6-Day Machame Route Kilimanjaro Climb 2026–2027

What Is the 6-Day Machame Route?

The 6-day Machame Route is a camping climb that traverses Kilimanjaro from the south-west to the south-east. You start at Machame Gate, cross the Shira Plateau, pass Lava Tower and the Barranco Wall, and summit Uhuru Peak (5,895 m) from Barafu Camp before descending the Mweka Route. Prices start from $1,845 per person.

Machame is one of the most scenic routes on the mountain, passing through rainforest, moorland and alpine desert with changing views of the Western Breach and Kibo's glaciers. It is steeper than Marangu, and the Lava Tower day follows the 'climb high, sleep low' principle. The 6-day version moves directly from Barranco to Barafu, so Day 4 is long and summit night follows straight after.

If you can add a day, the 7-day Machame splits that stage with a night at Karanga Camp, which gives you more time to acclimatise. This page covers each day with altitudes and distances, acclimatisation, summit night, inclusions and preparation.

Climb at a Glance

Route Highlights

• A traverse with different routes up and down, so the scenery keeps changing
• Wide views across the Shira Plateau to the Western Breach
• Acclimatisation via Lava Tower (about 4,600 m) before sleeping at Barranco
• The Barranco Wall, a non-technical scramble that most climbers enjoy
• Sunrise near Stella Point on the crater rim before Uhuru Peak

The 6-day Machame climbs from about 1,800 m to 5,895 m in five days, including the climb to Lava Tower, then descends via Mweka. The table summarises each day.

Day 1: Machame Gate to Machame Camp (3,000 m)

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Day 1 climbs steadily through the rainforest. After breakfast, you drive from your hotel in Moshi to Machame Gate, where your guide completes the park registration while the porters prepare the loads.

The trail climbs through thick, often muddy forest for five to six hours, with a picnic lunch on the way, and gains about 1,200 m. Gaiters and trekking poles help when the path is wet. Your tents are set up at Machame Camp, where dinner is served.

• Overnight: Machame Camp (tents)
• Meals: Lunch and dinner, plus drinking water
• Distance and time: 10.75 km, 5–6 hours

Day 2: Machame Camp to Shira 2 Camp (3,850 m)

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Day 2 leaves the forest for the heath and moorland. The path climbs a rocky ridge with low shrubs and opens out onto the Shira Plateau, with views of Kibo and the Western Breach.

It is a shorter day of four to five hours with a picnic lunch, which gives you time to rest at Shira 2 Camp. The camp is exposed and nights can drop below freezing, so keep your warm layers handy.

• Overnight: Shira 2 Camp (tents)
• Meals: Breakfast, lunch and dinner, plus drinking water
• Distance and time: 5.3 km, 4–5 hours

Day 3: Shira 2 to Lava Tower (4,600 m) and Down to Barranco Camp (3,950 m)

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Day 3 is an important acclimatisation day. You climb east through alpine desert to Lava Tower, a volcanic rock formation at about 4,600 m, where you have lunch. Climbing this high helps your body adjust.

In the afternoon you descend about 650 m into the Barranco Valley, past giant groundsels, to sleep at Barranco Camp below the Great Barranco Wall. Climbing high and sleeping low like this is one of the strengths of the Machame Route. Tell your guide if you feel any headache or nausea.

• Overnight: Barranco Camp (tents)
• Meals: Breakfast, lunch and dinner, plus drinking water
• Distance and time: 10.75 km, 6–7 hours

Day 4: Barranco Wall to Barafu Camp (about 4,650 m)

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Day 4 is long and demanding. You start by scrambling up the Barranco Wall, a steep rock face that requires hands in a few places but no technical skill. Above the wall, the trail crosses ridges and valleys towards Karanga and then climbs to Barafu Camp, with a picnic lunch on the way.

You arrive at Barafu in the afternoon. Rest, eat an early dinner and sleep for a few hours, because you wake up around 11 pm to start the summit climb. Prepare your summit clothing, headlamp and water before you sleep.

• Overnight: Barafu Camp (tents), with a short rest before summit night
• Meals: Breakfast, lunch and dinner, plus drinking water
• Distance and time: 8.5 km, 6–8 hours

Day 5: Summit Night to Uhuru Peak (5,895 m), Then Down to Mweka Camp

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Day 5 begins around midnight. You climb about six to seven hours by headlamp up steep switchbacks to Stella Point on the crater rim, then walk along the rim to Uhuru Peak, gaining nearly 1,300 m. Sunrise often comes as you reach the rim.

After photos at the summit, you descend about three hours to Barafu for breakfast and a rest, then continue down through alpine desert and moorland to Mweka Camp at about 3,100 m. It is the longest day of the climb, with 12–15 hours of walking.

• Overnight: Mweka Camp (tents)
• Meals: Breakfast, lunch and dinner, plus drinking water
• Distance and time: About 16 km, 12–15 hours

Day 6: Mweka Camp to Mweka Gate and Back to Moshi

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Day 6 is a three-to-four-hour descent through the rainforest to Mweka Gate. At the gate you sign out and receive your certificate if you reached the summit, then say goodbye to the crew.

Our vehicle drives you back to your hotel in Moshi. Your hotel night after the climb is included in the price.

• Overnight: Your hotel in the Kilimanjaro area (included)
• Meals: Breakfast and lunch
• Distance and time: 9.1 km, 3–4 hours

The 6-day Machame has better acclimatisation than the 5-day Marangu, because Day 3 climbs to Lava Tower at about 4,600 m before you sleep at Barranco Camp, about 650 m lower. This 'climb high, sleep low' pattern helps your body adapt to the altitude.

The trade-off is Day 4. The 6-day version goes straight from Barranco to Barafu, and summit night starts only a few hours after you arrive, so you have little rest before the hardest part of the climb. The 7-day Machame adds a night at Karanga Camp, which makes the final approach easier and gives more time to acclimatise.

Whatever the length, your guide sets a slow pace (pole pole in Swahili) and checks on you every day. Our guide to improving your summit chances explains what else helps.

Summit night on the Machame Route starts from Barafu Camp around midnight. You climb by headlamp up a long, steep scree slope between the Rebmann and Ratzel glaciers to Stella Point on the crater rim, usually arriving around sunrise. Uhuru Peak is another hour or so along the rim.

It is very cold, often well below freezing with wind chill, so you wear all your layers. Keep moving steadily and take short breaks only. Your guide turns climbers back if they show serious signs of altitude sickness, because safety always comes before the summit.

• Keep water in an insulated bottle so it does not freeze
• Keep phone and camera batteries warm inside your jacket
• Eat small snacks often, even if you are not hungry
• Use trekking poles on the long scree descent

The Machame Route can be climbed year-round, but the driest windows, January to mid-March and June to October, give the best trail conditions. The rainforest and the Barranco Wall can be wet and slippery from March to May.