Choose Machame if you want the more varied trail and you can camp. Choose Marangu if you want hut accommodation and a shorter, more direct path. Kilita's 6-day Machame card is $1,550 joining or $1,850 private. The 7-day Machame card is $1,700 joining or $2,000 private. The 5-day Marangu card with huts is $1,450 joining or $1,750 private.
How Kilita plans it
Marangu uses the same trail up and down, and the huts are a real advantage in bad weather. It is also the route people underestimate because it looks shorter. Five days is a fast ascent. Machame's extra day, if you take the 7-day version, is there for acclimatisation. If you want huts, take Marangu and ask about adding time. If you want the scenery and a slower climb, take 7-day Machame.
What to do next
- Huts: look at Marangu.
- Camping and a longer ridge: look at Machame.
- Ask for seven Machame days rather than six if this is your first climb.
- Do not choose Marangu only because five days sounds easier.
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