

Fresh Restaurant (On Mawenzi Road)

We arrived at Fresh Restaurant by accident. Food is mostly snack items and subject to availability. The first time we ate here, it was a late afternoon so it was a hangout place for drinks. We went here the following day for breakfast and tried a lot of items.

Fried Chicken and Chips

Breakfast! From top left clockwise – Sweet bread, fried beef, mango juice, chapati, banana and beef soup. Not included in picture was our scrambled eggs.

Indoitaliano Restaurant (Off of Mawenzi Road and Shule Street)

We loved Indoitaliano! It had high reviews on TripAdvisor and looked interesting with the Indian/Italian twist. We thought it was Indian food with Italian flavors or vice versa. However, there is a separate menu for Indian and Italian food. Prices are a bit higher than the fast food that we’ve had. We opted for the Indian food and flavors were comparable to what we eat back in the Bay Area in a densely Indian populated community. Awesome flavors and spices. The naan was delicious too.

From top left clockwise – garlic prawns curry, fish curry, and mutton with naan.

Key’s Hotel (On Uru Road)

We know, it is hotel. Sometimes, we didn’t want to venture out of the area, so we ate at the hotel restaurant. Menu included appetizers, salads, main courses, Tanzanian dish of the day, and dessert. Be patient as the wait is long and may have an occasional power outage. The wood fired pizzas were popular and tasted good. Two people can easily share the pizzas.

Garden pizza

Sausage pizza with baked egg

Daily menu

3. Buy souvenirs.

You can’t leave a trip without buying souvenirs! Our tour operator suggested Blue Zebra in the Kibo Tower (on Boma Road and Rindi Lane). The store is in the back of the first floor and next to a cafe. Store has all of the possible things to purchase for souvenirs from toys, clothing, handbags, and more. Prices are fixed and are higher as this is the “touristy” shop.

Another option is to visit the local artisan’s shops. People randomly talked to us to have us visit their shop. Know what the going prices are and how much you’re willing to negotiate. The more you buy, the more chances you have to lower the price by a few dollars.

We recommend visiting Chui’s Trading Limited (On Mawenzi Road and the cross streets of Shule Road and Viwanda Street). The store has a large variety of products from t-shirts, hats, fabric, stuffed animals, crafty items, and more. All prices are fixed and much cheaper than other places we visited; no haggling involved. The store owner was very friendly and answered questions that we had. My sister bought fabric and asked how to procure a seamstress to make a dress. The store owner went around the corner as there was a row of seamstress and introduced her to Maria. Come here to buy your souvenirs!

4. Visit the post office to send postcards back home.

One of our traditions when visiting a country is to send a postcard to ourselves back at home. The post office had fun postcard designs of Mount Kilimanjaro and safari animals. Each postcard was 700 Tanzanian shillings ($.30 USD) as the going rate at Blue Zebra was $1. Stamps to the United States were 1600 TZS ($.72 USD) each. What a deal!

5. Take a coffee tour and visit the Materuni Waterfall as a day trip from Moshi.

Spend some time away from the main city. The coffee tour is great to see how organic coffee is produced, plus you get to enjoy nature at Materuni Waterfalls. We recommend this day trip which was organized by our tour operator, Top Climbers Expedition. Check out our blog post to read our adventure drinking coffee and the Materuni Waterfall.

Watch our video of the coffee process. 

6. Take a day trip to visit Lake Chala and/or Massai village.

Your tour operator can arrange a specific tour. We didn’t have a chance to explore these options. Lake Chala looks beautiful from the photos online. We saw the Massai villages passing through the cities on our way to the safari and in the Ngorongoro Conservation Area.

Massai Village in Ngorongoro Conservation Area

7. Relax by the pool.

It is hot in Moshi. If your hotel or accommodation has a pool, spend some time to relax and cool off before your climb or safari adventures.

Key’s Hotel Pool

Have you visited Moshi? What are your recommendations or highlights on things to do?

Pin post for later!

The post Fun Things To Do in Moshi, Tanzania appeared first on Life Of Doing.

We added the safari to our overall Tanzania trip. The first week was hiking Mount Kilimanjaro, and the second week was focusing on the animals. Our agenda was to see the Big 5 – elephant, black rhinoceros, water buffalo, lion, and leopard, and the Great Migration at Serengeti National Park.

In this post, we’re sharing our experiences with the Tanzania safari in 7 days and highlighting some of the most beautiful wildlife that we encountered.

Tanzania Safari Itinerary & Tour

Our itinerary was for 7 days/6 nights to visit the following National Parks/areas:

• Lake Manyara (1 day)
• Serengeti National Park (3 days)
• Ngorongoro Conservation Area (1 day)
• Tarangire National Park (1 day)

In order to go on a safari, you’ll need to hire a tour agency/operator. The agency organizes everything from transportation, food (if hiring a chef for camping) and water, accommodations (lodges or camping), and National Park admission fees.

The driver is also the tour guide so he/she will use their super hawk-eyes to find hard to see animals and birds and answer questions about the animals. Our tour guide, Rashidi from Top Climbers Expedition was awesome and fun to be around. He’s been in the industry for over 10+ years and you can see his passion for the animals and the safari.

Since we opted for mostly camping accommodations, we had a chef who came with us on our safari journey. Our chef, Gazah, created delicious and healthy foods to sustain us throughout the day. Check out our previous post on how we chose our safari tour operator.

One of the best parts of the safari was riding in a Land Cruiser. This is not your typical first world country’s soft and cushy Land Cruiser filled with every modern day luxury. These are the real deal, made for the dynamic and unforgiving African landscape. Our mid-2000’s model’s design looks the same as if it was made in the 1970s because the “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” mantra definitely applies. Built like a tank, our Land Cruiser had a pop top roof, an air intake placed at roof level, and waterproof sealing around the windows handle being submerged. The roads in the National Parks of Tanzania are not paved, so prepare yourself for a bumpy ride. Imagine experiencing the Indiana Jones Adventure thrill ride at the Disney theme parks for hours.

Now, it’s time for the many photos!

Lake Manyara National Park

This was a great way to introduce us to the safari adventures. The park is known for the tree climbing lions (which we didn’t see) and the alkaline/soda lake. Instead, we call it the home of the baboons. They are everywhere and will block your road to mind their own business. We spent 4-5 hours on the safari drive at this park.

