I love solo travel – having an adventure by yourself in a country far from home can be a transformative experience, not least because of all the interesting new people you meet along the way. The air traffic controllers who befriended me at their completely wild winter conference in a spa hotel at a Serbian ski resort will live long in the memory, as a quick example.

But despite thriving in the company of others, I can be quite a shy person, and I always dread those first awkward interactions at a guesthouse, or wherever I’m staying. Like starting a new job or heading to university for the first time, I just want to fast-forward to the part where everyone knows each other and feels relaxed enough to start riffing off each other’s jokes.

Of course, the setting helps. Dusty red ochre cliffs dotted with gnarled argan trees, that contrast so starkly with the sparkling blue sea.

On some trips that process can take a while - on others it might not happen at all - but without doubt the times I’ve bonded the quickest and most deeply with a group while travelling has been when I’ve been surfing in Morocco.

Of course, the setting helps. Dusty red ochre cliffs dotted with gnarled argan trees, that contrast so starkly with the sparkling blue sea. The beach vendors serving up tasty doughnuts and steaming, sweet mint tea from elegant silver teapots. The bright sunshine, the warm weather, and the angular coastline, which provides a wide choice of rideable waves for all levels of surfer.

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It’s blue health in Technicolor, and I’ve never met an unfriendly Moroccan surf coach. Most locals are proudly Amazigh – the indigenous people of North Africa – and glad to be making a living from teaching surfing, as opposed to fishing or farming as their ancestors were obliged to do.

But there is also something about the act of surfing that accelerates group bonding. Catching waves together – or trying and failing to catch waves, an inevitable part of the process – fosters collective joy or as surfers would call it “shared stoke”.

The Science of 'Mindsurfing'

Lesley McKenna is a passionate surfer, and three-time Winter Olympic snowboarder from Scotland, who now works as an academic specialising in the unique benefits these action sports can bring to individuals and communities.

“Learning to surf is very humbling,” she says. “When I first started, it felt like I was being rolled around in a washing machine at times, but it was also hugely rewarding. These are not emotions that often go together – it made me feel insignificant, but in a positive and freeing way as opposed to feeling threatened.”

Surfing connects you directly to the big forces of nature and reminds you of your place in the world.

Lesley terms this “positive insignificance” and she believes it’s what sets surfing apart from more traditional, mainstream sports. “Surfing connects you directly to the big forces of nature and reminds you of your place in the world as a human in the natural environment. You learn about yourself, but you also learn about those who you’re doing the sport with,” she says.

Her research suggests that’s because when you’re learning a new action sport, such as surfing, you have a sense of not only what the sport looks like when you’re doing it but also how it feels at the same time. Whoever you’re doing the sport with has the same, so when they’re watching you, they can “mindsurf” using their imagination and you can do the same when you’re watching them.

Surfers are communicating without using language, Lesley says, adding: “The expressive and interpretative ways we relate to waves – and the people we’re surfing with – provide rich and powerful shared experiences.”

As a result, the connections you get in a group are very strong and intricate, and words don’t always do a good job of describing them, that’s why surfers often communicate through pictures or films, she says.

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That bonding is why it feels so good to surf in a group and why surfing can accommodate all kinds of people. “You don’t need to be an extrovert or loud person,” she says. “You don’t even need to be super into it, you can be whatever you like because you just communicate by doing it.”

Sharing the stoke

Lesley believes the conversations which come out of these surf sessions tend to be very authentic, which chimes with a trip I had in Morocco, where I met a French surfer called Karine. We were surfing waves that were slightly out of our comfort zone – having only met for the first time that morning – and we were getting bashed around a lot. But at some point, we started to find the situation funny instead of scary and found that laughing together in the frothing waves took the edge off our fear.

We talked about life in a way I wouldn’t have expected with someone I’d just met.

Walking back from the beach to the hostel, our conversation felt easy and relaxed – we hung out for the rest of the holiday and still message each other now. Surfing can be an all-consuming sport, so we naturally talked about waves a lot that trip, but we also talked about life in a way I wouldn’t have expected with someone I’d just met.

Perhaps it was due to the lack of competition between us in the water. In Morocco, whenever Karine caught a wave, I was genuinely happy for her, almost as pleased as if I’d caught the wave myself and she seemed to feel the same about my waves.

I had a similar experience on another trip to Morocco with a group that included surfers from Manchester, Canada, and Switzerland. As we traded beautiful peeling green waves, whooping and cheering each other on, it was a joy to witness the level of the group improving as everyone’s confidence soared.

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For Lesley, that’s the epitome of shared stoke “where energy, excitement and motivation spread through a group” and she says it’s a common thing to witness in surfing, even at pro-level contests. “By creating community bonds, it transforms competitive contexts into collaborative spaces,” she says, “We’re celebrating everyone’s progression not just our own and once you crack it, that shared stoke is so rewarding and valuable and connecting.”

In the minibus on the way back to the hotel, our surf coach, who was also buzzing from the session, cranked the music up, as we cracked jokes and gazed blissfully out at the passing coastline. None of us had met before the trip and two of us were travelling solo, but I felt as happy and natural as if I were on holiday with a bunch of old friends.

Inspired? Check out our range of surfing holidays in Morocco now!

The mountains of Ladakh take on the colour of shadow and steel in the twilight hours. It is difficult to spot wildlife here, on the rocky trails of the Indian Himalaya, even in the bright of day, and this dim gleam and the camouflaging colours of the slate scree and limestone mountains certainly don’t make it any easier. So, when a silent paw is placed on a snow patch on a remote ridgeline, it is unlikely to be noticed - unless you know where to look.

"There are particular routes the snow leopards use," says Dorjee Tondup, a lead guide who has spent over a decade reading these mountains. "Generally, they move through rocky cliffs, and there are places where they leave their marks. That’s where we go, very early in the morning, before the light hits the mountain. Often our spotting teams see fresh tracks. We look out for fresh scratch marks or scat, and you see a lot of footprints - not just with binoculars, but the naked eye.”

I was watching a mother snow leopard with her cubs. She went off hunting while the cubs waited, and at the end of the day, in the last light of the evening.

The snow leopard is famously the most elusive of our world’s big cats, earning its title as the 'ghost of the mountains’. These remarkable animals live at high altitudes in extreme environments above 3,000m (9,842ft). Their smokey, cream coats and dark rings blend them into the surroundings. Each cat can travel over 25 miles (40km) in one night, and there are less than 8,000 left in the world.

The Hemis National Park in Ladakh, a territory between the Karakoram and the mighty Himalayas, has the highest density of snow leopards in the world.

The high-altitude landscape here is one of stark valleys and crumpled stone wilderness, rather than spiking, dramatic peaks. And it’s not easy to get to.

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Visitors first need to fly to Delhi, before catching a smaller plane, an hour and a half north to Leh, an ancient city which was once a crucial trading post on the old Silk Road. It is entrenched in Buddhist culture, with a palace built into the rocks. Leh is the gateway to Ladakh, set at 3,524m (11,562ft) above sea level. Only once you have acclimatised - take the time to explore the murals of Alchi and visit the 23m (75ft) golden statue of Maitreya at Likir Monastery - should you head beyond the city, into the unforgiving desert and rock of Hemis.

The Art of the Search

There is more to spotting a snow leopard than luck. “Most of the snow leopard's moments happens either early in the morning or in the evening," explains Dorjee. “On a 10 day trip, we spend a week in the field, and move around different valleys and villages. Most of the terrain has snow, but it depends on the winter.”

Teams of spotters head out before dawn, scanning ridgelines and checking tracks. "Our spotters can usually be about 90% sure whether tracks are from that morning, the previous night, or the day before," Dorjee says. It's then about patience. Teams stay in contact via walkie-talkie. Phone signal, while limited, has improved in recent years, though satellite phones remain off-limits in the area due to Indian border security rules. State-of-the-art scopes are crucial, and most sightings happen at a distance, seen through the lens of a telescope.

It can be that a kill - be it Himalayan ibex, blue sheep or an unlucky Ladakhi urial - provides the best chance of a sighting.

If there is no leopard by mid-morning, the team moves to higher ground, while spotters work away in the background. If a valley is quiet for two or three days on end, it may be that the whole operation moves to another valley.

"If we haven't found anything in our area, we can connect with others who tell us where a leopard has been seen," Dorjee says, which is why no itinerary is ever fixed. The villages you stay in depend on where the cats have been sighted.

“Generally it’s easy walking terrain,” Dorjee says. “It can get more complicated, depending on where we spot a snow leopard, or if we spot kill sites in steeper areas.” It can be that a kill - be it Himalayan ibex, blue sheep or an unlucky Ladakhi urial - provides the best chance of a sighting of a cat, feasting on its prey. “The leopard will stay at the same place until it finishes feeding,” Dorjee says, explaining that this can be days, giving travellers an excellent opportunity to watch them.

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Dorjee recalls some of his finest experiences watching these elusive animals.

“I’ve always enjoyed seeing snow leopards early in the morning or evening on the ridgeline," he says, "but last year I saw a snow leopard from 40 metres away, and I watched it for about an hour. It was unusually close. One of the most magical moments came when I was watching a mother snow leopard with her cubs. She went off hunting while the cubs waited, and at the end of the day, in the last light of the evening, she called the cubs, and they found their way back to her. It was a moment that was out of the box. It was emotional.”

In the Eyes of Locals

Snow leopard tourism has become a pivotal part of the economy in this remote region, particularly in winter, but none of it would have been possible without a quiet cultural shift that has taken place in recent decades.

Older or weaker snow leopards, unable to hunt wild prey efficiently, have been known to take a sheep, goat or donkey from a village corral instead of finding their own meal in the wild, and this led to tension with locals. The cats were once killed on sight here by local herders, who villainised them for lost livestock.

An NGO called the Snow Leopard Conservancy India Trust - founded in 2003 by Rinchen Wangchuk, a Ladakhi mountaineer and conservationist - set out to change that relationship, and foster a culture of coexistence. The organisation built more than 150 predator-proof livestock corrals in Ladakh, and in them, multiple-kill losses decreased by 90%. There is also now a community-run livestock insurance scheme which compensates farmers for their losses.

The end result is that there is less conflict between locals and leopards.

“Over the last couple of years, we’ve witnessed the snow leopard population slightly increasing,” says Dorjee, “particularly in Ladakh. It’s become one of the most popular places to find snow leopards. We’ve been spotting more of them."

A successful expedition depends on connections within the community.

It is a tale as old as time in conservation. The success of a project relies not on policing, but on addressing local concerns - and creating opportunities for them.

The Himalayan Homestay programme is at the heart of the tourism offering here, featuring around 200 homestays in 40 villages, including homes used regularly on snow leopard trips. It was the brainchild of a woman local to Ladakh, who suggested it would bring in more benefits for locals than camping, and would enrich the visitor experience. In practice, it means the opportunity to share a meal with a local family - perhaps Ladakhi skyu, a thumb-pressed pasta soup, cooked on a stove that has been used for generations - and to ask questions.

Some of that homestay income goes into a village conservation fund for tree planting, litter clean-up and the upkeep of local chortens and mani walls, and hosting duties rotate between families, so no single household monopolises the income stream. The Conservancy has also trained thousands of women in handicrafts and hundreds of young people as nature guides.

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“A successful expedition depends on connections within the community,” Dorjee says. “Not just with people in our own village, but with guides and spotters working with different companies and groups across different regions.”

People are adapting to this culture of coexistence.

Jikmet Nurbu is an adventure travel expert in Ladakh, and was born in Leh. He says that growing tourism has "made it easier to share the importance of coexistence" between people and predators. “Alongside the growing number of tourists in winter, people are adapting to this culture of coexistence."

The leopard's move from Endangered to (the slightly better) Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List in 2017 is widely credited, in part, to this model. These cats are worth more alive to the community, up on a ridgeline, than dead in a corral.

The Ghost of the Himalayas

For all that, no sighting of a snow leopard can ever be promised.

Across a typical week of tracking, there is a good chance of at least one sighting, but it is possible that some visitors may leave without seeing a snow leopard. The beauty of spotting such a cat is, after all, that it is truly wild.

"Finding a snow leopard isn’t easy, and it isn't everybody's cup of tea," Dorjee admits. “We might see tracks, or when they have cubs, they don’t travel far. Then the chances of a sighting are quite high. If one disappears for a couple of days, it might have found a kill. We also explain to clients how to spot signs themselves."

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Visitors invariably will see something remarkable - whether that’s ibex on the rocky slopes, golden eagles soaring, Himalayan wolves, or if fortunate, the near-mythical Eurasian lynx. What you are guaranteed if you visit Ladakh is an adventure; a journey to a high-altitude mountainscape; a place of shifting light - and each tourist visit upholds the value of these majestic leopards.

In villages in the Indian Himalaya where people once hunted snow leopards, now they guide people to see them instead. The cats are a source not only of income, but pride. It is a transformation seen in the tracking at first light, in the spotters who read the rocks and ridgelines, looking for the Himalayan Ghost.

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I’ve always been a water baby. I’ve spent a good chunk of my life surfing and travelling to coastal places, but sailing had somehow escaped me. So, the idea of spending five days on a boat in Greece's Cyclades Islands filled me up with equal measures of excitement... and concern.

As someone who can barely sit still through a full day at work, I wondered whether being confined to a boat would end up feeling like a big mistake.

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Three weeks after clicking ‘Book Now’, I was stepping aboard Bianca, a 15.8 metre (52ft) monohull, alongside seven strangers and our skipper, Dimi. The group was exactly what you’d expect from a Much Better Adventures trip: people from all corners of the world, in their 20s through to their 50s. Friends escaping work for a few days, a couple celebrating their 25th anniversary, a solo traveller fresh from a Hyrox race, and me, also travelling solo.

Turns out, my worries were severely misplaced. Somewhere between watching seabirds glide over the water, taking the helm of the boat, helping to hoist the sails, reading on deck, chatting with the group and patiently waiting for dolphins to make an appearance, my concerns about boredom completely vanished.

Here are five things I wish I’d known before sailing the Greek Islands.

1. It's a proper live-aboard adventure

This isn't one of those sailing trips where you spend all day on the water before checking into a nice hotel each evening. You're living on the boat for four nights.

It never felt like chores; it made us feel like a little floating household.

You'll likely share a cabin (unless you've booked your own) and you'll quickly learn where everything lives below deck, and that everyone chips in. Breakfasts, drinks, light cleaning, tidying up after meals  – it all becomes part of the rhythm of life onboard. It never felt like chores; it made us feel like a little floating household.

2. You won't get cabin fever

This was my biggest surprise. Most evenings you'll dock in a different harbour, so there's plenty of time to stretch your legs. Morning runs, sunset hikes, wandering through tiny villages, finding a beach, grabbing a gelato, or popping into the local market to top up on snacks  -  there's always something to do.

A little tip from me: if you stop in Kythnos, go for a run and explore some of the nearby coves. And if you make it to Serifos, the hike from Livadi up to Chora is well worth the hour or so climb. Your legs might disagree halfway through, but the views definitely won't.

So no, I never once felt trapped on the boat. Quite the opposite.

3. Fresh water suddenly becomes precious

Let's talk showers. Water is limited onboard, so you become surprisingly aware of every litre. Some ports have shower facilities, which I'd highly recommend making the most of, but showering on the boat isn't exactly a five-star hotel experience. Unless, of course, you embrace it.

It felt like discovering a quieter side of Greece I didn't know still existed in the middle of summer.

One of my favourite little rituals became showering on deck at sunset after a swim, surrounded by nothing but sea. If you've got long hair like me, there might be the odd evening where you go to bed feeling a little saltier than usual  – but honestly, that's all part of the experience.

Also, a little public service announcement to save you five minutes of confusion: the shower head actually pulls off the tap. You're welcome.

4. You can still find quiet Greece… even in summer

I was fully prepared for crowds. We travelled in late June. Schools were breaking up across Europe, and I'd just spent a couple of days in Athens weaving my way through tourists. I assumed the islands would be similar, but I was wrong.

One of the biggest luxuries of travelling by sailboat is that, for hours at a time, it's just you and the Aegean. And when we stopped for swims? Maybe another boat or two. That's it. That deep blue becomes your only companion.

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By the time we reached each harbour, the villages felt alive without ever feeling overwhelmed. Local life carried on around us, tavernas buzzed, people gathered in the squares  –  but there were no giant cruise ships, packed beaches or streets overflowing with holidaymakers. It felt like discovering a quieter side of Greece I didn't know still existed in the middle of summer.

