7-Day Lemosho Route and 3-Day Safari

After breakfast, your guide collects you from your hotel in Moshi or Arusha and drives you west to Londorossi Gate (2,100 m) on the quieter western side of the mountain, where you register with the park and meet your crew. A short drive on a forest track takes you to the Lemosho trailhead, and you start walking through thick montane rainforest, with a chance of spotting colobus monkeys and birdlife.

You'll reach Mti Mkubwa Camp, the “Big Tree” camp, in the afternoon, where dinner is served and you spend your first night under canvas.

You'll climb steadily out of the forest into heather and moorland, with the views opening up across the Shira Plateau, one of the highest plateaus in the world. The path is gradual and the pace is slow, which helps your body adjust to the altitude.

You'll arrive at Shira 1 Camp in the afternoon, with wide views over the plateau and, on clear evenings, a colourful sunset.

Today you'll cross the Shira Plateau towards the base of Kibo, with Shira Cathedral and the snow-capped summit ahead of you. It's a shorter day with a gentle climb, giving you time to rest and acclimatise.

You'll arrive at Shira 2 Camp around lunchtime, with the afternoon free to rest. Your guide may suggest a short walk higher and back down, an easy way to help your body adjust.

You'll climb east across the alpine desert to the Lava Tower at around 4,630 m, where you stop for lunch, before descending to Barranco Camp. Climbing high and sleeping low is one of the best ways to help your body acclimatise.

You'll arrive at Barranco Camp in the afternoon, set in a valley beneath the Great Barranco Wall and dotted with giant groundsels.

You'll begin the day with the Barranco Wall, a steep scramble that is more exciting than difficult, then cross several valleys and ridges to Karanga Valley, where you stop for lunch.

After lunch the path climbs steadily to Barafu Camp, the base camp for the summit attempt, set on a rocky ridge with views of Mawenzi and Kibo. You'll have an early dinner and a briefing, then try to get a few hours of sleep before summit night.

You'll be woken around 11pm for tea and a snack, then set off in the dark for the summit. The climb to Stella Point on the crater rim is long, steep and cold, and you'll reach it around sunrise before continuing to Uhuru Peak, the highest point in Africa.

After time at the summit, you'll descend to Barafu for a rest and meal, then continue down to Mweka Camp for your last night on the mountain.

After breakfast, you'll walk down through the rainforest to Mweka Gate, where you'll receive your summit certificate if you reached Stella Point or Uhuru Peak, and say goodbye to your mountain crew.

You'll then be driven to your hotel in Moshi or Arusha for a hot shower, a proper bed and a well-earned rest before the safari begins.

After breakfast, you'll drive south-west into Tarangire National Park, home to Tanzania's largest elephant population, with herds of 50 to 100 gathering along the Tarangire River among the park's scattered baobabs.

You'll spend the day on a game drive through the park before continuing to your lodge in Karatu for the night, close to the Ngorongoro Crater.

An early start takes you down into the Ngorongoro Crater — a collapsed volcano 600 metres deep and 260km² wide, home to more than 30,000 animals. Expect the highest density of lions in Africa, resident black rhino, large bull elephants and flamingos at the soda lake.

After a picnic lunch on the crater floor, you'll climb back up to the rim and return to your lodge in Karatu for a second night.

After breakfast, you'll head to Lake Manyara National Park, a compact park of groundwater forest, acacia woodland and a shallow soda lake, home to large baboon troops, hippos, elephants and, with luck, the park's famous tree-climbing lions.

After a game drive and lunch, you'll drive back to Arusha, arriving in the afternoon and marking the end of your 10-day trip.