Baboons are everywhere!

Serengeti National Park

Serengeti National Park is known as the “endless plains” and the vast flatlands continues for miles. Stay patient with the drive. You’ll sometimes be rewarded with seeing a dense concentration of animals while for some periods of time, nothing at all. We didn’t get through the entire park as it is 14,750 km2 (5,700 sq mi).  

One of the highlights included seeing the Great Migration of wildebeests and zeal of zebras. It’s an amazing sight to see thousands of them walking in a line to head to their next destination on the migration route. 

What is a zeal of zebras? Well, zeal is what is used to describe a group of zebras. How cool is that?! Learn more about fun collective nouns for animals and share them during your safari ride! 

Regardless, the amount of wildlife in Serengeti National Park was incredible to experience. Check out the various wildlife we saw below.

Secretary Bird

Mongoose

Water Buffalo

Serval Cat

Love Birds

Agama

Wildebeest

Topi

Cheetah

Cheetah family

Kirk’s Dik Dik

Hyrax

Leopard

It’s time for breakfast – walking hippo!

A bloat of hippos in their natural habitat

It’s the circle of life with a dying hippo. It was hit by a car.

Zeal of zebras!

Warthogs

Mm.. Breakfast!

Nalas need some breakfast too.

Ngorongoro Conservation Area

You’ll drive through Ngorongoro Conservation Area before heading to Serengeti National Park. Ngorongoro Conservation Area is a UNESCO World Heritage site and Ngorongoro is an inactive volcanic caldera. The area is paradise due to the abundance of food, luscious greenery, and continuous flow of water. Animals who are born and live in the area don’t get to leave as the crater is deep. Male elephants are the only animals that can walk up the paved path to get to the top of the crater.

Animals in the crater were less shy due to the fewer predators. We had zeal of zebras next to our car and they didn’t run away as we approached them. Lions are easily spotted in the crater, so while you are taking a break at the rest area, don’t wander off on your own. We saw a couple almost get listed for the Darwin Awards as they were close to the lions!

The elusive black rhinoceros appeared during our safari ride. Albeit it was in a far away distance and we had to use binoculars to see it. We couldn’t get an up-close photo of the rhino, so it is a black speck in our photos.

Ngorongoro is small and very densely populated, so the drive can be done in 4 hours.

Crater Panorama

The Massai people live in the huts and in the area

Morning breakfast for the hyenas

Grey Crowned Crane

Waterbuck

Bushbuck

The zebras were close to the road and not afraid of the cars.

Good bye Ngorongoro! View of crater.

Tarangire National Park

If your favorite animal is an elephant, then you must visit Tarangire National Park. Parades of elephants are everywhere! You’ll also see many baobab trees (aka the “Tree of Life” at Animal Kingdom in Disney World) which elephants use to extract water from the bark during the dry season. The park is smaller, so it can easily be explored in one day.

Parade of elephants

Gazelles

Helpful Tips For Your Safari

• Feel free to customize your accommodations with your tour operator. We scheduled 5 nights of camping and 1 night at the lodge. We planned our luxury lodge night in the middle of the safari to take a break from camping:
  • 2 nights in a tented room (with a private bathroom) at Lilac Camp nearby Lake Manyara (Stayed 1 night when visiting Lake Manyara and 1 night before leaving to Tarangire National Park)
  • 2 nights camping at the Nyani Camp at Serengeti
  • 1 night in the Serengeti Sopa Lodge
  • 1 night camping at Simba Camp in Ngorongoro Conservation Area
• Wear any clothes that are comfortable. Animals won’t be scared away with the bright colors.
• Hiking boots are not necessary.
• Prepare yourself to sit for many hours (or stand and view through the vehicles pop up top). You won’t leave the vehicle during the safari except to use the restroom or visit a lunch area. If you wear a fitness tracking device (ie: Fitbit), you’ll receive a lot of steps due to the bumpy ride.
• Don’t forget sunscreen and insect spray.
• Have patience. Sometimes you see animals, sometimes you don’t. One afternoon in Serengeti, we didn’t see anything for 2-3 hours.

Have you been on a safari before? What is your favorite animal to see? Let us know in the comments!

The post Photo Journal: Tanzania Safari in 7 Days appeared first on Life Of Doing.

Related post: Why Mount Kilimanjaro is Awesome and Challenging

Day 6 – January 3, 2017

Summit Day was similar to running a marathon:

• You have a hard time sleeping the night before due to the excitement and anxiety.
• Once you start the race, you feel strong and run/sprint past everyone. The pace is blowing away what was done in training.
• In the middle of the run, the pace slows down due to the cockiness of running fast in the beginning and you wonder why you put yourself through torture.
• Once you cross the finish line, you’re over the run and vow never to do another one.
• After some sleep and rest, the high endorphins kick in and you instantly want to sign up for another one.

What a slow climb up the mountain. Hundreds of people walked up, and we looked like ants marching up the hill with their headlamps. From Top Climbers Expedition, we had Jacob, Ally, and Meck, a guide in training, join us for the hike.

Thank goodness our Top Climbers Expedition team chose a camping location at the highest camping area possible. We didn’t have to make the long journey up the mountain from the bottom (and past the registration area).

Barafu campsite on a clear afternoon

Jacob and Ally reminded us prior to the hike to keep on going. We didn’t need to stop whenever someone had to turn around back down the mountain or if groups needed to pass.

Even though we were prepared with our layers of clothes, the weather was blisteringly cold and super windy. Fingers and toes were continuously cold and hard to wiggle while loosing feeling. Luckily this was the first the rain clouds decided to take a break.

We wore 6 layers of clothes – wool long sleeve baselayer, R1 jacket, Houdini, Nano Puff, Marmot Windstopper, and rain jacket with hoodie. For pants – wool baselayer, Uniqlo leggings (not moisture wicking or wool, but I needed another layer), hiking pants, and rain pants. I had a Windstopper beanie and fleece ear covers, while Justin’s R1 and Nano Puff were hoodies. A Buff neck gaiter helped with covering my face, but my nose dripped every second due to the wind. I had to breathe through my nose and out through my mouth, making my Buff a “humidifier.” More information on our packing list is here.