5. It'll make you want your own boat

Yes, really. By the end of the trip, our conversations had somehow evolved into marina fees, boat repairs, shared ownership and browsing boats for sale online. I even caught myself checking whether my credit limit could somehow stretch to buying one (spoiler alert: it can't).

Learning enough about sailing to feel like I was genuinely part of the crew rather than just a passenger, I left wondering how soon I could do it all again.

I don't even know how to start the engine properly yet, but somehow that didn't seem to matter. Sailing has a funny way of getting under your skin.

And that's probably the biggest thing I wish I'd known before booking. I thought I'd be counting down the hours until we got back to land. Instead, I found myself wishing the crossings were longer.

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Looking back, it wasn't just the islands  –  although they were incredible. It was watching the sunrise from the deck, the Greek salads, lying under impossibly starry skies, cutting through the water under full sail with the boat leaning over at 20 knots, laughing through bouts of seasickness together, and learning enough about sailing to feel like I was genuinely part of the crew rather than just a passenger.

And of course, there was our skipper, Dimi. An incredibly experienced sailor, endlessly patient, calm through rougher seas, always happy to answer questions, teach us the basics, recommend the best local tavernas, and somehow make the whole week feel effortless. I boarded wondering whether I'd enjoy four days on a sailboat. I left wondering how soon I could do it all again.

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It was dinnertime at Barafu Camp on Mount Kilimanjaro, just hours before we’d start the long climb toward Uhuru Peak, the highest point in Africa. But for now we were supposed to eat, rest, and try to squeeze in some sleep.

My friend Heidi handed me a packet of electrolyte powder for hydration. I glanced at the package: Mojito flavor. I couldn’t help but laugh. I was high from the altitude, giddy with the thought of what we were about to attempt. But mostly, I was delighted by the sheer improbability of the moment — drinking a faux mojito on Mount Kilimanjaro — especially since giving up alcohol is what brought me to that very place.

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I had known for years that my relationship with alcohol was problematic. But self-awareness doesn't necessarily translate into change, especially when your environment makes the habit seem normal. I live in a resort town in California, where breakfast means bottomless mimosas and day drinking is what most people do as a hobby, followed closely by pickleball.

We were standing on the rooftop of Africa, and everything was brushed with gold.

Then the Covid pandemic happened.

Lockdown erased the usual distractions; no dinner parties, no blurry afterhours. It was simply me and a recycling bin that quickly filled with empty wine bottles. Every morning, upon waking, I’d squint at the light in my room, feel a hot, achy thud behind my eyes and wonder: is this Covid or a hangover?

The pandemic had become a daily, unrelenting reminder of how time isn’t guaranteed. And there I was, night after night, pouring another drink and watching the hours dissolve. A creeping thought nagged at me. Is this really what I’m going to do with my life?

On 4 August 2020, I stopped. There was nothing ceremonial or significant about the date. I simply decided not to drink that night. I didn’t drink the next night either. After a while, the nights stacked up.

In those early weeks, I was restless and anxious. I didn’t know what to do with all the mental space that alcohol once occupied. So I found an online community of sober Peloton bike riders. We didn’t know each other in real life, but we showed up every day in the same virtual world, cheering for each other.

The rhythm of boots on dirt, heart pumping at a steady cadence, quieted the anxiety I’d been carrying around...

Eventually the walls of my home started to feel too close. The rides gave me momentum, but not quite relief. For that, I needed sky and distance. The feeling of moving through a landscape bigger than my boxy, Palm Springs condo.

I turned to the outside world, first starting a 52 hikes challenge with my family. We committed to tackle 52 unique trails over the course of a year.

I’ve lived in the California desert since 2005, but the challenge revealed corners of the landscape I had somehow missed. Volcanic mud pots that bubbled and hissed. Hidden palm oases at the bottom of deep canyons. Abandoned silver mines that, over time, folded back into the mountains.

Even the hikes that weren’t so dramatic were rejuvenating. The rhythm of boots on dirt, heart pumping at a steady cadence, quieted the anxiety I’d been carrying around. I climbed until the trail opened onto a ridge, stood still to catch my breath, and looked out over the wonder below. The world felt wide again.

My life felt wider too. When I quit drinking, my fear was that sobriety would make my days smaller. I worried that dinners out would feel awkward or that celebrations would be muted. I expected to be lonely with no adventure on the horizon. I’d lose access to joy.

Hiking also gave me structure, which became the scaffolding I built my sober life upon.

It turned out to be the opposite. Outside, nobody cared whether I drank or not, and the trail didn’t ask anything of me. Rather, the land was generous, offering hillsides carpeted with wildflowers, natural pools and flocks of quail, one peak after another.

The outdoors deepened my community too. My casual acquaintances became sweat-and-blister friendships, and they proved it. On one hike, a friend slipped and fell, breaking her arm. We rallied to support her, crafting a splint with a hoodie and inching forward until we got her out of the desert and to a hospital.

Hiking also gave me structure, which became the scaffolding I built my sober life upon: A trek on the calendar. A trailhead at the end of a dirt road. A reason to get out of bed and lace up my boots. Without the background noise from alcohol, my curiosity crept back in. I tried things I’d filed away under “Someday,” like snowshoeing, skiing, ballet, cold plunges, caving. Each attempt felt like opening a small door that had been stuck shut for years.

Around that time, Heidi mentioned climbing Mount Kilimanjaro. A few years earlier, I would have dismissed the idea immediately. It sounded like something other people did. I certainly wasn’t the kind of person who would fly around the world to climb mountains.

Or was I? I surprised myself by agreeing to go.

I trained with steep hikes, sometimes tossing barbells into my backpack for extra weight. I cross-trained on my bike and practiced yoga. I booked a flight to Tanzania.

Sitting at Barafu Camp with a “mojito” in my hands, it struck me again how unlikely the whole journey had been. A decision that felt small at the time — not drinking one night — rippled outward in ways I never could have predicted.

Around midnight we clipped on our headlamps and stepped out into the dark. The trail climbed immediately. A thin line of lights stretched ahead of us, zigzagging across the slope like a constellation. The guides set a deliberate pace: pole pole, slowly, slowly.

The mountain was silent except for the crunch of boots and my own heartbeat.

At that high altitude, the goal wasn’t to rush. Just to keep moving. One step at a time. Then another.

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The night felt enormous. The mountain was silent except for the crunch of boots and my own heartbeat. Hours passed this way, the trail rising steadily toward the sky. I listened to Beastie Boys on my headphones and hallucinated a bit from the lack of sleep (turns out there’s not a hot cocoa stand at the top of Kilimanjaro).

We had just arrived at the summit when a pale line of light appeared along the horizon. The sky shifted from black to deep blue. Suddenly the sun broke free. We were standing on the rooftop of Africa, and everything was brushed with gold. The tears of joy froze to my face.

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Geiranger, Norway is a picturesque tourist village at the head of the Geirangerfjord - the jewel in the crown of the Norwegian fjords - on the west coast of the country. This is the gateway to one of the two UNESCO-listed fjords that make up the West Norwegian Fjords World Heritage Site (the other being the Nærøyfjord), and it draws visitors one simple reason - it is one of the most beautiful stretches of water in the world. This guide covers how to get to Geiranger, when to go, what to do and where to hike while you're there. While cruises are popular on the Geirangerfjord, our focus is on seeing the fjord from the cockpit of a kayak, not a ferry deck.

Here's everything you need to get your adventure started in Geiranger, Norway.

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What is the Geirangerfjord?

The Geirangerfjord is a remarkable fjord system - a 9.3-mile (15km) stretch of water, branching off the Storfjord system in Møre og Romsdal county, western Norway, lined by cliffs which rise as high as 1,700m (5,577ft) above the water.

The Geirangerfjord was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2005 - alongside the Nærøyfjord, under the title of the West Norwegian Fjords - and the village of Geiranger sits right at the head of the fjord, looking down the barrel.

The fjord is hugely popular with tourists, not least because Disney used the cliffs and waterfalls here as a reference for the kingdom of Arendelle in Frozen. The most famous of those waterfalls is the Seven Sisters, a site comprising of seven separate streams falling down a cliff face from 410m (1,345ft). Opposite it, there is a single stream fall known as The Suitor, with the old folk tales telling of how the Suitor was eternally trying (and failing) to win the favour of the Sisters.

Along the Geirangerfjord, there are farms wedged onto the and in between the cliffs, including one at Skageflå, an abandoned farm dotted with grass-roofed cabins which is the focal point of a popular hike. The walk is 8.4 miles (or 13.6km) out-and-back from Geiranger. and takes you to a stunning viewpoint onto the fjord. On a sunny day, the water glows green, coloured by the glacial meltwater.

How do you get to Geiranger?

There are three key ways to reach Geiranger:

• The Hellesylt–Geiranger ferry across the fjord
• By road via the Eagle Road or Trollstigen
• By flying into Ålesund and driving the rest of the way. There are daily flights from both Oslo and Bergen. The resulting drive is two and a half hours.

You can also get the bus to Geiranger from Oslo or Bergen. From both it’s around a nine to 10 hour journey. If you’re driving of course, it’s a little - but not much - quicker, and note that in winter. While you can’t get the train from Bergen to Geiranger, a train from Oslo to Dombås the Åndalsnes will take around five and a half hours, then you'll need to connect on a bus. The views are fantastic.

To give you your bearings a little, here’s a map (and if you want a full Norway fjords map, click that link):

Geiranger is actually the third biggest cruise ship port in Norway, with hundreds of thousands of tourists passing through Geiranger each summer, making it one of the most visited tourist sites in Norway. Ferries run across the fjord, for sightseeing and for transport purposes, and as of 1 January 2026, all ferries and tourist boats must operate on emission-free energy sources to protect the area.

The Hellesylt to Geiranger ferry

The ferry ride from Hellesylt to Geiranger takes around an hour. It runs from March to mid-December depending on the operator, and it's the one of the best ways to see the waterfalls here without booking a cruise. The ferries sail past the Seven Sisters and the Suitor, past Skageflå, and past farms and shoreline smallholdings that were lived in and worked until as recently as the 1960s.

Foot passengers can simply turn up at the ferry port to get on the boat. If you're bringing a car, book ahead in summer, when the crossing is busiest.

By road and by air

There are two scenic driving routes that lead in and out of Geiranger. From the north, the Eagle Road (Ørnevegen) climbs out of the village in a run of hairpins to a viewpoint that's become an attraction in its own right. From Åndalsnes, the Trollstigen route brings you in via eleven more hairpins and a viewpoint down over the valley — but it's a seasonal road, normally open from late April to October or November, and closed completely through winter, so check current status if you're travelling outside summer.

There's no airport in Geiranger itself. The nearest is Ålesund Airport (AES), with daily flights from Oslo and Bergen taking under an hour. From Ålesund, it's roughly 108km (67 miles) to Geiranger — about two and a half hours by car, including a short ferry hop across the Eidsdal–Linge crossing. Buses and trains also run from Oslo and Bergen, though they take considerably longer: the train from Oslo to the region takes around five and a half hours, and buses from either city run nine to ten hours.

By road and by air

There are two scenic routes lead in and out of Geiranger for those arriving by car. From the north, the Eagle Road (Ørnevegen) climbs out of the village on hairpin bends to a famous viewpoint. From Åndalsnes, the Trollstigen route brings you in via 11 more hairpins and a valley view - but it's a seasonal road, normally open from late April to October or November, and closed through winter.

There's no airport in Geiranger. The nearest is Ålesund Airport (AES), with daily flights from Oslo and Bergen taking under an hour. From Ålesund, it's roughly 108km (67 miles) to Geiranger, two and a half hours by car, including a ferry hop across the Eidsdal-Linge crossing. The train from Oslo to the area takes five and a half hours, and buses from either Oslo to Bergen are nine to 10 hours.

What are the best things to do in Geiranger?

In our view, the best ways to see the Geirangerfjord are self-powered - in the cockpit of a kayak with a paddle in hand, or on foot, on a scenic hiking trail.

Kayaking is the best way to feel the power of the cliffs of the Geirangerfjord, and close enough to feel the spray of the famous waterfalls. Hiking is the best way to get up above the fjord walls, and to put their magnitude into perspective. It should be noted that winter conditions can make these hikes inaccessible -

• Hike to Storsæterfossen waterfall. A well signposted hike which even has a stand with walking sticks at the start. You’ll follow a stone route with hundreds of steps made by Sherpas from Nepal, and finished in 2014, and end up behind the Storsæterfossen waterfall, which will be falling over your head.
• Hike to Skageflå Farm. Take a boat out to the base of the cliffs, then climb a steep route up to the abandoned farm at Skageflå. Here, you'll find a series of old, wooden farmhouses with grass roofs, and a sublime view over the fjord.
• Geiranger Kayak Centre. Take to the water for a day of self-guided paddling or better yet, take a two-hour or four-hour guided tour with an expert.
• Visit the Norwegian Fjord Centre. This small museum in Geiranger is the World Heritage centre and an education hub for the West Norwegian Fjords.
• Drive or ride to the viewpoints. Dalsnibba, Flydalsjuvet and Ørnesvingen each provide a different panorama out over Geirangerfjord. At 1,500m (4,912ft) Dalsnibba is the highest viewpoint reachable by road of any fjord in Europe. This is also known as the Geiranger Skywalk platform.

If you're looking to immerse yourself in the fjords, our kayaking in Norway trip offers the opportunity to kayak, hike and wild camp on the Nærøyfjord.

When Should You Visit Geiranger?

The best time to visit Geiranger, and the Norwegian Fjords, is from May to September. This is when the roads are clear, the ferries are running, and when the viewpoints are all open to the public and accessible. June is the peak for waterfalls, while if you're looking to avoid the peak season and cruise tourists, you should opt for May or September. In the winter months, the hiking routes and the roads can be icy, danger and inaccessible, while ferries can also stop.

Can you visit the Geirangerfjord without a cruise?

Yes. Cross the fjord by public ferry, paddle a kayak or go via the Eagle road or Trollstigen. Since 1 January 2026, passenger ships under 10,000 tonnes have been required to run on zero-emission fuel inside Norway's UNESCO fjords, including the Geirangerfjord. Larger cruise ships have until 2032 to comply. This could impact the number of cruises taking place on the fjord in the future.

Where to Hike Near Geiranger?

• Hike behind Storsæterfossen waterfall. A well signed hike on stone steps, leading behind the Storsæterfossen waterfall, with excellent views.
• Hike to Skageflå Farm. A popular route to an old farm with with grass-roofed houses, and a far-reaching, unbeatable view over the fjord.
• Hike to Homlong. Starting at Skagehola and winding up. You’re on the fjord the full time, and earn a beautiful view of the fjord and Seven Sisters waterfall.

For more on hiking the fjords, see: The Most Accessible Fjords to Hike in Norway.

Geiranger FAQs

How many days do you need in Geiranger?

Two full days is enough to see Geiranger. One for the Hellesylt ferry crossing and viewpoints, and one for a hike or a kayak trip on the fjord. Add a third day if you want to combine it with Trollstigen or the Eagle Road as a scenic drive rather than a quick pass-through. To really immerse yourself, camp on the fjord.

Can you swim in the Geirangerfjord?

Yes, you can swim in the Geirangerfjord, though being fed by glacial run-off, the water is cold even in summer. fed as it is by glacial meltwater. On our own fjords trips, a cold-water dip off the cwild ampsite becomes something of a ritual.

Is the Geirangerfjord a UNESCO World Heritage Site?

Yes, the Geirangerfjord has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2005, listed jointly with the Nærøyfjord as the 'West Norwegian Fjords' for their outstanding natural beauty and geology.

How long is the ferry from Hellesylt to Geiranger?

The Hellesylt to Geiranger ferry takes about an hour, running roughly from March to mid-December depending on the operator.

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Pulpit Rock, or Preikestolen in Norwegian, is a site so improbable it looks man-made. This flat slab of granite is an almost perfect square, jutting out of a mountainside 604 metres (1,982ft) high, and providing a postcard-perfect view out over the Lysefjord in southwestern Norway.

The cliff was carved out by glacial activity at the end of the last Ice Age...

The plateau of Pulpit Rock measures roughly 25m x 25m. It’s the end-point one of Norway’s most popular day hikes, located 25 miles (40km) from Stavanger, the nearest city. It’s unlikely that you’ll ever find yourself alone at Preikestolen. This is the busiest and best-known of the three icons of Lysefjord - the others being the Kjeragbolten boulder, lodged between two cliffs, 1,000m (3,380ft) high, and the 4,444 wooden steps up Flørli. But, for those in the know, here are back-routes up the mountain to Pulpit Rock for a bit more peace en route.

