Q & A

How big is the group?
The group is intended to be between 15 and 30 people, due to the wilderness environment in which this expedition takes place.

Who do we fly with?
You will be flying with Kenya Airways or BA direct from London Heathrow to Nairobi Airport. Your flight tickets will be given out at the airport.

What is the luggage allowance & will I be carrying my own luggage?
As no formal clothes are needed, luggage should be kept to the absolute minimum - details on what to pack are provided in your Kit List. You will need to carry a daypack during the day while the porters carry your main rucksack. You will need a day sack of about 35-litre capacity. NB. You should take a soft-sided bag or rucksack for the porters to carry as they often carry luggage on their heads and hard suitcases are too unwieldy. Your main pack should be 70-80 litres capacity. The maximum weight each porter will carry is 15kgs and your luggage will be weighed at the gate before commencing the climb. You will be charged US$5 for every kilo that you are overweight. On your outward journey, please wear you trekking gear, hiking boots, and carry a spare change of clothing in your hand luggage.

How do I confirm my return flight?
Please ask your tour leader or ground handler to reconfirm your flights for you. This is very important.

What will the accommodation be like?
You will be camping on the mountain in two person tents, which will be supplied & erected by us. At the very beginning and end of the climb, you will be staying in more comfortable accommodation at a lodge in Arusha. If you are travelling with a friend or partner who you wish to share with, please let Charity Challenge know in advance.

Do we need to take our own sleeping bags and mats, etc?
Yes, you will need to bring a warm sleeping bag (four season or three season with fleece liner), and it would certainly help your chances of a comfortable night’s sleep if you bring a good thermarest-sleeping mat. Also see Kit List.

What are the toilet and washing facilities like?
There are no toilets on the wilderness route & the National park have placed restrictions on expedition organisers taking port-loo’s, so you must make sure you bury all waste. In the camps we have to use the long drops provided by the National Parks, which are very basic and unfortunately not monitored regularly. Mountain streams will be the main washing facility! Your camp team will provide washing bowls of warm water as you arrive at camp at the end of the day’s trekking, you will need bio-degradable soap for washing with. You should take plenty of toilet paper with you & anti-bacterial hand gel.

Will my valuables be safe?
While we will do everything to provide adequate safety for the group and security for your possessions, the general rule is that if you don’t need it, don’t bring it. This includes jewellery, necklaces, rings and even watches. Your passport and money should be kept on you at all times. The porter’s bag should not contain valuables and items not required on the mountain. These may be left at the lodge in Arusha to be returned to you once you have climbed the mountain. You will be given a receipt for items left at the camp. These will be kept in the safe and will be perfectly secure.

What is the food and drink like?
There will be a hot breakfast (porridge, eggs, toast, tea and coffee) to start the day, a packed lunch on the mountain or at your camp and a filling hot meal in the evening (soup, followed by rice, potato or pasta and sauce, and usually fruit for dessert.) There will be ample drinking water, as we will be filling up from local water sources. This will need to be treated with iodine drops or tablets to purify the water. The porters will collect water each morning and evening for drinking and cooking. Please let Charity Challenge know prior to departure if you have any specific dietary requirements or allergies.

Who will be leading the group?
We employ a number of Red Cross first aid qualified expedition leaders, all of whom speak fluent English. When the guides first qualify they gain the Kili National Parks (KINAPA) award in first aid, which is basic but tough. Also all the top guides have a 1yr wildlife college (MWEKA) training course, which includes first aid training. They will be ultimately responsible for the running of the itinerary and the safety of your group. The itinerary is there as a guide and may change due to unusual weather patterns, the strength of the group and so on. We will do our very best to keep to the set itinerary. However we cannot be held responsible for any last minute changes that might occur. In all such circumstances, your expedition leader will have the final say.

How fit do I need to be?
Training and a good level of fitness is definitely required, as this challenge is rated as Extreme, due to the basic facilities, high altitude, and terrain. Anyone who leads a fairly active and moderately healthy lifestyle should be OK, but the more you exercise before the expedition, the more you will get out of it. Don’t forget the impact of temperature extremes and high altitude; and remember that you will be trekking for a number of days. See Fitness Training notes.

What happens if I fall ill or can’t keep up?
The event is not run as a race and there is always a large discrepancy in people’s walking ability. This is allowed for. There will always be a staff member at the back of the group to ensure you are not left behind and can take things at your own pace. If you are unable to continue on foot, you will be carried off the mountain. If you are climbing via our western approach routes, then we are able to get a Land Rover up to the Shira Plateau (15,000ft) to take you down. There is a hospital at Marangu, which is situated at the beginning of the popular route. Quality medical services are available in Nairobi.

What is included in the cost of the expedition?
Your international flights to and from Kilimanjaro, all meals unless otherwise stated in the itinerary, entry into National Parks on the itinerary, all transfers in Tanzania, all accommodation whether in tents or hotel, group first aid supplies, an English speaking expedition leader, relevant back-up facilities, a Charity Challenge T-Shirt, US$20 to the local community project, and discount from Field & Trek and Nomad Travellers Stores for personal equipment.

What is not included in the cost of the expedition?
The following items are not included in your expedition and will be at your own expense – Tanzanian Visa (£38), Kenyan Transit Visa (approx $20US each way), vaccinations, tips for the local support team, activities not mentioned in the itinerary, any additional food & drink, personal spending money, travel to and from UK airports and travel insurance.

What shall I do about spending money?
You will not need large amounts of money during this trip and other than at the start and end of the trip, you will be in the mountain away from any foreign exchanges or banks. We recommend that you take a sufficient amount of cash. Travellers’ cheques or credit cards should be accepted in the airports. Somewhere in the region of £200 in US dollars should be sufficient to cover presents, tips, drinks and so on.

How much would you recommend for tips?
Tipping is personal and at your sole discretion. You should only tip if you feel that you have received good service. We recommend approx. $12 per person per day, and this should be given to the expedition leader at the end of the expedition, who will distribute it among the support team. In the event that a particular member of staff provides extra support you might choose to leave him spare climbing gear. Make sure you have plenty of $1 dollar bills for tipping.

Should I take gifts or clothes for the locals?
It is a nice gesture to give the local children small gifts, but we actively discourage the giving of sweets or money, as this encourages begging. We invest money into a local community project to help improve local living conditions.

What is the weather likely to be like?
Early mornings will immediately warm as soon as the sun rises, and the days will be warm and bright. As soon as the sun sets, the temperature drops radically and is often well below zero degrees. On the mountain, you will be trekking in very clear air and will need strong UV protection. Normally January and February are the driest and clearest months to climb. However in 2004 there was intermittent and considerable rain in January February! June through to end October and December are also good but you should expect a little more cloud around the rainforest zone. Whenever you climb, expect convection to send warm air from the hot plains below across the rain forest to precipitate at higher altitudes as rain, sleet, and snow. This happens on some, but not all, afternoons. Nights are usually clear and frosty, and mornings clear and sunny. Also see Tanzania Fact File.

What do you do to protect the environment?
We keep to small group sizes so that we limit the impact we have on the surrounding environment. We will ensure that all burnable rubbish is burnt and all other rubbish is carried out of the area and disposed of responsibly. We cook using kerosene cookers rather than campfires so as not to deplete the natural wood resources on the mountain. Finally we follow the local guidelines on cultural and environmental protection
and respect issued by the National Park; we leave the wilderness camps clean, carry off glass and tin & only use official toilets. We will also be donating US$20 per participant towards the Tinga Tinga Village where it is invested in the village school & new water pipelines to enhance local living conditions.

Can you recommend any literature about the region?

NB: The information provided above was correct at the time of going to print.