The pace was extremely “pole pole” for the first half of the hike almost to the point of sleepwalking. Leslie, my sister, had challenges such as overheating from her long parka and frozen Camelback tube, so we separated. Jacob and Meck stayed with her, while Ally took Justin and I. Oxygen levels were so low that Justin had to take three breaths for every step; and every three steps he took a few seconds break.

We saw the beautiful sunrise at 6:30am. We proceeded along the trail and didn’t stop to enjoy or take a photo. Ally said to continue to the Summit sign and not stop, even though many groups stopped at Stella Point (5756m / 18,885 ft elevation) first for a break.

It was another 15 to 20 minutes to reach the summit sign. It was extremely cold. Our sunglasses had frost and ice over the lenses. We took off our gloves to insert the batteries into our GoPro and camera and our hands felt like they would freeze off.

We did it! Once we reached the summit, we hugged Ally and snapped our picture at Uhuru Peak (5895m / 19,341 ft elevation). What a sight and relief! The celebration was short-lived since we couldn’t stay at the top too long due to winds.

On our way back down, we saw Leslie, Meck, and Jacob. We took a photo at Stella Point and continued down the mountain. It was extremely steep. We didn’t realize how steep it was on the way up and in the dark.

What comes up, must come down

Barafu campsite is down there

At this point, we were fatigued and had altitude sickness with headaches. Going down in the beginning of the descent was slow due to the small rocks. Ally helped me “ski” (more of a fast shuffle) down together on the scree slope. We lost Justin along the way as he took rest breaks and found cell phone signal to post on Instagram. Thank you, Project Fi! (Use our referral link if you’re interested.)

(*Disclosure: We have an affiliate link above. If you click on it and make a purchase, we receive a small commission. There is no cost to you. Appreciate the support.)

The Top Climbers Expedition team congratulated us when we reached back to camp. Leslie also made it back an hour after we did. What a long journey! We had lunch at Barafu Camp even though we weren’t too hungry.

We headed to our next and final camp. Whoever designed the trail from Barafu must have wanted to torture everyone. The distance to Mweka Camp written at the Barafu Gate was written purposely shorter than the actual distance to encourage visitors to take the path. It took 3-4 hours to arrive at Mweka Camp (3100m / 10,171 ft elevation). The first quarter of the hike was flat as we came down from Barafu Camp. We passed another camp, but it was still at high altitude over 4000m. Most people didn’t stay here overnight. Then, we went down a path with lots of big rocks. It was hard on the knees even with hiking poles. I was hoping my left knee wouldn’t give out especially after my recent scooter crash and surgery.

Don’t get hurt on the mountain. Otherwise, you’ll be rescued on this steel chariot (a wheeled stretcher).

“V” for victory with the completion of the summit

At Mweka Camp, one of the porters, Mandela, showed us the secret spot to receive data for our smartphone. We updated our status with completing the summit!

We collapsed and slept at 8pm.

Total walking distance covered: 18.1km / 11.3 miles (10.6km / 6.6 miles Summit & 7.6km / 4.7 miles to Mweka Camp)

Day 7 – January 4, 2017

Sleep never felt so good! Woke up refreshed and ready to climb another mountain. Just kidding.

It was bittersweet to have our last porridge meal for breakfast. We were used to eating it for the week.

As the final farewell and celebration of our experience, Top Climbers Expedition team sang the Mount Kilimanjaro tipping ceremony song. You’ll hear the same song echoed throughout the campsite from other groups. Ally, one of our guides, led the song and he did an awesome job! Each of us expressed our gratitude and many thanks to the team, and ended with calling out everyone’s names to distribute their hard earned tip.

We took a few group pictures before everyone packed up and headed to Mweka Gate. We hustled/trotted down the hill in a walk/run pace to arrive at the registration desk before the large crowds arrived. Otherwise, it would be waiting for a few hours like on the first day at the Londorossi gate.

Our group photo before departure

As we journey through the alpine forest we can still see the peak of Mt Kilimanjaro in the distance and appreciate our accomplishment which feels like a far off dream.

Sign out area

Mweka Gate

Once we reached the gate, Ally and Jacob signed a registration book, and we also signed the visitor’s book and our Summit Day completion time. The Top Climbers Expedition team left prior and we headed back to Moshi in a separate vehicle.

Manase Mwaga, Top Climbers Expedition owner, delivered our laminated certificates of completion at the hotel. Each certificate is customized with our names, times, and own serial number.

The experience on the Mount Kilimanjaro is treasured in our hearts. It was worth the journey and stormy weather to reach the Summit. We can’t express enough how much fun (yet sometimes miserable with the weather) it was to spend on the mountain.

Thank you Mount Kilimanjaro! You will be missed, but never forgotten.

Total walking distance covered: 8.5km / 5.3 miles

Would you consider hiking Mount Kilimanjaro? Let us know why you would like to climb it in the comments.

The post Climbing Mount Kilimanjaro Trip Report (Days 6-7) appeared first on Life Of Doing.

Related post: Why Mount Kilimanjaro is Awesome and Challenging

Day 3 – December 31, 2016

Happy New Year’s Eve! The theme of the day was: “Rain, rain go away. Come again, another day.” It was another gray day with the rain.  

After breakfast, we trekked across more moorland to the Shira 2 Camp (3850m / 12,631 ft elevation). The course was flatter than yesterday. On arrival, we noticed that Shira 2 had an amazing view of the mountain compared to Shira 1.

Moorland

Which way shall we go? The mountain cycling route looks interesting.

Note to self: Chocolate bars are harder to chew once the temperature gets cooler. It took a while to melt the chocolate in my mouth!

Our chef made us pizza for lunch!

We took an acclimatization walk in the late afternoon after the rain stopped. Appreciated the clear skies for an hour. Jacob and Justin sped up the hill and Leslie and I tried to keep up. It was not the “pole pole” (slow in Swahili) as practiced. Our stopping point was an area with an array of meditation rocks (different rocks stacked on top of each other).

Not surprising. It rained while we headed back, yet saw one of the most beautiful sunsets as we reached camp. (See above in our featured image of the post).