However you get there, this is a place where the beauty of the Norwegian fjords is fully on show - dramatic cliffs, layering mountains, water twisting out of sight.

The route descriptions in this article are short summaries, designed to inspire but not to serve any navigational purpose. They are not intended to guide you on the route and further mapping and planning (or a local guide!) will be required if you want to safely walk any of the trails featured.

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What is Pulpit Rock? Preikestolen, explained

Pulpit Rock is a granite ledge which looks out over Lysefjord in southwestern Norway. It’s a dramatic beauty spot, and the unusual, square nature of the ledge is a particularly fascinating geological feature. The cliff was carved out by glacial activity at the end of the last Ice Age, and today it’s one of the most recognisable images of Norway - a flat-topped ledge with a full vista of the fjord below.

The name, Pulpit Rock, comes from the shape of the rock. A pulpit is a raised platform in a church where a clergy member might stand to deliver a sermon. The parallels in shape are obvious, and there’s also something spiritual about this site, hovering 604 metres (1,982ft) above the water of the fjord. There is a deep crack (or fissure), roughly half a metre wide and several metres deep, which runs along the top of the cliff, though geologists deem the rock stable.

How hard is the Pulpit Rock hike?

The Pulpit Rock hike is moderately challenging for fit hikers. Being a popular tourist spot, the walk is often undertaken by people with little to no experience, and predictably, the route is much more challenging for such visitors.

The route traditionally starts from the Preikestolen Fjellstue mountain lodge. From here, it’s a 2.5 mile (4km) walk one-way (so 5 miles/8km for the return trip). The trail is steep, starting on a gravel path, then turning into a mountain trail. Visit Norway note that "the roundtrip takes about four hours". This will vary from person to person. They say "the hike is graded as medium difficulty".

There are some stone steps and boardwalks but the natural areas, paved with stone, are the most beautiful, looking out over woodland and water. You’ll pass through a marsh and cross bridges, looking out over little lakes. The second part of the trail is particularly scenic, with far-reaching views of the surrounding mountains, deep and dramatic, covered in forest. Soon, you’ll emerge out to Lysefjord, staring right down the barrel of the fjord. Pulpit Rock is just beyond, coming into view only when you’ve reached the very end of the trail.

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The last stretch of trail to Pulpit Rock is on a trail which is entirely exposed on one side, with the fjord and a sharp drop on your left. It can induce vertigo. The trail signage uses Pulpit Rock and the Norwegian Preikestolen interchangeably.

It begins with a short paddle across a lake, before using a little-known path to Neverdalsfjellet. There's a series of scrambles and rocky viewpoints before you reach Preikestolen...

On our Hike the Norwegian Fjords trip, our guides lead you to Pulpit Rock by a hidden route that sidesteps the busy main trail. It begins with a short paddle across a lake, before taking a scenic path to the peak of Neverdalsfjellet (706m). There's a series of scrambles and rocky viewpoints before you reach Preikestolen - the square plateau above the fjord. This is a tougher route than the tourist trail, but it’s also quieter and more rewarding. This route will have you hiking for between six and seven hours, including the descent.

How to get to Pulpit Rock from Stavanger

You can reach the trailhead for Pulpit Rock from Stavanger by taking a 45-minute express bus or by driving. Since the opening of the Ryfast subsea tunnel back in 2019, buses are direct and no longer require a ferry connection. If you’re driving, be aware that the parking fills up quickly, so you’re best to arrive as early as possible. There are campsites near Pulpit Rock, and wild camping is legal in Norway thanks to the Allemannsretten, Norway's famous right to roam.

When to hike Pulpit Rock

The best months to hike to Pulpit Rock are from May to September, when the trail is clear of snow and ice and the sunlight provides long, bright days, ideal for walking. June, July and August are the busiest months of the year here.

During winter, experience of hiking in icy and snowy conditions is a necessity. While it is still possible to hike to Pulpit Rock in winter, crampons and other winter equipment may be required. The days are also significantly shorter, with only a brief window of daylight in which to hike. The route can be slippy, extra challenging and ultimately quite perilous. This rules it out for most people.

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Regardless of when you hike the route, pay close attention to the weather forecast, which can change rapidly. While this is a popular hike, it is still a high-mountain route in a wild area, with all the dangers that entails. If you're weighing up when to go, our Hike the Norwegian Fjords trip runs from May to September - so the best hiking window and the bookable windows are the same dates.

Kjerag and Kjeragbolten: the boulder in the sky

The cliffs of Kjerag rise more than 1,000 metres (3,380ft) above the water of the fjord. On top of those cliffs sits Kjeragbolten - a boulder wedged between two rock faces, which has become one of Norway’s most photographed spots.

To get to the Kjeragbolten trailhead, you’ll need to drive up the famous Lyseveien Road - one of Norway’s most spectacular roads, with a full 27 switchback bends on the way. The hike is a six-10 hour, 6.8-mile (11km) walk with 850 metres of uphill and downhill. It involves the use of wires, so it is a demanding hike even for experienced walkers. After a steep ascent from the trailhead, the route continues across smooth, granite slabs and a mountain ridge to reach Kjeragbolten. From here, you’ll walk on across the clifftops with panoramic vistas of the fjord.

To get to the trailhead, you’ll need to drive up the Lyseveien Road - with a full 27 switchback bends on the way.

There are some light scrambling sections (and some steep, strenuous sections with chains you can hold onto), but it is mostly gradual, consistent uphill. The clifftops have some vertigo-inducing moments, but none more so than Kjeragbolten itself. Some brave souls choose to stand on the boulder to get a photograph. It goes without saying that this is a risky undertaking, with potentially grave consequences. If you do so, you do it at your own risk. The boulder is five cubic metres and hangs 984m (3,228ft) above Lysefjorden.

Kjerag is walked on Much Better Adventures' Hike the Norwegian Fjords trip.

The Flørli 4444 steps

Flørli is a hamlet with no roads, meaning it is reachable only by ferry or on foot. The hamlet sits deep into Lysefjord and famously, it provides access to a 4,444 staircase - as steep as you get - which leads from the edge of the water up the mountain face. This is the longest wooden staircase in the world, running alongside an old hydroelectric pipeline. You’ll want to take a few pauses to catch your breath and take in the views along the way. When you reach the top, wander through a forest and past waterfalls, before heading back down.

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Flørli is walked on Much Better Adventures Hike the Norwegian Fjords trip, reached as part of the itinerary rather than as a puzzle you have to solve.

Lysefjord: the fjord at the heart of it all

The Lysefjord is the 26-mile fjord that connects Pulpit Rock, the Kjerag and Kjeragbolten walk and the Flørli 4444 steps.

The fjord is 45 minutes in a car from Stavanger in southwestern Norway, and it is a sublime, stunning site of natural beauty which fits all the stereotypes you might have of a Norwegian fjord. Here, the granite walls rise sheer and straight out of the water, reaching heights of over 1,000 metres (3,380ft) at times.

Moving roughly from west to east, Pulpit Rock is the square, granite lookout point above the fjord’s outer reaches. Flørli is deeper into Lysefjord, partway along it and reachable only by boat, and Kjerag rises in the innermost stretches of the Lysefjord, near Lysebotn. Visiting each of these sites on one trip gives you a real sense of journeying through the Lysefjord, and discovering the full site.

Our map of the Norwegian fjords puts the location of Lysefjord into context.

Hike all three Lysefjord icons on one trip

If you'd rather not plan three separate hikes, three separate transfers, and have three separate logistical headaches, our Hike the Norwegian Fjords trip does it for you. Over 6 nights, and from £1,823pp, departing May to September, local guides will lead you across Preikestolen, Kjerag and the Flørli 4444 steps.

You'll take a guided ascent of Pulpit Rock timed to beat the crowds, visit the fixed-chain sections of Kjerag with someone who's done it before, and reach the boat-access-only climb at Flørli. It's a small-group trip, with like-minded people.

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This trip also goes beyond these sites, into Jenafjell and the highlands (near the protected habitat of the world's southernmost herd of wild reindeer), and on the Lysfjord panoramic trail, climbing to the 406m Hatten for a pinch-me view.

Pulpit Rock FAQs

How long does the Pulpit Rock hike take?

Most hikers complete the classic Pulpit Rock hike in between four and eight hours, depending on fitness and the time spent at the top. The trail runs five miles (8km) out and back. It’s a half-day hike for most experienced walkers, but can be longer if the trail is busy. The walk on our Hike the Norwegian Fjords trip takes a different route, and six to seven hours.

Can you hike Pulpit Rock without a guide?

Absolutely. The route is well-marked and well-maintained. The majority of the 300,000 people who hike the route each year do so independently, without a guide. Where a guide earns their keep is their ability to guide you onto lesser-visited, quieter trails, and combining the tougher, further-flung icons of the fjord (Kjerag, Flørli) in one trip - handling the logistics and adding local flavour.

Is Pulpit Rock dangerous?

There are no barriers at the edge of Pulpit Rock, and there is a long drop on the other side, but the walk is not inherently more dangerous than any other hike. The trail - in good summer conditions - is not particularly demanding for those with good fitness. The biggest dangers come from bad conditions, such as fog, rain, ice or snow requiring winter equipment, or from underestimating the terrain. Wear suitable footwear and treat the outdoors with respect.

Pulpit Rock or Trolltunga: which should you hike?

Pulpit Rock and Trolltunga are in different places, around 137 miles (220km) apart. Trolltunga is a much longer, tougher hike (around 10-12 hours). It also leads to a spot of immense beauty, but the wonder of Pulpit Rock is that you can then combine it witha trip to Kjerag and the 4,444 Flørli steps after.

Hike to Pulpit Rock on our Hike the Norwegian Fjords adventure!

With its unique mix of dramatic fjords, rugged coastline and wildly beautiful islands, Norway is the ideal place to explore by kayak. Swapping the cruise ship for this self-powered vessel will get you closer to nature, and let you experience it in peace. You'll get an intimate glimpse into this country’s vast and wonderful waterways, which are bursting with wildlife you can meet at eye-level. Nothing beats the feeling of paddling through the deep blue waters of a glacial fjord flanked by towering cliffs, or gliding past icebergs and glaciers in the remote Arctic Circle. Norway's right to roam, or Allemannsretten, means you can camp almost anywhere here too - including on the banks of a fjord. That means you can turn a day trip into a multi-day adventure, with the season here running roughly form April to September.

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From the lesser-known spots like the Nærøyfjord to some of the country’s best-loved beauty spots, here are our pick of the best places to kayak in Norway.

What a multi-day kayak trip in Norway is actually like

A typical day on the water starts by loading your kayaks, then following the shoreline and getting into the rhythm of paddling. You'll have lunch at a scenic spot by the side of the water, paddle on down the fjord, and then later make camp at night on a grassy clearing or a beach, sleeping in a tent beneath the stars.

The first day on a trip can be the toughest, as guides tend to plan a long days and you're still finding your speed. This isn't consistent between trips though, and of course, weather conditions (particularly wind) play a big factor too. Pack lists are important, because the more you bring, the more weight is in your kayak.

The pay-off is the feeling of peace that you get when you're in the cockpit of a kayak, staring up at huge rock walls, and the evenings spent cooking over a fire, wild swimming and then camping out in the wild.

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Where to go kayaking in Norway

The UNESCO-protected Western Fjords are hard to beat for multi-day sea kayaking in Norway. Lofoten is the Arctic alternative for something wilder.

The western fjords: Kayaking through a UNESCO World Heritage-listed fjord like the Nærøyfjord is an unforgettable experience. At sea level, the surrounding walls make you feel minuscule in the kayak. There are tumbling waterfalls, deep blue water dotted with seals, and silent, stunning wild camp spots. The narrow nature of this fjord means you won't see many cruise ships on it, ideal for kayaking. You'll pass abandoned farms and mountains perfect for a day hike.

The Lofoten Islands: An otherworldly archipelago in the Arctic Circle where mountains rise up from a wild sea, and red fishing cabins line the shores. The hidden inlets, white sand beaches and sweeping rock faces are best explored by sea. The fjords and skerries of Lofoten are accessible to even first-time paddlers.

Here's some more detail on the key fjords for kayaking around Norway:

The Nærøyfjord, Western Fjords

The Nærøyfjord is often said to be the most beautiful arm of the huge Sognefjord. It's UNESCO-protected and runs 10.5 miles (17km) long. What makes this such an impressive place to paddle through, though, is the fact that it is so narrow - just 250m wide in parts. With fjord walls rising up over 1,000m (3,280ft), that makes for some extremely impressive views from the cockpit of a kayak.

The Nærøyfjord is where we go for our hike, kayak and wild camp trips in the Norwegian Fjords, picked because it is perhaps the most remarkable of them all.

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Lofoten Islands, Northern Norway

The Lofoten Islands is an archipelago in the Arctic Circle. Mountainous volcanic islands rise up from turquoise water, while traditional red fishing cabinets line the rocky shores. The hidden inlets, white sand beaches and sweeping rock faces are best explored by sea. With the water warmed by the Gulf Stream, kayaking between the islands is the way to go.

The main islands - Austvågøy, Vestvågøy, Flakstadøy and Moskenesøy - are separated from the mainland by Vestfjorden, famous for its cod fishery and orca population in winter. These islands get busy in peak season, so try one of the smaller islands, such as Skrova, for epic views without the crowds.

The fjords and skerries of Lofoten are more accessible for a first-timer than some of Norway’s more remote spots, yet they also contain some of the country’s finest scenery and wildlife. There's a reason the Lofoten Islands are so iconic. With its dramatic mountain landscape, kayaking trips can also be paired with climbing and mountaineering.

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Hidra Island, Southern Norway

Known as the Riviera of Norway, Hidra, near Flekkefjord, is a beautiful island with a rich maritime history. The island - located where southern and western Norway meet - was inhabited by ancient Vikings. It's split by the Rasvågfjorden, while the Eie Canal was built through the remaining isthmus for small boats to pass along. Glide through its calm, kayak-friendly waters, down narrow channels lined with the island’s white-painted clapboard church and colourful boathouses. Or paddle between the fishing villages of Rasvag and Kirkehavn, where a number of small isles are scattered through the sea.

Svalbard, the Arctic

Halfway between Norway and the North Pole, Svalbard is remote. This is a wondrous archipelago of snowy peaks, untouched glaciers and the Northern Lights, where polar bears outnumber people. In summer the midnight sun arrives, bringing with it long days that are perfect for paddling. Navigate neon-blue glaciers and push misshapen lumps of ice with your paddle. When your arms are tired, pull your kayak ashore and explore the abandoned settlement of Hiorthhamn on foot, or lace up your walking boots for a mountain hike, keeping your eyes peeled for whales and reindeer.

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Finnøy Island, Stavanger Region

A great choice for keen twitchers (birdwatching), Finnøy Island is located in an easily accessible area between the cities of Haugesund and Stavanger. The island is home to a protected bird sanctuary that is teeming with different seabirds, such as the white-tailed sea eagle - Europe’s largest bird. While there are plenty of hiking trails across the island, the best way to glimpse the wonderful animals and wildlife is from a kayak. Just make sure you enjoy the view from a distance and don’t disturb the birds. The island also has a strong agricultural heritage – it grows around 40% of Norway’s tomatoes and has an annual tomato festival.

Oslofjord, Oslo

Ideal for those looking to add some adventure to a city break, Oslofjord’s waterways and islands are just minutes away from the city centre. This is a great option for first-time paddlers looking for an introduction to adventure travel. It will give you a taste for what the rest of the country has to offer. The 62 mile (100km) Oslofjord is a protected area of sea dotted with islands of varying sizes. Kayaking is the best way to reach the numerous beaches and isles surrounding the city. Escape the urban bustle and see it from the water.

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How hard is kayaking in the fjords?

You don't need prior experience to join a guided fjord trip, but you do need a good level of fitness and a strong mindset. Paddling for multiple days tests your core, as well as from your shoulders and the muscles in your back.

Kayaking independently is only suitable if you've got prior sea kayaking experience. You'll have the freedom to go wherever you want, but will have to sort  your own logistics, including how you are going to reach the start point, navigation, food and sourcing equipment (notably, a kayak). That's why we'd recommend joining a guided kayak expedition in Norway if you have less experience. You can focus on learning and enjoying yourself without having to worry about the logistics. You'll appreciate the skills of your guide as they teach you techniques and take you to spots that only the locals know. And of course, you'll get to meet like-minded people that you can bond with over the highs (stunning views) and will help you through the lows (being wet and cold).

