Kilimanjaro Marangu day hike involves going up to the first camp Mandara hut (2,720m) and come back via the same route on the same day. There is a drive about 45km from Moshi town which will take 1 hour and 2 hours about 119km from Arusha. At Marangu gate you have to do some registrations and pay the park entrance fee to get a valid permit to start the hike. Marangu gate is 1,879m above sea level and the distance to Mandara hut is 8km (16 km round trip), which will take 3 to 4 hours for each direction.
On the way to from the Marangu gate to Mandara hut you will cross the rain forest, which is a dense forest, pure green with a lot of species of plants. If you are lucky, you can see Blue Monkeys, a black and white Colobus Monkeys.
It just takes 15 minutes’ walk from Mandara to Maundi Crater. This place offers a magnificent and stunning view of Kibo and Mawenzi peaks, a spectacular view of the Kenyan side, lake Chala and Jipe. During eruption the pressure was not enough to force magma to get out hence instead of rising up it formed a crater.