We didn’t officially meet everyone from our Top Climbers Expedition team in the first few days, so we hung with the rest of the crew at their tent. Plus, it was nice and warm with the propane gas on! We introduced ourselves and the crew members did the same. We heard how some of the porters wanted to be a guide and asked questions on why he wanted to pursue the field. What a fun learning experience from ours and TCE perspectives to hear about each other’s cultures. We received interesting questions and our viewpoints on U.S. politics (this was before Trump sworn into office.)

Selfie with Top Climbers Expedition Team

The rest of the evening was quiet with dinner and sleep. No New Year’s celebration for us, but we woke up to shouting, cheers, and noise around 12:15am from others in the camp.

Total walking distance covered: 8km/4.8 miles

Day 4 – January 1, 2017

Happy New Year! It was a hard day due to the high altitude and the crazy weather. On the agenda, we hiked to Lava Tower (4600m / 15,092 ft elevation), the highest point of the day.

It rained, hailed, and snowed on us for hours. There was at least 2 hours of hail and we didn’t wear gloves. Hail on the hands hurt! We switched off with exposing one hand to the blistering hailstorm and the other hand to the jacket pocket. The original plan was to eat a box lunch at Lava Tower but that did not occur due to the weather.

It’s hailing!!!

The second half of the trail had more descents and more technical. We crossed over rocks, rushing streams, mud, etc on our way down the mountain. Justin reminded us that we had waterproof boots on so we didn’t need to be as worried about getting our feet wet. It’s amazing to see how the porters go across these conditions with fairly basic footwear.

Crossing a stream

Not quite a palm tree

We arrived at the Barranco Camp (3960m / 12,992 ft elevation) which was huge (and also with more trash) compared to the other campsites. The Machame route also connected with the route. It was a maze trying to find the campsite that TCE set-up.

The sun came out for an hour and everyone dried their clothes on their tents, rocks, or anywhere flat. Yay for the sun! Our clothes never dried completely from the previous nights. When the clouds rolled in, everything was rushed back into the tents.

Drying clothes pronto

Huge campsite

Had an early dinner of potato stew, chapati, mango, cake, and sparkling grape juice. It was such a treat to see a cake made using the propane gas stove. After dinner, we shared the cake with everyone and the juice. Thanked everyone for their support and their efforts. It was a fun way to celebrate the New Year’s.

Jacob went to our tent to share an opportunity to climb up the summit faster. With our walking pace, he suggested to combine Day 5 & 6 on the itinerary into one day so we’d arrive at the summit a day early. Day 5 and 6 had a total of 10k (6.2 miles) of walking, and most outfitters skipped staying at Karanga Camp (for day 5). The best part was if we did not reach the summit the first time, then there was a second opportunity to climb the summit. Therefore, we’d finish the hike in 7 days/6 nights instead of 8 days/7 nights (as originally planned), and pay for an additional night for the hotel in Moshi. We were fine with the suggestion.

Total walking distance covered: 10k / 6.2 miles

Day 5 – January 2, 2017

Good Morning Barranco Camp

It was an early morning to beat the crowds leaving Barranco Camp. We left around 7:45am as there is only one path to get to Karanga (“peanuts” in Swahili) Camp.

We started in the Great Barranco, a huge ravine, and climbed/scrambled over lots of rocks. No trekking poles needed. It was fun to scramble! Everyone passed through the “kissing rock” section where you bear-hug a rock, and it almost looks like you’re kissing it. Luckily it didn’t start raining until after we finished the challenging sections. We can’t imagine scaling the slippery rocks in the rain.

“Kissing” rock

Porters are amazing

During one of the rest breaks, we took photos from a higher peak and had a view of Mt. Mera in the background. The skies were clear!

We arrived at Karanga Camp (3995m / 13,107 ft elevation) after four hours. Most people tend to not stay over at this camp and continue to Barafu Camp. We had lunch of fried chicken/potato with egg frittata, fries, coleslaw, and pineapple. Afterwards, everyone packed up and went to Barafu Camp.

It was a slow and steep hike to Barafu Camp (4673m / 15,331 ft elevation) on a full stomach. Snow fell on us during the walk and took about three hours to arrive to the camp. This was another large campsite since it was the “base camp” before summit day. The team chose a good spot for our campsite as it was halfway up on the mountain trail to the summit.

We were anxious due to the Summit Day. The cold and the windiness at camp didn’t help. To prepare for the summit attempt, we slept with most of our layers on so we would be ready at midnight. We had off and on sleep for 2-3 hours before the 11pm wake up call with hot tea and biscuits for breakfast.

Total walking distance covered: 8.5km / 5.2 miles (5.5km / 3.4 miles to Karanga & 3km /1.9 miles) to Barafu)

The post Climbing Mount Kilimanjaro Trip Report (Days 3-5) appeared first on Life Of Doing.

Related post on Why Mount Kilimanjaro is Awesome and Challenging.

Day 1 – December 29, 2016

It’s the first day of our Mount Kilimanjaro hike and we’re excited for the journey! We met our guides from Top Climbers Expedition, Jacob and Ally, at Key’s Hotel and had a quick luggage and gear check. Jacob emphasized that we needed 4 layers for pants, 5 layers for upper body, a windproof hat, and scarf or something to cover the face for Summit Day. Check! Everything was ready in our Patagonia Black Hole 60L duffel bag and daypack.

We went to Top Climbers Expedition’s office at 9:30am to meet the team, drop off extra luggage (so we didn’t need to leave it at the hotel), and left around 10:30am. The top of the van was similar to playing Tetris since everything fit somehow. The van’s seating arrangement was cozy with 18 people – Justin, my sister Leslie, and I, 14 from Top Climbers Expedition, and the driver.

One of our stops was in the city of Sanya Juu. As the TCE team took a break for breakfast/lunch, Jacob, Ally, and other TCE members invited us to eat Tanzanian BBQ beef (nyama choma) with dense maize bread. Eating beef and BBQ meats is expensive as many people eat a plant based diet by growing their own veggies and meat is free range. Justin and Leslie gave the snack two thumbs up with the delicious BBQ flavor. Due to my dietary restriction, I didn’t eat any and enjoyed the maize bread with the tomato salsa.

After a few hours on the road, we arrived at the Londorossi gate (2250m / 7382 ft elevation) around 2pm for registration and weighing the bags. We were the last group to arrive and leave the inspection area. It took over 2 hours for processing as there were issues with the weight of the bags with how much porters were allowed to carry. We overheard that some groups arrived at 10am and left at 3pm.