Expect a genuine workout when you're out on the water. Days can span 15 miles (25km) or more, which - depending on wind and skill levels - can be seven hours of kayaking. It's tiring, and engages parts of the body many don't work out. Still, 18% of Much Better Adventures paddlers say trips were easier than they expected, while just 6% say they were harder. Add in a summit hike, though, and you'll need hiking fitness as well. Guides help to pace a group appropriately.

When to go Kayaking in Norway?

The core sea kayaking season in Norway runs from April to September. In the height of summer, the days are warmer and longer, with near-endless light, and better weather conditions. Go in early season or late in the season and there will be fewer other people around. Winter is cold, with little sunlight.

What to pack for fjord kayaking

Here's the kit list which we provide for people heading to kayak the fjords:

Clothes

• Rain jacket with hood
• Warm clothes for evenings camping - warm jacket, long pants, fleece, extra socks, gloves, a set of base layers (trousers and top)
• Small travel towel
• Cap and a beanie
• Swimwear and/or rash vest (something to wear under the wetsuit)
• Flip flops/sandals or light trainers for camp

Sleeping

• Sleeping bag liner

Other

• Sunglasses (with retainer strap)
• Sun lotion
• Refillable water bottle
• Personal snacks
• Thin sports gloves (protect from blisters)
• Toiletry items, personal medication
• Camera. Waterproof boxes provided!
• Antihistamines/bite relief if you are allergic to insect bites
• Torch or headtorch

What's included?

All kayaking equipment:

• Sea kayak, paddle and spray deck
• Paddle jacket with hood and reflective strips
• Life jacket
• Sleeveless longjohn neoprene wetsuit and neoprene booties
• Waterproof case for your camera/phone (various sizes available)
• 22-litre drybag plus plastic bags for extra items if needed

All camping equipment:

• Tent, cooking gear and crockery
• Sleeping bag
• Sleeping mat (foam)

When you arrive at the fjords, you’ll put your kit into a combination of dry bags (22l) and plastic bags, leaving your suitcases and anything you don’t need behind in secure storage. Your guides are experts in packing kayaks and will help you.

Meet Jan. He's been kayaking the fjords for 25 years

Jan Nielsen has been guiding sea kayak and wild camping trips through these fjords for 25 years. It shows in the small things - which camp sites are safe from meltwater, where the seals actually sit and what winds are likely to come at what time of day. Guests notice it too: "Jan was an incredible, friendly and knowledgeable guide," wrote one, after a kayak and wild camp weekend.

Read Jan's full interview for more on what this water can teach us. This guide's packing section was reviewed by Jan himself before publishing.

"The best way to experience the fjords is obviously to kayak,” says Jan. “Have no doubt about that. We started paddling in Western Norway in 1998. The Nærøyfjord is highly unique. It really is a pearl amongst the fjords, and so we settled here early. This was the main area we could come for our early trips, though we would also go to the Geirangerfjord and around Bergen."

FAQs

Do you need experience to kayak in Norway's fjords?

No. Expert guides can teach newbies simple techniques on the water. On our kayak-only weekends, many guests are doing a multi-day trip for the first time.

Can you kayak the Norwegian fjords without a guide?

Legally, yes, under Norway's right of access. But kayaking independently is only suitable if you've got prior experience and know how to plan properly and safely - in terms of navigation, food and drink, equipment and all.

Will my phone survive a kayak trip?

Yes, but you should assume everything will get wet. Dry bags cover kit, but bring a  waterproof bag for your phone if you are specifically worried about that.

Feeling inspired? Check out our adventures on the Norwegian Fjords!

Norway is a country of glacier-carved fjords, of powerful waterfalls, sprawling forests and towering mountain peaks. It's also one of the few places in the world where you can wild camp without having to hope that nobody notices - because it’s a legal right. Allemannsretten (“everyman’s right”) means that you can pitch a tent on uncultivated land almost anywhere in Norway, free of charge, without having to ask for anyone’s permission.

There are a few caveats to this. The land you camp on has to be uncultivated, and you have to be more than 150 metres from houses or cabins. In areas of high visitor footfall there may be local restrictions, and of course, people should practise responsible access and leave no trace. But this is a right that runs deep.

Fjords, forests, mountains and coastlines are not just beauty spots in Norway. They're an inherent part of being.

The playwright Henrik Ibsen coined the term friluftsliv (“free-air life”) in the 1850s. It's a term intertwined with Allemannsretten, and it captures how central the outdoors are to national identity here. Fjords, forests, mountains and coastlines are not just beauty spots in Norway. They're an inherent part of being.

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Allemannsretten, by extension, is emblematic of the connection between people and wild places here. It shows that the land belongs to everyone - and no one. It views nature as a fundamental human need and preaches responsibility and co-existence. So it’s fair to say that the significance of the right to roam goes beyond practicalities - even if it’s also safe to say the practicalities are pretty remarkable.

In practice, Allemannsretten is a tent pitched on the edge of a fjord after a long paddle, while dinner is cooked over a fire a few steps from the water (without a fence in sight). It is waking up to the sound of birdcall in a forest, and not having to worry about being caught camping and told off, simply for seeking solace in the outdoors. Here’s a little guide to the Norwegian right to roam.

You may hear a seal swimming up to the campsite, or you may hear an eagle in the early morning.

Jan Neilsen is a kayak guide who had led hiking, camping and kayaking trips on the UNESCO-listed Nærøyfjord for over two decades. "On an overnight trip, we stay out," he says. "We get the calmness of the fjord. The ferries stop moving. You may hear a seal swimming up to the campsite, or you may hear an eagle in the early morning, you may even hear an owl at night. The campfire conversation always leads somewhere - and those talks often revert back to the environment."

Can you wild camp in Norway? Allemannsretten, Norway's right to roam, explained

Yes, thanks to Allemannsretten, you can camp on uncultivated land in Norway, for free. The principle has existed as customary practise for centuries, and it was written into law in the Outdoor Recreation Act of 1957, created “to protect the natural basis for outdoor recreation and to safeguard the public right of access to and passage through the countryside and the right to spend time there.”

Norway is just the perfect place for kayaking. We have a lot of water, we have a lot of lakes, we have a lot of rivers, and the mountains provide protection for the wind.

The right to roam applies to utmark - uncultivated land, examples of which include forests, mountains, moorland, most of the coastline of Norway and the shorelines of fjords. What it does not apply to is innmark - cultivated or private land, such as agricultural fields, household gardens, farmyards or the areas immediately around someone’s house. That’s the crucial distinction at the heart of the right, and one many visitors misunderstand. If it looks like private land, you can’t pitch up on it. If it’s open countryside, you’re generally good to go.

There are a few practical rules to follow, even when pitching in utmark:

• Pitch at least 150 metres away from the nearest inhabited house or cabin.
• In lowland areas, you can stay up to two nights in the same spot without asking the landowner; whereas in mountains, moorlands and more remote areas, multi-night stays are generally acceptable.
• Do check for local restrictions on top of the national rule before you go, especially if you’re visiting a heavily touristed area.

The beauty is that wild camping in Norway is not a tolerated inconvenience, it’s a right with a 70-year-old legal history behind it, built on a cultural ideology going back much, much further. There are even government-run gear libraries, where anyone can borrow kit to go camping for free. So when you camp, permissions are less of a focus than behaviour. It’s crucial you behave responsibly and treat the land with respect. That idea is as in-built in Norway as the right to roam.

"One of the things that makes Norway special is that we generally don’t allow motorised vehicles in wilderness areas, without a special permit," says kayak guide Jan Neilsen. "That leaves a lot of areas really unspoilt. We have a relaxed approach to the outdoors here. That is provided to every citizen by law - the Allemansratten. This creates a responsibility for us as tour operators. There’s a lot of beauty here, that we want to share. But we have to share it responsibly."

Is it legal to wild camp in Norway?

Yes. Wild camping is legal in Norway under Allemannsretten, the right to roam written into the 1957 Outdoor Recreation Act. You can pitch a tent on uncultivated land for up to two nights in one spot, as long as you stay at least 150 metres from the nearest house and leave no trace.

Can you camp in Norway for free?

Yes. As part of Norway’s right to roam, you can camp for free on utmark, uncultivated land, including mountains, forests and much of the fjords shoreline. You can stay for two nights in lowland areas, or for longer in remote mountain areas, leaving the site how you found it. You can also hike and kayak.

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"Norway is just the perfect place for kayaking," says Neilsen. "We have a lot of water, we have a lot of lakes, we have a lot of rivers, and the mountains provide protection for the wind. Kayaking is such a peaceful way of travelling."

What happens if you get caught wild camping in the wrong spot?

Wild camping rules in Norway are based on trust, respect and an engrained culture. So if you pitch a tent too close to a private house, or on cultivated land, the most likely outcome will be a polite request for you to move on - possibly accompanied by a suggestion of where to do so. If you deliberately ignore local restrictions or leave litter, though, there can be fines. Camp on uncultivated land, follow the 150 metre rule and leave no trace. Then you won’t have a problem.

What wild camping in Norway is actually like

There's a deep sense of serenity that comes with falling asleep under the shadow of huge fjord walls, and a real awe that comes with unzipping the tent in the morning to see them light up again , in the cool chill of morning air. Here’s some more feedback - based on over 1,800 unbiased reviews of people who’ve spent a few nights with on the fjords. We’ve picked out the frequently recurring points.

We were so lucky to see dolphins swimming alongside us and had wild goats following us along the fjord edge.

The loos are primitive (if they exist at all, which is no guarantee) and understandably, there are no showers on the side of a fjord. So, the fjord itself becomes your morning wash. It can be bracingly cold to jump into the water, but it’s really refreshing to do so. As one reviewer, Rebecca, put it in August 2025, jumping off the rocks into the water became “the evening entertainment”. Dinner also tastes 10 times better when it’s grilled on the side of a fjord.

Be sure to pack an eye mask. The midnight sun in summer doesn’t care what time your body clocks thinks it is. If you like your comfort, bring a travel pillow or a thicker sleeping mat too. The ones provided can be thin - but remember, it everything you bring must be carried in and out.

A few more review quotes?

• “The wild camping was great fun and waking up to the fjords each morning was beautiful.”
• “The meals were amazing, sleeping was cozy in the tents [...] We were so lucky to see dolphins swimming alongside us and had wild goats following us along the fjord edge.”
• “The camping location was dreamy”
• “Brilliant trip if you embrace camping, the simple life and no issues with getting stuck in!”

This about sums it up, wherever you camp. Wild camping is not the height of luxury - but it offers something deeper than even a comfy mattress; the chance to truly connect with nature. We've written a first-person account of our hike, kayak and wild camp the Norwegian fjords trip, which you can read on site.

The best places to wild camp in Norway

Whole books could and have been written about the best spots to go wild camping in Norway, but we have a bit of expertise ourselves. The fjords are the benchmark for beauty in Norway and beyond, and if you ask us, the Nærøyfjord is the pick of the lot. It’s too narrow for big cruise ships to sail down it, meaning that you’re unlikely to see anyone else at all as you paddle along it, and when you do pick a camping spot, you’ll have peace and quiet day and night.

As Jan says: "Once you visit a place like this, you build up a great appreciation for what we have [in our world]. You come away with this deeper appreciation."

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Beyond the fjords, the beaches of Lofoten - a remarkable archipelago in the Arctic Circle, in Nordland - offer the chance to trade the grey fjord walls for white sand beaches and a dreamscape, where mountains jut out of the water, while in-land, there are endless mountain plateaus - Hardangervidda National Park, for example, which give you the chance for longer stays.

Wherever you wild camp, leave no trace. For more on the fjords, see our Norwegian fjords guide, or if you’re pairing camping and paddling, our guide to kayaking in Norway covers the routes that work well.

Wild camping kit list for Norway

This is the packing list built from what expert guides and 1,800+ reviews say you actually need. Remember, as the Norwegians say, "Det finnes ikke dårlig vær, bare dårlige klær" - "there is no such thing as bad weather, only bad clothes."

• Tent
• Cooking gear and crockery
• Sleeping bag and sleeping mat
• Rucksack with waterproof cover
• Waterproof jacket with hood
• Warm clothes for evenings at the campsite: long trousers, fleece, warm jacket
• Base layers
• Worn in waterproof hiking boots or hiking shoes
• Hiking socks
• Swimwear and/or rash vest
• Flip flops/sandals or light trainers for camp
• Thin gloves
• Beanie
• Sunhat
• Sunglasses
• Sunscreen
• Small travel towel
• Refillable water bottle
• Toiletries
• Personal medication if needed
• Antihistamines/bite relief if you are allergic
• Head torch
• Personal snacks

Optional:

• Sleeping bag liner (recommended)
• Gaiters
• Waterproof trousers for hiking (recommended for early/late season departures)
• Walking poles (recommended, lightweight and collapsible)

Wild camping vs campsites in Norway

Although wild camping is legal in Norway, there’s also an excellent network of campsites around the country. These offer the obvious benefits of a campsite - proper facilities including showers, toilets and campsite shops. They still offer a semi-wild experience, but of course, they will be busier than a remote wild camp spot. This can make for a sociable experience, but the benefits of wild camping remain obvious. It's the ultimate way to connect to the nature around you.

Guided wild camping trips in Norway

If Allemannsretten has you keen to get your tent out but you’d rather an expert picks the pitch, we have a range of wild camping adventures in Norway:

• Kayak and Wild Camp the Norwegian Fjords in a Weekend
• Hike, Kayak and Wild Camp the Norwegian Fjords in a Weekend
• Hike, Kayak and Wild Camp the Norwegian Fjords in a Week
• Kayak, Hike & Wild Camp the Lofoten Islands
• The Ultimate Norwegian Fjords Adventure

On our adventures, tents and sleeping gear are provided, and you'll be led by an expert local guide with an oustanding knowledge of the local area and flora.

Inspired? Check out our full range of adventures in Norway now!

I will never forget the look on my French landlord's face when I ‘jokingly’ announced, on the first day that I moved into my new rental flat, that I was going to kill all of his cats. In my defence, ‘tuer’ (to kill) and ‘nourrir’ (to feed) sound ever so similar when you’re a nervous Erasmus student.

I watched as his expression shifted from confusion to horror in slow motion, and I remember thinking 'how did I get this so wrong?' My friend and I then spent the next hour grovelling, after our landlord told us in no uncertain terms that he no longer wanted us to live there. Language errors really can be life lessons.

A language doesn't just translate words, it hands you the version of a place that only opens up to people who have the courage to ask...

That moment will forever be etched into my memory. You’d think that growing up in Italy until I was a teenager would have prepared me for linguistics mishaps. If anything, it has made me more reckless. When you’ve spent your childhood switching between languages, you develop a dangerous overconfidence that you can –  mostly – wing it in any Latin-based language.

Spoiler: you cannot.

But there are upsides you might not expect, too. Getting a language ‘wrong’ is often the moment a travel adventure can begin. A wrong bus stop becomes an unplanned bike ride through a town you'd never have otherwise visited; and a mangled sentence becomes the reason a stranger warms up - and points you to the trail locals actually use, instead of the one in the guidebook. I've ended up on hikes I never planned to take, and discovered coastlines and bays ideal for scuba diving and snorkelling that I had barely heard of, all because a conversation went slightly sideways in a language I barely knew how to grasp. Language doesn't just help you get around, it changes the shape of the adventure you end up having.

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Living between languages

I was five years old when my family moved from England to Italy. I spoke exactly zero words of Italian. I remember my first day at the local school in a small hillside town in southern Lazio. I was being dropped into a classroom where the teacher's rapid-fire instructions, which were mostly in the local dialect, were just noise to me, and I had no clue what my classmates were trying to tell me. When I was asked a question, I just stared back, my face burning with the shame that you feel when you're out of your depth and lost.

For months, I was terrified – of getting things wrong, looking stupid, that I'd never understand. I'd go home exhausted from the mental effort of trying to understand and fit in. Because, when you don’t speak the same language as the people you’re surrounded by, it really does feel lonely.

But children are like sponges when it comes to learning language and, within a year, Italian had woven itself into my brain alongside English. I started dreaming in both languages. It’s crazy how your subconscious can have a mind of its own.

Growing up bilingual in Italy gave me an early lesson in how language shapes identity. Within another year, I spoke Italian without even thinking about it, fully immersed in an Italian-speaking school. However, I was still very much la Inglesina to my classmates. I'd sometimes slip up, and I would pepper my Italian with English idioms that made no sense in translation. To be honest, I can still be guilty of doing this now.

I grew up in this odd in-between space, never quite fully Italian, but no longer entirely English either. And so, this linguistic limbo became ‘home’ for me. Languages, I soon learned, aren't just tools for communication, they're entire ways of being.

