Machame Route

The Machame Route is the most-used camping route on Kilimanjaro. It starts at Machame Gate (approx. 1,800 m) on the south-west side of the mountain, climbs through montane forest to the Shira Plateau, then traverses under the southern glaciers via Lava Tower, Barranco and Karanga to Barafu Camp (approx. 4,670 m). The summit push goes via Stella Point to Uhuru Peak (5,895 m), and you come down the Mweka trail to Mweka Gate.

It suits fit first-timers who want variety and are happy to camp. The scenery changes almost every day, and the classic "climb high, sleep low" day to Lava Tower gives your body a useful nudge before the summit.

The honest trade-off: it is busy, and the second day climbs roughly 1,000 m in sleeping altitude, faster than altitude-medicine guidelines recommend. Choose the seven-day version, not six, unless you already have recent altitude experience.

What is the Machame Route like day by day?

On the standard seven-day itinerary you walk five to seven hours most days, with one very long summit day. Camp altitudes below are approximate; different maps disagree by 20–50 m.

1. Machame Gate to Machame Camp (approx. 2,835 m). A steady climb through wet montane forest. Expect mud outside the dry seasons and colobus monkeys if you are lucky.
2. Machame Camp to Shira 2 Camp (approx. 3,850 m). Out of the trees into heath and giant heather, up a steep rocky ridge onto the edge of the Shira Plateau.
3. Shira 2 to Barranco Camp (approx. 3,960 m) via Lava Tower (approx. 4,630 m). The acclimatisation day: you go high for lunch, then drop into the Barranco Valley to sleep. Many people get their first altitude headache here, which is the point.
4. Barranco to Karanga Camp (approx. 3,995 m). The Barranco Wall first thing, a hands-on scramble of about an hour or two, then up and down across valleys to Karanga.
5. Karanga to Barafu Camp (approx. 4,670 m). A short, dry climb to a windy, rocky base camp. Early dinner, early bed.
6. Summit night and descent to Mweka Camp (approx. 3,100 m). Wake around 23:00, climb about 1,200 m by head torch to Stella Point on the crater rim, then along the rim to Uhuru Peak (5,895 m). Back to Barafu, then down to Mweka Camp.
7. Mweka Camp to Mweka Gate (approx. 1,640 m). Three to four hours down through forest to collect your summit certificate.

How hard is the Machame Route?

Machame is a challenging trek, not a technical climb. You need no ropes or climbing skills, but you do need legs that can handle several days of steep uphill and one night of roughly 12 to 15 hours on your feet.

Three parts catch people out:

• Day two. The climb from the forest to Shira 2 is steep and rocky, and at the end of it you are sleeping around 3,850 m.
• The Barranco Wall. It looks alarming from camp. In practice it is a well-worn scramble where you use your hands on a few steps. Nervous of heights? Tell your guide the night before; they will put you next to them.
• Summit night. From Barafu you gain about 1,200 m in the dark and cold, then descend more than 2,500 m before sleeping. Knees and thighs feel the descent for days.

The Tanzania National Parks Authority (TANAPA) says adults of normal health and fitness should be able to reach the top without specialist equipment, and that patience and determination matter most. That matches what guides see: steady walkers outperform fast ones. For preparation, see our training guide and how hard Kilimanjaro really is.

Is the Machame Route good for acclimatisation?

The seven-day Machame is reasonable for acclimatisation; the six-day version is noticeably weaker. The difference comes down to two days.

The good day is day three. Walking up to Lava Tower at about 4,630 m and sleeping lower at Barranco is textbook "climb high, sleep low". The weak day is day two, when sleeping altitude jumps by roughly 1,000 m, from about 2,835 m to about 3,850 m. Wilderness Medical Society (WMS) and UIAA guidance, as summarised in The BMJ in 2026, suggests gaining no more than 300–500 m of sleeping altitude per day once above 3,000 m, with an extra night for every 1,000 m gained. Almost no standard Kilimanjaro itinerary fully meets that, Machame included.

