How To Get (Getting) to Mount Kilimanjaro National Park

Flying to Kilimanjaro International Airport is the fastest, easiest and convenient way of getting/reaching  Kilimanjaro National Park, then followed by a 90 minute drive for a total distance of 75km. Mount Kilimanjaro National Park can also be accessed by road from Julius Nyerere International Airport just outside Dar es Salaam in 9 hours for a distance of 500km, and  about 48 hours, and from Arusha.

On the other hand, one can opt to fly into Nairobi’s Jomo Kenyatta International Airport in Kenya, then follow a 200 km drive southwards through Namanga border into Tanzania (only if you have a visa and genuine reason why you are traveling into the country).

Mount Kilimanjaro National Park

Getting to Kilimanjaro National Park by Air Flight

Kilimanjaro Airport in the south western part of the Mount Kilimanjaro National Park is the focal point where all flights from UK, US, Europe land , while other flights land in either Nairobi or Dar-es-Salaam, then later connect to Kilimanjaro International Airport.

Alternatively, affordable flights to Kilimanjaro International Airport can be acquired by first landing in Nairobi’s Jomo Kenyatta International Airport, then setting off aboard either Kenya Airways or Precision Air to JRO. Jomo Kenyatta International Airport offers cheap flights, because its near Mount Kilimanjaro, as well as more heavy air traffic, than Dar-es-salaam. Below is a list of direct flights to Kilimanjaro International Airport:

  • KLM direct flights from Amsterdam.
  • Condor Air has direct flights from Frankfurt.
  • Turkish Airlines direct flights from Istanbul
  • Kenya Airways & Precision Air direct flights from Nairobi
  • Qatar Airlines direct flights from Doha
  • Ethiopian Airlines direct flights from Addis Ababa
  • Rwanda Air direct flights from Kigali

Apart from Nairobi & Dar-es-Salaam, flights to the small Arusha Airport can also be scheduled, since it’s a major hub receiving internal flights plus those joining from/to Nairobi and Addis Ababa.

Other internal flights within Tanzania include: Precision Air, Fly540, Regional Air, Fast jet, Zan Air, Coastal Aviation, Air Excel

Apart from direct flights, Kilimanjaro International Airport does receive indirect flights UK or USA which doubles/overrides the price.

How to Get to Kilimanjaro National Park From Nairobi, Arusha & Dar Es Salaam

Mount Kilimanjaro can easily be accessed by road, thanks to the good tarmacked roads from all departures & return points of Nairobi, Arusha town, Dar-es-Salaam and Moshi.

From Nairobi, it takes about a 10 hours drive of Normal traffic to Mount Kilimanjaro National Park, for a total distance of 6 77km, whereas about 6-7 hours’ drive  for an estimated distance of 505km from Dar-es-Salaam and about 48 hours from Arusha with stop over breaks and one night sleep overnight enroute, not forgetting the 45 minutes’ drive from Moshi (where several trekkers sleep overnight) to the Park.

There are several bus and shuttle options offering road journeys, yet for a solo adventure seeking traveler would prefer a 4×4 rental safari jeep for a self-drive road trip from either Kenya or Tanzania.

How to get to Mount Kilimanjaro National Park from Nairobi

Upon landing in Nairobi for a night rest, then take either the morning or afternoon 6 hour connecting bus (at $25 or $30) through Namanga Border to Arusha only after acquiring a Kenya tourist Visa upon arrival at the Airport.

How to get to Mount Kilimanjaro National Park By Private means

One can also choose to hire a 4×4 rental jeep with all terrain tires from a reliable agency in Nairobi or Arusha like Self Drive Kenya and Self Drive Tanzania, whose price may be quite higher than public buses, but worth it, since you will be driving your own adventure.