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In Italian, I gestured more and spoke with my hands. It’s just what you did. When I moved back to the UK when I was 15, I had to relearn how to be English: how to say ‘sorry’ for things that weren’t remotely my fault or to get someone’s attention; how to queue; how to navigate the dynamics of secondary school classroom settings, which felt so wildly different to the ones I had been accustomed to.

What I didn't expect was how much I'd miss being multiple versions of myself. So, when it came to it, I decided to channel my linguistic abilities and study Italian, French and Spanish at university in the UK. The prospect of spending a year overseas for my Erasmus year was appealing, and I was convinced that my bilingual childhood and classroom learnings would make me practically fluent once I landed in France. How hilariously wrong could I have been.

The joy of getting it wrong

Fast forward a couple of decades, and I'm standing at a bus stop in Girona with my partner, asking an elderly local, with a very thick local accent, for directions. I thought my Spanish was decent enough for this; it clearly was not.

The woman gestured expansively, pointed down the street, then made a sweeping motion that could have meant anything. I nodded, certain I'd caught the essentials. More than half an hour and several wrong buses later, my partner checked his phone and delivered the update I really didn't want to hear: we'd been waiting at the wrong stop entirely, because I'd been too proud to admit I hadn't understood a word of it.

We hired bikes and spent the rest of the day cycling the coast road and the quiet lanes...

So, we did what any sensible pair of travellers would do: with no more buses scheduled to run for the next few hours, we found a taxi and let the itinerary rearrange itself. We ended up at Cala Illa Mateua, a picturesque pebble beach in l'Escala on the Costa Brava, and gave the day over to it entirely. We hired bikes and spent the rest of the day cycling the coast road and the quiet lanes behind it, before pitching up by the shoreline to swim and snorkel around the caves, the water so crystal clear and just so worth it.

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None of it would have happened if I'd understood those directions properly. A fluent version of that morning would have had us exactly where the timetable said, on schedule, seeing precisely what we'd already decided to see. Instead, one badly understood sentence ‘knocked us off’ the plan we didn't know we were following. The joys of getting the language wrong.

Permission to be Vulnerable

For many travellers, the notion of learning a language can often can get tangled up in myths of fluency and confidence, when actually it’s the trying that truly counts.

And the research backs up my experiences. The British Academy –  the UK's national academy for humanities and social sciences – attests to the fact that having competence in languages gives people windows into other worlds, broadens mental horizons and makes them more likely to be curious and respectful when encountering other cultures and languages.

As adults, we rarely put ourselves in situations where we're genuinely bad at a basic skill.

Having access to that ‘window’ really is less abstract than it sounds. It's the difference between following a mountain trail because an app told you to, and following one because a farmer flagged you down to explain where it leads and why locals still walk it. It's the difference between paddling a stretch of river because it's marked on a map, and paddling it because someone in the village mentioned, in passing, that this is where they learned to swim when they were younger. A language doesn't just translate words, it hands you the version of a place that only opens up to people who have the courage to ask and engage with it.

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Perhaps what I love most about travelling to a country where you don’t know the language well, or at all, is the permission it gives you to be terrible at something. As adults, we rarely put ourselves in situations where we're genuinely bad at a basic skill.

There's a particular kind of courage required to speak another language (or attempt to), badly, in public. To cobble a sentence together while strangers listen in; to watch confusion spread across their faces as they try to decode what you've just said. Being able to get involved and take part, even just a little, can give so much more context than a photo or an Instagram caption ever could. Like when you order the wrong thing off the already-limited menu in a mountain refuge and discover your new favourite dish by accident, then end up learning its name properly so you can ask for it again. None of that shows up in a carousel of photos afterwards, but it's the part of the trip you actually remember.

To cobble a sentence together while strangers listen in; to watch confusion spread across their faces...

This doesn’t mean language learning has to be a big, intimidating project. Some of the most rewarding exchanges I’ve had were with just a sentence or two: a greeting, a compliment, an attempt at a local phrase. These small efforts can really shift the energy of an interaction.

There’s also something about imperfect language that draws people in. Locals often respond not just to what you say, but to the fact you are trying at all. Even when your grammar is terrible and your accent is laughable, the effort itself is a gesture of respect. It says: I didn't just come here to take photos and leave. I came here to understand, even if not very well.

So yes, you'll make mistakes. You'll confuse verb tenses and potentially mortally offend someone that holds the keys to your accommodation, but you’ll also contribute something to the places you visit. And that is the real adventure.

Inspired? Check out our full range of adventure holidays now!

Komodo National Park has the kind of beauty which moves you to silence. The park, which was founded in 1980 to protect the Komodo dragon, and declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1991, sits in Indonesia, within the Lesser Sunda Islands. And as the blade of your paddle cuts through the improbable blue water of the sea here, it’s difficult not to feel utter serenity.

Limestone islands rise like tiny continents from the water, which shifts between turquoise and indigo depending on how the current moves. Manta rays glide beneath kayaks. Komodo dragons - the world’s largest species of lizard - patrol the shoreline of the eponymous Komodo island. This is, by almost any measure, one of the most spectacular stretches of coastline on Earth.

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For years, though, if you wanted to explore this seascape by kayak, the person you would be hiring to lead you through the waters would almost definitely not be a local. Despite being an archipelago, and the indigenous use of canoes dating back millenia here, there has not been a tourism structure in place championing Indonesian kayak and canoe guides - until now.

Wicked Adventures are adventure travel experts, and partners of Much Better Adventure, who have been crucial in creating the infrastructure to allow Indonesian kayak guides to thrive.

By creating training opportunities and engineering career paths, they are challenging the narrative that tourism here has to be Western-led - and sculpting a new future as they do so.

“This is our future; our careers,” says Romy, one such trainee, who is a native of Flores, an island off the east coast of Komodo, and who is also now a trained, professional kayak guide.

The Turning of the Tides

Wicked Adventures have trained over 50 divemasters since they were founded, including the first female divemaster in Indonesia - Sary, a Komodo local, who began as an intern at Wicked. A big part of the company's work is organising internationally-recognised training programs that allow individuals to go away, train others, and grow the community.

It’s my career, and getting the certification is my legacy for the future

This Spring, Wicked ran an intensive kayak guide training block in Labuan Bajo, a bustling port town on the western tip of Flores, which is also the gateway town to Komodo National Park.

The course was designed to certify a new generation of Indonesian kayak guides under the OSIS framework – a Southeast Asia–specific training and certification system built from international sea‑kayak standards and best practice. It spans three progressive levels, from Recreational Paddler through to Inshore Expedition Leader & Rescue, and has been developed by industry professionals drawing on established global guide frameworks.

Komodo Kayaking, who delivered the training, will be moving further into this framework once their senior guides complete their instructor certifications. From that point, they will offer structured OSIS courses to guests who want to gain formal recognition for their paddling skills, trained by experienced Indonesian guides and furthering their careers in the paddling world.

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10 candidates trained at 1-Star level, three at 2-Star, and six went all the way to 3-Star, learning everything from bracing and capsize drills to marine navigation, radio protocols, group rescue and towing systems. The structure was designed to be self-sustaining. Instructors trained and certified 3-Star leaders first, who then helped teach and assess one and two star candidates. The programme also reached beyond guiding, drawing in members of Indonesian Waste Management, Search and Rescue Labuan Bajo, the local dive community and students - building capacity across the whole community, not just one company.

“I’m excited and proud”

Historically, natives of Flores have had to leave their families to work in palm oil plantations, or to travel to Java or Bali for work. Jobs in the local area have been hard to come by, and tourism roles tended to be in low-paid, seasonal jobs, with few ending up in management.

For Flory, a Manggarai native who came through the training as a Certified Senior Kayak Guide, the significance runs deep. "It’s my career, and getting the certification is my legacy for the future," he says. "I am the kayaker now - a real kayaker - and people who want to come kayaking with me can come." It's a small line alluding to a bigger idea. A skill once imported from abroad now belongs, formally and permanently, to the people who call this coastline home.

“My feeling? I’m excited and proud,” Flory says. “It’s important, so tourism is not just western people meeting western people. Now western people can come and meet locals - who know the area, and who has more knowledge about the area. I can show people areas they have never seen before. Very beautiful areas, and I’m able to communicate that to [them].”

A 2022 study estimated Indonesian tourism leakage rates (the amount of tourism money which leaks out of the area, to external economies) at between 50% and 80% - so this shift is crucial.

They get the history of Manggarai, including Komodo National Park, and the information around it - not just a kayak.

The economy of Flores has historically been agricultural - tough work farming rice, bamboo, bananas or working with livestock. But if a trained tourism guide works 25 days in a month, they can get seven times the minimum wage - a huge amount more than they would earn otherwise.

Programmes like this one are designed to break the pattern of low paid work, turning adventure tourism into a genuine career path with progression, qualifications and status attached.

Romy, another Certified Senior Kayak Guide from Flores, puts it plainly. “I think it’s really important to have local guides to lead these trips in Komodo, because we know the situation here - and this helps local people to have a job as well.”

He’s still working on his kayaking roll. “It’s challenging! But I keep trying,” he says - a reminder that even certified guides are lifelong students of the water they work on.

Romy notes that local leadership enhances the experience for visiting travellers, too. “Guests get a kayak experience, but also a cultural experience,” he says. “They get the history of Manggarai, including Komodo National Park, and the information around it - not just a kayak.”

Discover Komodo

That authenticity is what travellers will find on our Hike and Kayak Indonesia's Remote Islands trip, just one itinerary these newly certified guides could lead.

It's a journey that earns its name: cycling past 11th-century temples in Kintamani, hiking down through the waterfalls and jungle pools of Sambangan's "Secret Garden," trekking into the volcanic caldera village of the indigenous Wae Rebo people for one of Indonesia's great homestay nights, then boarding a liveaboard to sail, snorkel and kayak through the Coral Triangle - home to manta rays, turtles and over a thousand species of fish - before tracking Komodo dragons on foot with a local guide at your side.

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Asked what he'd tell young people from Flores considering a life in tourism, Flory doesn't hesitate: "Keep learning and then love your area,” he says. “It's very important. Labuan Bajo or Komodo National Park; everything is here."

Romy's advice is to start early, and stick at it. “Start practicing kayaking now, because it’s really a big potential for the future, and for a career,” he says. “Now people are coming to visit Komodo - but there are also a lot of other beautiful places that we can explore with a kayak.”

Indeed, Indonesia comprises over 17,500 islands. Who better to discover them with than the people who grew up in the coves, and call these waters home

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The final 62 miles (100km) of the Camino de Santiago run through the forests, farmlands and countryside of Galicia in northwestern Spain. These are amongst the most storied and iconic pilgrim paths in the world - the Camino being one of only two global walking trails to hold UNESCO World Heritage recognition (along with Japan’s Kumano Kodo pilgrimage trails).

The Camino takes hikers through the fauna and folklore of Galicia. Think ancient oak forests and chestnut groves, historic hidden chapels, stone bridges curving over quiet streams and rural farmland. It is a route alive with history and community, building to the emotional payoff of arriving at the cathedral of Santiago de Compostela, the reputed burial place of Saint James the Great.

The Camino feels like a place where time slows down and personal connections once again become the most important thing...

“Without a doubt, the Camino de Santiago is the most popular route in Spain,” says José Miguel Real, an expert in hiking tourism in Spain and a Camino guide. “Not only for practising Catholics, but also for the general public. It’s an icon - one of those experiences you should do at least once in your life.”

The Camino de Santiago is actually a network of various pilgrimage routes, with over 1,000 miles (1,600km) of waymarked walking in total. “Many people return to complete the different routes,” explains José. “The traditional and most famous route is the Camino Francés, but the Camino del Norte, which follows the northern coast from Irún to Santiago, is also extremely popular, as is the Camino Portugués, starting in Porto, and the Vía de la Plata, beginning in Seville.

“Most of these routes converge around Sarria and Melide, making the final 100km especially emotional as pilgrims from all the different Caminos come together on the final stretch to Santiago.”

100km to Santiago de Compostela

Galicia is a place that glows with soft green hills, lush woodlands and dramatic rivers. The Camino runs through this idyllic environment on a mixture of well-maintained tracks and quieter stretches of asphalt, making it suitable for anyone fit enough to walk it. “The scenery passes through small traditional Galician villages, with their iconic hórreos,” José says. These are elevated granaries and buildings perched on stilts to keep them safe from rodents. “They’re often surrounded by oak and chestnut forests, mixed with eucalyptus woodland.”

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While trekking experience is always useful, the terrain itself is not demanding.

Pulpo a la gallega, is probably the most iconic dish pilgrims try on the route. Try local wines such as Albariño or Ribeiro...

“There are no major technical difficulties,” says José, adding that walkers may be more comfortable in a good pair of trail runners than heavy hiking boots.

From Sarria, you'll begin the walk to the city of Santiago de Compostela. On the Camino Francés (The French Way), you'll pass through a typical Camino landscape of forests, farmsteads and stone bridges. First, it's a 13.6-mile (22km) walk to Portomarín, where you can visit the Romanesque Church of San Nicolas.

Until 1962, Portomarín sat on the banks of the Río Miño, when the valley was flooded to create the Belesar reservoir - leading the whole town to be relocated to higher ground. The Church of San Nicolas was actually disassembled, stone by stone, and rebuilt on the new site. On stage two of your walk, you'll continue 15 miles (25km) onwards to Palas de Rei the next day, deep in rural Galicia. The name of the town - "Palace of the King" - relates to Witiza, the last Visigothic king to rule Spain, who reigned from 700-709 and was anointed here at the age of 14.

The route continues on to Arzúa, after an 18.6-mile (30km) walk through woodland and through small settlements. Well known for a creamy, DOP-protected cheese, Arzúa marks the point where the Camino del Norte coastal route and the Camino Frances merge. The final two days take you to A Rua (a shorter 11.8 miles/19km) via eucalyptus forests, open countryside and oak groves and then 12.4 miles (20km) on to Santiago de Compostela.

Just before pilgrims reach Santiago, they will crest a hill now called Monte do Gozo (Mount of Joy) - named because it was the spot where pilgrims would first set eyes on the towers of the Cathedral, after months of exhausting walking.

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Accommodation is a mixture of small hotels and guesthouses. After long days of walking, pilgrims recover in rural Galicia - and indulge in local delicacies.

“Food is a very important part of the Camino experience,” says José. “Especially in Galicia, where gastronomy is deeply connected to the culture and the way of life. Pulpo a la gallega (Galician-style octopus), is probably the most iconic dish pilgrims try on the route. You will also find excellent cheeses, cured meats, homemade soups, empanadas, and traditional stews.

“For many people, one of the highlights of the route is stopping at a small rural bar during the walk for a coffee, a cold beer, or a glass of local wine while chatting with other pilgrims. And of course, in Galicia, food is almost always accompanied by good wine. Pilgrims will often have the chance to try local wines such as Albariño or Ribeiro, as well as traditional drinks like orujo (pomace brandy), a strong local spirit sometimes served at the end of dinner.”

Tired Legs, Open Minds

The solidarity between pilgrims on the Camino de Santiago is legendary. It's inevitable that you'll get to know other walkers along the way.

Conversations become slower, deeper, and more genuine. That feeling of simplicity, connection, and shared purpose is what many pilgrims remember most vividly long after the walk itself is over.

“In today’s world, where everyone seems to be rushing and constantly distracted by social media, the Camino feels like a place where time slows down and personal connections once again become the most important thing,” says José.

“People from different countries, with different lives, concerns, expectations, and personal stories, suddenly come together.

“They walk side by side, talk calmly, share emotions, worries, dreams and experiences, and gradually open up to one another in a way that rarely happens in everyday life. “

From the first day of your walk, you’ll begin to recognise familiar faces.

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“People staying in the same villages, stopping at the same cafés, sharing meals, or simply walking at a similar pace. Little by little, conversations start naturally. One moment you are discussing where someone comes from, and the next you are talking about life, family, dreams, fears, or the reasons why each person decided to walk the Camino.

Everyone shares the same simple daily routine: walking, eating, resting, and reaching the next village together.

“On the trail everyone becomes equal. It does not matter what job you have, your age, or where you come from. Everyone shares the same simple daily routine: walking, eating, resting, and reaching the next village together. There is a beautiful sense of mutual support. Pilgrims encourage each other during difficult moments, share advice about blisters, recommend places to eat and celebrate arriving in Santiago together. Conversations become slower, deeper, and more genuine. That feeling of simplicity, connection and shared purpose is what many pilgrims remember most vividly long after the walk itself is over.”

The Moment of Arrival

Arriving in Santiago de Compostela is an incredibly emotional moment, José says. “Often far more emotional than people expect before starting the Camino.”

