Why the Coca-Cola Route for Climbing Kilimanjaro Isn’t Always Recommended

On October 1, 2025, the National Day, I successfully completed the climb to the summit of Kilimanjaro via the 5-day Marangu (Coca-Cola) route [Shy R]

Objectively speaking, this route is not particularly recommended. Let’s start with the advantages: ① The entire journey stays in huts, which is much more comfortable; ② It’s a short time, and strong climbers can complete it in even 4 days.

Now for the points that are not recommended: ① The round trip follows the same path, so the diversity of scenery is less compared to other routes; ② The last day is too challenging: you have to start the summit push at 11 PM, with an elevation difference of 1 km over 4 km, which is very steep and almost requires using both hands and feet, at an average altitude of 5,000 meters, it really makes you vomit 😭
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Here’s a brief summary of my experience on the route:
Day 1
Around 1 PM, I hiked from the gate (1800m) to Mandara Hut (2700m), 10.

6km, through a tropical rainforest with tree shade, and saw many unique animals (monkeys/rock hyraxes), a very comfortable section.

Day 2
At 7:50 AM, I hiked from Mandara Hut (2700m) to Horombo Hut (3700m), 12.9km, where alpine meadows started to appear, and I could clearly see both Kilimanjaro and Mawezi peaks, the scenery was nice, but the dust was very heavy, and there was sleet near Horombo Hut, so I recommend bringing gaiters.

Day 3
At 7:50 AM, I hiked from Horombo Hut (3700m) to Kibo Hut (4700m), 11.15km, large patches of yellow-brown ground appeared, resembling the moon’s surface, the view became more open, and it was important to protect against the sun.
At 11:30 PM, I started the summit push from Kibo Hut (4700m), with the Milky Way overhead, and the path behind me dotted with headlamps like stars, it was quite magical.

Day 4
I reached Gilman’s Point around 5:30 AM, and Uhuru Peak around 7 AM for photos, then started descending the same way back around 7:30 AM, and returned to Kibo Hut by 10:30 AM. After a brief rest and lunch, I started the descent back to Horombo Hut at 12 PM, and stayed there for the night.
For the summit push, wear plenty of layers, I had 3 pairs of pants and 5 shirts and was still freezing at the top; make sure to apply sunscreen; this day was extremely tough, and I was in a state of excitement and daze.

Day 5
At 6 AM, I hiked down from Horombo Hut (3700m) to the gate (1800m), 21.16km, and received the certificate at 1:30 PM, ending the climbing trip 🚫 This day was also very tough! Such a long descent really wrecked my knees!
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Here’s a brief summary of the overall cost:
I actually booked a 5-day climb + 5-day safari package for $2900, so the climb would be half, or $1450.

The group tip for the climb was $102.5 per person, and I gave an additional $25 tip to one of the guides I particularly appreciated, making the total $1577.5. I’ll provide more details on the tips in the comments.