The time passed by hanging out in the waiting area along with five other groups and eating our box lunch. It was the same lunch as the prior day on the Coffee and Materuni waterfall tour.

Leslie noticed something moving in trees far away. We debated for a while. She said a large squirrel, and I said that it could be a flying squirrel. It ended up as a family of black and white colobus monkeys.

Kilimanjaro National Park Fees Per Day

Cute little mouse

This raven wanted attention and made a lot of noise.

Twin bananas

After receiving the “okay” to proceed, we took a group photo at the gate sign and drove another 20 minutes to the start of the trail.

Our “Dream Team” for the Mount Kilimanjaro hike

Other groups leaving the gate

Innovative way to store eggs during the car ride – chicken feed in a box!

The sun started to set as we began hiking at 4:30pm at the Lemosho Gate (2100m / 6890 ft elevation). It was amazing to see the porters whiz by with the 20kg (44 pounds) of gear on their heads and/or upper back in addition to their personal daypacks. So strong!

We went through the forest area with luscious green trees and plants. A colobus monkey surprised us and “hello” during the hike. Darkness surrounded us around 6pm and used our headlamps for light.

Our last stop was at Big Tree Camp (2780m / 9121 ft elevation) where we signed our names in a visitors’ book. The TCE team set up the sleeping tents, amazingly thick sleeping pads, portable toilet, and our mess tent on arrival.

Our cute portable toilet

We had tea time at 8:30pm and started the habit of drinking Tanzanian black tea with honey at every meal. Dinner followed with vegetarian spaghetti with veg sauce and soup. A healthy and delicious meal to end the day.

Jacob took our health metrics using an oximeter to determine blood pressure and oxygen amount. This part of our daily checkup. He explained the reason for taking the health numbers; mostly to not get sick on the mountain with severe altitude sickness, high altitude pulmonary edema, or high altitude cerebral edema. All scary stuff. Justin had a low heart rate (from lots of cardio workouts) as he normally does and Jacob was concerned that it was too low. We were told to drink more water to have a higher oxygen amount!

We were advised in the evening to “Wear your headlamp whenever you’re outside and in the dark.” For protection, the park ranger has the authority to shoot anything that is moving in the dark and may confuse a human with a wild animal.

Total walking distance covered: 7km/4.3 miles

Day 2 – December 30, 2016

We’re not morning people so our wake up call was bright and early at 6:30am. Frank, our friendly and awesome server, gave us hot tea and hot water to wash up. Our hearty breakfast included eggs, toast, porridge, and fruit (the recurring breakfast for the rest of the week.)

The start of the hike was beautiful as we passed through the luscious green forest and then the moorland terrain. The noticeable difference was the tall trees disappeared and shorter shrubs and plants appeared. The route had more uphills than the previous day, but wasn’t too bad. It seemed more crowded with hikers due to the narrow path.

Lots of uphill and downhill

The weather changed after completing the first hour and rained for 3 straight hours till we reached camp. Justin and I didn’t use our rain gear as we underestimated how much it would rain. Our Patagonia Houdini, baselayers, and backpacks were soaked. The rain covers were not so effective for our backpacks. My sister had a genius idea of creating a full body poncho out of a garbage bag, so she was dry.

Once we arrived at Shira 1 Camp (3610m / 11,844 ft elevation), we did the ritual of signing in the visitor’s book. It was colder at Shira 1 due to the higher altitude and we quickly changed out of our wet clothes. For lunch, we had chapati (my favorite!), carrot sandwiches, beans, and pumpkin soup.

It was nice to take a short afternoon nap and snapped photos once the rain ended.  

We had tea time and popcorn at 4:30pm and dinner at 6:30pm. Dinner was potato soup, spinach, steamed potatoes, fish, and fruit.

Total walking distance covered: 8.5km/5.2 miles

The post Climbing Mount Kilimanjaro Trip Report (Days 1-2) appeared first on Life Of Doing.

Climbing Mount Kilimanjaro was one of the most memorable and challenging experiences that we’ve had during our 7+ years of traveling internationally together. It’s a long journey where you spend hours hiking “pole pole” (slow in Swahili) in crazy, unpredictable weather and various terrain. We appreciated the pristine conditions of the mountains and how the National Park was unaltered – no paved roads or ropes to make the hike easier.

Below is our top 8 list of what the mountain taught us, and in no particular order.

1. The hike is not a race.

You’ll stay in shape throughout this trip with walking at least a 10k (6.2 miles) for 4-6 hours each day. Some days will have flatter trails or you may feel the urge blaze up the mountain.  Our guides and passing porters encouraged us to go “pole pole” due to the altitude and reminded us that it isn’t a race to get to the campsite first. We saw many hikers speed past us and would later see them again taking extended breaks as they were out of breath or had headaches.

Lots of uphill and downhill. Trekking poles rock!

2. You, your traveling companions, and your tour operator/outfitter are one family.

We had an awesome time with our tour operator, Top Climbers Expedition. We had a team of 14 from Top Climbers to support our group of 3 (Justin, my sister, and I), so we were one big family of 17 for 7 days/6 nights. Our guides, Jacob and Ally, were patient with us, especially when we had to take frequent bathroom breaks and also walking the snail pace up a hill. Plus, safety is a big deal as they monitored our vital signs every evening with an oximeter for our heart rate and oxygen level.

Our porters and chef also made our experience memorable. We’re still in shock how quickly our porters had tents and portable toilet ready when we arrived at our next campsite. It was also fun to hang out with them in their tent to chat. Our chef, Priver, magically made a cake in a pan over a propane stove for the New Year holiday. It was thoughtful and we shared the delicious cake and sparkling grape juice with our family.

We couldn’t have done it without their motivation and support.

Our “Dream Team” for the Mount Kilimanjaro hike on the first day

Our group photo before departure

3. If you can believe it, you can achieve it.

Summit day is mentally and physically draining, but don’t forget about the overall goal!

It is the most exciting and exhausting day. With 2-3 hours of sleep the prior night and the start time of midnight, the goal is to reach Stella Point (5756 m/18,885 ft) and Uhuru Peak (5895 m/19,341 ft) along with hundreds of other people. There is a second time of an 8am start to the summit, but we didn’t see anyone coming up.