After days of walking, and shared experience, “the Camino slowly becomes a small world of its own,” José explains. So, reaching the finish line comes with mixed emotions. “Happiness, pride, relief and excitement, but also a certain sadness because the journey is coming to an end.”

The simplicity of daily life on the trail, and the friendships formed along the way leave a lasting mark...

Santiago de Compostela is a tremendous city in its own right - the capital of Galicia, it is home to a stunning medieval old town; a mish-mash of Romanesque, Gothic, Renaissance, Baroque and Neoclassicist architecture dating back to the 11th century. This is a city built on legend, not certain fact. It's said that the remains of the apostle St. James (Santiago) were discovered here in the early 9th century by a hermit following a field of stars. Indeed, "Compostela" is a word often linked to the Latin campus stellae, "field of stars". The end of the Camino is in the Plaza del Obradoiro, in front of the Baroque western façade of the Cathedral.

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“Some laugh, some cry, some sit silently looking at the cathedral for a long time, trying to process everything they have experienced,” José says. “The spirituality of the journey, the simplicity of daily life on the trail, and the friendships formed along the way leave a lasting mark for the rest of your life.”

The cathedral has a huge incense burner inside which once flew like a wrecking ball, masking the smell of exhausted pilgrims. This is one of three cities, along with Jerusalem and Rome, recognised by the Catholic Church as a "Holy City" - and the pilgrimage book was the driving force behind what is often called Europe's first "tourist guidebook", inside the 12th-century Codex Calixtinus manuscript.

Wander the atmospheric streets of this fine city, and treat yourself to a final plate of pulpo - and a zesty glass of Albariño - as the sun sets over the cathedral.

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“I’m terrible at directions” are four words that I, like many women, find myself saying on a regular basis. I use Google Maps to retrace even the simplest of routes, unconvinced that I can simply go back the way I came or look up and around to figure out how to get to where I want to go.

Many women claim to lack an internal compass, particularly when it comes to navigating through wild spaces. But is it holding us back from reaping the full benefits of outdoor activity? Getting outside allows us to (literally) touch grass: to reconnect with nature and, in turn, escape from the hustle and bustle of our fast-paced, screen-focused society. Open water swimming, trad climbing, or off-road biking; you can’t do these with a phone in your hand, right?

It also keeps you in the moment, makes you present and you actually take in your surroundings a bit more.

But as modern technology has become further integrated into our lives, so has it become part of the adventuring experience. Whether it’s logging a hike on Strava, tracking your route with a virtual map or even filming the odd video to edit into a TikTok compilation, our phones – the things we’re often seeking respite from – are hard to disconnect from the experience.

There are, of course, very real safety concerns that mean people want their phones near while out in the wild. This is particularly relevant for women. But there is a way to have both: to know the technology is there in case of emergencies, without relying on it. It requires that women learn the skills that will allow them to find their own way outdoors, gaining confidence in themselves and their instincts in the process, too. When someone professes to have a poor sense of direction, it tells others that they do not have that self belief.

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Alice Keegan is the founder of The Adventure Girls Club, and runs a beginner’s course in navigation, where she constantly hears comments like mine from attendees. “[They’ll] say sometimes, ‘Oh, my partner says I wouldn't be able to find my way around a supermarket,’ and I'm just like, why is your partner saying that to you?” she says. “It's just these stories that we've told ourselves, that we've got no sense of direction. A big part of it is believing that you can do it. I just don't think it's a thing that people have no sense of direction. You learn that skill. It's just that women, I think, have that mindset that there’s no hope for them.”

Self belief, Keegan says, comes from learning the skill in a way that works for you. In her two-day navigation course for women and non-binary people, which is run in partnership with Ordnance Survey, Keegan takes a more holistic approach to map-reading. Her “storytelling”-inspired method is worlds away from the “confusing, numbers-based” technique that she first learnt from ex-military men, she tells me. A trained mountain leader, Keegan waits until the second day to have the attendees get their compasses out. Instead, the focus is on the “visual language of the map”, as well as their observational skills.

This instinct-based method of navigation is crucial for encouraging women to look up at the world around them and grow in confidence that they can figure out their location from context clues. “As you're walking looking around, you [can ask], am I walking along a wall? Am I going downhill? Am I in a forest?” Keegan says. “You're constantly looking around you and then applying that to what's on the map and seeing if it matches, and then you can figure out if you're in the right place or if you're going in the right direction.”

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While GPS features can make your phone seem like a safer option than traditional maps, Keegan points out that “we know that learning to read a map is going to be safer. It's not going to die or you're not going to run out of signal”. This is something Hetty Kingston, an outdoor adventure leader and researcher, notes too. On longer trips, she’ll take a separate camera and turn her phone off. “I'm trying to save battery,” she says.

It's just these stories that we've told ourselves, that we've got no sense of direction – a big part of it is believing that you can do it.

For Keegan, relying on navigation skills rather than technology allows her course attendees to stay “mindful” and more observant of their surroundings. “[It] not only helps keep you safe and know where you're going, but it also keeps you in the moment, makes you present and you actually take in your surroundings a bit more, rather than just doing the walk for the sake of doing the walk and then getting that selfie at the top,” she says.

The mental health benefits from nature are something Kingston has found in her research project Fostering Inclusive Action Sports (FIAS). Women are going outside to get a break from our chaotic world. Putting phones away “requires a bit of discipline, but it's definitely beneficial and helps your mental wellbeing”, she says. An enthusiastic trail runner, bikepacker and trad climber, Kingston too is an advocate for map reading and reducing reliance on technology.

Kingston’s research has also found that outdoor adventure can give women many of the things we’re actively seeking out on social media, like a sense of community, resilience, and self esteem. “Motivation comes from knowing your autonomy, knowing what you’re doing; competence, feeling competent that you can do it; and also connectedness, so that sense of belonging,” she explains. “It's a full circle [where] going outdoors gives you the sense of belonging, but because you're doing something and you know what you're doing, and you chose to do it and over time, you feel competent, you then get more motivation, so you keep doing more of it.”

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Of course, nobody is suggesting women leave their phones at home entirely. In case of an emergency, having a device that can allow you to reach help is crucial (although signal in wid places is by no means guaranteed). Kingston likes to keep hers within reach – “somewhere that's easy just to check it,” she says – but not in her chest pocket or where she might reach for it without thinking. Plus, she points out, when you’re out in nature and are stimulated by everything around you, “be it reading a map bit, looking at all the different things, being mindful of where your feet are, you have less pull to look at your phone” anyway.

Outdoor adventure can give women many of the things we’re actively seeking out on social media, like a sense of community, resilience, and self esteem.

Learning the relevant skills helps women confidence in themselves and their instincts when it comes to the outdoors. But there are other ways to be prepared: keeping a separate list of key phone numbers to hand in case of emergencies, carrying cash or cards in your wallet or taking photos on a digital or even film camera. In day-to-day life, we likely rely on our phones to do all these tasks for us. But in outsourcing them, we give ourselves a mental break from screens, while also saving vital battery power, should we actually need it.

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Having a phone is important for safety. But the benefits of learning to adventure the old fashioned way are momentous, says Kingston. “We all know that being active is good for our mental wellbeing, and we all know that the outdoors is good for our mental wellbeing, and we all know that things like problem solving can also be a good form of mental stimulation,” she says. “If you combine all that together and take away the phone, you've got a really, really good scenario.”

Women learning to navigate, or preparing to head out into the outdoors without relying solely on their phones, do so in an attempt to reconnect with both nature and their natural instincts. Ultimately, there will always be variables they can’t control, Keegan says: “But if you can get all of the other bits: be good at navigation, get the right kit, know how to read the weather, and feel confident with that… then you can feel more confident to go out on your own, knowing that you've done everything that you can to keep yourself safe.”

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Do you need a guide to climb Kilimanjaro? Yes, and not because it's recommended, but because Tanzanian law requires it. This has been the case since 1991, when the Kilimanjaro National Park Authority (KINAPA) introduced rules that required anyone climbing the mountain to have a minimum support team consisting of - at the very least - a certified lead guide, an assistant guide, a cook and porters.

Since 1991, independent trekkers have not been allowed on Kilimanjaro.

Climbing Kilimanjaro is a serious feat. The mountain is 5,895m (19,341ft) high, and these rules are designed to keep climbers safe.

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There are rangers on the mountain, and if you attempt to climb Kili solo, you will be expelled from the national park and face severe financial fines. You could have gear confiscated, and even be deported and denied future entry to Tanzania. When you climb Kilimanjaro, you have to register with KINAPA before going, and sign in to each camp along the way. Wild camping is forbidden.

With that in mind, the real question isn’t guided vs. independent on Kilimanjaro. Rather, it’s what operator to go with, and how to choose the right route and trip for you? We’ll also have a detailed look at why, exactly, these strict rules exist.

Guided vs "independent" Kilimanjaro: an honest comparison

There is no comparison to be made here, since hikers are not permitted to climb Kilimanjaro alone. So instead, we'll explore how to choose the right operator, and detail what a good guide is able to add to your experience on Mount Kilimanjaro.

Why the Rules Exist: Guiding on the Mountain, and the Essential Kili Team

These rules were introduced for the safety of hikers, to protect the environment which has a strict “leave no trace” policy, and to benefit the local economy.

Climbing Mount Kilimanjaro is achievable, but it is extremely challenging. One of the biggest challenges along the way is dealing with the altitude - something that low-level hiking training nor general fitness conditioning can help you with.

• How Hard Is It to Climb Kilimanjaro? An Honest, Route-by-Route Answer

The fatality rates on Kilimanjaro are extremely low, but that is (at least in part) down to these rules, and to the expert teams of guides keeping people safe on the mountain and descending with them if they are struggling.

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You are legally required to hike with the following team on Kilimanjaro:

• Lead guide: Your lead guide is responsible for the overall safety and success of your climb. They will check in on you regarding altitude, carry emergency oxygen (which you must descend if you use), and coordinate evacuations if needed. They will set the pace on summit night, manage the porter team and navigate on the mountain. Additionally, of course, they’ll bring the place to life - telling you all about the fauna and flora en route.
• Assistant guide: Supporting the lead guide and keeping an eye on the climbers, the assistant guide typically sweeps at the back of the group, providing an extra layer of safety monitoring and helping trekker ascend the mountain. They are also an additional source of information.
• Cook: Responsible for preparing hot, nutritious meals and drinks on the climb, your cooks will also be climbing Kilimanjaro. Staying properly fueled is a key part of acclimatisation and keeping your energy levels up.
• Porters: Carrying the bulk of your equipment, your impressive porter team will haul your tents, food, cooking gear and group kit up the mountain. There is a welfare recommendation that porters don’t carry more than 20kg of group gear. Porters move faster than the group, in order to have things set up by the time the group gets there. How an operator treats their porters is a good indication of whether they are a responsible operator.

The benefits of booking through an operator also go beyond this, to sorting out:

• Your permits for the climb
• Your park logistics and fees
• Equipment such as tents
• Accommodation either side of the Kilimanjaro climb
• Transfers
• Group briefings
• Emergency expertise
• Booking platform and logistics etc.

A licensed guide will help you get the most out of your climb on Kilimanjaro and ensure you stay safe - providing advice if you feel acute mountain sickness or other ailments, and giving you the best chance of reaching the summit.

Generally speaking across all operators, the summit success rates on Kilimanjaro sits at 65%, but because of good guiding and preparation (both from guides and our customers), the summit success rates for Much Better Adventures climbs on Kilimanjaro are much higher; around the 95% mark.

What Makes a Good Guide on Mount Kilimanjaro?

A good guide on Mount Kilimanjaro is primarily there for your safety. Your guide will watch you as you trek and get to know you as well, so they’re able to keep you safe. Jim Eite is a former Kilimanjaro guide with more than 50 summits.

"You understood the poeple and they also understood you."

“To me it was about getting to know people,” says Jim. “Everybody was going for different reasons. Some people wanted to walk, some people did it for charity, but a good guide always got to know the clients on the first couple of days because then you could read how they were feeling when you got closer to the summit. I always made sure that over the first two days, I had a good period of time walking with everybody individually, getting to understand why they'd come to Kili, understand a little bit about them, how they'd slept, whether they were eating etc.

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“You had to build those relationships, so that when you got to the tougher end of the trip and to summit day, you understood the people and they also understood you - and would listen to you when you said 'you need to do this now’ because you'd built up that relationship already.”

Of course, your guide will also be able to tell you about the five distinct ecological zones as you the climb up the mountain - the cultivation zone, the montane forest zone, the heather and moorland zone, the alpine desert and the Arctic summit. They'll bring the walk to life with stories and information.

Not All Guided Climbs Are Equal: Choosing a Safe, Ethical Adventure on Kilimanjaro

Deciding to climb Mount Kilimanjaro opens the door to a lot of other questions.

There are various different routes to choose from on Mount Kilimanjaro, for starters. There are different levels of service that you will get on the way, too. Some operators use better tents than others, while some include accommodation in nearby towns before and after the climb, and some don’t.

Ask if the porters on your trip are being treated properly.

If you choose a shorter itinerary, you will pay less in park fees as you’re on the mountain for less time, but your summit chances could go substantially down as a result - as you have less time to acclimatise.

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We’ve done a full breakdown of the costs of climbing Kilimanjaro elsewhere, comparing prices and what they mean for your experience. Key differentiators you should look for before booking a guided Kilimanjaro climb include:

• Porter welfare: Ask if the porters on your trip are being treated properly. Operators should have a readable policy in their FAQs or elsewhere which confirms that porters are being paid fairly and treated well - meaning they have maximum weight-loads they can carry. Porters should be provided with three meals a day, have proper shelter, sleeping and hiking equipment, and their salaries should be paid promptly after each climb.
• Guide numbers: There should be an appropriate guide-to-climber ratio. The cheaper the hike, the more likely it is you’ll have a large group (13-20 climbers), and not enough guides to give everyone on that hike the attention they need and deserve. You don't want your guides spread thin.
• Guide training: Are the guides on your trip certified First Aid Responders and CPR trained, and do they have the appropriate experience?
• Success rate and route choice: Longer routes may cost more, as you will pay more park fees for the more days you’re on the mountain (as well as food, wages etc.), but shorter routes have worse success rates, as there is less time for hikers to acclimatise - leading more people to abandon.
• Sleeping and toilet conditions: What tents are being used on the trip, and is a portable toilet being carried?
• Park fees: Are park fees included in the price that you’re seeing?

Why are Cheap Kilimanjaro Climbs Risky?

Cheap Kilimanjaro climbs raise questions. The park fees on Kilimanjaro make up the bulk of the climb - are there is no way to get away from paying them - so you should ask, if a price is unusually cheap, what is being sacrificed? You want to make sure that it’s not porter welfare or wages or emergency medical supplies.

The most common reason for a Kilimanjaro climb to be cheaper is for it to be a shorter itinerary. Spending less time on the mountain means paying fewer park fees, fewer crew wages and there is less food and drink to account for. The trade off, as aforementioned, is that the less time you spend on the mountain, the lower your chances are of making it to the summit. More days means more acclimatisation, so the longer the itinerary, the better the chance of success.

• How Much Does it Cost to Climb Kilimanjaro? The Full Breakdown

How to Choose Your Kilimanjaro operator: a Checklist

• Group size: Does the operator have a group size limit?
• Route: Do they sell the Kilimanjaro route that suits you best?
• Day count: Is the operator rushing itineraries or pacing for success?
• Guides: How many guides will be on your trip?
• Park fees: Are they included in the advertised price?
• Porter welfare: Does the operator have a porter welfare policy?
• Medical: Do they carry emergency oxygen, to be used if descending?
• Summit rate: What is the average summit rate for a climber?
• Pre-and-post climb: Do they supply accommodation post and pre climb?

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Do be sure to browse our full range of adventures on Mount Kilimanjaro. We have trips available to book on the Rongai, Lemosho and Machame routes.

FAQs

Can a beginner climb Kilimanjaro?

Yes, Kilimanjaro is not easy, but it is achievable for hikers with no technical climbing experience. It's a multi-day trek, not a climb. The altitude is a real challenge. Strong aerobic fitness, trekking preparation, and choosing a longer route to allow acclimatisation will improve your summit chances.

What's the fatality rate on Kilimanjaro?

The fatality rates on Kilimanjaro are extremely low. Though KINAPA doesn't release any specific figures, the rates are estimated at around 3-10 deaths per year from roughly 40,000 annual climbers. Most deaths are attributable to altitude-related illness. Having a well-trained guide who monitors your health throughout the climb is the key safeguard against serious risk.

