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We recommend staying at The African Tulip in Arusha, which is about an hour's drive from Kilimanjaro International Airport. Ask for a room with a balcony at the back of the hotel, overlooking the pool - they're quieter & have a better view. |
The only regular flights to Kilimanjaro from South Africa are to Kilimanjaro International Airport (JRO). The airport is used to serve the nearby towns of Moshi & Arusha, often for onward trips to the Serengeti. Note that there aren't any direct flights from South Africa to Kilimanjaro, so don't just keep an eye on airfares but also flight duration (time is money!). To get on the cheapest flight to Kilimanjaro:
Use the airline price comparison tool on the left to discover and book the cheapest flight.
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When to Visit |
Your choices for flights from Johannesburg to Kilimanjaro (JRO) are Rwandair Express (via Kigali), Ethiopian Airlines (via Addis Ababa), Kenya Airways (via Nairobi), South African Airways (via Dar es Salaam, codeshare with Precision Air), Turkish Airlines (via Istanbul), Swiss Air (via Zurich). We've ordered the airlines from cheapest to most expensive, when we had a look (this will have changed).
There are 1-stop flights from Cape Town to Kilimanjaro with Turkish Airlines (via Istanbul) and KLM (via Amsterdam).
There are no direct or 1-stop flight options from Durban to Kilimanjaro. There are 2-stop flights with BA Comair/Ethiopian Arlines (via Johannesburg & Addis Ababa), SAA/Ethiopian Airlines (via Johannesburg & Addis Ababa), Kulula/Kenya Airways/Precision Air (via Johannesburg & Nairobi) & Emirates/Ethiopian Airlines (via Dubai & Addis Ababa).
There's not much at Kilimanjaro International Airport itself. Most people travel to Kilimanjaro as a stepping stone to safaris in the Serengeti, and visiting Ngorongoro Crater and Lake Manyara. The first night after a flight to Kilimanjaro is usually spent in Arusha or Moshi (not where Moshi Monsters originated!). Arusha is situated beneath Mount Meru and Moshi is on the lower slopes of Mount Kilimanjaro, the heighest mountain in Africa (if you're adventurous you may want to climb it).
Onward flights to Zanzibar are popular for combining a beach holiday with a safari in the serengeti.
Here's where you can check kilimanjaroairport
The phone number at Kilimanjaro Airport is +255-27-255-4252.
There are regular flights to Kilimanjaro from Addis Ababa, Amsterdam, Arusha, Dar es Salaam, Doha, Entebbe, Frankfurt, Istanbul, Kigali, Mombasa, Mwanza, Nairobi, Zanzibar & Zurich.
Airlines flying to Kilimanjaro are Airkenya Express, Coastal Aviation, Condor, Edelweiss, Ethiopian Airlines, fastjet, Kenya Airways, KLM, Precision Air, Qatar Airways, Regional Air Services, RwandAir, Safarilink Aviation & Turkish Airlines.
There are usually taxis waiting outside the airport terminal when planes land. For those wanting to barter, this isn't easy with taxi drivers (expect to see a sign up, showing the price, which they will point to!). Ensure that you have US Dollars handy to pay them with.
There's not much at the airport itself, and usually travellers drive to Arusha or Moshi to spend their first night. Hotel options in Moshi include the Marangu Hotel and Parkview Inn. In Arusha accommodation options include The African Tulip, the Arusha Safari Lodge, Mount Meru Hotel, Rivertrees Country Inn, Hatari Lodge and Planet Lodge. Try and organise a hotel shuttle from the airport so that you don't have to fork out for taxi fares.
Self drive car hire is only recommended if you are familiar with the area. You can hire a car at Kilimanjaro Airport from Sixt Car Rental.
March April, May, October & November are the rainiest months.
The main thing which impacts on the timing for most visitors is whether they want to see the migration of the Wildebeest (or more accurately, what part of the migration they want to see, as the beasts are constantly moving about in a circular pattern). The wildebeest don't march to order, but generally they are crossing the Mara River in August and the Grumeti River in June - most people find the river crossing the most dramatic to watch.