Tipping on Kilimanjaro – summit Soul Safaris

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Kilimanjaro Tips

Tipping on Kilimanjaro

Apart from factoring in climbing expenses, travel fares, and miscellaneous expenses, climbers must also allocate funds for gratuities to the guides and porters. While tour operators claim that tips are discretionary, the livelihood of the crew significantly relies on them, sometimes constituting up to 50% of their earnings. In unfortunate instances with subpar companies that neglect to provide proper wages despite Tanzania National Park’s minimum wage regulations, tips might constitute the entire income of these workers, amounting to 100%! Hence, unless the service was exceptionally poor, tipping is strongly recommended. In nearly all cases, the crew has more than earned their gratuities and then some.

The tip amounts will vary depending on who you climb with, however, the typical amounts are:

Porters $5 per day per porter
Cooks $10 per cook
Assistant Guides $15 per guide
Kilimanjaro Guides $20 per day and up per guide
Safari Guides $20 per day and up per guide

This is the money they should receive from the entire climbing party. So, if you climbed the 7 day Machame, the guide receives 7x $20 = $140 from the entire climbing party. If your climbing party consisted of 4 people, each person should contribute $140/4 = $37 (for the guide’s tip). To get a good estimate of the total tips each client should expect to pay, you will need to know the number of porters, cooks, assistant guides and guides on your climb.

I have read that 10% of your climb’s cost is an adequate tip, but this really depends on a lot of variables. How many people are in your climbing party? How many days is your climb? How many personnel are accompanying you on the mountain? How much equipment/food are they carrying? This changes between companies, so therefore it is best to ask your operator what the tipping amounts are. It is smart to get these numbers before you book, so you can tally up the entire cost when you compare companies.

Tipping Kilimanjaro Porters

Tip directly to the porters, not the guides.
Bring a packet of 50 letter size envelopes to distribute the tip.
Determine a tip for each component of your climbing group: the porters, cooks, assistant guides, and the lead guide.
Distribute it on the final morning of the descent usually at Mweka Camp or the Park Gate.
Tip in either Tanzanian Shillings or US Dollars.

The average Tanzanian makes $40 per month. A $40 tip for difficult work for many days is a great wage and supports the local economy.

Certain countries are very willing to tip, such as people from the USA, where tipping is the norm. For other countries, where tipping is not typical, I cannot state enough how important the tips are to these young men who support the climb. Please do not withhold a tip from them for the simple reason that you are not used to tipping.

Sample Kilimanjaro Itineraries

4 Days Mount Meru Trekking

Mount meru stands tall at 4566m and is the second highest mountain in Tanzania. Mount Meru is located

3 Days Mount Meru Trekking

Mount meru stands tall at 4566m and is the second highest mountain in Tanzania. Mount Meru is located

9 Days Kilimanjaro Northern Circuit Route

The Lemosho route is considered the most scenic trail on Kilimanjaro, granting panoramic vistas on various sides of

8 Days Kilimanjaro Lemosho Route

The Lemosho route is considered the most scenic trail on Kilimanjaro, granting panoramic vistas on various sides of

7 Days Kilimanjaro Lemosho Route

The Lemosho route is considered the most scenic trail on Kilimanjaro, granting panoramic vistas on various sides of

6 Days Kilimanjaro Umbwe Route

The Umbwe route is a short, steep and direct route. It is considered to be very difficult and

7 Days Kilimanjaro Rongai Route

The Rongai route is the only route that approaches Kilimanjaro from the north, close to the Kenyan border.

6 Days Kilimanjaro Rongai Route

The Rongai route is the only route that approaches Kilimanjaro from the north, close to the Kenyan border.

7 Days Kilimanjaro Machame Route

The Machame route, also referred to as the Whiskey route, is one of the most popular routes on

6 Days Kilimanjaro Machame Route

The Machame route, also referred to as the Whiskey route, is one of the most popular routes on

6 Days Kilimanjaro Marangu Route

The Marangu Route has been referred to as the ‘Coca Cola’ route and this has led potential climbers

5 Days Kilimanjaro Marangu Route

The Marangu Route has been referred to as the ‘Coca Cola’ route and this has led potential climbers