Is Kilimanjaro harder than Everest Base Camp?

Both are demanding. Everest Base Camp (5,364m) involves more cumulative distance and days of trekking, while Kilimanjaro (5,895m) reaches a higher altitude with a faster ascent profile. This means altitude sickness can hit harder.

Can you climb Kilimanjaro without porters?

No, Tanzanian law requires all climbers to hire a licensed support team, which must include a certified lead guide, assistant guide, cook, and porters. Attempting to climb without them will result in removal from the national park, heavy fines and potential confiscation of equipment.

How much does a guided Kilimanjaro climb cost?

Expect to pay roughly $2,500-$3,500 (£1,900-£2,700) for a quality, professionally-organised climb on the mountain - depending on route, operator, group size, and itinerary length. Park fees alone make up a significant portion of the total cost. Be cautious of climbs cheaper than this. They often cut corners on porter welfare, itinerary length, or emergency medical equipment.

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Climbing Mount Kilimanjaro - the African jewel in the Seven Summits crown - is the experience of a lifetime. The most obvious reason that so many people decide to climb Kilimanjaro is the fact that it's the highest mountain in Africa (5,895m), and the highest free-standing mountain in the world.

The lore of climbing Mt Kilimanjaro for many goes right back to Hans Meyer, who became the first European to reach the summit in 1889. While less have heard the story of Sheila McDonald, the first woman to summit Kilimanjaro (and drink champagne on the top), it's arguably even more inspiring. You may want to experience a mountain that has varying ecosystems and weather conditions, from rainforest and alpine desert zones all the way up to Arctic. Or it could just be the allure of an African adventure, like those read in John Henry Patterson’s diaries.

But the real beauty of a Mount Kilimanjaro climb lies in the subtleties. They begin before you even hit the base of the mountain, arriving into the rural sections of Tanzania. Here you become acquainted with the Swahili people; their positive attitude and relaxed pace only serve to enrich the journey that awaits you. The word ‘safari’ means a journey in Swahili, and in a literal and metaphorical sense, a journey is what Kilimanjaro provides.

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You don't just climb Mount Kilimanjaro to climb a mountain. You climb it for the experience and the people. From the campfire songs and soul-polishing laughs to the gentle evening farewells of “lala salama” (sleep peacefully) as you snuggle into your sleeping bag. Under the watch of the mountain, you will fall in love with Tanzania, before you even begin your climb.

For those who have never climbed Mount Kilimanjaro before, the process of organising a trek can be daunting. Our beginner's guide to climbing Kilimanjaro will help simplify the process, answer some of the most commonly asked questions, and give you a helping hand in planning the trekking experience of a lifetime. We also have a guide on how hard it is to climb Kilimanjaro, featuring insight from Jim Eite, a guide who has climbed Kili more than 50 times.

“I always avoided short itineraries,” he says. “Taking longer on the mountain was always beneficial for people.”

The route descriptions in this article are short summaries, designed to inspire but not to serve any navigational purpose. Further mapping and planning (or a local guide!) will be required if you want to safely walk any of the trails featured.

Where is Mount Kilimanjaro?

Kilimanjaro is located in the northeast of Tanzania, near the Kenyan border. It lies around 140 kilometres south of Nairobi (the Kenyan capital), and 500 kilometres northeast of Dodoma, Tanzania's capital.

Getting to Mount Kilimanjaro

To get to Kilimanjaro you need to fly to Kilimanjaro International Airport (JRO), in the Hai District of Tanzania.

At the time of writing (June 2026), There are several direct flights from Europe (from Amsterdam, Brussels and Zurich) to JRO, as well as from the Middle East (Doha, Istanbul). Otherwise, chances are you'll need to fly via another African destination first. Dar es Salaam, Addis Ababa and Nairobi are your best bet.

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A hike up Mount Kilimanjaro will typically set off from one of two towns: Arusha, to the south west of the mountain, or Moshi, directly south.

It takes around an hour to reach Moshi and 80 minutes to reach Arusha from JRO. The most common method of transportation is via taxi or a prebooked shuttle – in many cases, however, your tour operator will meet you at the airport.

Routes Up Kilimanjaro

There are seven main routes up to choose from. The particular route you choose will largely depend on your level of experience, fitness, budget and time frame – as well as your personal wants. It's well worth looking at each of them to pick the best way to climb Kilimanjaro for you – we've gone into more detail in our article on the different routes up Kilimanjaro.

1. Marangu Route (70km / 5–6 Days)

Considered the easiest route up Kilimanjaro, it's also the busiest. It's the only route up Kilimanjaro with accommodation – dormitory style beds in rustic huts. It has a lower success rate though, as it can be more difficult to acclimatise to the altitude on this route.

2. Machame Route (61km / 6–7 Days)

A tougher climb than Marangu, Machame is known for being one of the most scenic routes. You descend on a different path to the ascent, giving you a great diversity of scenery. Good acclimatisation options; higher altitude days with lower altitude camps. One of our recommended routes.

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3. Lemosho Route (67km / 7–8 Days)

Lemosho was created as an alternative Mount Kilimanjaro hike to the Shira Route, with a much better success rate. It's more scenic and starts at a lower altitude. Less crowded than Machame and Marangu, but it takes longer to drive to the start point. One of our recommended routes.

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4. Rongai Route (74km / 6–7 Days)

The only approach from the north – you'll see less rainfall. Gentle ascent, in a more remote area. This improves your chance of seeing wildlife, but makes for a longer drive to the start point. Climbing Kilimanjaro by the Rongai route is one of our recommended routes.

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5. Shira Route (58km / 6–8 Days)

Shira starts at 3,600 metres, increasing your chance of altitude sickness. Links up with Machame on day 3. More expensive than Machame and Marangu (due to a more remote start point) and has largely been replaced by the Lemosho Route.

6. Northern Circuit (88km / 8–9 Days)

The Northern Circuit begins along the Lemosho Route, crosses the Shira plateau and then circles around the northern slopes rather than the busier eastern approach. It's very scenic, but due to its length is the most expensive option.

7. Umbwe Route (48km / 6–7 Days)

Umbwe is considered the shortest, steepest and most difficult route by many. This is a serious Kilimanjaro mountain climb. The first day involves some very steep hiking. It has one of the lowest success rates.

The Best Time to Climb Kilimanjaro

Mount Kilimanjaro sits in Kilimanjaro National Park. It's 300km south of the equator – and Tanzania is iconically tropical, with wet seasons and and dry season variations laid over a hot muggy climate.

So when is the best time to climb Kilimanjaro? Let's take a look at the seasons and Kilimanjaro climbing season.

Tanzania experiences two rainy seasons: a short one in November to mid-December and the long rainy season from March to May. The routes on Mount Kilimanjaro can be wet and muddy underfoot during these seasons. If you care less about monsoonal weather and more about solitude, then you may prefer these times to climb as there are far fewer people. Although expect to get very damp.

July to October is peak time on the mountain, especially as it coincides with European summer holidays. This window of time is dry and cooler than the Christmas months, but prepare for some cold nights.

If you want to enjoy similar weather, but with far fewer people, then Mid-May to June is an optimal time for you. It’s just before the holidays, but still peak climbing season. December to February are much warmer and have good visibility. The short rainy season can run into December though so it may still be wet. These months also coincide with the Christmas holidays so it can still get busy.

Safety and Altitude on Mount Kilimanjaro

Altitude is the great equaliser on Kilimanjaro. You can be as fit as you like, but if you rush up the mountain, you are likely to be stopped by altitude along the way.

Acute altitude sickness impacts people above 2,500m (8,202ft), and is by far the main factor in lowering success rates. The longer you spend on the mountain, and the slower you walk on the way, the more time your body will have to acclimatise, and so the higher your chances of reaching the summit will be.

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The key is walking, as your guides will tell you, polepole - meaning slowly, slowly in Swahili. The slow pace stops you from using up excess energy and gives your body the time to adapt. Staying hydrated throughout your trip is also key.

The death rate on Kilimanjaro is extremely low. Though exact numbers are not known - as they are not release by the national park authorities KINAPA, they are believed to be around 3-10 in 40,000 or 50,000 - so very roughly 1 in 4,000.

The most commonly-cited cause for death on Kilimanjaro is altitude.

If your guides believe that you are suffering from severe altitude sickness (for example, HACE, HAPE or a severe form of AMS) then you will descend from the mountain for your own safety, taking emergency oxygen as you go.

Your guides are experts, and are there not just to maximise your summit chances, but also to look out for your safety as you ascend the mountain.

How to Prepare for Climbing Kilimanjaro

We would sincerely recommend you prepare adequately for your expedition. Plan and execute a training programme that will help improve your fitness, strength and endurance. Consider climbing a few smaller mountains in the run up to the expedition – check out our list of the best hikes in the UK for some inspiration!

If you live in a city, you can hit up the local gym. The stairmaster will help you build endurance and strength. And there’s always the stairs in your house. We worked out that Kilimanjaro is around 24,915 stairs high!

If you’re going to be carrying most of your own gear, then practice hiking while carrying a weighted backpack – it really does make it much more difficult.

Here's what ex-Kilimanjaro guide Jim Eite, who has been up to the summit of the mountain over 50 times, told us about training.

"I found that while people went out and did training walks, they never did back-to-back training walks. It's that cumulative fatigue that people struggle with. If you're in the UK, you can take one of your concerns out by making sure you're fit enough. Wear your boots, go and do some long walks, and get yourself feeling confident in your own fitness."

Multi-day hikes where you're doing back-to-back days of walking are the best way to prepare. That, and time on Kilimanjaro to acclimatise to the altitude.

Clothing and Equipment

Although Kilimanjaro is considered a 'walk-up mountain', don’t be fooled into thinking it’s easy. Preparation is key, especially if you are on a shorter time frame or harder route. Porters can carry the food and cooking implements as well as your sleep system. Most trekking companies have plenty of spare equipment if you are in need, but as always, tried and tested personal gear is priceless. Pack as you would for any long multi-day treks at altitude, including the following:

• Good waterproof and breathable hiking boots and plenty of thick socks. These should be tried and tested before the hike begins as finding out they are unsuitable and uncomfortable two days in is the last thing you want.
• A good waterproof backpack and hydration sack – one big enough to hold your personal items (camera, head torch, clothes and the food you are given for the day).
• Thermals for the cold nights (and some days) hiking.
• Waterproof/windproof pants and shell, even if you are hiking in the dryer seasons – the weather can become cold very quickly.
• Quick-dry hiking clothes and trousers. Zip-off trousers are great for the first and last days of the treks.
• Fleece/down jackets are needed for when the temperature drops. It’s easy to forget these items whilst sweating at the base of the mountain in a tropical country. The summit can be as cold as -30 degrees Celsius.
• Beanie and gloves.
• Sunscreen and sunglasses is one most people forget. You can be very exposed some days and you don’t want to be burnt for your time on the mountain.
• A warm change of clothes for the nights is a great idea. They help you stay cosy and break up the amount of time you need to spend in your trekking clothes.
• As with any trek, bring basic toiletries like toothbrush and toothpaste, but not so much that you struggle to carry the weight you’ve packed.
• A head torch for the evenings and summit night.
• Hiking snacks – and lots of them! Energy bars are a lightweight, high-calorie option.
• A small medical kit with essentials like plasters and second skin can be very handy. Blisters are the last thing you need!

Here is the full kit list that we recommend for climbing Mount Kilimanjaro, as taken from the Kit List section of our nine-night hike up the Lemosho route:

What's included?

• Tent
• Foam mattress

What can I hire?

• Walking poles
• Headtorch (you will need to bring your own AAA batteries)
• Sleeping bag
• Day pack (with or without waterproof covers)
• Duffel bag
• Nalgene water bottle/water bladder
• A range of clothing (fleece pants, waterproof pants, walking trousers, windbreaker/ski trousers, waterproof jacket, light fleece jacket, heavy fleece jacket, down/ski jacket, hat, thermal top & bottoms, scarf, sunglasses, thin glove liners, thick ski gloves, hiking boots, gaiters, poncho, socks). Pricing ranges from $5-$50 per item for the whole trip. Please request any items you would like to hire with your host via your booking prior to departure for confirmation of pricing and availability.

What do I need to bring?

• Waterproof jacket (good quality, breathable with hood)
• Weather rated insulated jacket (synthetic or down, with hood)
• Waterproof trousers (breathable)
• Hiking boots (warm, waterproof, broken-in with spare laces)
• Fleece or soft-shell jacket
• Long sleeved tops (lightweight, moisture-wicking fabric)
• Short sleeved t-shirts (lightweight, moisture-wicking fabric)
• Hiking trousers
• Fleece/thermal trousers
• Shorts
• Knitted beanie hat
• Buff/balaclava/bandana (for face/neck coverage)
• Warm gloves (waterproof recommended)
• Something to sleep in (warm layers for camping at altitude)
• Underwear (moisture-wicking fabric recommended)
• Sports bra
• Socks (thick - wool or synthetic)
• Sock liners (tight and thin - worn under socks to prevent blisters - synthetic)

Other:

• Duffel bag (for porters to carry your clothes and equipment-see related FAQ for guidance on weight)
• Backpack to carry your personal gear during the day (25-35 litres)
• Backpack cover (waterproof)
• Sleeping bag (warm, four season rated)
• Trekking poles (highly recommended)
• Waterproof gaiters/trail gaiters (highly recommended to prevent loose gravel and sand)
• Water bottle (Nalgene recommended) AND a water bladder (CamelBak type) - must have 2-3 litres combined; please note that disposable plastic bottles are not allowed on the mountain due to National Park regulations
• Headtorch with extra batteries
• Sun protection (Sunglasses, Sun hat/cap, Sunscreen - SPF 35+ recommended))
• Lip balm
• Hand gel
• Mosquito repellent (for Moshi - not usually needed on the mountain)
• Trip receipt
• Mobile charger
• Universal plug adaptor
• Personal medication and first aid kit
• Earplugs
• Power bank
• Book/Kindle/playing cards, for downtime
• Passports (and visas)
• Travel insurance documents

Optional:

• Lightweight trainers/sneakers (to wear at camp - optional)
• Sleeping bag liner (for added warmth - optional)
• Liner gloves (thin, synthetic - worn under gloves for added warmth - optional)
• Poncho (during rainy season - optional)
• Towel (lightweight, quick-dry - optional)
• Pee bottle (to avoid leaving tent at night - highly recommended)
• Stuff sacks or lightweight dry bags (various sizes, to keep gear dry and separate - highly recommended)
• Hot water bottle for the night (optional)
• Swimwear (there is a pool at the accommodation in Moshi - optional)
• Extra water purification tablets (water will be purified by your trek team so this is optional)
• Extra energy bars and snacks - read our article on Best Hiking Snacks

FAQs

How Long Does it Take to Climb Kilimanjaro?‌

There are seven routes up Kilimanjaro, each of which takes between five and nine days. However, it’s very important not to rush the ascent as it could lower your success rate. The reason for this is because you need to ensure time for your body to acclimate to high altitude. Read our guide on when to climb Kilimanjaro.

How Hard is it to Climb Mount Kilimanjaro?

Kilimanjaro may be considered a manageable hike, but it's still a 5,895m mountain. It isn't a technical climb, but you'll be hiking for six to seven hours a day, over multiple days, at very high altitudes. Check out our extensive guide on how hard it is to climb Kilimanjaro for a more detailed look at the topic.

Can You Climb Kilimanjaro Without a Guide?

In 1991, the Tanzanian government and Kilimanjaro National Park passed a regulation that all trekkers must be accompanied by a registered and licensed guide. Trekkers need to register with the Parks Authority before setting out, and sign in at each camp – they are forbidden from wild camping or using caves for shelter. Read our full feature on guided vs. independent Kilimanjaro hikes.

Do I Need a Permit to Climb Kilimanjaro?

You need a climbing permit to climb Kilimanjaro. This includes park entrance fees, conservation fee, a mandatory fee for potential mountain rescue and a hut fee (depending on your route). You can expect to pay around £600-£800 in park fees, depending on the duration of your trek. This needs to be provided to the park authorities in advance through your tour operator, rather than independently.‌

How Much Does it Cost to Climb Kilimanjaro?

Climbing Kilimanjaro often costs between £1,500 and £3,500, depending on the length of your route and the tour operator you use. This includes national park fees, guides, porters and other support staff, plus accommodation (in huts or camping) and food. Decent guides will keep you safe and increase your summit chances. Read our full guide on how much it costs to climb Kilimanjaro.