Mentally and physically prepare yourself for the cold and windchill. No matter how many layers you wear, your fingers and toes will still be cold! It does help to have the right gear for the job. Layer up!

Our guides said to not stop at Stella Point as everyone stops there. Continue to the Uhuru Peak sign so you don’t have to wait as long in line for the photo opportunity.

It was amazing to reach the summit along with everyone else and to see the pristine white snow. The celebration was short lived as we rushed back down the mountain after taking our photo. It was too cold to hang out on the summit. Be careful with going down the mountain. There is lots of loose gravel and the tiredness plus hunger don’t help. I slipped over 5 times and had to “skate” down the mountain with Ally, one of the guides, holding onto my arm.

Once we reached the basecamp, we rested for an hour, ate brunch, and then walked another 4 hours to our next campsite. What a long day!

We reached the summit!

Took a photo with Stella Point sign after we reached Uhuru Peak

Pretty glacier to admire for a minute or so

4. The mountain is unpredictable.

Prior to the hike, we asked the guides what the weather was like. Even though the main city, Moshi, was 80-90 degrees Fahrenheit, they said that Mount Kilimanjaro could be sunny or rainy, but otherwise unknown. We experienced all four seasons on the mountain. After 4 days of hiking through nonstop rain, hail, and snow, we were over the wetness. It was so cold and wet that even hanging up wet clothes in your tent overnight won’t dry them. We figured out that wearing our wet clothes and drying them with our body heat was the most effective.

Cherish the sunshine when it appears! We arrived at Barranco Camp on the fourth day of the hike. We went through a hailstorm on Lava Tower earlier in the day, and was thrilled to see one hour of sun. Everyone rushed to place wet gear and clothes on top of tents and rocks to dry the items. What a sight to see and the change in mood with the sun!

Drying clothes pronto

5. Get the right equipment for the job.

Research the gear and clothing that you need and test them out in similar conditions back at home for training. Go with the quality stuff. You wouldn’t want items to fall apart on the mountain. We did weekly hikes prior to our trip to break in our hiking boots and experimented with different layering configurations. Layers are important as we saw those who were unprepared struggle in quickly changing weather conditions. In addition, we also simulated the weight of the daypack with lots of water bottles and collapsible water bottles. Forget something? You can easily rent gear in Arusha/Moshi through your tour operator.

6. Get dirty.

Embrace nature, break a sweat, get dirty and stinky, and experience the freedom of the outdoors. Baby wipes will feel like a first world luxury. We had a private portable toilet at our campsite so we didn’t have to find and use the public ones in the middle of the night. Definitely worth splurging on. Thank goodness for wearing technical/wool baselayers and socks to lessen our stench.

Our cute portable toilet

7. Drink lots of water and eat even if you don’t feel the need.

Our guides reminded us to drink at least 3 liters of water everyday, while the Mount Kilimanjaro National Park sign said to drink 4-5 liters (must be for the summertime). It is a lot of water! We tried to drink at least 3 liters of water through tea time, meals, and throughout the day. Water is good for the body and provides extra oxygen to prevent altitude sickness. Don’t worry about bringing water as you’ll receive boiled mountain water from chef everyday. We used Katadyn Micropur purification tablets as extra precaution but wasn’t necessary since the water was clean.

Meals were healthy and delicious from chapati and egg for breakfast to rice and curries for dinner. We had an occasional treat with pizza and kabobs for the meals. The only day that we didn’t eat much was after we summited the mountain. We had a slight case of altitude sickness and didn’t feel like eating.

Lunch selfie

8. Enjoy the journey.

“Focus on the journey, not the destination. Joy is found not in finishing an activity but in doing it.” Greg Anderson

No matter which route you take, each day is a milestone. Mount Kilimanjaro is beautiful with the snow capped peak and to climb one of the Seven Summits is a huge achievement. There are plenty of stories, photos, and emotions throughout the trip. Proudly display your certificate of completion once you receive it. The certificate is personalized with your name and has its own serial number to show your ranking with reaching the summit sign.

Good luck!

Have you hiked Mount Kilimanjaro? What are your tips that you recommend for future hikers?

The post Why Mount Kilimanjaro Hike is Awesome and Challenging appeared first on Life Of Doing.

The day after we landed in Kilimanjaro was supposed to be a lazy, lounge around type of day to get over the jet-lag. However, during our pre Mt. Kilimanjaro hike meeting with Manase (the owner of Top Climbers Expedition), we decided to maximize our trip and join a supplemental tour . Normally costing $65 a person, we were offered a discounted rate of $45 USD/person which included a guide, transportation, admission cost, boxed lunch, and water. Why not?

Kasim, our guide from Top Climbers Expedition, picked us up from Key’s Hotel in the morning and we were on our way! Prepare yourself for a bumpy yet fun ride due to the dirt roads.

Coffee Tour

Our first stop was to Hillborn Organic Coffee. We signed in at a shack in the parking lot area and took a short hike up a dirt path. We met our tour guide from Hillborn Organic Coffee and he shared the history of coffee in Tanzania, the agricultural area, and how the Chagga people, one of the largest ethnic groups in Tanzania, are involved with coffee.

The best part was seeing the coffee get processed from bean to the final drink. We loved listening to the team sing during various stages in the coffee making process.  

1. Remove floating (bad beans) and let them dry
2. Pound beans with large pestle to separate husk
3. Shake the beans to remove husk
4. Sort through beans and remove bad ones
5. Shake the beans to remove remaining husk
6. Roast beans in pot and let it cool
7. Pound beans with large pestle to grind coffee
8. Strain coffee and drink!

Everyone said that our hearts will go “boom boom” after drinking this coffee, and it didn’t disappoint. The coffee was flavorful and not too bitter after two scoops of raw sugar.

Our video of the process:

Materuni Waterfall

After enjoying a delicious cup of coffee, it was time for a short drive to the waterfall. Cars can drive along the dirt path to get to the waterfall, but we opted to take the 20-30 minute walk to the falls. The path was irresistible with the luscious greenery – endless fields of banana trees, avocado trees, coffee plants, and corn. It was a peaceful walk as we were the only ones on the trail. The path wasn’t too dusty or muddy, so hiking shoes were not necessary.

