Climb Mount Kenya
| country: | Kenya |
| location: | Mount Kenya |
| trip type: | High altitude, strenuous walking holidays |
| departures: | Daily departures year round (except last 2 weeks of December). This trip follows a set itinerary and you are likely to be with other people during the trip. |
| price: | From US $1355 - US $1580 (6 days) excluding flights. Price includes transport from Nairobi, 2 nights full board at Mountain Lodge, park fees, all meals and 3 nights accommodation on climb, porters and guides. US $260 - US $560 single supplement |
| vouchers: | Gift vouchers can be used with this holiday |
the amazing things you'll be doing
Climb the legendary Mt. Kenya, Africa’s second highest mountain.
A magnificent climb through varied ecosystems and awe-inspiring scenery. Taking the most popular Chogoria-Naromoru route or choose from several others. Traditionally venerated by the Kikuyu people as the dwelling place of their God, Ngai, all Kikuyu homes were once built to face the mountain and elderly Kikuyu are still regularly found wandering the high moorlands in search of their God. The 2000-square-kilometre Mount Kenya Forest Reserve, meanwhile, is the largest forest reserve and water-catchment area in Kenya. It features magnificent stands of buttressed and lichen-draped juniper, podocarpus and African olive trees whose dense canopy provides the ideal habitat for vast herds of buffalo and elephant as well as a bright kaleidoscope of birds and other wildlife.
At higher altitudes, the forest gives way to lush bamboo groves where colobus monkeys leap and leopard prowl and, higher up, the stunted woodlands give way to tussock grass and alpine moorlands, jewel-studded by icy glacial tarns and moraines. As for the globally unique alpine flora, it features 13 species endemic to the mountain and displays such freakish montane mutations as giant lobelias, groundsel and water-holding cabbages. Game highlights include: elephant, buffalo, black rhino, leopard, colobus and Sykes’s monkey, duiker, buck, giant forest hog and the extremely rare Bongo antelope, as well as a wide range of birds, of which 57 types are endemic to Mt. Kenya.
Your base for this climb will be Mountain Lodge, the only ‘tree hotel’ ever to be built on the slopes of Mt. Kenya. Mountain Lodge offers excellent game viewing and beautiful views of the mountain. Extension Options Add a few days at our exclusive Amboseli tented camp, with views of Mt Kilimanjaro or a few days at our camp in the famous Maasai Mara. Another popular post-climb option is to take a few days to totally relax at the coast.
A magnificent climb through varied ecosystems and awe-inspiring scenery. Taking the most popular Chogoria-Naromoru route or choose from several others. Traditionally venerated by the Kikuyu people as the dwelling place of their God, Ngai, all Kikuyu homes were once built to face the mountain and elderly Kikuyu are still regularly found wandering the high moorlands in search of their God. The 2000-square-kilometre Mount Kenya Forest Reserve, meanwhile, is the largest forest reserve and water-catchment area in Kenya. It features magnificent stands of buttressed and lichen-draped juniper, podocarpus and African olive trees whose dense canopy provides the ideal habitat for vast herds of buffalo and elephant as well as a bright kaleidoscope of birds and other wildlife.
At higher altitudes, the forest gives way to lush bamboo groves where colobus monkeys leap and leopard prowl and, higher up, the stunted woodlands give way to tussock grass and alpine moorlands, jewel-studded by icy glacial tarns and moraines. As for the globally unique alpine flora, it features 13 species endemic to the mountain and displays such freakish montane mutations as giant lobelias, groundsel and water-holding cabbages. Game highlights include: elephant, buffalo, black rhino, leopard, colobus and Sykes’s monkey, duiker, buck, giant forest hog and the extremely rare Bongo antelope, as well as a wide range of birds, of which 57 types are endemic to Mt. Kenya.
Your base for this climb will be Mountain Lodge, the only ‘tree hotel’ ever to be built on the slopes of Mt. Kenya. Mountain Lodge offers excellent game viewing and beautiful views of the mountain. Extension Options Add a few days at our exclusive Amboseli tented camp, with views of Mt Kilimanjaro or a few days at our camp in the famous Maasai Mara. Another popular post-climb option is to take a few days to totally relax at the coast.
day-by-day itinerary
| Day 1: | Transfer from Nairobi to Mountain Lodge. Overnight |
| Day 2: | Transfer by vehicle from the Mountain Lodge to Chogoria gate. Trek and overnight at the roadhead camp/Chogoria bandas |
| Day 3: | Hike for 6-7 hours through the Moorland for overnight at Mintos Camp(4300m) in tents |
| Day 4: | Predawn attempt of point Lenana(4985m) and descend down via Naromoru route for an overnight at Mackinders or Met Station. |
| Day 5: | Descend to connect with transfer vehicle back to Mountain Lodge. Overnight. |
| Day 6: | Transfer from Mountain Lodge back to Nairobi |
award winner
This tourism business won an Award in our 2008 Virgin Holidays Responsible Tourism Awards - organised by responsibletravel.com in association with The Daily Telegraph, World Travel Market, Geographical Magazine, of the Royal Geographical Society and BBC World News.Since 2004, the Awards has recognised individuals, companies and organisations in travel making a big commitment to the culture and economies of local communities and helping to conserve biodiversity.
how this holiday makes a difference
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As the largest and most important water catchment area in Kenya, illegal deforestation of Mt Kenya has posed a serious threat to the ecosystem and the country. A major initiative that we are continuously involved in is reforestation schemes around the Mt Kenya region. We also abide by a code of responsible practice in relation to: energy conservation, waste recycling, sewage disposal, air emissions, pesticides, noise reduction and visual pollution.
Many of the staff hail from the local Kikuyu community, providing them with employment opportunities ‘from the mountain’ respected by them for generations. The lodge used as our base is built to harmonise with the local landscape utilising eco-friendly materials, local handicrafts and products. |
Tourism can be good and bad for destinations & local people. We carefully screen every holiday against our criteria for responsible travel. 'Look behind the brochure' to find how each holiday makes a difference (see left). We don't claim to be perfect - there is no global accreditation - but we've led the way since 2001 and screened 1000's of holidays. We invite every traveller to write a review about their experiences and responsible tourism. This valuable feedback is sent to the people who run the holidays. We keep a very close eye on it and take off holidays that don't live up to our standards. |