Read more:

• Climbing Mount Kilimanjaro: What Route to Chooose
• What to Do After Climbing Mount Kilimanjaro
• How to Prepare for a Mountain Climbing Adventure
• Climbing Mount Kenya: A Guide

Inspired? Check out our Kilimanjaro adventures – you can even go on safari afterwards!

Long before I set foot on Kilimanjaro, in Tanzania, the mountain lured me in. It loomed over the horizon whilst we sat around a campfire in Serengeti. Later that night, I watched a lightning storm completely illuminate the western face in a glorious display of nature’s power. It was strange to see such a mountain stand alone, devoid of the company of a range. It even created its own weather. That night I decided I wanted to stand on the summit, and a month later I did.

Five years later I summited it again, only this time I had rushed my ascent on a harder route and felt the full wrath of altitude sickness bear down upon me. This, combined with some crippling blisters from untested footwear, taught me a valuable lesson about preparation and planning.

If you plan on climbing Kilimanjaro, the highest mountain in Africa, one of the most important aspects of your planning will involve choosing a route to pick. In this article, we take a closer look at the seven main routes to the summit, to help you choose which is the best Kilimanjaro route for you.

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The route descriptions in this article are short summaries, designed to inspire but not to serve any navigational purpose. Further mapping and planning (and a local guide!) will be required if you want to safely walk any of the trails featured.

How to Choose the Best Kilimanjaro Route

There is perhaps not a more important choice when trekking Kilimanjaro than the route you choose. There are at least seven options. The main ones are:

1. The Marangu Route (known as 'the tourist route' and the 'Coca Cola Route')
2. The Machame Route (the 'Whiskey Route')
3. The Lemosho Route (generally considered the 'most scenic')
4. The Rongai Route (the only approach from the north)
5. The Shira Route (a high altitude approach from the left)
6. The Northern Circuit (a route circling the northern slopes)
7. The Umbwe Route (the most direct route to the summit)

Each route has its own benefits and drawbacks, as the table above shows. The Marangu Route is most popular with beginner trekkers, as it is less steep and takes the shortest amount of time – but you'll also find it busier than some of the other routes, as well as more difficult to acclimatise. The Umbwe Route is one of the most difficult, shouldn't be undertaken unless you have mountaineering experience, and we'd advise making sure you acclimatise to the altitude elsewhere first (for example, by climbing Mount Meru).

When you come to choose your Kilimanjaro route, there are several factors you need to take into consideration. The first of these is acclimatisation – some routes climb more steeply, making altitude sickness more of a risk. The next is the difficulty of the route, in particular the summit night – its success rate gives you some indication of this. The accommodation options and how busy the route is are something to take into consideration. Then, there's how scenic the route is – a decent view really enriches the hiking experience.

We’ve provided a detailed breakdown of each of the Kilimanjaro routes to help you make the right decision for your trek.

How Long Does It Take to Climb Kilimanjaro?

Most climbers will spend between five and nine days on the mountain, depending on which route they choose. The absolute minimum is five days (for Umbwe or Marangu), but this is not recommended. While it may reduce costs (because you will pay less in park fees, crew wages, food and so on), the more days you spend on Kilimanjaro, the better the acclimatisation - and so the better your chances of actually reaching the summit of the mountain.

As a rule of thumb, it can be worth adding at least one extra day to the minimum for any route you attempt. The cost difference is small, whereas the difference in success rate can be significant. We'll look at each route in detail below, but there's a quite introduction to each route and the days required to climb them:

Why does the extra day matter?

Altitude sickness is the number one reason that climbers turn back before the summit of Kilimanjaro. Your body needs the time to produce extra red blood cells and adjust to the reduced oxygen - and you simply can't rush that process.

The "climb high, sleep low" principle (taken from the Himalayas) helps with this on routes like Machame and Lemosho. Where it is, you'll ascend to a higher camp during the day, then drop back down to sleep at a lower elevation, giving your body a daily acclimatisation boost. The Northern Circuit's exceptional success rate (the highest of all seven routes) comes almost entirely from this. Nine days on the mountain gives your body more time to adapt than five ever could.

A note on altitude sickness

With altitude sickness, it is important to seek advice from your own doctor before deciding to medicate, as there are side effects. It is advisable to make this decision long before you step on the mountain as the medication has an adjustment period that can throw off your whole journey… trust me, it’s not a fun experience!

The risk of altitude sickness can greatly be reduced through proper acclimatisation methods and time frames. One easy preventative measure is to steer clear of tour operators offering trips up Kilimanjaro across fewer days – they won't have built in as much time for acclimatisation.

The Kilimanjaro Routes

Here is a Mount Kilimanjaro map, showing the various routes up the mountain.

1. The Marangu Route

• Perfect for: Those who don’t want to camp, or those on a budget
• Distance: 70km / 5-6 Days

This Kilimanjaro route option is considered to be the tourist route – around 50% of climbers use it. Marangu is the only route that doesn’t involve camping; instead it offers small hut accommodation throughout the journey. It is from these huts that Marangu draws its nickname, the “Coca-Cola Route”, as the huts sell bottled Coke as well as a few other bits and pieces. The huts themselves are by no means luxurious – they are basic with a dining hall and beds with mattresses and pillows – but they are more comfortable than a tent.

The Beginner’s Guide to Climbing Mount Kilimanjaro

The word ‘safari’ means a journey in Swahili. In both a literal and metaphorical sense, a journey is what Kilimanjaro provides.

Much Better Adventures MagazineLewi Haskins

You begin your trek at the south-east Marangu Gate. This gate is close to the town of Moshi, a haven that sits underneath the mountain in the Kilimanjaro region. This proximity is one of the contributing factors that make it a popular choice for trekkers.

The ascent and descent follow the same trail, which means you only see a limited section of the mountain whilst sharing the trail with returning trekkers, making the route one of the busiest. The climb is not a steep one and is the preferred choice for inexperienced trekkers – however, the ascent on summit night is steep. The route can be completed in five days but it is recommended to do it in six for better acclimatisation. That said, the huts are only 1000m elevation apart, which is not ideal for acclimatising while you sleep – hence the low success rate of this route.

A few factors make it a cheaper climb: the proximity to Moshi, the short length of the climb and the lack of camping equipment needed.

Despite being billed as 'the easy route', Marangu has one of the lower success rates. This is partially because it is underestimated – many people who embark on it haven't trained properly. It is also because there's a spike in elevation on summit night that carries with it a risk of altitude sickness. Prepare properly and take the six day option to improve your chances of a successful summit.

This Kilimanjaro route is also not as scenic as others, but you will still stand on the mighty summit 'Uhuru Peak' the same as everyone else. You will also grab some awesome views of one of Kilimanjaro’s three volcanic cones, Mawenzi. As you return the same way, the sights are limited to what you have already experienced on the previous days, albeit with added elation and sense of achievement.

If you’re pushed for time, on a tight budget, hate tents and harder treks then Marangu is potentially the route for you.

2. The Machame Route

• Perfect for: Diverse scenery, and those who want to 'trek high and sleep low'
• Distance: 61km / 6-7 Days

If Marangu is known as the 'Coca-Cola route' then it’s no wonder that Machame is dubbed the 'Whiskey Route'. It is a tougher climb that certainly isn’t for the unprepared. After Marangu it's the busiest Kilimanjaro route on the mountain, but is very different to it.

You begin your trek in the rainforest zone at the Machame Gate to the south of the mountain. This is a beautiful route as it moves through many ecosystems and five different climactic zones. There's a stunning view as you arrive into Shira Camp on the plateau of the Shira volcanic cone. As you leave the Shira Plateau, it’s a steeper, more undulating climb than some of the other Kilimanjaro routes, but this affords you the opportunity to trek high and sleep low, which is an important part of acclimatisation.

This route can be attempted in six days (meaning you will attempt the summit in the early hours of the fifth day). However, there is a much higher success rate of those that stretch it out to seven days as this gives you a short day before the summit push.

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Machame is a camping route; there are no huts to sleep in. This is where good gear and guiding is essential. To attempt the summit you should be well rested and well fed. A perfectly placed hot chocolate, bowl of salty cucumber soup and warm sleeping bag are so welcome at the end of a long day. Camping is an incredible way to experience the mountain and the views from Shira Camp will reinforce this beyond belief.

This route also takes you around the Lava Tower and over the Barranco Wall, an obstacle that looks much more difficult than it is.  You’ll head onward to the summit base of Barafu (the Swahili word for ice) Camp. It’s cold here and there is 50% less oxygen than at sea level.

Most summit attempts begin just before midnight so you can summit at sunrise. It is one of the most beautiful sunrises you will ever see as you pass Gilman’s Point, Stella Point and move onto Uhuru Peak – it's also one of the easiest climbs. Machame descends along a different route down to Mweka Camp, which sits back in the rainforest zone. The songs around the campfire are loud and spirits high.

3. The Lemosho Route

• Perfect for: getting off the beaten path and wildlife spotting
• Distance: 67km / 7-8 Days

A route that was created as an alternative to the Shira Route, and is generally considered the most scenic path to the summit. It was made as a lower set off point for those attempting Kilimanjaro from the west. You'll begin at Lemosho Gate, and have more time to gradually adjust to the altitude.

The western side is more remote, making it a further drive to the start point (two to three hours) and more expensive. This creates some great positives though as the first few days will have far fewer trekkers on the route. You are also more likely to see larger wildlife on this route, including the mighty tembo (elephant).

The Lemosho Route joins the Shira Route on Day 2 and then the Machame Route the day after. It’s a longer trek that spans between seven to eight days. As with Machame, climbers need to be comfortable with camping.

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4. The Rongai Route

Perfect for: those seeking a milder ascent on a remote route

Distance: 74km / 6-7 Days

The Rongai is the only Kilimanjaro route that approaches from the north. You register at the Nalemoru Gate and then head through to the start point on the Kenyan side of the mountain. As with other more remote set off points you get similar benefits: it is less busy and has higher chances of seeing wildlife.

This side of the mountain gets less rain than the southern section, so there is a higher potential to stay dry (great during the wet season). It is also a milder ascent with flatter sections than other routes. This is great for exertion but not amazing for trek high, camp low acclimatisation.

The Rongai route can be attempted in six, seven or eight days. As with any of the climbs, it’s important to give yourself enough time to acclimatise.

The descent goes down along the Marangu Route. It is a beautiful and gradual route. If budget isn’t a consideration then this route is a great contender.

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5. The Shira Route

• Perfect for: experienced high-altitude trekkers
• Distance:  58km / 6-8 Days

This route is difficult, not because it is technically challenging but because the altitude at which you begin your climb is much higher. The Shira Gate sits at 3,500m: nearly 2,000 metres higher than the Machame Gate.

This is a massive altitude spike if you are coming from the towns below, which is accentuated by the fact that you are driven up to the Shira Gate, giving you even less time to acclimatise to the altitude. Because of this, the Shira Route has largely been replaced by the Lemosho Route. The Shira Route joins up with the Lemosho Route on the second day anyhow, and then with the Machame Route on Day 3.

The western side of Kilimanjaro is further away from Moshi, and therefore is more remote and expensive to reach. It has fewer climbers until it links up with Machame at the Lava Tower.

If you are a confident hiker who has trekked at altitude before then Shira shouldn’t present any significant problems. It can be done in six days but is usually stretched to eight days, which helps improve your chance of a successful summit.

6. The Northern Circuit

• Perfect for: those summiting for a second time and seeking pastures new
• Distance: 88km / 8-9 Days

The newest of the Kilimanjaro routes begins at the Londorossi Gate in the west. The Northern Circuit follows the Lemosho Route and is the same all the way up to the Lava Tower.

This is where the trail differs from Lemosho, Shira and Machame. Instead of heading down to Barranco Camp, which is nestled under the Barranco Wall, the track moves in a different direction. Here the Northern Circuit earns its name, heading north to Moir Hut (shared by the Shira Route) before circling north-west around the northern slopes to join up with the Rongai Route variation at Third Cave.

Most summit via School Hut and descend along the Mweka Route, rejoining most other routes on their journey back. However, as with most routes, this can be customised to change the summit set off point and the descent along Marangu.

Due to the 'climb high, sleep low' opportunities, this route has the highest success rate of all the Kilimanjaro routes. However, as one of the longest, it's also one of the more expensive options.

7. The Umbwe Route

• Perfect for: experienced trekkers seeking a challenge
• Distance: 48km / 5-7 Days

For the first couple of days, Umbwe is the least crowded route. There is good reason for this though, as it is also considered to be the hardest, with the most direct route up to the summit. After registering at the Machame Gate you begin in the rainforest and make a steep trail north.

It can be done in as little as five days (six or seven is recommended) and is a pretty steep climb on the first couple of days. There isn’t as much time to acclimatise on this route and it has a low success rate. Climbers attempting Umbwe should be comfortable with altitude and steep trekking.

Most guides link the route to Machame on the evening of the second day, where traffic picks up. This means you’ll summit from Barafu camp. The route used to summit via the Western Breach and Arrow’s Glacier but changed when some climbers were killed by a rock fall in 2006. The Western Breach is open again and is the most challenging ascent to Uhuru Peak. This route is not for tourists and those considering should have a bit more technical knowledge of mountain climbing before seeking a guide who will accommodate you.

When Is the Best Time to Climb Kilimanjaro?

There is a close link between route choice and when is best to climb Kilimanjaro. The mountain can be climbed year-round, but the two dry seasons offer the most reliable summit weather. Here's when they take place:

• January-March: Clear skies, cold temperatures and fewer crowds. The best window for crisp views from the summit.
• June-October: The most popular season on Kili. Warm days, stable conditions, and high footfall on routes like Marangu and Machame.

The two wet seasons (April, May and November) bring heavier rainfall on the southern slopes. Routes like Marangu and Machame feel this most. The Rongai Route, which approaches from the drier north, is the best option if you're climbing during the shoulder months. The longer your route, the more exposure you'll have to unpredictable weather. So if you're hiking the Northern Circuit over nine days, for example, you would be bes to avoid the peak rainy months.

For more detail, read our guide to the best time to climb Kilimanjaro.

Conclusion: Which is the Best Route up Kilimanjaro?

Each route up Kilimanjaro has its benefits and drawbacks. Your choice will very much depend on what you're looking for.

If you're climbing Kilimanjaro for the first time, we'd recommend either the Machame, Lemosho or Rongai routes. They are less busy than the Marangu Route, have higher success rates, and they ascend and descend via different routes.

We'd likely steer clear of the Umbwe Route, due to its difficulty level and risk of altitude sickness, but ultimately, the choice is up to you.

FAQs

What are the different routes up Mount Kilimanjaro and how do they vary?

Mount Kilimanjaro has seven main routes: Marangu, Machame, Lemosho, Rongai, Shira, Northern Circuit, and Umbwe. They vary by scenery, acclimatization, difficulty, and duration. Lemosho and Northern Circuit offer better acclimatization, while Marangu is the only route with hut accommodation.

Which Kilimanjaro route has the best summit success rate for first-time climbers?

The Northern Circuit has the best summit success rate for first-time climbers due to its longer duration and gradual acclimatization. Its nine-day itinerary improves altitude adjustment and overall chances of reaching the summit safely. It’s closely followed by the eight day Lemosho route.

Do I Need a Guide to Climb Kilimanjaro?

Yes. Since 1991, Tanzanian law has dictated that a guide and team is required for any ascent of Kilimanjaro. Independent trekking on the mountain is not allowed.

Which Kilimanjaro route offers the fewest crowds and the most wilderness feel?

The Rongai Route and Northern Circuit routes offer the fewest crowds and the most wilderness feel on Kilimanjaro. These routes approach the mountain from less-travelled sides and feature remote landscapes with minimal foot traffic.

What’s included in a Kilimanjaro route package with a reputable operator?

A Kilimanjaro route package with a reputable operator includes guides and support staff, including cooks and porters. Meals and accommodation (in huts or tents) are included, as are all permits and emergency support. Packages often cover airport transfers and gear rental options, ensuring safety and comfort during the trek.

Machame vs Marangu: which is the best route up Kilimanjaro?

The main difference between Machame and Marangu is that Machame offers more scenic variety and better acclimatisation, while Marangu is easier underfoot and uses huts instead of tents. Machame is better for success rates and views; Marangu is more suited for comfort and simplicity.

Read more:

• The Beginner's Guide to Climbing Mount Kilimanajro
• How to Prepare for a Mountain Climbing Adventure
• What to Do After Climbing Mount Kilimanjaro
• A Guide to Climbing Mount Kenya

Feeling inspired? Come with us to Climb Kilimanjaro via the Lemosho, Rongai or Machame Route or check out all of our Kilimanjaro tours and treks here.