The Materuni waterfall was beautiful with the clear water and rushing falls. You could swim in the water if you’d like. We took a bunch of photos and relaxed on one of the mountainside benches with our box lunches, soaking in the view.

On our way to Materuni waterfall

Beautiful scenery

Funny group photo

Vegetarian lunch box with samosas

Regular lunch box with BBQ chicken

Headed back to the van

Overall, it was a fun day trip and we would recommend it. Enjoy the outdoors!

Is this a place that you would interested in visiting? Let us know where we should see other amazing waterfalls!

The post Day Trip: Coffee Tour and Materuni Waterfall in Moshi, Tanzania appeared first on Life Of Doing.

The research was the exciting part of any travels. We wanted to find a tour operator that had both the safari and Mount Kilimanjaro hike options rather than finding two different companies. We went through TripAdvisor and Lonely Planet forums to see recent positive and negative comments on what others have used, and further explored potential companies.  

One of our “must haves” was to have a local company based in Tanzania. We wanted our tour fees to go back to the locals rather than to a middleman company. In addition, the industry is competitive with every operator offering the same tour itineraries so we wanted one that focused on customer service, ensured a smooth transition throughout the tour, and provided fair working conditions and wages for their workers.

We also opted to go with a budget type tour. A trip to Africa isn’t cheap, so we didn’t want to dry up our bank account (spend all our life savings). Our willingness to spend was under $4000 USD for the safari and Mount Kilimanjaro hike (excluding tip). For reference an outfitter like REI Adventures charge $4900 for a 9 day safari and $5600 for the climb (via Lemosho).

As mentioned in our last post regarding a private/group tour, we opted to go with a private tour. We had more flexibility based on our private group setting and didn’t have to worry about strangers.

Don’t worry, even if you are a solo traveler, you can easily have a private tour.

Tracking Galore

With my background in project management, I love using spreadsheets for tracking things. Every trip that we’ve been on has a spreadsheet with things to do, hotels, transportation options, and more. In order to share updates with Justin and anyone else in our group, Google Sheets was our best friend. No need to send a document back and forth through email!

Questions To Ask

We contacted the potential tour operators through email or the contact form on the website. We asked them the following questions if we couldn’t find the information on their websites:

1. Where the company is based?
2. How many years has the company been in business and selling tours?
3. Can they provide references/contact information of past clients to contact them?
4. What is included in the cost? Is there a discount for having X number of people in the group?
5. How are special dietary restrictions handled? We also asked for a sample menu.
6. What hiking gear is included in the cost? Are sleeping pads, sleeping bags, hiking poles, etc a part of the package? If not, what is the additional cost?
7. Where can we store our luggage during the hike and safari? (The company may allow you to leave luggage in their office or luggage is left at the hotel.)
8. What is the packing list for the hike? Is a private toilet included in the price? (A private toilet is a must have so you don’t need to walk far to use the restroom in the middle of the night.)
9. What is the difference in price for the safari lodging – camping versus lodge? What are the names of the lodges they would book?
10. Which hotel do we stay in the local town (Arusha or Moshi depending on where the company is based)?

We looked the operator’s customer service – Details of the email responses, how quickly the responses were (24 hours or less were desirable), and if they followed up with our inquiry after a lack of response from our side. We also followed up with several companies who didn’t respond back to initial inquiries.

Mount Kilimanjaro Hike Routes

There are 7 routes (Machame, Lemosho, Shira, Umbwe, Marangu, Northern Circuit, and Rongai) to hike the mountain depending on what you’re looking for. We wanted to have a challenging route that wasn’t too crowded, a high completion success rate, and beautiful scenery.

Top choices were either Machame or the Lemosho route. We went with Lemosho as hikers said that it was a beautiful route and didn’t have as many people compared to Machame.

The length of the hike various per hike. We wanted to have a longer acclimation on the mountain, so we went with 8 days. Machame route had 6-7 days of completion, while Lemosho route had 7-8 days of completion. We proceeded with 8 days/7 nights for the hike.

Lemosho Gate Sign and Distance to Campsites

Safari

We agreed with the safari itinerary provided for a 7 days/6 nights tour. Ultimately, we had 1 day Lake Manyara, 4 days Serengeti, 1 day Ngorongoro Conservation Area, and 1 day Tarangire.

The only thing that we provided feedback was camping vs lodges. We opted to save money to camp for 5 nights and have 1 night at the lodge. We wanted a hot shower in the middle of our camping excursion. Prices for the camping and lodges various from different operators, so you’ll need to inquire.

Price

As mentioned earlier, our target budget was under $4000 USD for both the Mount Kilimanjaro hike and the safari tour only.

We paid:

• Cost of Lemosho hike (8 days/7 nights): $1500
• Cost of safari (7 days/6 nights [5 nights camping; 1 night at lodge]): $1965

Total: $3465

Cost included:

• National Park fees
• Transportation to/from the Kilimanjaro airport
• Fair wages for the workers
• Food during trek/safari
• Water during trek/safari
• Sleeping pads for camping
• 1 night accommodation before the trek and
• 1 night accommodation after the safari.

Cost excluded:

• Additional hotel room nights
• Tip
• Equipment rental
• Food during non trek/safari days
• Additional day trips
• Souvenirs

You’ll need to factor in what the tour does or does not include.

You may get a price discount if you have a larger group!  

Payment

Ask about the deposit process. Many ask for a 10%-20% of your total cost as a security deposit through bank wire transfer or credit card. We asked if PayPal was used, and it wasn’t.

We did a bank wire transfer and everything was fine. It was our first time sending money to another country and were paranoid that we’d lose all of our money. Our contact sent us an email receipt once the money arrived in his bank. Success!

The remaining balance was brought in U.S. dollars. Bring clean bills that have the year 2003 and above (2004, 2005, and later). It is better to have larger bills as the Tanzania money exchange places have a better exchange rate for $50 and $100 USD. Smaller bills are better for tip. 

Who We Chose

After many months of research, we chose Top Climbers Expedition. You won’t be disappointed with their top notch service and care for their customers. We were lucky to travel with them for 2 weeks! And no, we don’t get commissions from this.