The seven-day plan softens it with the short Barranco-to-Karanga stage before Barafu. The six-day plan goes straight from Barranco to Barafu, a gain of about 700 m on the day before summit night. A 2019–2020 cohort of 1,237 Kilimanjaro hikers (Croughs et al., 2022) found that each extra day on the mountain independently predicted summit success. If you can spare the day, take it. Read more in our acclimatisation guide.

How busy is the Machame Route?

Machame is the busiest camping route on the mountain. In the Croughs et al. study, 57.9% of the 1,237 hikers surveyed between December 2019 and March 2020 were on Machame, with a median of seven days. That is one study in one season, not official park statistics, but it matches what you see on the trail.

It gets busier as you go. From Shira 2 or Barranco onwards you share camps with Lemosho climbers, and Umbwe climbers join at Barranco. The pinch points are the morning queue at the Barranco Wall and summit night from Barafu, when head torches stretch up the slope in a long line.

Crowds have an upside: well-used toilets and ranger posts at every camp, a well-trodden path, and plenty of people around if something goes wrong. TANAPA notes that rescue services, first aid and radio communications are available at mountain stations.

When is the best time to climb the Machame Route?

The best months are the dry seasons. TANAPA describes the dry periods as late June to September and December to early March, with the long rains from March to May and short rains around October to November. These seasons also bring the most climbers, so Machame is at its busiest in July, August and around the Christmas holidays.

Machame's first day is the wettest part of the route. In the rains the forest trail turns to slippery clay, and cloud can sit on the Shira Plateau all day. It is climbable year-round with good rain gear, and the shoulder weeks of early June or late October can be quieter. Our best time to climb guide goes month by month.

Who should choose another route?

Machame is a strong default, but not for everyone.

• If altitude worries you most, an eight-day Lemosho or nine-day Northern Circuit gives a gentler first half and more time high up.
• If you want quiet trails, look at Rongai or the Northern Circuit.
• If you would rather sleep in a bunk than a tent, Marangu is the only route with huts.
• If scrambling makes you anxious, Rongai and Marangu avoid the Barranco Wall.

You can compare all six side by side on the route comparison page or answer a few questions in the route finder.

Sources

• Tanzania National Parks (TANAPA) — Kilimanjaro National Park brochure (PDF)
• Tanzania National Parks (TANAPA) — Tanzania National Parks general brochure, Kilimanjaro National Park pages (PDF)
• Journal of Travel Medicine (Croughs et al., 2022) — Incidence and predictors of severe altitude illness symptoms in Mt. Kilimanjaro hikers: a prospective cohort study
• The BMJ (PMC) — Prevention of altitude illness in adults: preparing people for travel to high altitude (2026)
• UNESCO World Heritage Centre — Kilimanjaro National Park

Checked 2026-09-25.

Machame is run in six or seven days. Seven is the better choice for most people because it adds the short stage to Karanga Camp before Barafu, which spreads the altitude gain and gives you more rest before summit night.

Physically, yes: Machame has steeper sections, the Barranco Wall scramble and camping throughout. But harder walking is not the same as a lower success chance. Machame's Lava Tower day and longer itinerary usually give better acclimatisation than a five-day Marangu climb.

No. The Barranco Wall is a steep scramble on a well-worn path where you use your hands for balance on a few rock steps. No ropes or harness are used. Guides spot nervous climbers through the exposed parts.

Machame climbers descend the Mweka trail, usually overnighting at Mweka Camp (approx. 3,100 m) or Millennium Camp, and exit at Mweka Gate on the southern side of the mountain. You do not come back down the way you went up.

You leave Barafu Camp around midnight and climb roughly 1,200 m to Stella Point on the crater rim, usually arriving around sunrise, then walk another 45 minutes to an hour to Uhuru Peak. It is cold, slow and dark, and most of the difficulty is mental.