Kilimanjaro climb by Lemosho Route (7-day)

I truly do not know how Altezza does it, but they managed to get our team of 14 trekkers up to the summit of Kilimanjaro even when so many of us doubted we could make it. We were supported by a team of 48 staff - porters, cooks, bathroom attendants, guides - and every single one of them managed to be kind, friendly, and supportive in a difficult high altitude environment. Without a doubt I would never have made it to the top of Kilimanjaro without the Altezza team. I cried saying thank you on the last day because I was so grateful. I would like to give a special shout out to our guides Stanford, Agrey, Lihiru, Michael, Joseph, and Honest for everything you did for us. They checked on each of us multiple times a day including health checks, encouraged us, sang songs when we were too tired to keep going, and bonded us together as a team (“one team, one dream!”) When I was too tired to keep going on summit night, Edmund carried my backpack the rest of the way up. When I got altitude sickness near Stella Point and thought I was done for, Stanford held me up and gave me oxygen. Agrey walked with me hooked up to oxygen from Stella Point to the summit; I absolutely could not have summited without their help. On the way down, Lihiru held me up for hours so my legs didn’t give out. This is a team of amazing people. The food is incredible, so much so that I was asking the chef for a recipe book. The tents, sleeping bags, and sleeping pads were great, and I was warm even in very low temperatures. The Altezza team knows what they are doing - if you are climbing Kilimanjaro, you MUST choose Altezza.

My wife and I just completed a trip to Kilimanjaro in July 2024. After a bunch of research, I ended up choosing Altezza for this trip because of cost, KPAP, reviews etc. Sorry if this review is too detailed but i will lay out every part of the trip and hope people find it useful. Pickup: The airport pickup was super smooth. The car was very clean and comfortable and water was available. They also had wifi in the car which was very useful. It was about an hour and a half to Altezza's hotel Aishi Machame. Aishi Machame hotel: The hotel is charming and pretty. The rooms are comfortable and the shower is good. It is the equivalent of a hilton garden inn or hampton inn - not a 5 star hotel. The meals were tasty - we had to pay for lunches but breakfast and dinner were included. Starting the trip: The manager comes over and goes over everything you have to make sure that you are properly equipped for the trip. In our case, this was Happy. We felt pretty comfortable after she went over it. She also threw in a couple of duffelbags for us as we were not sure ours were waterproof. The next day, we packed all our things that we wanted to leave behind at the hotel (as we were doing a safari later). We also packed some valuables (camera, laptop, cash etc.). They have a fantastic system for giving us confidence that these will be safe. They will weigh the duffel bags to make sure that the porters are not carrying too heavy a load. Make sure you are prepared for this. Car ride over to the gate: This was about a 3 hour trip with the entire team - 18 person team to support 2 of us. We get a basic introduction to a lot of them and then the drive starts. They are very caring about any washroom needs we may have and they ensure that they take us to clean washrooms. The first meal is served at the Londrossi gate and we met our waiter (Dionis) there and had our first black tea. The hike itself: We had two of the best guides possible - John Macha and Godfrey Minja. Throughout the hike, these two guides took care of us in the best way possible. On the second day of the hike, my wife started having some altitude issues. I spoke with the guides and told them that I would greatly appreciate it if the guides could get us to Barafu camp safely. If we could do that, then I could summit and return with my wife. John and Goddy were amazing in how they guided us through this. At no point were they willing to compromise safety but they slowed the hike down so that my wife could acclimatize and get to each camp comfortably. This meant longer days because our hikes were 2 to 3 hours longer on average but the guides were extremely patient and encouraging. They checked my wife's SpO2 as needed to ensure she was OK. They took her backpack to make sure she was free to hike comfortably. John kept referring to her as his sister and told me not to worry that he will take great care of her. Godfrey referred to us as Mama (mother - we have a son slightly older than him) and Baba (father). We got to become pretty friendly through the trip, through our daily health checks, various conversations we had during the hike etc. Needless to say, both spoke great english. Food: Our check Hassan took our requests and cooked great meals. Dionis our waiter, was a fun friendly person we got to like a lot. The food was fantastic. My wife loved the fish she got everyday. I am primarily vegetarian and eat a little meat. The chicken was a touch dry but the steak was great. Camp experience: Our camp manager Stanslaus did a great job everyday setting up the tent, cleaning our shoes and pants after the hike, and prepping us for comfort in general. We got to love our rabbit hot water bottles every night. The sleeping bags we rented were super warm. The portable toilet and tent were very clean and made our life so much better. Summit: Godfrey and Silon guided me up to the summit. I cannot say enough good things about Godfrey. He set a pace that was perfect for me. I got to the summit as the sun rose but I had been clear to him earlier that getting to the summit was more important than getting there before sunrise. Dont get me wrong, I was not too slow. I was in the top 40 or so people at the summit with most of the people still behind me. I dont think I could have done this without Godfrey's guidance. The way he brought me down was spectacular to. Made it down in 1 hr 45 mins from the summit to Barafu camp. At the end of it all, they gave us a great lunch at Mweka gate, a certificate for me summitting and medals for both of us. We felt a part of the Altezza family at the end of this all. Overall, our experience was fantastic and I would highly recommend Altezza. I do want to emphasize that a major part of this was the job that John and Godfrey did. I would unreservedly recommend both of them to my closest friends and family. They made our Kilimanjaro vacation a success.

Lemosho route, 21-29th June 2024. Our whole Altezza team and fellow adventurers were just, "Amazing". From the beginning to the end, I have not one negative thing to say, exceptional leadership and expertise from the guides. Exceptional strength and professionalism from the porters and amazing food and logistics from the camp and food team, all in all a 5-star experience. Summiting is not a given, but we all made it thanx to the consummate professionalism and the odd nudge from the guides. Some in our group had altitude sickness and others fatigue injuries on the way down but there was never a time when I thought chances were taken. Hot water bottles in the sack and coffee with the wakeup call. Man, my old NCOs could have learnt a thing or two from this leadership team.