Top Climbers Expedition is a young company based in Moshi, Tanzania. Manase Mwanga, the owner, ensured that all of our questions were addressed during the research. He responded back to my email inquiries within 24 hours and even honored things that we discussed back in 2015 (1 year ago), such as the old pricing for the Lemosho route and the complimentary private toilet. Manase met us in person multiple times at the hotel – before and after the hike and safari, and as we departed to the airport. We appreciated seeing him frequently to check on us.

Group picture with Manase before we start the safari

The “Dream Team” for the hike and safari were awesome! They were professional, knowledgeable in their field, and ensured our safety during the adventure. Each of our guides had 8-10+ years of experience, and we were never in a dangerous situation. Plus, they were fun to hang out with.

Our mountain support crew consisted of 14 team members for the three of us – 2 guides, 1 chef, and 9 porters. Our safari had 1 guide and 1 chef. We couldn’t have done the trip without them! The porters worked very hard with carrying 20kg on their heads and back plus their personal stuff, and everything was set up when we arrived at our next camp. Our safari guide had a hawk eye for seeing birds and animals in trees even while driving. In addition, our chefs did an amazing job feeding us healthy meals in sometimes challenging environments.

Our “Dream Team” for the Mount Kilimanjaro hike. At the Londorosi Gate before we started the hike.

Our Safari Team!

Justin’s mother and I had dietary restriction of a pescatarian diet (vegetarian and seafood/fish diet) and it was accommodated. No traveler’s diarrhea here!

The company values suggestions for improvement so they can continue to grow. Manase seeked feedback after we completed the hike and safari. Whether they were related to the itinerary, team members, food, equipment, lodging, etc, they were valuable discussions to share our positive and/or negative experiences.

Asante (“thank you” in Swahili) Top Climbers Expedition. This is one company we would recommend to friends and family.

What are some helpful tips that you’ll use during your planning? Let us know in the comments.

The post Choosing Tour Operator for Safari and Mount Kilimanjaro Hike appeared first on Life Of Doing.

For this trip, our main goal was to go on a safari, and while researching, the trip evolved to include a hike on Mount Kilimanjaro, the highest mountain in Africa! This was also a family trip as we had my sister, Justin’s mom, and sister join us for the trip.

View of Mount Kilimanjaro during the hike

Where to go

We researched various countries to visit – Kenya, Tanzania, and Botswana for a chance to see the Big 5 animals, and also Rwanda and Uganda to see the gorillas. We decided to visit Tanzania as the country has a more developed tourism industry with many national parks containing various animals, the Great Migration in the Serengeti, and Mount Kilimanjaro, one of the Seven Summits.

A water buffalo greets us

When to visit

Research began in September 2015, with our flights and tours booked in May 2016 for travel from December 25, 2016 to January 14, 2017. Due my annual December company shutdown, we took advantage of the holiday week to travel internationally. This allowed us additional time off afterwards since the beginning of the year’s workload is usually slower.

Anytime is a good time to visit Tanzania. Our guides mentioned that March to May was a slower time due to the rain, but it is a good opportunity as there will be less people for the mountain or safari.

Group vs Private Tour vs Solo

What are you interested in? Having a large group of 10+ strangers or a smaller private tour with the people you know? Solo travel?

During the inquiries with local tour operators in Tanzania, all of them quoted a private tour. We asked if there were opportunities to join other pre-scheduled tours, and they said “no.” We had a pre-scheduled group tour for our Machu Picchu hike where we were with 6 other hikers. If you want a group setting with other people, then consider a large tour operators such as G Adventures.

We didn’t mind a private tour since it would be tailored to our group. The private tour cost was surprisingly less expensive compared to a non-private group tour with a larger outfitter, although it depends on the type of tour style (budget vs luxury) and lodging options (camping vs. lodges). Fortunately for us, there wasn’t an option for lodges or luxury option for the Mount Kilimanjaro hike! I suppose a luxury option could be fancier tents and food. For the safari, we decided to splurge for one night at a lodge during the middle of our safari to balance the camping and have hot water for showering.  

We reached out to our friends and families via email and Facebook to gather interest with the tour. Many said that they would love to go on the adventure, but couldn’t commit to the time off.

If you’re very adventurous, consider the solo route with self-driving and explore the various safari locations on your own. It’s possible to drive a 4WD vehicle through some of the locations. Our friends at TraveLynn Family did the self-drive and even traveled to Tanzania with their kids to experience the wildlife.  Anything is possible!

Schedule

We had five people total for our trip. My sister, Justin, and I signed up for the hike, while Justin’s mom and sister joined us in Tanzania for the safari portion only.

We decided to hike Mount Kilimanjaro first and then relax for the remainder of our time in Africa with the safari. Our original schedule was:

• Moshi upon arrival, and relax the rest of the day
• 1 full day in Moshi to acclimate/relax
• 8 days for the Mount Kilimanjaro hike
• 7 days for the safari (1 day Lake Manyara, 4 days Serengeti, 1 day Ngorongoro Conservation Area, and 1 day Tarangire)
• Overnight in Moshi before departure

Our schedule changed slightly throughout the trip. Our first day of relaxation became a coffee tour and a short hike to the Materuni waterfall. In addition, we finished the hike faster than expected, planning for 8 days and finishing in 7. The changes didn’t affect the overall itinerary and were welcomed.

Other Logistics For Tanzania

• Purchase your visa on arrival at the Kilimanjaro airport. Cost is $100 USD for U.S. citizens. Ensure that you have one full page available for the visa. Practice patience as the visa line takes a long time; it took us over an hour in the hot and stuffy airport. You’ll wait in three lines after filling out your entry forms:
  • 1) For payment
  • 2) To take a picture for your visa. You don’t need to bring passport photos anymore.
  • 3) To receive your completed passport with visa
    

    Landed at Kilimanjaro Airport

    

    In line for the on arrival visa

• It is recommended to have proof of yellow fever vaccination or a waiver. One person stood at the airport entrance to check. We didn’t take a vaccination since our hospital provider said that we didn’t need one coming from the U.S. with a layover in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia less than 12 hours. We brought exemption letters and were excused.

What are your tips for planning a family vacation? Share them below!

The post Planning Family Safari Vacation and Hike appeared first on Life Of Doing.