What should be included in a Kilimanjaro price

Before you book

Two quotes that differ by six hundred dollars often differ by four line items. Here is what to look for.

Two Kilimanjaro quotes that differ by several hundred dollars usually differ by four or five line items rather than by quality. This page is a checklist for reading any quote — ours included — so that you are comparing the same trip.

Print it, send it to every operator you are considering, and ask them to confirm each line in writing.

Should be included in any legitimate price

Park entry fees for every day you are inside the park
Camping or hut fees for every night
The park rescue fee — a mandatory per-climber charge
Government taxes and VAT
Licensed guides and assistant guides, scaled to group size
Cook and porter team, including their wages, park fees, food and insurance
Three cooked meals a day on the mountain
Treated drinking water throughout
Sleeping tent, mess tent, tables and chairs
Sleeping mat
Transfers to and from the trailheads

Commonly included, but check

Airport transfers from Kilimanjaro International (JRO)
Hotel nights before and after — and how many. One each side is typical; two before is safer if your flight lands late.
A portable toilet tent — sometimes standard, often an upgrade
Emergency oxygen and a first aid kit — ask specifically what is carried
A pulse oximeter for health checks
Sleeping bag — frequently rented separately
Summit certificate, which sounds trivial and matters more than you expect on day eight

Almost never included

Tips for the crew. Expected, substantial, and a real part of your budget — treat it as part of the trip cost, not an extra.
International flights
Tanzania visa
Travel insurance with high-altitude cover
Personal equipment — boots, layers, down jacket, headtorch, poles
Meals not on the mountain, beyond breakfast at the hotel
Drinks, laundry, and anything personal
Extra hotel nights if you arrive early or stay on

Questions to send every operator

Ask	Why it matters
Are all park fees for all nights included?	The largest fixed cost. An exclusion here changes the price materially.
Is the rescue fee included?	Mandatory per climber. Sometimes quietly excluded.
How many guides for my group size?	Determines whether someone can descend with you without ending the climb for others.
How many hotel nights, and where?	One night versus two, and a named hotel versus "a hotel", are different products.
Is a sleeping bag included or rented?	A common hidden cost.
Is a private toilet tent included?	Frequently an upgrade. Worth knowing which.
What do you recommend for tips?	A significant budget line that never appears in the headline price.
What is your written exclusions list?	The single most revealing document in the whole comparison.

What our price includes

Every Trek Up Kilimanjaro itinerary carries the same inclusions. The full, itemised list is on each climb page; in summary:

Airport transfers between Kilimanjaro International Airport and your hotel
Two nights in Moshi on bed and breakfast — one before the climb, one after
Private transfers to the trailhead and back from the exit gate
All park entrance, camping or hut, and rescue fees, plus government taxes and VAT
A licensed English-speaking lead guide, assistant guides according to group size, a cook and porters — with all crew wages included
Three meals a day, snacks and purified drinking water on the mountain
Tents, mattresses, mess tent, cooking tent and a private toilet on camping routes
Emergency oxygen, a pulse oximeter, a first-aid kit and daily health monitoring
A pre-climb briefing and equipment check, and a summit certificate

The exclusions matter just as much, and we publish them in full rather than in small print: flights, visa, travel and medical insurance, air evacuation unless your policy covers it, personal trekking equipment, equipment rental unless quoted, tips for the crew, hotel meals outside those listed, drinks, laundry, and any single-room or single-tent supplement.